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"A pleasant vineyard,
sing of it!
I, the LORD, am its keeper;
every moment I water it.
Lest any one harm it,
I guard it night and day;
I have no wrath.
Would that I had thorns and thistles to battle!
I would set out against them,
I would burn them up together." -Is. 27:1-4
A. INTRODUCTION
B. HISTORICAL DATE AND AUTHOR
OF THE BOOK OF JOEL
C. LITERARY CONSIDERATIONS IN
THE BOOK OF JOEL
D. THEMES IN THE BOOK OF JOEL
E. OVERARCHING PERSPECTIVE OF
THE BOOK OF JOEL
THE BOOK OF JOEL
Joel 2: 3-5:
[v.3] Before them a fire
devours;
behind them a flame burns.
Before them the land is like the garden of Eden;
behind them a desolate wilderness.
nothing escapes them.
[v.4] Their appearance is as the
appearance of horses;
and like fast steeds they do run.
[v.5] Like the noise of chariots
on the tops of mountains, they do skip;
like the noise of a flame of fire devouring chaff,
like a strong army set in battle array (my translation).
A. INTRODUCTION
The Apostle Paul in his Epistle to Timothy tells us that all of the
Scriptures are inspired, or breathed out by God and are profitable for
teaching, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness so
that the Christian may be complete and thoroughly equipped for every good
work (2 Tim. 3:16,17). Earlier in his letter to Timothy, he had instructed
him to present himself as one approved by God, one who correctly handles
the word of truth (NIV). Both of these Scriptures are relevant to our task
of interpreting the texts before us in the Book of Joel. We must first know
that the Scriptures are indeed the very words of God and therefore there is
no part of Scripture that is irrelevant for the Church of Jesus Christ
today. The Scriptures are given so that all the covenant people who have
lived throughout God's unfolding redemptive-history, may assist in making
us complete as new creations in Christ and thoroughly equipped for the work
of loving God with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength; and our
neighbors as ourselves. Part of this single minded love and devotion to God
and neighbor is revealed in how much we love God and neighbor in our
attempts to interpret the Scriptures properly-to rightly divide (KJV), or
correctly handle the Word of Truth. This calls for prayer, sensitivity to
the text, and an absolute high regard for Scripture as inspired and
inerrant. We must approach the text not as skeptics, but as children
seeking to hear the loving instruction of our father (Mt. 11:25-27). Although these are the words of
Joel as author, they are ultimately the very words of God spoken through
his prophet to his people then, and to his people now.
As the Church on the verge of a
third millenium, we should heed the words of Paul as we begin the task of
understanding the words of the Prophet Joel. Our concern with the prophet's
message is not only in its historical context, but from the broader scope
of earlier redemptive history up to the writing of his prophecy, and from
the standpoint of saints living in the Last Days. In some respects, it is
more difficult for us to understand Joel in his historical context as an
ancient prophet who lived and was part of another cultural and historical
milieu. On the other hand, we have the benefit and privilege of those who
have the better words spoken by Christ and therefore we can interpret all
of the Scriptures Christologically (Luke 24:44-49). We must remember in
former times and in various ways, God spoke through the prophets; but in
these Last Days, he has spoken to us through the Son whom he loves (Heb.
1:1,2). How much more clearer and relevant should the message of Joel be to
us today who live in the time when the Kingdom of Christ has been historically inaugurated?
May we interpret the book of
Joel faithfully and prayerfully as we begin our study. If rightly handled
and interpreted, and prayerfully considered, then the LORD may be pleased
to teach, reprove, correct, and train us in all righteousness. So that his
Church will be thoroughly equipped for every good work in Christ. Our study
will begin considering the historical context and message of the Book of
Joel. We shall then broaden our perspective by looking back from that
historical perspective to the hub, or foundational Scriptures in the Law,
Prophets and the Writings in the Old Testament. Then we will look through
the interpretive lens that Christ has graciously given to us, the New
Testament. By considering the Book of Joel from these scopes, perhaps with
the help and application of God's Spirit, we can see clearly God's
redemptive landscape as it is progressively revealed in Christ. As we move
from the ancient horizon of redemptive history to the modern horizon or
context, may we be sensitive to hear the words of the prophet in light of
our great salvation in Christ.
John Calvin said that the chief
excellency of a Biblical commentator lies in lucid brevity (Biblical
Theology, Childs, 47). In this exegesis I have tried to take Calvin's
wisdom into consideration and to attempt to be as brief as possible. At the
same time, with the subsequent work of Geerhardus Vos, Brevard S. Childs,
and V. S. Poythress (Symphonic Theology), I have been concerned to be as
thorough with the Biblical material as possible without presumptuously
thinking that I have come to close to exhausting the text which is in our
purview. I have attempted to focus chiefly on the passages to be exegeted,
but with a consideration of the text within the scope of all of
redemptive-history which would help to bring additional clarity to the
particular text (Joel 2:3-5), and also to the Scripture as a whole. In an
effort for greater brevity, I have marginalized portions of my exegesis
which I have narrated, so as to not take away from the thrust and force of
the meaning in the passages in Joel. I have attempted to engage the reader
through my narrative with the broader meaning and perspective that I think
the Prophet Joel would have had, however, it is sufficient for someone who
is familiar with the Scriptures to merely note the reference to the
Biblical text and continue reading. In summary, I have tried to be both
clear and brief while at the same time considering the great depth of the
Biblical passages within the scope of redemptive-history.
Concerning my methodology, I
believe that while Old Testament theology is descriptive, I also believe
that it is to be prescriptive. In other words, I think that what the
Prophet Joel meant in its historical context is as important to what it
means to the people of God today in the wider, Christological scope. In
fact, you cannot know what the Prophet Joel meant without considering God's
revelation in Christ. I think that a Biblical Theology can and should be
done based on the whole of the Old and New Testaments, centered and focused
in Christ. My approach and methodology has been to see the unity of the two
Testaments because they should not be read independently without
considering the whole of God's revelation to his people. There are a number
of perspectives to be considered, a diversity to be appreciated in both
Testaments, but the one unifying revelation of God is found in Christ
alone. Therefore, I approach the Scriptures as the one and only revelation
of God, recognizing the canon of the Scriptures, the promises and the
fulfillment, the typological pointing forward in the Old Testament, in
order to ultimately and consummately derive the meaning of God's revelation
in Christ as the grand pinnacle of salvation history (heilsgeschicte) (Luke
24:44-49; Hebrews 1:1,2).
We shall begin by considering
the historical date and author of the Book of Joel. We will then proceed to
understand the various literary functions, themes and structure of this
book of blessings and curses. Then we
will engage in an exegesis of Joel 2:3-5 in order that the prophet's words
will ring with clarity as we hear in them the voice of God and as we strive
to obey his commandments as his covenant people. The movement in our study
will be from a close up of Joel's period to an ever-broadening wide screen
presentation of the events which the prophet Joel has given to us as the
very words of God. When Scripture is quoted throughout this paper, I have
used my own translations and often the Revised Version (1885) because of
its faithfulness to the text. Use of the New International Version will be
indicated by the insertion of (NIV). I have also written the Divine Name as
"LORD" (Jahweh) in distinction from "Lord" (Adonai) as
it appears in a modern translation of the Bible such as the New International
Version.
As a supplementary application, the
exegesis of Joel is submitted to the Church to further dialogue with
Dispensationalists (Historical and Progressive). The Dispensationalists
make a dichotomy between the "earthly" people of God, or Israel
and the "spiritual" people of God, the Church (Understanding,
Poythress, 22ff). While our brethren, the Dispensationalists have been
helpful in making distinctions between the diversity of epochs in
redemptive-history, often they have misunderstood the unity of God's people
in Christ (Rom. 9-11; Gal. 3:26-4:7; 6:16; Eph. 2:14-18). The Book of Joel,
particularly our study on the one covenant and the land that was promised,
will perhaps shed Christological light on the unity of the one people of God
made up of both Jews and Gentiles; all who all upon the name of the LORD
(Acts 2:22-38). My prayer is that this paper will appropriately shed light
on God's distinctive epochs or dispensations, while interpreting them in
light of the Christological revelation of the one people of God, the one
Kingdom of God, the one hope of salvation in Christ (Eph. 4:4-16). May the
people of God not presume upon God the way he has chosen to reveal himself
by relying on the Promises and Covenant of God without faith, nor by
expecting a Kingdom other than the one he has revealed. As we begin our
study of Joel 2:3-5 in light of the whole of redemptive-history, I think we
will learn how the one people of God are revealed by the one Christ.
B. HISTORICAL DATE AND AUTHOR OF THE BOOK
OF JOEL
Considering the date and author
of the Book of Joel, the interpreter searches in vain to find detailed
information from within the book itself. The opening superscription of the
book merely says: "The word of the LORD that came to Joel the son of
Pethnuel." Throughout the history of the Church varying scholars have
suggested different dates according to internal considerations from within
the text, or the comparison of themes within the book and the other
"twelve" or Latter Prophets (Minor Prophets in the Christian
Canon), and other canonical considerations. Some scholars have suggested a
preexilic date of the 9th century BC, during the reign of Joash of Judah ;
others have suggested a pre-Exilic date in the 6th century BC ; other
scholars have dated this book in the post-Exilic period ; while some
scholars have dated it as one of the last prophetic books written .
The author is a person named Joel
("The LORD is God"), son of Pethuel [laeWtP.-!B, laeAy], and
scholars have suggested that if the book should be dated in the 9th
century, then Joel was probably a temple prophet of the cult in Jerusalem.
The arguments for each date and the person of the author are helpful, but
the most important consideration of the book is its message, particularly the
internal themes within the book itself . This is the important message of
God to his people in a particular time of redemptive history. Apart from
the concerns of a specific date, we know that Joel was a prophet who lived
after the time of David and prior to the coming of Jesus Christ and the
writing of the New Testament. More broadly, or eschatologically considered,
the Book of Joel is located on the redemptive-historical landscape between
God's creation of the earth and his progressive fulfillment of making a new
creation. The themes and message of the book are sufficient to teach us
about the particular passages (Joel 2:3-5) to be considered in light of
God's redemptive history.
When considering the epoch in which Joel
prophesied, it should be remembered that Joel is known as a Latter Prophet
in the Hebrew canon. In redemptive-history, the prophet Joel is an heir and
interpreter of a progressive prophetic tradition. The prophet Moses is the
fountainhead as covenant mediator and intercessor: "And by a prophet
the LORD brought Israel up out of Egypt, and by a prophet was he
preserved." (Hos. 12:13; cf. Ex. 32:1-34; Num. 14:13-35; cf. John
1:14-18; 21:25; Heb. 3:1-6) (Interpreting, VanGemeren, 37). The prophet
Samuel bridges the epoch between Moses and Joshua to David and Solomon.
Elijah is closely connected to the Prophet Joel as the first "covenant
prosecutor". Elijah shaped the course of the Latter Prophets and
marked the end of one redemptive-historical era. One era was characterized
by divine patience and the other was the beginning of an era characterized
by divine purification of his people. Unlike Moses who interceded on behalf
of Israel (Ex. 31-34), Elijah accused God's people of infidelity. The days
of God's patience were drawing to an end, and a new era was coming. Elijah
and the Prophet Joel had prophetic ministries who charged God's people with
breaking the covenant and pronounced God's judgment on them (1 Kings 18:21;
cf. Joel 1-2; Micah 3:1-3; 4:-6) (Interpreting, VanGemeren, 37).
C. LITERARY CONSIDERATIONS IN THE BOOK OF JOEL
The progression of God's revelation flourishes like a vine throughout
history. The historical context and cultural milieu of Joel's prophecy must
be considered, precisely because it is a particular branch that is growing
upon this vine (cf. Is. 5:1-7). Part of this consideration is to understand
literary devices that were used in Hebrew prophetic and poetic books of the
Bible. Considering the content (prophecy) as well as the form (structure of
the prophecy) can be a complimentary exegetical exercise to aid in the
interpretation of the passage. In the Book of Joel, there are literary
considerations to recognize in order to interpret Joel's message. Three
main characteristics of Hebrew prophetic literature or poetry are imagery,
parallelism, and terseness (Ryken, Longman 86). There are elements of all
three in the Book of Joel. In the verses to be considered in chapter two
verses 3-5, consider the following example from each of the verses. Joel
2:3 says:
[A] Before them a fire devours;
[B] behind them a flame burns.
[A1] Before them the land is like the garden of Eden;
[B1] behind them a desolate wilderness.
[Cpt] Nothing shall escape them.
In the first two cola (Hebrew lines),
literary parallelism is noticed. The structure shows the author's concern
for not only the content of his message, but the importance of his form to
communicate the content. James Kugel has described Hebrew parallelism as
"A, what's more B" and is found in many of the Psalms. C. S.
Lewis has described parallelism as "saying the same thing twice in
different words; the second part nuances the first part in some way"
(Ryken, Longman 83).
Line A- [Before them a fire devours;]
Line B- [behind them a flame burns.]
Line A1- [Before them the land is like the garden of Eden;]
Line B1- [behind them a desolate wilderness.]
The main thought of the Prophet Joel in these verses is that the powerful
army that is coming is all-consuming both before and behind them. He begins
lines A and A1 with the Hebrew phrase "before them"
[wyn"p'l], then lines B and B1 begins with "behind them"
[wyr'x]a;w]. Not only does this structure give the text
"movement" to describe the army that is coming, but it makes it
plain that the imminent destruction at the hand of the LORD is
comprehensive and devastating. The parallelism and the propositional
relation of the words in this verse should be interpreted this way:
Line A- "Before this great and
powerful army (v.2) a fire devours."
Line B- "What's more, behind them a flame burns."
Line A1- "Before this great and powerful army's destruction, the land
is beautiful as the Garden of Eden."
Line B1- "What's more, after their movement through the land, it is
like a desolate wilderness."
Cpt- "As a result, nothing shall escape them."
The final phrase of v. 3 is the
complimentary phrase "nothing shall escape them" to additionally
add to the meaning that not only is the army's destruction comprehensive,
but nothing shall escape their movement through the land- - nothing shall
be saved.
In verse 4 and 5, there is an example of Hebrew imagery used in prophetic
and poetic literature. The Prophet Joel used imagery to stimulate the
imagination by embodying multiple meanings in a concise form. This triggers
thinking, but also an emotional response from the people to whom Joel
preached (Ryken, Longman 83).
[v.4] Their appearance is like the appearance of horses;
and like fast steeds they do run.
[v.5] Like the noise of chariots on the tops of mountains, they do skip;
like the noise of a flame of fire devouring chaff,
like a strong army set in battle array.
The Prophet Joel describes their
appearance in verse 4 "as the appearance of horses." Then he says
"what's more, like fast steeds they do run." In verse 5 he says,
"like the noise of chariots, on the mountain tops they do skip; what's
more, like the noise of a flame of fire…like a strong army prepared
in battle gear." This parallelism using descriptive imagery of the
times is effective to show the devastating horror that is expected,
anticipating the mighty army that is coming into Israel as the LORD's
judgment. The imagery is noticed by the way the Hebrew is written with the
"like/ as" contrast, much like the "before/ behind"
contrast in verse 3. For example, verse four begins literally "like
the appearance of horses, is their appearance [haer>m;K]; what's more,
like fast steeds [~yvir'p'k.W] they do run." In verse 5, the prophet
uses the same contrast-structure to further describe the army. "Like
the noise of chariots…[tAbK'r>m lAqK]; what's more, like the noise
of a flame of fire burning chaff [bh;l; lAqK]; what's more, like a strong
army (people) prepared for battle [bh;l; lAqK].
Immediately, the structure and form
should help to interpret the serious message which the Prophet Joel read to
the people of Israel. The important literary devices used by Joel give a
powerful and emotional movement to the text as it was understood by the
people of Israel. Consider the propositional relations of the lines in
verses 1-5 to understand and feel the message of the prophet in its context
with a paraphrase of the verses:
[v.1] "Blow a trumpet in Zion!
what's more, sound an alarm in my holy mountain of Jerusalem.
Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble;
Why? Because the Day of the LORD comes;
what's more, it is near."
[v.2] "What kind of day will the Day
of the LORD be like?
A day of darkness and gloominess,
a day of clouds and thick darkness;
what's more as the dawn spread upon the mountains.
Why? Because a great and strong people are coming;
what's more, there has never been any people like them,
neither shall there be any more after them,
for many generations to come."
[v.3] "What are the people on the
Day of the LORD like?
Before them, a fire devours;
what's more, behind them a flame burns.
Before them, the land is as the Garden of Eden;
what's more, behind them the land is a desolate wilderness.
As a result, nothing shall escape them."
[v.4] "Like the appearance of horses
is their appearance;
what's more, like fast steeds they run."
[v.5] "Like the noise of chariots on
the tops of mountains they skip;
what's more, like the noise of a flame of fire devouring stubble.
In addition, they are like a strong people (army) prepared for
battle."
The context of the Book of Joel took place after a historical locust plague
had devastated the land. Joel uses the imagery of the great devastation of
locusts to warn the people (Joel addresses the people as "Judah,"
"Jerusalem," and "Israel," 2:27; 3:16) and to describe
"the army of the Lord" who is coming upon Israel, which will be
God's hand of judgment. The "army of the Lord" could be
understood as a literal army or as archetypal language in Joel's use of the
locust plague to describe the future (cf. Joel 1:4; 2:2,5,11,25).
Regardless of whether the use of "army" is a figurative or a real
army, the LORD sent the devastation as a judgment for covenant
disobedience, and God was "head of his army", Joel 2:11,25 (the
army is also referred to as a "nation", Joel 1:6 [yAgi]). This is
language and imagery used in apocalyptic literature. One of the main
characteristics of apocalyptic literature is "symbolism" which is
found in much of the prophetic literature of the Old Testament. The use of
apocalyptic language in prophecy concerning eschatology, is to draw a sharp
contrast between the characteristics of Joel's age with the age that is to
come (cf. Zeph. 1:2; 3:9-20) (Ladd, 153). The language of Joel's locusts
and the army which is to come, could be understood as an
"epiphor," a characteristic of metaphor which is a transference
or movement from something well-known (locust plague/ army of the LORD) to
something lesser known (the Day of God's judgment) (Ricoeur, 9-43). Joel
warns the people of Israel as the covenant prosecutor (VanGemeren 42ff), of
the coming devastation upon the land and pleads with the people to
"return to their God" so that God may be gracious and restore the
land from its devastation.
The apocalyptic language of the locusts
and the army of the LORD's judgment against the land, ultimately is God's
accommodation to teach his people the consequences of breaking his
covenant, sinful, cosmic rebellion against their King, and the results of a
true and contrite repentance (a "turning back" to God) [bwv-
v.12], that will restore God's blessings on the people and the land (P.
51:6,16,17; cf. Is. 57:15; 65:2-7). The graciousness and patience of God
toward his people is a dominant theme throughout the whole of Scripture and
particularly in these prophetic utterances (cf. Hos. 6:1; 12:6; 14:1; Joel
2:12; Zech. 1:3; 10:9; 2 Peter 3:9).
The Book of Joel uses similar imagery and
metaphors as found in the other books of the Minor Prophets, particularly
the Book of Amos: (e.g. Fire [va]- Amos 1:10-14; 2:5; 7:4; Locusts
[~z"G"h / hB,r>a;h]- 4:10; 7:1-3; Call for repentance
[Wbv]-5:4,6,14-17; Day of the LORD [bArq' yKi hw"hy>-~Ay ab]- Amos
4:12,13; 5:4-20; 8:9-11; Restoration [yTim.L;v]-9:11-15). There are also
several verbal parallels in Joel's prophecy that are used in other prophetic
literature: (1:15; cf. Ezek. 30:2ff; Is. 13:6; 2:2; Zeph. 1:15; 2:3;
reverses Is. 51:3; Ezek. 36:35; 2:6; cf. Nahum 2:10; 2:28; cf. Ezek. 39:29;
2:32; cf. Ob. 17; 3:18; cf. Amos 9:13). These literary forms shall be
considered further at length in order to carefully attend to and interpret
the message of Joel's prophecy.
D. THEMES IN THE BOOK OF JOEL
The central message or
overarching theme of the Book of Joel is the Day of the LORD - the Day of
the LORD's righteous judgment is near-- and the need of repentance from the
people (Joel 1:15; 2:1,11,15,31; 3:14; cf. Ez. 30:2,3; Is. 13:6). The Day
of the LORD is an "archetype" or "recurring image"
(Frye, 99) of literary elements in different books and in various
redemptive-historical contexts of Scripture. Odendaal says that "every
historical coming of this day [the Day of the LORD] is always a type and
promise of its final coming and forms an intrusion of the consummation
(Interpreting, VanGemeren, 45). Underlying the central message of the Day
of the LORD in the Book of Joel are several important themes. The thematic
content of the Book of Joel is needful as an introductory, internal
overview to set the scene of the book and the specific location of the
verses to be considered in Joel's prophecy (2:3-5). This internal overview
will provide a proper context for the verses in Joel's great prophetic
drama, like the consideration of particular acts in the whole of a play;
like one historical event in light of all of God's historical deeds; like
the consideration of a chapter in light of the whole epic.
The book begins with the historical
occasion of the land of Israel being devastated by a great plague of
locusts (1:2-10). The prophet Joel "with the word of the LORD"
(1:1), says "hear this" [tazO-W[m.v] and "take account
of" [WrPes] God's judgment (cf. Hos. 6:5-7). The prophet consecutively
uses the imperative form of the verb at the beginning of his prophecy to
emphasize to the people the seriousness of the word of the LORD:
"Awake" [Wcyqih]; "Cry" [Wkb.W]; "Wail"
[Wlliyhew]; "Lament" [ylia]; "Be Ashamed" [Wvybih];
"Howl" [Wlyliyh]; "Gird yourselves" [Wrg>x];
"Consecrate a fast" [~Ac-WvD>q]; "Call a sacred
assembly" [hr'c'[] War>q]; "Gather the elders"
[~ynIqez> Wps.a]; Cry out to the LORD" [hw"hy>-la,
Wq[]z:w], in response to God's judgment upon the land (1:5,8,10,13,14).
This prophecy is directed to all the people of the land: to the young and
the old (1:3), the common people (drunkards, virgins, vinedressers or
farmers, 1:5,8,11), and the priests of Israel (1:11-14). The reason why the
people must repent in light of the devastation of the covenantal land is
that the Day of the LORD is at hand; a day of destruction and wrath. The
prophet Joel says, "Alas, for the Day, because the Day of the LORD is
near" [hw"hy> ~Ay bArq' yKi ~AYl; Hh'a], with the same
language of "alas!" found in Isaiah 13:6 and Ezekiel 30:2ff
(1:15-18; cf. other Minor Prophets: Amos 3:14; 5:20; Obadiah 15; Zeph.
1:14; Zech. 14:1). In verses, 1:19-20, the prophet Joel laments on behalf
of the people when he says: "O LORD, to thee do I cry: for the fire
hath devoured the pastures of the wilderness, and the flame hath burned all
the trees of the field. Yea, the beasts of the field pant unto thee: for
the water brooks are dried up, and the fire hath devoured the pastures of
the wilderness," (all the inhabitants of the land, including the
animals experience the anguish of God's judgment).
At the beginning of chapter two, Joel
proclaims and warns the people of God's wrath to come in the Day of the
LORD using apocalyptic imagery of the devastation of locusts. The prophet
Joel is telling the people "if you thought the locust plague was
comprehensively devastating (1:4,16,17), how much greater will be the
comprehensive wrath and devastation of God's justice that is to come; if
you thought the devastation of the land was great, how much greater will be
the eschatological and devastating wrath of God upon the people of the
land, and the entire creation" (2:1-11; specifically 2:10; cf. 2:30,
31; 3:15,16). The army of the Lord is the imagery that Joel uses to
describe this wrath to come-the Day of the LORD (2:3-5). This army is like
the locusts that have devastated the land, but the devastation will be
greater when the army changes the land from an Edenic garden to a desolate
wilderness (2:3).
In the latter half of chapter two, Joel
calls the people to repentance (2:12-17: From infants and children, to the
elders (2:16); from those to be wed, even to the priests 2:16,17). A
central verse within the Book of Joel, which should be recognized as the
turning point of the prophecy, is the LORD's call for a "return to the
LORD your God" [yd;[' Wbv -"Return to me"], which is
exceedingly common in Old Testament prophetic literature (Is. 55:7 [hw"hy>-la,
bvoy"w]]]]; cf. Is. 44:22 [yl;ae hb'Wv]; Jer. 3:12 [laer'f.yI hb'vum.
hb'Wv]; 18:11 [an" WbWv]; Ezek. 33:11 [WbWv WbWv]; Hosea 14:1
[hw"hy> d[; laer'f.yI hb'Wv]). The prophet Joel says in 2:13,
"Rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the LORD your
God: for he is gracious and full of compassion, slow to anger, and
plenteous in mercy, and repenteth him of the evil"; ("and he
relents from sending calamity," NIV). If the people will repent of
their sins ("turn" from their sins to the LORD), the gracious God
of the covenant people, promises to refresh the devastated land, return the
covenantal blessings to his people, and even to the animals of the land.
Ultimately, God promises to restore all creation as before the plagues
(2:19-27; cf. Romans 8: 19-22).
The prophecy of Joel concludes with great
promises. God will save his people: He will pour out his Spirit upon all
flesh (2:28); whoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered
(2:32); He will gather the remnant, those the LORD has called (2:32b); He
will subdue the nations and separate them from his people, permanently
sending them out of the land (3:4-15); The LORD will be the ultimate and
permanent refuge of his people (3:16; cf. Ps. 23:6b); He will bring
restoration to the land and the people of the land, and the LORD will dwell
with his people permanently in Zion (3:17-21). These are great promises and
truths that this prophecy communicates in Scripture for all of God's people
and his creation: "The LORD dwells in Zion" (Joel 3:21b).
A summary outline of the Book of Joel
(using the Christian canon as a division into three chapters; the Hebrew
Masoretic Text has four chapters): (1) Superscription/ Introduction to the
book (1:1); (2) Plague on the land/ Mourning for sins (1:2-12); (3) Joel's
call of repentance to God's people (1:13-18); (4) Joel's lament to God for
his people (1:19-20); (4) The greater and more destructive Day of the Lord
as warrior of his wrathful army (2:1-11); (5) God as merciful judge of his
people (2:12-17); (6) God's response to his people's repentance/ God's
refreshing of the land (2:18-27); (7) The eschatological day of God's
judgment and the salvation of his people (2:28-32); (8) God's judgment of
the wicked/ Separation of the wicked from the land (3:1-16a); (9) God's
dwelling with his people in the land permanently (3:16b-21).
Having considered the internal context of
the Book of Joel, the next focus should be on the structure or overarching
perspective of the prophecy. There are many facets or perspectives for
approaching this book, but the overarching, redemptive-historical structure
is God's covenant people intimately related to the covenant promise of the
land (Gen. 1:26,27; 2:7; cf. Gen. 3:17-19; Gen. 12:1; 15:7; cf. Dt. 9:6;
28:45-48,63; Josh. 1:13; Is. 14:1; Jer. 16:15; Ezek. 28:25; Amos 9:15).
E. OVERARCHING PERSPECTIVE OF THE BOOK
OF JOEL
The overall redemptive-historical
structure of the Book of Joel, and of the particular verses to be
considered (2:3-5) is founded upon the covenantal land and what is to be
expected on the Day of the LORD. The land's fruitfulness or barrenness are
the direct results of the inhabitant's (God's covenant inhabitants)
obedience or disobedience to God's covenant. For example, the prophecy of
Joel begins with the land being cursed because the people of God have
broken his covenant (God has sent pestilence and plague because of
disobedience- 1:4; cf. Dt. 28:15-68, particularly vss.
18,24,30b,33,38,39,40,42,48; Gen. 17-19). The land in Joel's prophecy is
given human qualities as it reacts to God's judgment. The reaction of the
land is described when the prophet says, "the land mourns" (1:10
[hm'd'a] hl'b.a] cf. Hos.4:3); the beasts groan (or pant) (1:18 [hm'heb.
hx'n>a,N<-hm] cf. Job 38:41; Ps.104:21; Rom. 8:20-22); "the
earth quakes and the heavens tremble" (the whole creation reacts! The
sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw from shining- 2:10b;
3:15; cf. Is. 13:10; 34:4). Because of the LORD's jealousy for his land
(1:6 [ycir>a;-l[]) and his pity for the inhabitants of the land, the
LORD withholds his judgment (2:18-24). In his grace, God refreshes the land
(God refreshes his people and creation- 2:19-22), and restores the land to
its Edenic beauty (2:25-27; cf. Joel 2:3; also see Gen. 1:1,11,12,31; 2:15).
The Book of Joel ends with great eschatological promises and blessings.
Concerning the land, God will drive the wicked out (3:2-8), and he will
dwell in the land with his people eternally (3:17-21). These great promises
and blessings will happen on the Day of the LORD. On the Day of the LORD,
there will be both blessings and curses; covenantal blessings for God's
people, and curses of wrathful judgment for the wicked (Blessings: Is.
35:8-10; Obad. 19-21; Zeph. 3:18-20; Zech. 14:10,11; curses: Is. 10:3;
63:4-6; Jer. 51:2; Ezek. 7:7; Hos. 1:9; Joel 2:2; Zeph. 2:2).
To summarize the overarching structure of
the Book of Joel: Covenant Land Rebuked (Creation Cursed) à Covenant Land
Reacts (Creation Cries) à Covenant Land Repents (Creation Corrects) à Covenant
Land Refreshed (Creation Cleaned) à Covenant Land Restored (Creation
Consummated).
Having considered the Book of Joel in terms of the date and author, the
central themes, and the overarching perspective or structure, the next and
most important consideration is the specific passages, located in Joel
2:3-5. Having considered the basic content, form and thematic structure, it
is necessary to consider these passages not merely from the internal
context of the Book of Joel, but within the wider context of redemptive
history; to view the flourishing growth of the vine as it has progressively
been revealed up to the time of the Prophet Joel.
I. HISTORY OF GOD'S REDEMPTION TO THE
PROPHET JOEL
A. JOEL'S MESSAGE TO THE PEOPLE OF THE
LAND OF ISRAEL
B. LOCUSTS ON THE LAND
C. LOCUSTS ON THE LAND OF EGYPT: JOEL'S EXODUS LAND-REVERSAL MOTIF
D. A FIRE DEVOURS BEFORE THEM; AFTER THEM A FLAME BURNS UPON THE LAND
E. THE LAND IS LIKE THE GARDEN OF EDEN BEFORE THEM: JOEL'S CREATION AND
EXODUS REVERSALS
II. THE APPEARANCE OF THE STRONG ARMY
UPON THE LAND
A. THE THEOPHANIC INVASION OF THE LORD
UPON THE LAND
III. THE BOOK OF JOEL IN CHRIST
A. THE KINGDOM OF GOD IS AT HAND IN THE
LAND
B. THE CHRISTOLOGICAL DAY OF THE LORD IN THE LAND
C. THE WICKED IN THE LAND ON THE DAY OF THE LORD
D. THE RIGHTEOUS IN THE LAND ON THE DAY OF THE LORD
E. RESTING AND AT EASE IN THE LAND OF ZION
EXEGESIS: JOEL 2:3-5
I. THE HISTORY OF GOD'S REDEMPTION TO
THE PROPHET JOEL
A. JOEL'S MESSAGE TO THE PEOPLE OF THE
LAND OF ISRAEL
Things looked exceedingly bleak and hopeless for the people of Israel. Not
only had locusts devoured their crops, but greater trouble and anguish
awaited them on the horizon. With their fields laid bare, the people of
Israel looked to the Prophet Joel for answers to explain this recent
devastating event. How could the covenant people be without the plentiful
provision which the LORD had promised them according to the Deuteronomic
blessings? Had the God who surrounded Jerusalem as the mountains (Ps. 125),
forgotten his promise to Abraham and his descendants? The prophet Joel did
not have encouraging news. Instead, he confronted them with a message of
devastating calamity. Based upon the recent event of the locust plague that
had materially and psychologically devastated the people and the land, the
heart of the burning prophet interpreted this event as convicting evidence
that the Day of the LORD was near.
The people of Israel were dwelling at
ease in Zion (cf. Amos 6:1-3). They should have heeded the words of Moses
and rested under the shelter of the Almighty, their covenantal God (Ps.
91). Israel thought that since they were the covenant people, they ought to
be receiving covenantal blessings upon their land (Dt. 28). The land was
promised to the Patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and to their
descendants (Gen. 12:7; 13:15; 15:18-21; 17:8, to Abraham; Gen. 26:3, to
Isaac; Gen.. 28:4,13; 35:12; 48:4, to Jacob) (Progress, VanGemeren 105).
God was going to come and set up his earthly kingdom and overthrow the
nations because they were the covenantal people. Despite Israel's misguided
hopes they had disregarded the stipulations and demands of the covenant.
The people and the priests gathered to hear the prophet Joel tell the word
of the LORD-they expected to receive hope in his words-instead, they are
warned of a judgment to come on covenant-breaking Israel. This judgment is
to be followed by a time of refreshing and restoration for the land and the
people, but first the judgment was going to come.
Rather than hearing words of comfort from
the Prophet Joel, God's covenantal prosecutor reads to them their sentence
of condemnation and guiltiness as a disobedient people. Only God can
intervene and bring his people back to himself. As the prophecy of Joel
unfolds, the Sovereign God of hope, whose anger lasts shortly, must first
come and separate true Israel from those shrugging his commandments and
those who hate the path of righteousness. Then God's favor will rest on his
people eternally, as he dwells with them in the land of Zion. The aim of
Israel's covenantal God was twofold: to preserve the true Israel, his
people the remnant, and to separate the wicked from the land. This was to
be a trial and a persecution by fire that would cleanse Israel from her
impurities and burn away the dross of those who did not know the LORD. On
that day, the prophet comes before the assembly. The crowd's noise before
the prophet turns from an uproar of gathered people to a silence as the
prophet lifts his eyes up, and reads an oracle of judgment from his scroll.
"Hear this!"… "Listen!"
"Blow the trumpet in Zion, and sound
an alarm upon my holy mountain [yvid>q' rh;B. W[yrIh'w> !AYciB. rp'Av
W[q.T] ; let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the
LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand…" (2:1). The blowing of the
trumpet in Biblical literature is to sound an apocalyptic wake up call from
spiritual slumber and disobedience, to announce woes, or a great event to
the people (Ex. 19:13; Numbers 10:1-10), particularly the coming day of the
LORD (Ps. 81:3; cf. Is. 27:13; Ezek. 7:14; Hosea 5:8; Zeph. 1:16; Zech.
9:14). The Israelites also would have associated the trumpet blast on the
infamous day in their history, when Moses their mediator met God face to
face to bring the Law of God to the people (Ex. 19:19) [lAqb. WNn<[]y:
~yhil{a/h'w> rBed;y> hv,mo daom. qzEx'w> %leAh rp'AVh; lAq
yhiy>w]; (Ex. 19:16) [daom. qz"x' rp'vo lqow].
In Joel's time, guards on wall-towers
would blow the ram's horn to alert the people of an enemy attack (cf. Ezek.
33:2-4; Amos 3:6) (Allen, 67). The prophet says, "Hear this":
"Blow the trumpet in Zion; sound the alarm on my holy mountain!"
(Hos. 5:8; 8:1; Zeph. 1:16; Zech. 9:14). The prophet then describes the day
of the LORD that is close at hand with very somber and sobering theophanic
language as "a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and
thick darkness…"(2:2; cf. Amos 5:8; 8:9; Micah 2:6; Zeph. 1:15;
cf. with Mt. Sinai imagery, Ex. 19:16-19). The prophet Zephaniah describes
the Day of the LORD with a similar theophany: "The great Day of the
LORD is near, it is near and hasteth greatly, even the voice of the day of
the LORD; the mighty man crieth there bitterly. That day is a day of wrath,
a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of
darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness. A day of the
trumpet and alarm, against the fenced cities, and against the
battlements" (Zeph. 1:14-16).
B. LOCUSTS UPON THE LAND OF ISRAEL
Prior to this portion of the text, Joel had spoken of the devastating
destruction of the ravenous locusts upon the land as all-encompassing and
comprehensive: "that which the palmerworm ("locust swarm,"
NIV) hath left the locust ("great locusts," NIV) eaten; and that
which the locust ("great locusts," NIV) hath left the cankerworm
("young locusts," NIV) eaten; and that which the cankerworm
("young locusts," NIV) hath left hath the caterpillar
("other locusts," NIV) eaten" (1:4). This
"soundplay" as a Hebrew literary device highlights and emphasizes
Joel's description of the locusts; from the least to the greatest of the
locusts their destruction has been comprehensive upon the land (cf. Is.
24:17-18a; Amos 5:5). After the locust devastation, there is not so much as
a green sprout of life; the destruction of the locusts was so great upon
the land that even the slightest potential of a plant to thrive had been
eliminated by the swarm. The locusts in Biblical times and even to the
present day have been regarded as an ultimate threat to any land, bringing
the failure of crops, destroying the richness of the soil, and the causing
of famine in an agrarian society. Locusts are voracious at all three stages
of their development-a larval stage in which wingless locusts hop like
fleas, a pupal stage in which the wings are encased in a sack and the
locusts walk like ordinary insects, and the adult stage in which they fly
(Ryken, Wilhoit, Longman; 516).
The prophet Joel as covenant prosecutor
uses the destruction of the locusts as metaphorical imagery to describe the
greater destruction to come: "a great and strong people the likes of
which neither the past or future will ever see" (2:2b [~Wc['w> br;
~[]). Although Joel does not make clear whether the "strong
people," or army of the LORD to come is figurative or literal (see
above sec. I.C), the important point of his imagery was for the people to
anticipate and grasp the great and awesome hand of God's judgment, because
the people had broken God's covenant (2:2-11).
Joel gives details of this great and
strong army of the LORD's judgment which is to come. He describes the great
and strong people as being all-encompassing and comprehensive, voracious in
their destruction, just as the locusts: "A fire dovoureth before them;
and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before
them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and none hath escaped
them" (2:3; cf. Nahum 3:15-17). If the people wept and cried out to
God because of the locusts who devoured the land (earthly famine, or
earthly need), how much more should they weep, cry out, and fear the coming
of God's judgement in this great and strong people who will make Zion like
the wilderness (spirtual famine, or spiritual need, cf. Amos 8:11,12).
Concerning the land, this should be understood as the inauguration of the
eschatological justice of God in his wrath. The prophet Joel, as the Divine
Covenant Prosecutor, describes the inauguration of God's wrath upon the
land and his people as a prophetic plea for repentance. Not only is there a
warning from God in Joel's prophetic utterances, but a demonstration of
God's gracious and patience character toward his sinful creatures (Joel
2:12-14; cf. Ex. 34:6,7). Joel's prophetic utterances not only reminded the
people of God's covenant, but stimulated their affections, raising them to
see God as a merciful judge who uses chastisement toward the goal of
bringing his people back into fellowship with him and perfecting them in
his sight. The LORD had solemnly declared to the Israelites, prior to their
entering Zion, the importance of observing God's commandments and keeping
his covenant:
I call heaven and earth as witnesses
today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and
cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendents may
life; that you may love the LORD your God, that you may obey his voice, and
that you may cling to him, for he is your life and the length of your days;
and that you may dwell in the land which the LORD swore to your fathers, to
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give them (italics mine) (Dt. 30:19,20;
31:17-18,29; cf. Hos. 10:10; Mic. 2:12).
The LORD had told the Israelites of the
locusts that were to come as a result of covenant disobedience:
"[Because of covenant disobedience] I will heap disasters on them; I
will spend my arrows on them. They shall be wasted with hunger, devoured by
pestilence and bitter destruction…" (Dt. 32:23,24) (NIV).
C. THE PLAGUE ON THE LAND OF EGYPT:
JOEL'S EXODUS LAND-REVERSAL
All of Scripture is for teaching and instructing, to lead us to a better
understanding of God, but in addition, the priority of the prophets was to
explain the significance of redemptive-historical events for the people of
God. The purpose of Joel's prophecy is historical, but also prophetic; he
interprets the past redemptive-historical events to the people of his time,
but he also points ahead to the further unfolding of God's progressive
revelation. The prophet Joel, when speaking of locusts would have
remembered the Exodus of the Israelites from Egypt. The Exodus was the
central, great redemptive-historical event for the people of God, because
God had delivered them from four hundred years of bondage and brought them
into the land he promised to Abraham (Gen. 15:7); the Exodus was the
foretaste, the first-fruits of God's covenantal blessings upon his people.
The prophet Joel, by the word of the LORD, interprets the Book of Exodus
for the people, to reveal God's clear message of the destruction to come
and the need for repentance. Although the importance of the covenant land
will be discussed more in detail, at this point of the exegesis it is
important to emphasize the Pentateuch, and particularly the Books of Exodus
and Deuteronomy as the foundation for Joel's prophetic prosecution to the
people. Consider the following Scriptures to understand what God had
revealed to his people concerning the land he was to give them, and the
covenant he had made with them which they were commanded to observe:
Exodus- 2:24; 3:8,17; 5:1; 6:2-8; 7:17; 8:25; 9:26; 12:25; 15:16,17; 19:12;
23:20,27-33; 32:13,14; 33:1-3; 34:10-27/ Deuteronomy- 1:8,23-25,35-38;
2:1-3:29; 4:1,5,22,26,32-40,47-49; 5:32,33; 6:3,10-15, 20-25; 7-9; 10:11;
11:8-32; 12:8-12,28-32; 19:1-3; 26:1-3; 28; 29:1,23-29; 30:1-10,19,20;
31:16-29; 32:8-12,43,52; 34:4.
At the end of the book of Genesis, the
children of Israel are in the land of Egypt because there was a famine in
the land. Many years passed and "God remembered the covenant he made
with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and he purposed to deliver them from bondage
in Egypt by the hand of Moses (Ex. 2:24,25; 6:3-5; cf. Gen. 12:3).
God calls Moses and his brother Aaron and
tells them to go to Pharaoh and tell him to let the Israelites go in order
that they may hold a feast unto God in the wilderness (Ex. 5:1). Pharaoh is
fully determined not to let the Israelite slaves go and he increases their
workload (Ex. 5:2-11). Moses returns to God and asks him to tell him what
he should do. The LORD says to Moses that he will punish Pharaoh and his
people and that Moses will go to pharaoh as a god and Aaron as prophet to
demand the immediate release of the Israelites (Ex. 7:2).
The LORD says he will multiply his signs
and wonders in the land of Egypt but Pharaoh will not listen. Therefore,
God would bring his people out of Egypt by great judgments (Ex. 7:4).
Pharaoh was fully determined not to allow the Israelites to be released
from slavery because his heart was hardened and he did not listen to the
words of God (Ex. 7:13). Therefore, God sent plagues on the land of Egypt
in order that Pharaoh would eventually give in and allow God's people to be
released. God turned the Nile to blood; He sent frogs to overrun the
borders of the land; He sent lice upon the land; He sent swarms of flies into
Pharaoh's house and upon the land; He sent death to
Pharaoh's cattle in the land of Egypt,
but Pharaoh continued to harden his heart.
Then God sent thunder, fire and hail upon the land of Egypt and it
frightened Pharoah and he told Moses that he would allow the people to be
released from bondage. As soon as the thunder, hail and fire stopped,
Pharaoh hardened his heart again (Ex. 9:33-35). Finally, the LORD told
Moses to stretch his hand over the land of Egypt and locusts would come
upon the land and devour everything that the other plagues had not
destroyed (Ex. 10:12). This destruction, as in the prophecy of Joel (1:4;
2:3-5) was all-comprehensive and all-encompassing. In Exodus, the locusts
are described as going all over the land of Egypt, all the way to the
borders throughout the morning and the night (Ex. 10:14). The Book of
Exodus describes the locusts as covering the face of the earth so that the
whole land was darkened; they ate every herb of the land, all the fruit of
the trees, and there remained not one green thing in all the land of Egypt
(Ex. 10:15).
The destruction of locusts in the great
redemptive event of the Exodus would have been preeminent in the mind of
the prophet Joel, as well as the people to whom he preached. The memory of
God's great salvation event in the Exodus, by means of the plagues in
Egypt, was remembered throughout Israel's redemptive-history. In the
historical Psalm 105:34-35, the psalmist writes: "He spoke, and the
locusts came, grasshoppers without number; they ate up every green thing in
their land, ate up the produce of the soil" (Amos 4:8-11; Nahum
3:15-17). The context and message of this psalm is the goodness of God and
the remembrance of his covenant forever (Ps. 105:8-11- "the covenant
he made with Abraham… 'to you I will give the land of Canaan as the
portion you will inherit.' "). It should be recognized that the land
was given to Abraham's seed Israel as an inheritance, and the psalmist
interprets the Exodus plagues as the means to the fulfillment of the covenantal
promises (Gen. 12:7; 15:18-21; 17:6-9).
The imagery of the locusts and the
greater army that God was going to send would have reminded the people to
whom Joel preached of the great redemptive-historical event of the Exodus.
In contrast to the Exodus and based on Deuteronomic curses (Dt. 28:15-68;
Hos. 4:6), the prophecy of Joel warned the people of Israel that this
plague of locusts would not be sent on their enemies as with the Egyptians,
but upon Israel herself. Joel's prophecy is like a reversal of the Exodus
(cf. Is. 1:2ff; 28:21). The people are invaded by a locust plague and the
great army of the LORD's judgment; they are driven out of the land through
the sea of devastating destruction leading to famine, to be given a portion
with the wicked. As the LORD, through his prophet Moses,
"reasoned" with Pharaoh to let his people go by using various
plagues including locusts; the LORD, through his prophet Joel, reasoned
before his people to lead them to repentance and covenantal blessing (cf.
Amos 4:9,10). As the LORD used Moses as Pharaoh's prosecuting attorney in
the Exodus, so the LORD is his people's covenantal, prosecuting attorney
through Joel.
Various other books of the Bible speak of locusts as the epitome of
devastating destruction upon the land. This destruction is God's
inaugurated judgment upon his people who have broken the covenant, in order
that they might repent, return to the LORD, so that the land and the people
would be refreshed (Joel 1:4; 2:2-11,25b; cf. Joel 2:12, 18-27; Amos
4:9,12,13; 7:1-3; Obadiah 17; Micah 4:1,2).
In the book of Deuteronomy, Moses tells
the people of Israel that if they keep the covenant of God and obey his
commandments, then they will receive great blessings (Dt. 28:1-14).
However, if they fail to keep his commandments thereby breaking the
covenant the results will be bodily afflictions (Dt. 28:20-22; 27-29);
curses on the land to become as a wilderness (Dt. 28:23-24); military
defeat and conquest (Dt. 28:25,26); curses on Israel's posterity (Dt.
28:30-35); and locusts will consume their land (Dt. 28:38). The last curse
on the people is the one most pertinent to Joel's prophecy, although all of
the curses are in the context of inheriting and possessing the land (Dt. 28:38;
cf. Joel 1:4; 2:2-11). The prophet Joel, as well as the people to whom he
prophesied, would have had intimate knowledge of these curses which were
the results of disobedience to God. The curses of locusts in the Bible
should be interpreted as the imagery of one of the greatest curses upon the
land (Dt. 28:38,42; cf. Amos 4:9,10; Micah 6:13-16; Haggai 1:6),
particularly if the ten Exodus plagues are interpreted as gradually
increasing in judgment and destruction (from the plague of blood, to frogs,
to gnats, to flies, to the plague on the livestock, to the boils, to the
hail, to the locusts, to the darkness, ultimately to the firstborn of
Pharoah). The devastating and voracious destruction of the locusts upon the
land was not just the concern of the agrarian farmer but all the people of
Israel, from the infants and drunkards, to the priests and kings. As an
earthly concern, the locusts that destroyed the land, left Israel without
bread or provision; as a spiritual concern, Israel would have remembered the
warnings of Moses and Joshua concerning the land, and their covenantal
relationship to God that was vitally connected to the land.
D. A FIRE DEVOURS BEFORE THEM; AND
BEHIND THEM A FLAME BURNS UPON THE LAND
The unfolding mind of the prophet
Joel uses not only the imagery of locusts in his proclamation, but he
describes the apocalyptic army of the LORD's wrath that will come on the
Day of the LORD. He says that "before them, a fire devours; and behind
them a flame burns" (Joel 2:3; cf. Ps. 50:3; Hab. 3:5; Nahum 1:6,10;
3:15; Zeph. 1:18). To consider Joel's description of "fire before them
and behind them a flame burns," it is helpful to look at various Old
Testament Scriptures, particularly scriptures of Mosaic authorship, to
understand the usage of particular concepts that the prophet Joel proclaims
to the people. The prophet Joel would have affirmed the unity of God's
Scripture and interpreted Mosaic writings (particularly the Law) to the
people of Israel, in an effort to "bring the past into the present"
(Kugel, Greer, 27ff). In the Song of Moses found in Deuteronomy 32:22, the
LORD speaks through Moses his prophet before the whole assembly of Israel.
Moses recounts some of the disobedient acts of God's people who have
worshipped strange gods; who have forgotten the one who gave them birth
(Dt. 32:16-18). In response to this, God says he will hide his face because
he has been provoked to anger (Dt. 32:20,21). Moses recites God's just
wrath and anger with his people: "For a fire is kindled in mine anger,
and burneth unto the lowest pit, and devoureth the earth with her increase,
and setteth on fire the foundations of the mountains" (Dt. 32:22). It
is clear from this passage and others within the Scriptures, that the
prophet Joel was using the imagery of the fire that devours before and
behind the army, to speak ultimately of God's anger toward his people
because of their disobedience to his commands, and their need of repentance
(Dt. 32:19-43; cf. Joshua 23:2-16). Moses concluded this recitation before
the people with these words concerning their obedience:
Take to heart all the words I solemnly declared to you this day, so that
you may command your children to obey carefully all the words of this law.
They are not just idle words for you-they are your life (In Joel, Israel's
earthly and spiritual life had been threatened by the locust plague). By
them you will live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to possess
(NIV) (Dt. 32:46,47).
Joel is proclaiming to the people that the fire of God's anger would
comprehensively consume God's people in the land as a result of their
disobedience if they did not repent of their sins (cf. Joel 2:12-18). In
other Scriptures, such as Psalm 21:9, David speaks concerning God's
enemies:
Thou shalt make them as a fiery furnace in the time of thine anger. The
LORD shall swallow them up in his wrath, and the fire shall devour them up
in his wrath, and the fire shall devour them.
This psalm of David uses the imagery of
fire to describe the all-consuming wrath of God (cf. Exodus 24:16,17;
Jeremiah 15:14; 17:4). In redemptive history, one generation after the
Exodus, Moses tells the Israelites who were about to cross the Jordan River
into the land of Canaan,
Know therefore this day, that the LORD thy God is he which goeth over
before thee as a devouring fire; he shall destroy them [Anakim], and he
shall bring them down before thee (Dt. 9:4).
This passage in Deuteronomy is revealing
God, the stereotypical Divine Warrior (Longman) , who goes before his
people as a devouring fire against Israel's enemies, in order that his
people may possess the land he promised to Abraham. By contrast, Joel's
prophecy is referring to the all-consuming fire of God's wrath on his
people for disobedience. This is another reversal which the prophet Joel
proclaims to the people. God went before his people as a fire to consume
their enemies so that they could possess the land; in Joel's prophecy the
people of God will be consumed and driven out of the land with the fire of
God's judgment if they do not repent.
Just as Joel had described the locusts at
the beginning of his prophecy (1:4), so he compares the all-consuming and
comprehensive wrath of God as a fire that devours the people and the land
(2:2-11). Just as the locusts devour the land comprehensively from the
least locust, to the greatest, to the combination of them in a swarm, so
God's wrath is like a devouring fire before and following the people. This
devouring wrath makes a beautiful and fruitful land, one that is like the
Garden of Eden, into a desolate wilderness and nothing shall escape their
comprehensive destruction (2:3b). Joel has described this strong
"people" as like no other people before them, neither any who
will live after them throughout history (2:2).
In summary, the army of the LORD that
brings destruction like the locusts, are described by Joel as a "large
and mighty army" (NIV) (2:2,5); comprehensive in destruction (2:3);
like the "appearance of horses," (NIV); an army with order and
strength like a calvary (2:4); the noise of the army is great "like
that of chariots" (NIV) which can wage war in the valley and upon the
mountains (2:5); the appearance of such strength makes nations anguish and
faces turn pale (2:6); the army are warriors and the scale walls with the
skill and precision of soldiers (2:7a); they march in a very ordered and
deliberate charge and break through every defense (2:7b,8); they attack
civilians like thieves entering houses (2:9); their great strength and
power causes the earth to shake and the sky to tremble; all of creation is
affected by their great fire and power sent from the LORD (2:10); "the
LORD thunders at the head of his army" (NIV) (2:11a); the LORD's
forces in this army are "beyond number" (NIV) and mighty (2:11b).
So great and terrible is the LORD's army; so intentional and destructive is
the LORD's wrath against the earth; who can stand?
E. THE LAND IS LIKE THE GARDEN OF EDEN
BEFORE THEM: JOEL'S CREATION AND EXODUS REVERSALS- FROM GARDEN TO
WILDERNESS
Joel's interpretation of the locusts in Israel's history, and the even
greater apocalyptic army whom God was sending, is a result of the
Israelites' covenant disobedience. The consequences of this disobedience is
intimately tied to the land promises and warnings in Deuteronomy 28 (cf.
Ex. 19:5,6: "If ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant,
then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me from among the peoples: for
all the earth is mine: and ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an
holy nation"). The land that was like the Garden of Eden would become
a desolate wilderness after the army's march through the land. What was
once a beautiful, lush, green land (Gen. 1:31; 2:6; cf. Ex. 10:15-
"every green thing in Egypt was destroyed in the plagues") like
the Garden of Eden, would become a wilderness, a place of briers and thorns
(Gen. 3:18 [rD;r>d;w> #Aqw]; cf. Hos. 10:8- "thorns and
thistles"[rD;r>d;w> #Aq]); fiery serpents, scorpions; a desert,
a parched land of drought where there would be no water (Dt. 8:15, KJV); a
waste, howling wilderness (Dt. 32:10); the haunt of jackals and owls; and a
place of wild beasts (Mt. 4:1-11; cf. with other scriptural descriptions of
the wilderness, Ex. 15:22-17:7; Job 1:19; Is. 14:16,17; Mt. 3:1-4).
The prophet Joel, as well as the people
to whom he preached, would have remembered the great forty years of
wandering by the Israelites in the wilderness prior to receiving the land
promised to Abraham. The wilderness was the antithesis of the great land
promise made by God to Abraham and his descendants. To the people of
Israel, the experience of the wilderness wanderings was one of the central
redemptive-historical examples of suffering because of disobedience and
unfaithfulness to their God (Job 12:24; Ps. 106:24-26; Ezek. 2:3-8;
20:6-29; John 6:31,32,49; Acts 7:36-45; Heb. 3:8-19). Joel purposely used
the imagery of the Garden of Eden to communicate to the people that the
pre-Fall paradise of Eden which Moses had written about, the land which
they had inherited and enjoyed as covenant people (Abraham's descendants),
would become the most dreaded place they could imagine (the
"anti-Eden"/cursed land): the place of the wandering of their
forefathers; the place that was intended to serve as an example of
unfaithfulness, disobedience, and the "tempting" of God (the
prophet Hosea uses the wilderness imagery to describe the unfaithfulness
and spiritual adultery of Israel, Hosea 13:15; cf. Ezek. 20:13,21). Joel's
reference to the Garden of Eden becoming like the wilderness would have
reminded the Israelites of the fall of Adam and his being cast out of the
Garden, shut out from the presence of God and the land which he was to
subdue and have dominion over (Gen. 2:28; 3:23,24).
In the beginning of history, God had
created Eden out of the "formless void" ("waste and
void"- [Whbow" Whto ht'y>h' #r,a'h'w]; cf. Gen. 1:2 with the
verbal allusion in Jer. 4:23 [Whbow" Wht]), and placed Adam in the
garden to subdue and till the land (Gen. 1:1,31; 2:7,8). But Adam sinned
against the LORD's commandments and he subjected himself and all creation
to the fall (Gen. 3:11,15-17). Because of the fall, there was a gradual
increase of wickedness in the land that preceded God's clear proclamation
and establishment of covenant from Noah and creation, to Abraham and his
people, which turned the earth into an increasing wilderness of sin (Gen.
6:5-8; cf. Prov. 29:16). When the Israelites heard of the great and
devastating destruction to come, they would have immediately thought of
these Scriptures and some would have realized that they had not learned
from the lessons which God had given to them (Is. 51:2; cf. Roman 15:4; 1
Cor. 10:1-13). The land was evidence to the Israelites of God's blessings
(Dt. 1:8; 28:1-68) and the prophet Joel is telling them that the curses are
coming, the great and terrible, strong apocalyptic army whom the LORD was
sending to devastate (Joel 2:3).
The destructive judgment which Joel
described to the people will be the opposite of what they would expect.
Rather than God going before and behind the Israelites in protection of his
people as a father to a son, as in Egypt as well as the wilderness (Ex.
14:19,20; cf. Dt. 1:30,31), God would be a consuming fire destroying the
beautiful land and making it as the dreaded wilderness. Rather than be a
father to Israel (Dt. 1:31), God was to be their judge. God was not to be
the Divine Warrior who destroys Israel's enemies, but the Divine Warrior of
wrath who brings judgment upon the land and the people unless they repent.
The Divine Warrior was taking his people from Zion (Garden of Eden), back
to Sinai (Wilderness) for judgment.
The prophet Ezekiel proclaimed this to
God's people in another time of redemptive-history:
As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign LORD, I will rule over you with
a might hand and an outstretched arm and with outpoured wrath. I will bring
you from the nations and gather you from the countries where you have been
scattered-with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm and with outpoured
wrath. I will bring you into the desert of nations and there, face to face,
I will execute judgment upon you. As I judged your fathers in the desert of
the land of Egypt, so I will judge you, declares the Sovereign
LORD…Although I will bring them out of the land where they are
living, yet they will not enter the land of Israel. Then you will know that
I am the LORD (NIV) (Ezek. 20:33-38).
However, for those who are repentant, the
true Israel who are of a contrite heart, the LORD will allow them to remain
in Zion, the land of promise. There the faithful will dwell in the land of
Zion, the land sworn to their fathers (Ezek. 20:39-42). Ezekiel concludes
with God's promise of the land to his faithful people just as the prophet
Joel proclaims the blessed expectations as the fruits of a repentant
people:
There you will remember your conduct and
all the actions by which you have defiled yourselves, and you will loathe
yourselves for all the evil you have done. You will know that I am the
LORD, when I deal with you for my name's sake and not according to your
evil ways and your corrupt practices (NIV) (Ezek. 20:43,44; cf. Joel
2:12-18; Amos 5:14,15).
The contrast between the Garden of Eden
prior to the judgment of God and the wilderness as the result of his
judgment becomes clearer by looking through the window of other Scriptures
on the redemptive-historical landscape. The Book of Genesis introduces us
to the Garden of Eden (Gen. 2:8,15) and throughout Israel's history the
Garden serves as the ultimate place of fellowship with God, thanksgiving,
and joy in the land. In Isaiah 51:3, the prophet Isaiah says,
The LORD hath comforted Zion: he hath
comforted all her waste places, and hath made her wilderness like Eden, and
her desert like the Garden of the LORD; joy and gladness shall be found
therein, thanksgiving, and the voice of melody.
The Garden of Eden is also used as a
description of beauty and prosperity as in the prophecy of Ezekiel when he
describes the King of Tyre and his judgment (Ezek. 28:13-19; cf. Ezek.
31:3-9 concerning Pharaoh, King of Egypt and his judgment, 31:16-18).
The prophet Ezekiel speaks concerning the
land of Israel to the people and to the creation in Exile (Ezek. 36:1-6).
Concerning the land (creation), the mountains will shoot forth their
branches and provide fruit for Israel (36:8); the land will be tilled and
sown, the cities shall be inhabited and the waste places shall be built up
(36:9,10). God promises to multiply man and beast and cause them to be
fruitful and multiply (36:11; cf. Gen. 1:28; 9:1; 15:5; 17:1-9). God
promises his people that although they had been brought into a wilderness
in the Exile, for the sake of his holy name (36:22), he will gather them
back again and sprinkle clean water on them, making them clean (36:24,26).
In addition, God will give to them a new heart and a new spirit, taking
away their hearts of stone (hardened hearts) and giving them hearts of
flesh (obedient hearts). God will ultimately restore his people as the
fulfiller of the covenant by placing his spirit within them, causing them
to walk in his statutes and commands (36:26,27). Because of this, God will
return them to the land he had given to their fathers. God says, "Ye
shall be my people, and I will be your God" (36:28,29).
The prophet Ezekiel describes the great
blessing of God that he has promised to fulfill on behalf of his people
with eschatological hyperbole: God will multiply the fruit of the trees and
the fields and there shall not be any famine (36:30); the desolate land
will be tilled and be fruitful (all of creation will be restored!). The
prophet Ezekiel speaks of the great promise using the same contrast between
the Garden of Eden and the wilderness as found in the prophet Joel:
"This land that was desolate is become like the garden of Eden; and
the waste and desolate and ruined cities are fenced and inhabited"
(36:35). The difference between the two prophecies however is that in
Ezekiel, the promise is to restore the wilderness to the Garden of Eden; in
the prophecy of Joel the coming wrath will make the Garden of Eden like the
wilderness (cf. Zech. 7:13,14). The Book of Joel reverses several
redemptive-historical stories such as the Exodus and the Wilderness
Wanderings to poignantly proclaim the unfaithfulness of God's people, and
to sound a clarion trumpet call of repentance and returning to the LORD
their God (cf. Joel 3:1- "For take note in those days, at the time
when I reverse the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem").
Joel's prophecy, particularly in 2:3 is
clearly contrasting the beautiful bounty and provision of the LORD to his
people as a result of covenant obedience, to the destructive judgment of
his fiery wrath as a result of covenant disobedience. In the history of
redemption God has shown by example how no man can endure his wrath and
that it indeed turns the Garden of Eden into a wilderness. If the people
thought the locusts were destructive (a type of the wrath); how much more
should they fear for the wrath and just judgment in the apocalyptic
invasion of God on the Day of the LORD (anti-type/fulfillment) (cf. Amos
4:12,13). There is a "garden to wilderness" motif in the judgment
of God upon the earth after the fall of Adam (Gen. 1:31; 2:8-15; cf.
3:15-17); after the flood (Gen. 9:1-16; cf. 9:20-27; 11:1-8); prior to the
judgment of God upon Sodom and Gomorrah: "Lot lifted up his eyes, and
behold all the Plain of Jordan, that it was well watered every where,
before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, like the garden of the LORD,
like the land of Egypt…then the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon
Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven; and he overthrew
the cities, and all the Plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and
that which grew upon the ground" (Gen. 13:10; 19:24,25; cf. Amos
4:11). Thus, the prophecy of Joel, using the contrast between Garden of
Eden (garden of the LORD) and the wilderness would have immediately
impacted the people of the wrath and destruction that God was to bring upon
the land and the people because of their covenant disobedience. The
wilderness would have not only made the Israelites think of the wilderness
in terms of the great wilderness wanderings, but it would have also spoken
very clearly to them that this strong and mighty "army" or people
to come from the hand of God.
To summarize, the prophecy of Joel in 2:3
would have taught the people from the devastating example of the locusts
upon their land; God's wrath and destruction as a consuming fire before
them and behind the wrath nothing but wilderness; using the imagery of the
Garden of Eden before the "army" and the wilderness behind the
"army" would taught the Israelites the consequences of sinful
covenant breaking and the expectation upon their sins as God's just
judgment. God had brought the people out of bondage, out of the land of
Egypt. They had wandered in the wilderness for forty years and God was now
going to send them back into ultimate wandering with curses which resulted
from covenant disobedience (Dt. 28:15-68). The prophet Joel had spoken
oracles of judgment against Israel in the "spirit of Elijah" as
the great prosecutor of the Covenant (1 Kings 18:21; cf. Mal. 4:1-5; Mt.
11:14; 17:10-13), now he turns from his prosecution as God's prophet to
plea with the Israelites to admit their guilt. The message was clear:
Repent! Turn from your wickedness so that the LORD might have mercy on you
and relent from his judgment (Joel 2:11b-14; cf. Jer. 4:1; Ezek. 33:11;
Hos. 12:6).
II. THE APPEARANCE OF THEM [THE GREAT
AND STRONG PEOPLE] IS AS THE APPEARANCE OF HORSES; AND AS HORSEMEN, SO DO
THEY RUN. LIKE THE NOISE OF CHARIOTS ON THE TOPS OF MOUNTAINS DO THEY LEAP,
LIKE THE NOISE OF A FLAME OF FIRE THAT DEVOURETH THE STUBBLE, AS A STRONG
PEOPLE SET IN BATTLE ARRAY- JOEL 2:4,5
A. THE THEOPHANIC INVASION OF THE LORD
UPON THE LAND
In the Scriptures, the use of
horses and chariots describe the strength of an army or of a people. Joel's
apocalyptic army that is used by the hand of the LORD, to be sent upon the
land of Zion, is a "strong people set in battle array," who have
horses and chariots that tell of their great strength. The prophet Joel
prophesies of the coming judgment by using these specific descriptions of
the army that will come (Judges 1:19; Ps. 20:7; 68:17, cf. 2 Kings 2:11;
6:17; 104:3; 147:10; Habakkuk 1:8; 3:15; Haggai 2:22; Zech. 1:8). Joel's
theophanic invasion of the LORD's army was understood by the people in two
strands: the coming of the LORD from his residence, terrestrial or as here
celestial, and the reaction of nature, which cringes and crumples at his
coming. Traditionally it had a ring of assurance about it: the great God has
come or can be expected to come to aid his people against their foes (cf.
Joel 2:10,11; Micah 1:3,4) (Allen, 270). "Like the appearance of
horses" [Whaer>m; ~ysiWs haer>m;K.] was an allusion to the
supernatural in the minds of the people (cf. Judges 13:6; Ezek. 1:13-
celestial horses; 2 Kings 2:11; Zech. 1:8) (Allen, 64ff).
In the Book of Deuteronomy, Moses gives
the Israelites encouragement and strength by assuring the people of God's
faithfulness and presence with them as they possess the land promised to
Abraham and his descendants:
When you go out to battle against your
enemies, and see horses and chariots and people more numerous than you, do
not be afraid of them; for the LORD your God is with you, who brought you
up from the land of Egypt…Do not let your heart faint, do not be
afraid, and do not tremble or be terrified because of them; for the LORD
your God is He who goes with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to
save you (Dt. 20:1-4).
In contrast, Joel is proclaiming to the
people that they should be frightened when they see and hear the horses and
chariots and the people more numerous than them. Because of their covenant
unfaithfulness, God is not going with them, but against them, to judge His
people (Dt. 32:36).
In 2 Kings 2, at the prophetic peak of
redemptive-history between the Golden Age of King David and the Exile,
Elijah the prophet was delivered at the closing of his prophetic ministry.
God delivers his great prophet and faithful servant with a chariot of fire:
"And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold,
there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, which parted them
both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven" (2:11).
When Elijah was taken to heaven to typologically and prophetically
intercede for Israel, his mantle was given to his servant Elisha. When
Elisha faced the army of the King of Syria he prayed to the LORD for
deliverance and help against the great army. The LORD as Divine Warrior
comforted and reassured the man of God by opening his eyes to see that the
mountains were full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha (2
Kings 6:18). The LORD showed the strength of his might through this vision,
but in Joel's prophecy, he is describing these chariots not as vehicles of
deliverance but as the strong arm of God's wrath in the Day of the LORD
(cf. Ezek. 1; Nahum 2:3,4 ; 3:1-3; Haggai 2:22).
The sound of the chariots have great
apocalyptic voices: "like the noise of chariots on the tops of the
mountains they skip" (leap) [!WdQer;y> ~yrIh'h, yvear'-l[;
tAbK'r>m; lAqK], and "like the noise of a flame of fire that
devoureth the stubble[vq' hl'k.ao vae bh;l; lAqK], as a strong people set
in battle array" (2:5). The vast number of the great army is here
described in prophetic imagery. In Isaiah 13:4, the prophet proclaims:
"The noise of a multitude in the mountains, like as of a great people!
The noise of a tumult of the kingdoms of the nations gathered together! The
LORD of hosts mustereth the host for the battle." The prophet Joel is
describing a great multitude of hosts for battle. This great sound of
strength in this multitude was the sound of not only great strength but a
noise the likes of which the children of Israel heard during the Exodus
from Egypt when Pharaoh and his army were advancing toward them while they
were cut off and cornered, defenseless at the Red Sea.
In the unfolding mind of the prophet Joel
and the people of Zion, the imagery of the horses and chariots had a profound
redemptive-historical significance in the Exodus. In the Book of Exodus
chapter 14, upon the release of the Israelites from 400 years of bondage,
Pharaoh takes his mighty men and chariots and horses to chase after Moses
and children of Israel (Ex. 14:6). Pharaoh has allowed the children of
Israel to go ultimately because God the Divine Warrior has displayed
superior strength over Pharaoh's gods and magicians (cf. 1 Kings 18:17-39).
Now, Pharaoh attempted one more rebellion against the LORD and against his
people. In an attempt to show his superior strength over the LORD God by
subjugating the children of Israel back to bondage, Pharaoh took six
hundred of his "chosen chariots," and all the chariots of Egypt,
and captains over all of them (Ex. 14:7). This was a mighty army pursuing
the helpless, defenseless Israelites.
In Exodus 14:9, Moses writes: "And
the Egyptians pursued after them [the children of Israel], all the horses
and chariots of Pharaoh, and his horsemen, and his army, and overtook them
encamping by the sea, beside Pi-hahiroth, before Baal-zephon. And when
Pharaoh drew nigh, the children of Israel lifted up their eyes, and behold,
the Egyptians marched after them; and they were sore afraid: and the
children of Israel cried out unto the LORD" (Ex. 14:9,10). The
Israelites had been a people in bondage in Egypt for over four hundred
years, not only did they not know how to wage war, they did not have the
army nor the chariots and horses as did the Egyptians. Now the Israelites
were cornered; backed into a defenseless position where they could not
fight, nor could they retreat. With Pharaoh's army marching toward them on
one side and the rushing waters of the Red Sea on the other side, the
Israelites faced what appeared to be ultimate destruction. Now their dead
bodies would be scattered and strewn on the land of Pi-hahiroth and before
Baal-zephon-a land not their own; surely this was to be the end: to die in
the wilderness.
The children of Israel cried to Moses and
sarcastically, unfaithfully, and fearfully asked him: "Was this your
plan? To bring us out into the wilderness to die at the hand of the
Egyptians? We could have stayed in Egypt for that; we could have at least
continued to eat well" (paraphrase of Exodus 14:11,12). And Moses
responded with the great and godly words of comfort: "Fear not, stand
still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will work for you today.
For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see them no more
forever" (Ex. 14:13). Moses followed these great and faithful words
with a promise: "The LORD shall fight for you, and you shall hold your
peace" (Ex. 14:14).
This was to be a great act of God's
goodness and delivering mercy to his people. The LORD as Divine Warrior had
not only delivered his people from slavery and bondage in Egypt, but he
would fight for them against their greatest enemies. The God of Israel was
to be an example to the whole world of the great deeds which he wrought in
the Exodus, when he brought his people out of Egypt and into the land. Not
only was this incident keeping the Israelites from going into the land God
had promised, but it seemed that their very lives were at stake. Was the
promise of God to Abraham to be destroyed by the chariots and horses of
Pharaoh? Was the seed of Abraham, the covenant people of God, not going to
inherit the promised land? Even more so, was the seed of the promise going
to be destroyed forever by Pharaoh's great might? God remembered the
covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and had sent Moses to deliver the
people out of bondage (Ex. 2:24), had he now forgotten the covenant he had
made?
No! The LORD told Moses to lift up his
rod and stretch his hand over the sea, and divide it, and the children of
Israel shall go into the midst of the sea on dry ground (Ex. 14:16).
However, God would harden Pharaoh's heart and the Egyptian army would
follow the Israelites into the sea upon his chariots and horses (Ex.
14:17). Then in Exodus 14:18 the LORD says, "Then the Egyptians shall
know that I am the LORD, when I have gotten me glory because of Pharaoh,
upon his chariots, and upon his horsemen" (NIV).
Then the LORD went before Israel through
the Red Sea and the cloud moved from in front of them, to behind them for
protection (Ex. 14:19). Moses was obedient to God's instructions concerning
the crossing of the children of Israel through the sea, and the LORD caused
the sea to divide (Ex. 14:21). Then the Israelites went through the sea
upon dry ground and the waters formed a wall on their right hand, and upon
their left hand (Ex. 14:22). Then the Egyptians, the wicked who sought the
life of God's people, pursued them; all of Pharaoh's horses, his chariots
and his horsemen. The LORD even caused the Egyptian army's chariot wheels
to come off to display his great strength and glory. Then Moses did as the
LORD had instructed and he lifted his hands and the waters came down upon
the Egyptians, upon the chariots, and upon their horsemen (Ex. 14:23-28).
Not one of the Egyptians remained.
Such a great event and epic such as the
Exodus must end with a great work of God, and there is no greater or more
central covenantal event than what is repeated from Ex. 14:22, and what is
said in Exodus 14:29-31: "But the children of Israel walked upon dry
land in the midst of the sea; and the waters were a wall unto them on their
right hand, and on their left. Thus the LORD saved (delivered) Israel that
day out of the hand of the Egyptians; and Israel saw the Egyptians dead
upon the sea shore. And Israel saw the great work which the LORD did upon
the Egyptians, and the people feared the LORD: and they believed in the
LORD, and in his servant Moses" (NIV).
This is not the case in the prophecy of
Joel. In Joel 2:4 and 5 Joel describes the apocalyptic army to come upon
the land with imagery from the Exodus. The Israelites who heard the
prophecy would immediately think about the great Egyptian army which their
forefathers had described to them when recounting the event yearly at the
Passover Supper. The Exodus story was a story of God's deliverance of his
people from bondage and into the land which he promised to Abraham. It was
a story to be told to every generation and at least yearly at the Passover
supper. The appearance of this army was great and terrible, it had horses
and chariots: mighty strength.
God delivered the children of Israel from
the Pharaoh's chariots and horses and great army, but in the Book of Joel
he would send an army upon his people with chariots and horses to humble
and chastise his people. This army was not to be a display of God's grace
and merciful deliverance, but an army which would display God's terrible
wrath and anger with his people (cf. Dt. 32). This apocalyptic army with
chariots and horses speaks not only of strength but great numbers as with
the imagery of locusts. The apocalyptic army would march through the land
in great numbers and destroy the Garden of Eden-like land and make it into
a desolate wilderness; a haunt of jackals and owls. "Woe be unto
Israel," warned Joel. For God's wrath is coming and it is sure. He
says to the people: "Remember the Exodus; how great the devastation of
Pharaoh's army, his chariots and horses? Well, the LORD is sending an even
greater devastation upon the land. Whereas in the Exodus, God was bringing
the children of Israel out of bondage into the promised land (Garden of
God), he was now sending the Israel back into bondage through the sea of a
great army into a desolate wilderness ruled by people like the Egyptians.
Having considered the passages from Joel
(Joel 2:3-5) from the perspective of the book's historical context and the
overall redemptive-historical context which Joel would have interpreted to
the people of Israel, it is necessary to consider the passages in Joel
using a Christological interpretation. The simple historical meaning and
significance of Joel's passage is found in the immediate context in which
Joel prophesied, but those living in the last days of redemptive-history
can interpret the great events which Joel describes in light of the whole
of God's revelation, particularly as God has revealed himself with ultimate
clarity of revelation in Christ (Luke 24:44-49; Acts 2:16-36; Rom. 15:4;
Heb. 1:1,2; cf. 1 Peter 1:10,11).
III. THE BOOK OF JOEL IN CHRIST
Just as the historical occasion of the
locusts gave the prophet Joel apocalyptic imagery to describe what is to
come, so the historical occasion of the wrath of God upon Christ gives the
New Testament writers apocalyptic imagery of what is to come. Just as
Joel's apocalyptic imagery was two-fold; so is the apocalyptic imagery
Jesus describes of what is to come: the wrath of God upon the wicked and
the great salvation to the repentant people of the LORD who will be
restored to the land eternally. Just as the army of the LORD's judgment was
to come upon the land and the people in the Book of Joel, so the army of
God and his Christ will restore the land and the people when the Kingdom of
God dwells with men. Just as in the Book of Joel, the locusts were a type
of the wrath to come-a shadow, the proleptic mighty army of the LORD which
was the inauguration of God's wrath when he separates his people from the
wicked; so in the New Testament, Jesus inaugurates the proleptic Kingdom of
God which will eternally separate his people from the wicked. The Kingdom
of God is not a new concept found in the last days of redemptive history,
but one which was described in types and shadows to the Old Testament
church which had not yet come of age. The Kingdom of God was to come into
the land of Israel and permanently bring peace and prosperity to the people
of Zion. The Kingdom of God was a promise which the children of Israel
anticipated for the future. A time when God would invade history, overthrow
the nations who had subjected Israel to bondage, and set up his Kingdom in
the land. However, it would not be as they expected.
A. THE KINGDOM OF GOD IS NEAR IN THE
LAND
The Kingdom of God was the
central message and eschatological focus of Jesus' ministry. It was the
inauguration or the beginning of the consummate fulfillment of God's
covenant promises to Abraham and to his seed. Both John the Baptist and
Jesus began their preaching with the announcement of the imminence of the
kingdom (Mt. 3:2; 4:17); Mark 1:14-15). According to Daniel Chapter 4:44,
when he interprets King Nebuchadnezzar's dream, the kingdom that was
coming: "the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be
destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those
kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever"
(cf. 2 Sam. 7:12-17). The children of Israel placed great importance and
significance upon the land God had given to them. It was in this land the
Kingdom of God would finally crush all of God's enemies and he would rule
the Israelites with a mighty hand.
At the beginning of redemptive history
Adam is formed from the ground and given dominion over the land,
specifically the Garden of Eden (Gen. 1:28-31; 2:15-17). Because of his
disobedience to the LORD's commands, Adam subjects all men and the creation
(land) to the fall (Gen.3:17-19). God drives Adam and his wife from the
garden because of the sin that has corrupted the creation (Gen. 3:23).
However, God purposed to save a people before the foundation of the world
(Eph. 1:4), and he soon called out a man named Abraham whom he found in a
desert land (cf. Dt. 32:9,10). God promised to be his God and to give to
him a fruitful, green, land, flowing with milk and honey (Gen. 15:7; Heb.
11:8-10). Abraham's people, the Israelites were to obey the commandments
that God was to give to them so that they may dwell peacefully and with
prosperity in the land (Dt. 28:1-3). The Israelites were commanded to drive
out the inhabitants of the land and begin to rule and have dominion over
the land as God's chosen people, as Adam was told to do (cf. Book of
Joshua; Judges). However, the Israelites failed in keeping God's covenant.
Israel failed to keep God's commandments
and ultimately is subjected for a season by other nations as a result of
their disobedience. The suffering of the Israelites is directly related to
the blessings and curses upon the land and themselves found in Deuteronomy
28:1-68 (cf. Dt. 32). God in his mercy saved a remnant from out of this
people. Out of this remnant would come one who would fulfill all
righteousness and return the people to the land eternally. In the Book of
Deuteronomy, after God had predicted Israel's covenant disobedience and the
just punishment they would receive, he proclaimed hope through Moses:
"Rejoice, O nations, with his people, for he will avenge the blood of
his servants; he will take vengeance on his enemies and make atonement for
his land and people" (NIV) (Dt. 32:43).
When Christ came born of a woman, born
under law (Gal. 4:4), he came as the true Israel who would obey the
commandments of God by keeping the covenant (Mt. 2:14-21). Although Christ
kept the commandments of God perfectly and fulfilled all righteousness, he
was cursed on a tree (Gal. 3:13,14) as a substitute for his people. As a
reward, God has made the earth his footstool and he rules over the land at
the right hand of God (Ps. 2:6-8, 12; Ps. 110; cf. Eph. 1:20,21; Phil.
2:9-11; Heb. 1:13). Christ's work was not complete upon his work in his
humiliation of suffering and death however. At the right hand of God,
ruling and subduing the people, Christ delivers his people out of bondage,
rescues them from their enemies, and brings them into his kingdom (Eph.
2:12-22; Col. 1:12-15; Heb. 2:14,15). The great work of Christ will
continue until he restores the whole creation (land) and brings his people
into his presence where he will dwell with them in the land for eternity.
The people of God (and the creation) wait in anticipation of this great
event when the curse will be removed and God's people will eternally dwell
with God in the land he has promised them (Rom. 8:25; Rev. 21:1-5,7;
22:35). This is God's great epic, saga, story, or work which he has
accomplished in his great mercy and grace. The promises he made to Abraham
have been fulfilled in Christ, the true Israel who inhabits the land.
"Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth" (Mt.
5:5).
The Kingdom of God was promised to rule
over the land. As God ruled over the land of the Israelites, so he was to
once more reign with his people eternally. In the Gospel of St. Matthew,
Matthew records the beginning of Christ's subduing the land, the enemies of
God, and the inauguration of Christ's reign over the land.
In Matthew Chap. 1, there is the account
of Jesus' birth and the fulfillment of Isaiah's prophecy that the Son of
Mary will be "Immanuel, God with us." In Chap. 3, John the
Baptist is preparing the way as the voice in the wilderness preaching
"Repent for the Kingdom of Heaven is near." Jesus is tempted in
Chap. 4 by Satan, he overcomes as the second Adam, the true Israel who is
obedient to God and fulfills the Law and the prophets (cf. Heb. 2:14-18;
Rom. 5:12-21); this is the beginning of the overthrow of Satan's kingdom
and dominion…but not completely…yet. In Chapters 5-7, Jesus
explains the Kingdom of God through the beatitudes: "Blessed are the
poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven…Blessed are those
who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of
heaven." In Chap. 6, Jesus teaches his disciples to pray: "Our
Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come." There is
the separation between the righteous and unrighteous, those who enter and
those who are kept out of the Kingdom of heaven in Chap. 7. Chapters 8-10
explain the miracles and continual overthrow of Jesus' authority: God has
invaded time and space, real history, to show before the world that he has
overcome the dominion of Satan and his works (cf. Matthew 12:25-29: the
essential theology of the Kingdom of God in the NT). Through Christ's
authority (cf. Matthew 28: 18-20) he sends out his twelve in Chap. 10, the
new Israel, the refashioned Israel according to the New Covenant. These are
Christ's new called out people, that are found "in Christ" and
show by their actions Christ's authority and the grace in which they now
stand. The Gospel of St. Matthew (as well as the other gospels) constantly
pointed the people of Israel to a better understanding of Jesus and the
Kingdom.
This summary of St. Matthew's Gospel teaches us that God's plan to dwell
with his people in the land began with Christ the True Israel, who has come
and fulfilled all righteousness; all the stipulations and demands of the
covenant. Christ is the only faithful Israelite and he fulfills the
covenant on behalf of his people. However, to those who do not know God,
the wicked, the gospel teaches what is to be expected on the day when
Christ defeats all his enemies. St. Matthew's gospel gives promise to God's
people and points to wrathful expectation for the enemies of God.
The Kingdom of God in Jesus Christ was
the beginning or inauguration of the end of God's judgment, as the
historical locust plague in the Book of Joel was a type the inauguration of
the end of God's judgment. As the prophet Joel had spoken, the people of
the earth should take heed. For there will be another and greater Day of
the LORD that is to come upon the earth. If the judgment of God was shown
in the Book of Joel as locusts coming upon the fields; if the judgment was
shown throughout Israel's history upon their disobedience in a variety of
horrendous forms; if the wrath to come upon the people in Joel was a great
apocalyptic army which would devastate the people and the land; how much
more should we fear the great coming of God himself with his army to judge
the earth! (Mt. 25:31-46; Romans 2:5; 1 Thess. 1:10; Heb. 12:18-21, 25-29;
Rev.1:7; 19:11-16).
In the prophecy of Joel, a great and
destructive army will be used by the hand of the LORD to bring destruction
to the land and its inhabitants. But the eschatological army of the LORD
will bring ultimate and consummate destruction. Christ's judgment with the
"army of the LORD" is described in detail in the Gospel of St.
Matthew. In Matthew 25:31-46, St. Matthew records Jesus' description of the
great and final judgment:
But when the Son of man shall come in his
glory, and all the angels with him, then shall he sit on the throne of his
glory: And before him shall be gathered all the nations: and he shall
separate them one from another, as the shepherd separateth the sheep from
the goats…the King will say unto them on the right hand, 'Come, ye
blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the
foundation of the world'…Then shall he say also unto them on the left
hand, 'Depart from me, ye cursed, into the eternal fire which is prepared
for the devil and his angels'…And these shall go away into eternal
punishment: but the righteous into eternal life" (Mt. 25:31-34,41,46;
cf, 2 Thess. 1:9-12; Rev. 1:7).
B. THE CHRISTOLOGICAL DAY OF THE LORD
IN THE LAND
To interpret Joel's prophecy in light of the whole of redemptive-history,
it must be remembered that the New Testament was written by "Old
Testament men" inspired by the Spirit of God whom Joel prophesied
would be poured out on God's people (Joel 2:28ff; Acts 2:37ff). Therefore,
being intimate with the Old Testament apocalyptic language, the New
Testament writers, living in the last days were excellent interpreters of
such Old Testament themes as the "Day of the LORD."
The Day of the LORD's wrath is described in New Testament passages such as
1 Thessalonians 1:10 as "the wrath to come"; Romans 2:5 as
"the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of
God"; 1 Thessalonians 4:15 as "the coming of the Lord; 2 Peter
2:9; 3:7 as "the day of judgment"; 2 Peter 3:10 as "the day
of the LORD"; 2 Peter 3:12 as "the coming day of God".
Ultimately, the fire that devours before
the LORD's wrath shall consume the earth, destroying ungodly men, and
melting the elements with fervent heat (2 Peter 3:7,12). The flaming fire
of God's wrath will render vengeance to them that know not God, and to them
that obey not the gospel of the Lord Jesus; they shall suffer punishment,
even eternal destruction from the face of the Lord and from the glory of
his might (2 Thess. 1:8,9). On this great and terrible day of the LORD's
wrath, the land will be cleansed of the wicked, and the righteous will
inherit the land eternally because of Jesus Christ, when his Kingdom shall
be set up eternally (Mt. 5:3-12; cf. Hosea 2:19-23; Joel 3:17-21; Amos
9:14,15; Obadiah 17-21; Micah 7:18-20; Habakkuk 3:18; Zeph. 3:17-20; Zech.
14:20,21). Outside of the land, the kingdom of God and his Christ, shall be
the wicked and unbelieving (Mt. 22:11-14; 1 Cor. 9,10; Eph. 5:3-5; Rev.
19:21; 21:8; 22:15).
Another portion of St. Matthew's Gospel
to be considered in light of Joel's prophecy of God's consuming wrath is
found in chapter 24:3-51. Scholars refer to these passages as the Olivet
Discourse, and parallel accounts can be found in St. Mark 13:1-37 and St.
Luke 21:5-36. These passages use very similar language as the Book of Joel
in describing what is to come, preceding the day of God's great judgment.
The disciples of Jesus asked, "What shall be the sign of thy coming,
and of the end of the world?" (Mt. 24:3).
Jesus describes the signs and the
"beginning of the end" as a time when false-Christs will try to
deceive (24:5); wars and rumors of wars (24:6); there will be famines and
earthquakes (24:7- just as the locust plague prior to God's judgment in Joel
2:3-5); great tribulations, false prophets, increase of wickedness and the
decrease of love toward God (24:9-12); the abomination of desolation
described in the Book of Daniel (24:15); false-Christs and prophets shall
show great signs and wonders to lead astray unbelievers and confuse the
believers (24:24; cf. Eph. 5:6; 1 Peter 5:8; 2 Peter 3:3-7; 1 John 4:1-3);
the false-Christs and prophets will tell men that Christ has come in the
wilderness (24:26- not the place where Christ's presence is, rather, his presence
is in the Garden of God). Christ was in the wilderness, but only for a
season when he was led there to be tempted of the Devil to destroy
wickedness and overcome on behalf of his people, (cf. Mt. 4:1-4; Heb.
2:14-18). These descriptions of the days prior to God's judgment only tell
us that things were happening normally-- "business as usual"-- in
a fallen world, albeit increasing in sinfulness (Gen. 4:8; cf. 6:5; cf.
Gen. 11:1-9; Rom. 3:9-18; 2 Tim. 3:1-7), as the generations of men increase
upon the land, so the increase of sin because of man. As in the days of
Noah, so shall the coming of the Son of man be (Mt. 24:37,38; 2 Tim.
3:1-7,13): things are going on normally so his people should not sleep but
be sober and alert (Mt. 25:1-30; 1 Cor. 16:13; 1 Thess. 5:2-42; 2 Tim. 4:5;
Titus 2:5,6,12; 1 Peter 4:7; 5:8; Rev. 3:2,3; cf. Joel 2:1: "Blow a
trumpet in Zion; sound an alarm on my holy hill).
Joel's prophecy begins with warnings and commands of sobriety, but how much
more should the people of God be sober in light of what is to come when
Jesus Christ and his mighty army come to earth!
The ultimate and consummate Day of the
LORD is described in the Book of the Revelation of St. John, the final
disclosure in God's redemptive-history. In God's last judgment upon the
land and its sinful inhabitants, locusts come from the abyss, or "out
of the smoke came locusts upon the earth" (Rev. 9:7), after the fifth
trumpet of divine judgment (Rev. 9:1-12). Similar images from the Book of
Joel should be immediately recognized. In Revelation, the locusts are
described as having the shape of horses (Joel 2:4); the smoke from which
the locust came darkened the sun (Joel 2:2,10); the sound of the locusts'
wings were like chariots (Joel 2:5-7). The locusts did not consume the
land-but men without Christ (Rev. 9:4) and the leader of the locusts is
named Abbaddon and Apollyon, nothing shall escape their fury. The
metaphorical destruction of the locusts, to the great and mighty army in
the Book of Joel, are types of the ultimate destruction on the Day of the
LORD; the wrath that is to come upon the earth.
C. THE WICKED IN THE LAND ON THE DAY
OF THE LORD
Hear this! Awake! Wail! Mourn!
for the Day of the LORD is at hand! Regarding the unbelievers or wicked,
those who do not know God, they will be permanently removed from the land
of God's people (Mt. 25:31-46). The wicked, unrepentant unbelievers must
come to a mountain that cannot be touched, that burns with fire, and
blackness, and darkness, and tempest (Ex. 19:16-19; Dt. 4:11,12; 4:24;
5:4,23-25). The wicked will not strut with chins held high (Ps. 12:8) as
they approach the Mountain of Sinai: the mountain of thunder and lightning,
thick clouds of smoke, trumpet blasts, and fire, to hear the terrible voice
of the holy God say, "Depart from me you iniquity; I never knew
you," because they will have no mediator to save them. So fearful will
be the appearance of this mountain that they will quake with fear and
trembling and they will not be able to endure his just judgement; the wicked
will not stand in the judgment nor in the congregation of the righteous
(Ex. 19; Ps. 1:5). The wicked will no longer plot against the LORD and
against his anointed one (Ps. 2:1); they will no longer prosper but will be
brought low, cut down like the grass and wither as the green herb, both the
fool and the workers of iniquity in the fiery furnace of God's wrath (Ps.
37:1,2; 73:3). This is because salvation is far from the wicked (Ps.
119:155) who are like ships on the tossing sea; the breath of God's lips
will slay them (Is. 11:4; 57:20). The wicked will die for their sins (Ezek.
3:18) although they have been warned by the clear revelation of God's
wrath, they will continue to be wicked (Dan. 12:10; Rom. 1:18; 1 Cor. 6:9;
cf. Rev. 22:11). The wicked will be judged by the Law of Moses that will
condemn them eternally to the place of the wicked in the wilderness of hell
(Luke 24:4449; cf. John 5:38-47), not to be separated from the presence of
God, but to experience the devastating, all-encompassing, comprehensive and
deliberate presence of God in his wrath; weep you wicked, mourn for the
judgment of God is coming upon the earth!
D. THE RIGHTEOUS IN THE LAND ON THE
DAY OF THE LORD
The judgment of God is just and
it is according to the truth against the wicked and those who despise the
riches of God's goodness and forbearance and longsuffering (Rom. 2:2-4; cf.
Acts 2:38-42; 2Peter 3:9). God's graciousness and goodness leads to
repentance (Rom. 2:4b). It is not surprising then that in the latter part
of Joel's sermon, after God warns of the wrath and judgement, he promises a
refreshing to the land to lead the people to repentance. One of the most
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