Joel 2:29

2:29 Even on male and female servants

I will pour out my Spirit in those days.

Joel 2:28

An Outpouring of the Spirit

2:28 (3:1) ¹  After all of this ² 

I will pour out my Spirit ³  on all kinds of people. ⁴ 

Your sons and daughters will prophesy.

Your elderly will have revelatory dreams; ⁵ 

your young men will see prophetic visions.

Joel 1:14

1:14 Announce a holy fast; ⁶ 

proclaim a sacred assembly.

Gather the elders and ⁷  all the inhabitants of the land

to the temple of the Lord your God,

and cry out to the Lord.

Joel 2:16

2:16 Gather the people;

sanctify an assembly!

Gather the elders;

gather the children and the nursing infants.

Let the bridegroom come out from his bedroom

and the bride from her private quarters. ⁸ 

Joel 3:7

3:7 Look! I am rousing them from that place to which you sold them.

I will repay you for what you have done! ⁹ 

Joel 3:9

Judgment in the Valley of Jehoshaphat

3:9 Proclaim this among the nations:

“Prepare for a holy war!

Call out the warriors!

Let all these fighting men approach and attack! ¹⁰ 

Joel 1:20

1:20 Even the wild animals ¹¹  cry out to you; ¹² 

for the river beds ¹³  have dried up;

fire has destroyed ¹⁴  the grassy pastures. ¹⁵ 

Joel 3:18

3:18 On that day ¹⁶  the mountains will drip with sweet wine, ¹⁷ 

and the hills will flow with milk. ¹⁸ 

All the dry stream beds ¹⁹  of Judah will flow with water.

A spring will flow out from the temple ²⁰  of the Lord,

watering the Valley of Acacia Trees. ²¹ 

Joel 1:19

1:19 To you, O Lord, I call out for help, ²² 

for fire ²³  has burned up ²⁴  the grassy pastures, ²⁵ 

flames have razed ²⁶  all the trees in the fields.

Joel 2:11

2:11 The voice of the Lord thunders ²⁷  as he leads his army. ²⁸ 

Indeed, his warriors ²⁹  are innumerable; ³⁰ 

Surely his command is carried out! ³¹ 

Yes, the day of the Lord is awesome ³² 

and very terrifying – who can survive ³³  it?

Joel 3:16

3:16 The Lord roars from Zion;

from Jerusalem ³⁴  his voice bellows out. ³⁵ 

The heavens ³⁶  and the earth shake.

But the Lord is a refuge for his people;

he is a stronghold for the citizens ³⁷  of Israel.

Joel 3:11

3:11 Lend your aid ³⁸  and come,

all you surrounding nations,

and gather yourselves ³⁹  to that place.”

Bring down, O Lord, your warriors! ⁴⁰ 

Joel 1:5

1:5 Wake up, you drunkards, ⁴¹  and weep!

Wail, all you wine drinkers, ⁴² 

because the sweet wine ⁴³  has been taken away ⁴⁴  from you. ⁴⁵ 

Joel 3:19

3:19 Egypt will be desolate

and Edom will be a desolate wilderness,

because of the violence they did to the people of Judah, ⁴⁶ 

in whose land they shed innocent blood.

Joel 2:22

2:22 Do not fear, wild animals! ⁴⁷ 

For the pastures of the wilderness are again green with grass.

Indeed, the trees bear their fruit;

the fig tree and the vine yield to their fullest. ⁴⁸ 

Joel 3:4

3:4 Why are you doing these things to me, Tyre and Sidon? ⁴⁹ 

Are you trying to get even with me, land of Philistia? ⁵⁰ 

I will very quickly repay you for what you have done! ⁵¹ 

Joel 2:20

2:20 I will remove the one from the north ⁵²  far from you.

I will drive him out to a dry and desolate place.

Those in front will be driven eastward into the Dead Sea, ⁵³ 

and those in back westward into the Mediterranean Sea. ⁵⁴ 

His stench will rise up as a foul smell.” ⁵⁵ 

Indeed, the Lord ⁵⁶  has accomplished great things.

Joel 2:32

2:32 It will so happen that

everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be delivered. ⁵⁷ 

For on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem ⁵⁸  there will be those who survive, ⁵⁹ 

just as the Lord has promised;

the remnant ⁶⁰  will be those whom the Lord will call. ⁶¹ 

[2:28]  ¹ sn Beginning with 2:28, the verse numbers through 3:21 in the English Bible differ from the verse numbers in the Hebrew text (BHS), with 2:28 ET = 3:1 HT, 2:29 ET = 3:2 HT, 2:30 ET = 3:3 HT, 2:31 ET = 3:4 HT, 2:32 ET = 3:5 HT, 3:1 ET = 4:1 HT, etc., through 3:21 ET = 4:21 HT. Thus Joel in the Hebrew Bible has 4 chapters, the 5 verses of ch. 3 being included at the end of ch. 2 in the English Bible.

[2:28]  ² tn Heb “Now it will be after this.”

[2:28]  ³ sn This passage plays a key role in the apostolic explanation of the coming of the Spirit on the day of Pentecost recorded in Acts 2:17-21. Peter introduces his quotation of this passage with “this is that spoken by the prophet Joel” (Acts 2:16; cf. the similar pesher formula used at Qumran). The New Testament experience at Pentecost is thus seen in some sense as a fulfillment of this Old Testament passage, even though that experience did not exhaustively fulfill Joel’s words. Some portions of Joel’s prophecy have no precise counterpart in that experience. For example, there is nothing in the experience recorded in Acts 2 that exactly corresponds to the earthly and heavenly signs described in Joel 3:3-4. But inasmuch as the messianic age had already begun and the “last days” had already commenced with the coming of the Messiah (cf. Heb 1:1-2), Peter was able to point to Joel 3:1-5 as a text that was relevant to the advent of Jesus and the bestowal of the Spirit. The equative language that Peter employs (“this is that”) stresses an incipient fulfillment of the Joel passage without precluding or minimizing a yet future and more exhaustive fulfillment in events associated with the return of Christ.

[2:28]  ⁴ tn Heb “all flesh.” As a term for humanity, “flesh” suggests the weakness and fragility of human beings as opposed to God who is “spirit.” The word “all” refers not to all human beings without exception (cf. NAB, NASB “all mankind”; NLT “all people”), but to all classes of human beings without distinction (cf. NCV).

[2:28]  ⁵ tn Heb “your old men will dream dreams.”

[1:14]  ¹ tn Heb “consecrate a fast” (so NASB).

[1:14]  ² tc The conjunction “and” does not appear in MT or LXX, but does appear in some Qumran texts (4QXII^c and 4QXII^g).

[2:16]  ¹ sn Mosaic law allowed men recently married, or about to be married, to be exempt for a year from certain duties that were normally mandatory, such as military obligation (cf. Deut 20:7; 24:5). However, Joel pictures a time of such urgency that normal expectations must give way to higher requirements.

[3:7]  ¹ tn Heb “I will return your recompense on your head.”

[3:9]  ¹ tn Heb “draw near and go up.”

[1:20]  ¹ tn Heb “beasts of the field.”

[1:20]  ² tn Heb “long for you.” Animals of course do not have religious sensibilities as such; they do not in any literal sense long for Yahweh. Rather, the language here is figurative (metonymy of cause for effect). The animals long for food and water (so BDB 788 s.v. עָרַג), the ultimate source of which is Yahweh.

[1:20]  ³ tn Heb “sources of water.”

[1:20]  ⁴ tn Heb “consumed.”

[1:20]  ⁵ tn Heb “the pastures of the wilderness.”

[3:18]  ¹ tn Heb “and it will come about in that day.”

[3:18]  ² tn Many English translations read “new wine” or “sweet wine,” meaning unfermented wine, i.e., grape juice.

[3:18]  ³ sn The language used here is a hyperbolic way of describing both a bountiful grape harvest (“the mountains will drip with juice”) and an abundance of cattle (“the hills will flow with milk”). In addition to being hyperbolic, the language is also metonymical (effect for cause).

[3:18]  ⁴ tn Or “seasonal streams.”

[3:18]  ⁵ tn Heb “house.”

[3:18]  ⁶ tn Heb “valley of Shittim.” The exact location of the Valley of Acacia Trees is uncertain. The Hebrew word שִׁטִּים (shittim) refers to a place where the acacia trees grow, which would be a very arid and dry place. The acacia tree can survive in such locations, whereas most other trees require more advantageous conditions. Joel’s point is that the stream that has been mentioned will proceed to the most dry and barren of locations in the vicinity of Jerusalem.

[1:19]  ¹ tn The phrase “for help” does not appear in the Hebrew, but is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity.

[1:19]  ² sn Fire here and in v. 20 is probably not to be understood in a literal sense. The locust plague, accompanied by conditions of extreme drought, has left the countryside looking as though everything has been burned up (so also in Joel 2:3).

[1:19]  ³ tn Heb “consumed.” This entire line is restated at the end of v. 20.

[1:19]  ⁴ tn Heb “the pastures of the wilderness.”

[1:19]  ⁵ tn Heb “a flame has set ablaze.” This fire was one of the effects of the drought.

[2:11]  ¹ tn Heb “the Lord gives his voice.”

[2:11]  ² tn Heb “before his army.”

[2:11]  ³ tn Heb “military encampment.”

[2:11]  ⁴ tn Heb “very large.”

[2:11]  ⁵ tn Heb “he makes his word powerful.”

[2:11]  ⁶ tn Or “powerful.” Heb “great.”

[2:11]  ⁷ tn Heb “endure.” The MT and LXX read “endure,” while one of the Qumran manuscripts (4QXXII^c) has “bear.”

[3:16]  ¹ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[3:16]  ² tn Heb “he sounds forth his voice.”

[3:16]  ³ tn Or “the sky.” See the note on “sky” in 2:30.

[3:16]  ⁴ tn Heb “sons.”

[3:11]  ¹ 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]  ² 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]  ³ tc Some commentators prefer to delete the line “Bring down, O Lord, your warriors,” understanding it to be a later addition. But this is unnecessary. Contrary to what some have suggested, a prayer for the Lord’s intervention is not out of place here.

[1:5]  ¹ sn The word drunkards has a double edge here. Those accustomed to drinking too much must now lament the unavailability of wine. It also may hint that the people in general have become religiously inebriated and are unresponsive to the Lord. They are, as it were, drunkards from a spiritual standpoint.

[1:5]  ² sn Joel addresses the first of three groups particularly affected by the locust plague. In v. 5 he describes the effects on the drunkards, who no longer have a ready supply of intoxicating wine; in vv. 11-12 he describes the effects on the farmers, who have watched their labors come to naught because of the insect infestation; and in vv. 13-14 he describes the effects on the priests, who are no longer able to offer grain sacrifices and libations in the temple.

[1:5]  ³ tn Heb “over the sweet wine, because it.” Cf. KJV, NIV, TEV, NLT “new wine.”

[1:5]  ⁴ tn Heb “cut off” (so KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV); NAB “will be withheld.”

[1:5]  ⁵ tn Heb “your mouth.” This is a synecdoche of part (the mouth) for whole (the person).

[3:19]  ¹ tn Heb “violence of the sons of Judah.” The phrase “of the sons of Judah” is an objective genitive (cf. KJV “the violence against the children of Judah”; NAB, NIV, NRSV “violence done to the people of Judah”). It refers to injustices committed against the Judeans, not violence that the Judeans themselves had committed against others.

[2:22]  ¹ tn Heb “beasts of the field.”

[2:22]  ² tn Heb “their strength.” The trees and vines will produce a maximum harvest, in contrast to the failed agricultural conditions previously described.

[3:4]  ¹ tn Heb “What [are] you [doing] to me, O Tyre and Sidon?”

[3:4]  ² tn Or “districts.”

[3:4]  ³ 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.

[2:20]  ¹ sn The allusion to the one from the north is best understood as having locusts in view. It is not correct to say that this reference to the enemy who came form the north excludes the possibility of a reference to locusts and must be understood as human armies. Although locust plagues usually approached Palestine from the east or southeast, the severe plague of 1915, for example, came from the northeast.

[2:20]  ² tn Heb “his face to the eastern sea.” In this context the eastern sea is probably the Dead Sea.

[2:20]  ³ tn Heb “and his rear to the western sea.” The western sea refers to the Mediterranean Sea.

[2:20]  ⁴ sn Heb “and his foul smell will ascend.” The foul smell probably refers to the unpleasant odor of decayed masses of dead locusts. The Hebrew word for “foul smell” is found only here in the Old Testament. The Hebrew word for “stench” appears only here and in Isa 34:3 and Amos 4:10. In the latter references it refers to the stench of dead corpses on a field of battle.

[2:20]  ⁵ tn The Hebrew text does not have “the Lord.” Two interpretations are possible. This clause may refer to the enemy described in the immediately preceding verses, in which case it would have a negative sense: “he has acted in a high-handed manner.” Or it may refer to the Lord, in which case it would have a positive sense: “the Lord has acted in a marvelous manner.” This is clearly the sense of the same expression in v. 21, where in fact “the Lord” appears as the subject of the verb. It seems best to understand the clause the same way in both verses.

[2:32]  ¹ tn While a number of English versions render this as “saved” (e.g., NIV, NRSV, NLT), this can suggest a “spiritual” or “theological” salvation rather than the physical deliverance from the cataclysmic events of the day of the Lord described in the context.

[2:32]  ² map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[2:32]  ³ tn Heb “deliverance”; or “escape.” The abstract noun “deliverance” or “escape” probably functions here as an example of antimeria, referring to those who experience deliverance or escape with their lives: “escaped remnant” or “surviving remnant” (Gen 32:8; 45:7; Judg 21:17; 2 Kgs 19:30, 31; Isa 4:2; 10:20; 15:9; 37:31, 32; Ezek 14:22; Obad 1:17; Ezra 9:8, 13-15; Neh 1:2; 1 Chr 4:43; 2 Chr 30:6).

[2:32]  ⁴ tn Heb “and among the remnant.”

[2:32]  ⁵ tn The participle used in the Hebrew text seems to indicate action in the imminent future.