Joel 3:16

3:16 The Lord roars from Zion;

from Jerusalem ¹  his voice bellows out. ² 

The heavens ³  and the earth shake.

But the Lord is a refuge for his people;

he is a stronghold for the citizens ⁴  of Israel.

Joel 3:2

3:2 Then I will gather all the nations,

and bring them down to the valley of Jehoshaphat. ⁵ 

I will enter into judgment ⁶  against them there

concerning my people Israel who are my inheritance, ⁷ 

whom they scattered among the nations.

They partitioned my land,

Joel 1:14-15

1:14 Announce a holy fast; ⁸ 

proclaim a sacred assembly.

Gather the elders and ⁹  all the inhabitants of the land

to the temple of the Lord your God,

and cry out to the Lord.

1:15 How awful that day will be! ¹⁰ 

For the day of the Lord is near;

it will come as destruction from the Divine Destroyer. ¹¹ 

Psalms 46:6

46:6 Nations are in uproar, kingdoms are overthrown. ¹² 

God ¹³  gives a shout, ¹⁴  the earth dissolves. ¹⁵ 

Isaiah 7:18

7:18 At that time ¹⁶  the Lord will whistle for flies from the distant streams of Egypt and for bees from the land of Assyria. ¹⁷ 

Isaiah 13:4

13:4 ¹⁸ There is a loud noise on the mountains –

it sounds like a large army! ¹⁹ 

There is great commotion among the kingdoms ²⁰  –

nations are being assembled!

The Lord who commands armies is mustering

forces for battle.

Isaiah 42:13

42:13 The Lord emerges like a hero,

like a warrior he inspires himself for battle; ²¹ 

he shouts, yes, he yells,

he shows his enemies his power. ²² 

Jeremiah 25:30

25:30 “Then, Jeremiah, ²³  make the following prophecy ²⁴  against them:

‘Like a lion about to attack, ²⁵  the Lord will roar from the heights of heaven;

from his holy dwelling on high he will roar loudly.

He will roar mightily against his land. ²⁶ 

He will shout in triumph like those stomping juice from the grapes ²⁷ 

against all those who live on the earth.

Amos 1:2

God Will Judge the Surrounding Nations

1:2 Amos ²⁸  said:

“The Lord comes roaring ²⁹  out of Zion;

from Jerusalem ³⁰  he comes bellowing! ³¹ 

The shepherds’ pastures wilt; ³² 

the summit of Carmel ³³  withers.” ³⁴ 

[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.”

[3:2]  ⁵ 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]  ⁶ tn Heb “I will execute judgment.”

[3:2]  ⁷ tn Heb “concerning my people and my inheritance Israel.”

[1:14]  ⁸ tn Heb “consecrate a fast” (so NASB).

[1:14]  ⁹ tc The conjunction “and” does not appear in MT or LXX, but does appear in some Qumran texts (4QXII^c and 4QXII^g).

[1:15]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “Alas for the day!”

[1:15]  ¹¹ tn There is a wordplay in Hebrew here with the word used for “destruction” (שׁוֹד, shod) and the term used for God (שַׁדַּי, shadday). The exact meaning of “Shaddai” in the OT is somewhat uncertain, although the ancient versions and many modern English versions tend to translate it as “Almighty” (e.g., Greek παντοκράτωρ [pantokratwr], Latin omnipotens). Here it might be rendered “Destroyer,” with the thought being that “destruction will come from the Divine Destroyer,” which should not be misunderstood as a reference to the destroying angel. The name “Shaddai” (outside Genesis and without the element “El” [“God”]) is normally used when God is viewed as the sovereign king who blesses/protects or curses/brings judgment. The name appears in the introduction to two of Balaam’s oracles (Num 24:4, 16) of blessing upon Israel. Naomi employs the name when accusing the Lord of treating her bitterly by taking the lives of her husband and sons (Ruth 1:20-21). In Ps 68:14, Isa 13:6, and the present passage, Shaddai judges his enemies through warfare, while Ps 91:1 depicts him as the protector of his people. In Ezek 1:24 and 10:5 the sound of the cherubs’ wings is compared to Shaddai’s powerful voice. The reference may be to the mighty divine warrior’s battle cry which accompanies his angry judgment.

[46:6]  ¹² tn Heb “nations roar, kingdoms shake.” The Hebrew verb הָמָה (hamah, “roar, be in uproar”) is used in v. 3 of the waves crashing, while the verb מוֹט (mot, “overthrown”) is used in v. 2 of mountains tumbling into the sea (see also v. 5, where the psalm affirms that Jerusalem “cannot be moved”). The repetition of the verbs suggests that the language of vv. 2-3 is symbolic and depicts the upheaval that characterizes relationships between the nations of the earth. As some nations (symbolized by the surging, chaotic waters) show hostility, others (symbolized by the mountains) come crashing down to destruction. The surging waters are symbolic of chaotic forces in other poetic texts (see, for example, Isa 17:12; Jer 51:42) and mountains can symbolize strong kingdoms (see, for example, Jer 51:25).

[46:6]  ¹³ tn Heb “He.” God is the obvious referent here (see v. 5), and has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[46:6]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “offers his voice.” In theophanic texts the phrase refers to God’s thunderous shout which functions as a battle cry (see Pss 18:13; 68:33).

[46:6]  ¹⁵ tn Or “melts.” See Amos 9:5. The image depicts the nation’s helplessness before Jerusalem’s defender, who annihilates their armies (see vv. 8-9). The imperfect verbal form emphasizes the characteristic nature of the action described.

[7:18]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “in that day” (so KJV). The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.

[7:18]  ¹⁷ sn Swarming flies are irritating; bees are irritating and especially dangerous because of the pain they inflict with their sting (see Deut 1:44; Ps 118:12). The metaphors are well chosen, for the Assyrians (symbolized by the bees) were much more powerful and dangerous than the Egyptians (symbolized by the flies). Nevertheless both would put pressure on Judah, for Egypt wanted Judah as a buffer state against Assyrian aggression, while Assyrian wanted it as a base for operations against Egypt. Following the reference to sour milk and honey, the metaphor is especially apt, for flies are attracted to dairy products and bees can be found in the vicinity of honey.

[13:4]  ¹⁸ sn In vv. 4-10 the prophet appears to be speaking, since the Lord is referred to in the third person. However, since the Lord refers to himself in the third person later in this chapter (see v. 13), it is possible that he speaks throughout the chapter.

[13:4]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “a sound, a roar [is] on the mountains, like many people.”

[13:4]  ²⁰ tn Heb “a sound, tumult of kingdoms.”

[42:13]  ²¹ tn Heb “like a man of war he stirs up zeal” (NIV similar).

[42:13]  ²² tn Or perhaps, “he triumphs over his enemies” (cf. NIV); NLT “will crush all his enemies.”

[25:30]  ²³ tn The word “Jeremiah” is not in the text. It is supplied in the translation to make clear who is being addressed.

[25:30]  ²⁴ tn Heb “Prophesy against them all these words.”

[25:30]  ²⁵ tn The words “like a lion about to attack” are not in the text but are implicit in the metaphor. The explicit comparison of the Lord to a lion is made at the end of the passage in v. 38. The words are supplied in the translation here for clarity.

[25:30]  ²⁶ sn The word used here (Heb “his habitation”) refers to the land of Canaan which the Lord chose to make his earthly dwelling (Exod 15:13) and which was the dwelling place of his chosen people (Jer 10:25; Isa 32:18). Judgment would begin at the “house of God” (v. 29; 1 Pet 4:17) but would extend to the rest of the earth (v. 29).

[25:30]  ²⁷ sn The metaphor shifts from God as a lion to God as a mighty warrior (Jer 20:11; Isa 42:13; Zeph 3:17) shouting in triumph over his foes. Within the metaphor is a simile where the warrior is compared to a person stomping on grapes to remove the juice from them in the making of wine. The figure will be invoked later in a battle scene where the sounds of joy in the grape harvest are replaced by the sounds of joy of the enemy soldiers (Jer 48:33). The picture is drawn in more gory detail in Isa 63:1-6.

[1:2]  ²⁸ tn Heb “he;” the referent (Amos) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[1:2]  ²⁹ sn The Lord, in his role of warrior-king, is compared to a lion. See 3:4, 8.

[1:2]  ³⁰ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[1:2]  ³¹ tn Heb “gives his voice.”

[1:2]  ³² tn Lexicographers debate whether there are two roots אָבַל (’aval), one signifying “mourn” and the other “be dry,” or simply one (“mourn”). The parallel verb (“withers”) might favor the first option and have the meaning “wilt away.” It is interesting to note, however, that the root appears later in the book in the context of lament (5:16; 8:8, 10; 9:5). Either 1:2 is a possible wordplay to alert the reader to the death that will accompany the judgment (the option of two roots), or perhaps the translation “mourns” is appropriate here as well (cf. KJV, NASB, NKJV, NJPS; see also D. J. A. Clines, “Was There an ’BL II ‘Be Dry’ in Classical Hebrew?” VT 42 [1992]: 1-10).

[1:2]  ³³ sn Carmel was a region known for its abundant plants and trees. See Isa 33:9; 35:2; Jer 50:19.

[1:2]  ³⁴ sn Loss of a land’s fertility is frequently associated with judgment in the OT and ancient Near Eastern literature.