Discovery BoxJoel 3:2-12
Context3:2 Then I will gather all the nations,
and bring them down to the valley of Jehoshaphat. 1
I will enter into judgment 2 against them there
concerning my people Israel who are my inheritance, 3
whom they scattered among the nations.
They partitioned my land,
3:3 and they cast lots for my people.
They traded 4 a boy for a prostitute;
they sold a little girl for wine so they could drink. 5
3:4 Why are you doing these things to me, Tyre and Sidon? 6
Are you trying to get even with me, land of Philistia? 7
I will very quickly repay you for what you have done! 8
3:5 For you took my silver and my gold
and brought my precious valuables to your own palaces. 9
3:6 You sold Judeans and Jerusalemites to the Greeks,
removing them far from their own country. 10
3:7 Look! I am rousing them from that place to which you sold them.
I will repay you for what you have done! 11
3:8 I will sell your sons and daughters to 12 the people of Judah. 13
They will sell them to the Sabeans, 14 a nation far away.
Indeed, the Lord has spoken!
3:9 Proclaim this among the nations:
“Prepare for a holy war!
Call out the warriors!
Let all these fighting men approach and attack! 15
3:10 Beat your plowshares 16 into swords,
and your pruning hooks 17 into spears! 18
Let the weak say, ‘I too am a warrior!’ 19
3:11 Lend your aid 20 and come,
all you surrounding nations,
and gather yourselves 21 to that place.”
Bring down, O Lord, your warriors! 22
3:12 Let the nations be roused and let them go up
to the valley of Jehoshaphat,
for there I will sit in judgment on all the surrounding nations.
[3:2] 1 sn There is a play on words here. Jehoshaphat in Hebrew means “the Lord has judged,” and the next line in v. 2 further explicates this thought. The location of this valley is uncertain (cf. v. 12). Many interpreters have understood the Valley of Jehoshaphat to be the Kidron Valley, located on the east side of old Jerusalem. Since this is described as a scene of future messianic activity and judgment, many Jews and Muslims have desired to be buried in the vicinity, a fact attested to in modern times by the presence of many graves in the area. A variation of this view is mentioned by Eusebius, Onomasticon 1:10. According to this view, the Valley of Jehoshaphat is located in the Hinnom Valley, on the south side of the old city. Yet another view is held by many modern scholars, who understand the reference to this valley to be one of an idealized and nonliteral scene of judgment.
[3:2] 2 tn Heb “I will execute judgment.”
[3:2] 3 tn Heb “concerning my people and my inheritance Israel.”
[3:3] 5 sn Heb “and they drank.” Joel vividly refers to a situation where innocent human life has little value; its only worth is its use in somehow satisfying selfish appetites of wicked people who have control over others (cf. Amos 2:6 and 8:6).
[3:4] 6 tn Heb “What [are] you [doing] to me, O Tyre and Sidon?”
[3:4] 8 tn Heb “quickly, speedily, I will return your recompense on your head.” This is an idiom for retributive justice and an equitable reversal of situation.
[3:5] 9 tn Or perhaps, “temples.”
[3:7] 11 tn Heb “I will return your recompense on your head.”
[3:8] 12 tn Heb “into the hand of.”
[3:8] 13 tn Heb “the sons of Judah.”
[3:8] 14 sn The Sabeans were Arabian merchants who were influential along the ancient caravan routes that traveled through Arabia. See also Job 1:15; Isa 43:3; 45:14; Ps 72:10.
[3:9] 15 tn Heb “draw near and go up.”
[3:10] 16 sn Instead of referring to the large plow as a whole, the plowshare is simply the metal tip which actually breaks the earth and cuts the furrow.
[3:10] 17 sn This implement was used to prune the vines, i.e., to cut off extra leaves and young shoots (M. Klingbeil, NIDOTTE 1:1117-18). It was a short knife with a curved hook at the end sharpened on the inside like a sickle.
[3:10] 18 sn This conversion of farming instruments to instruments of war is the reverse of Isa 2:4 (cf. Mic 4:3), where military weapons are transformed into tools for farming. Isaiah describes a time of kingdom blessing and prosperity, whereas Joel describes a time of eschatological conflict and judgment.
[3:10] 19 sn The “weak” individual mentioned here is apparently the farmer who has little or no military prowess or prior fighting experience. Under ordinary circumstances such a person would be ill-prepared for assuming the role of a soldier. However, in the scene that Joel is describing here even the most unlikely candidate will become a participant to be reckoned with in this final conflict.
[3:11] 20 tn This Hebrew verb is found only here in the OT; its meaning is uncertain. Some scholars prefer to read here עוּרוּ (’uru, “arouse”) or חוּשׁוּ (khushu, “hasten”).
[3:11] 21 tc The present translation follows the reading of the imperative הִקָּבְצוּ (hiqqavÿtsu) rather than the perfect with vav (ו) consecutive וְנִקְבָּצוּ (vÿniqbbatsu) of the MT.
[3:11] 22 tc Some commentators prefer to delete the line “Bring down, O
