The book of Joel was written at a difficult time in Judahs
history. Joel begins his prophecy by describing a terrible plague of locusts
that had come upon the land for judgment. The locusts had come into the land
and were devouring it completely, and it's at this time that the Lord raised up
the prophet Joel to bring a message to the people. We don't know much about the
man Joel, his name means "Jehovah is God", an important reminder in a
time when men would begin to question God because of their trying
circumstances. The Lord sent Joel to the people of Judah to explain to them three
things: 1) What was happening presently. The reason that this swarm of Locusts
had come upon the land. 2) What they should do about it practically. And 3)
what the big picture was prophetically concerning these locusts. As we get
into the book we're going to see that this swarm of locusts pictures a far worse
judgment that is still to come.
As well as speaking to the people of Judah, historically, and of the future judgment, prophetically, Joel also speaks to you and I today. Anyone who feels like they're going through a time of fruitlessness in their lives, or anyone who feels like they have suffered loss in one area or another in their lives, Joel has a message from the Lord for you.
Joel 1:1-4 - "The word of the LORD that came to Joel, the son of Pethuel: Hear this, O elders, And listen, all inhabitants of the land. Has anything like this happened in your days Or in your fathers’ days? Tell your sons about it, And let your sons tell their sons, And their sons the next generation. What the gnawing locust has left, the swarming locust has eaten; And what the swarming locust has left, the creeping locust has eaten; And what the creeping locust has left, the stripping locust has eaten."
The Lord gives a message to Joel that He doesn't want forgotten. He tells them to pass it on from generation to generation. In Verse 4 he begins to tell us of the devastation of the locusts and he mentions four stages, or for species of locust. There are over 23,000 species of locust in the world, so it is likely that these four different names here refer to four different species of locust. They came upon the land one after the other and they devoured more and more, deeper and deeper as they went along.
Vs. 5 - "Awake, drunkards, and weep; And wail, all you wine drinkers, On account of the sweet wine That is cut off from your mouth." Because of the locusts the fruit of the vine was completely cut off, and he tells the drunkards to weep. It was an immediate withdrawal program that they were all forced to go through. Interestingly enough, Joel makes drunkenness out to be the primary sin of the people in this book. Unlike the other prophets, Joel doesn't deal with false gods or idols. The people hadn't turned to worship false gods, but instead it seems that in their prosperity they had simply forgotten the Lord.
Vs. 6-7 - "For a nation has invaded my land, Mighty and without number; Its teeth are the teeth of a lion, And it has the fangs of a lioness. It has made my vine a waste And my fig tree splinters. It has stripped them bare and cast them away; Their branches have become white." The locusts not only devoured the fruit and the leaves of the plants, but they even stripped the bark off. The land was stripped bare, completely devoured.
Vs. 8-12 - "Wail like a virgin girded with sackcloth For the bridegroom of her youth. The grain offering and the drink offering are cut off From the house of the LORD. The priests mourn,
The ministers of the LORD. The field is ruined, The land mourns; For the grain is ruined, The new wine dries up, Fresh oil fails. Be ashamed, O farmers, Wail, O vinedressers, For the wheat and the barley; Because the harvest of the field is destroyed. The vine dries up And the fig tree fails; The pomegranate, the palm also, and the apple tree, All the trees of the field dry up. Indeed, rejoicing dries up From the sons of men." As a result of the devastation the entire economy collapses. The locusts don't only bring hard times as far as food is concerned, but also economic collapse, which indeed happened. We in America have always felt pretty secure economically, with all our technology and all the ways that we've advanced in the last few decades, but there is really no economic security in any earthly system. A collapse of the entire system can be brought about very quickly, and all it takes is a swarm of grasshoppers.
After experiencing a time of great prosperity in the nation of Judah, this plague of locusts comes upon the land and completely lays it waste.
Vs.13 - "Gird yourselves with sackcloth And lament, O priests; Wail, O ministers of the altar! Come, spend the night in sackcloth O ministers of my God, For the grain offering and the drink offering Are withheld from the house of your God." Nothing was unaffected. Even the sacrificial system was hindered. Not only were the effected economically, but spiritually as well. Since everything had been devoured they not only had nothing to eat, but they had nothing to sacrifice to the Lord either.
In Deuteronomy 8, when the Lord was preparing the children of Israel to bring them into the land of Canaan, He says this to them in verses 11-14 - "Beware that you do not forget the LORD your God by not keeping His commandments and His ordinances and His statutes which I am commanding you today; otherwise, when you have eaten and are satisfied, and have built good houses and lived in them, and when your herds and your flocks multiply, and your silver and gold multiply, and all that you have multiplies, then your heart will become proud and you will forget the LORD your God who brought you out from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery." This had been the situation for the people in Joel's day. They hadn't completely turned from the Lord to serve other gods, but in their prosperity they had simply forgotten the Lord. Since everything was going so well for them they drifted into a state of lukewarmness, forgetting what the Lord had done for them and delighting in the provision rather than in the Provider. So the Lord sends this plague of locusts on the land to draw the people back to Himself.
Vs. 14 - "Consecrate a fast, Proclaim a solemn assembly; Gather the elders And all the inhabitants of the land To the house of the LORD your God, And cry out to the LORD." The Lord calls the people to consecrate a fast, which would be pretty easy to do considering that all the food in the land had been devoured by the locusts, and He tells them to gather together before Him. He wants them to come back to Him.
Vs. 15 - "Alas for the day! For the day of the LORD is near, And it will come as destruction from the Almighty." This verse is key to understanding the book of Joel. There are three things that Joel is dealing with: 1)The situation of Judah, historically. 2) The day of the Lord, prophetically. 3) Your life today, practically. And it is that second thing that Joel points out here in verse 15. He's telling the people that this day of the locust is only foreshadowing and pointing to a far worse day, the day of the Lord, that is yet to come. This day of the locust is pointing to a time that is going to come after the rapture of the church. The church is going to be raptured and God is going to pour out His wrath upon a Christ rejecting world, a time known as the tribulation, or "the time of Jacobs trouble." As bad a the locusts are, the prophet is saying, it's going to get far worse. So as we go through this book we need to keep these three dimensions in mind.
There are 4 major days spoken of in scripture. Not 24 hour days, but more like an era. The first is called the "day of man" spoken of in 1 Corinthians 4:3. This is the time we're living in right now. This is the time when mankind is having his way on the earth. The second day is called "the day of Jesus Christ" spoken of in 1 Corinthians 1:7-8, 2 Corinthians 1:4, Philippians 1, as well as other places in Scripture. The day of Jesus Christ speaks of the rapture of the church. When Jesus comes in the clouds and calls us up to Himself. 1 Thessalonians 4 is the classic passage dealing with the day of Jesus Christ. The third day spoken of is "the day of the Lord". This day is mentioned in Isaiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Zechariah, it's talked about in the New Testament, 5 times the day of the Lord is mentioned in this small book of Joel. The day of the Lord is speaking of a time shortly following the rapture of the church. The day of the Lord begins with the seven year tribulation, Revelation 6-19, the time when the Lord is trying to get the attention of those who did not respond to His love. And it continues through the 1000 year reign of Christ on the earth, a time known as the millennial kingdom, a time of peace on the earth in which the Lord Himself will sit on the throne. The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. We're also told that the heavens and earth will be destroyed in the day of the Lord. 2 Peter 3:10 says - "But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up." The fourth and final day spoken of in Scripture is "the day of God" spoken of in 2 Peter 3:12. The day of God is the eternal state.
It's is that third day, "the day of the Lord" that's being foreshadowed here in the book of Joel.
Vs 16-20 - "Has not food been cut off before our eyes, Gladness and joy from the house of our God? The seeds shrivel under their clods; The storehouses are desolate, The barns are torn down, For the grain is dried up. How the beasts groan! The herds of cattle wander aimlessly Because there is no pasture for them; Even the flocks of sheep suffer. To You, O LORD, I cry;
For fire has devoured the pastures of the wilderness And the flame has burned up all the trees of the field. Even the beasts of the field pant for You; For the water brooks are dried up And fire has devoured the pastures of the wilderness." Everything was devoured, even the grass of the field. There was nothing to eat for either man or beast. Maybe that's how you feel in one area or another in your life. Maybe you feel like you've been devoured, somethings eating at you. Some plague of locusts, some trial has come into your life and consumed you. How do we deal with that? What's going on? Why has the Lord allowed this to happen? And what do I need to do about it? The Lord goes on to answer the questions in chapter 2.
Chapter 2
Vs. 1-2 - "Blow a trumpet in Zion, And sound an alarm on My holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, For the day of the LORD is coming; Surely it is near, A day of darkness and gloom, A day of clouds and thick darkness. As the dawn is spread over the mountains, So there is a great and mighty people; There has never been anything like it, Nor will there be again after it To the years of many generations." Twice in this chapter the people are told to "Blow a trumpet in Zion." This references back to Numbers chapter 10. In Numbers chapter 10 the Lord instructs Moses to make to silver trumpets, and the trumpets were to be used for two different purposes. Coincidentally the trumpets are used for both purposes here in Joel chapter 2. The first purpose of the trumpets was to sound an alarm, to warn the people of an invading army. The second purpose was to call the people to assemble before the Lord their God. The trumpet is used for the first purpose here in verse 1 - "Blow a trumpet in Zion, And sound an alarm on My holy mountain!" This trumpet was blown to warn the people of the invasion of the army of locusts that was coming upon them, but it was also to warn them about the soon coming day of the Lord.
He goes on in chapter two to describe the swarm of locusts that is coming against them, and it parallels very closely with an event that will happen during the great and terrible day of the Lord, talked about in Revelation chapter 9.
Vs. 3-5 - "A fire consumes before them And behind them a flame burns. The land is like the garden of Eden before them But a desolate wilderness behind them, And nothing at all escapes them. Their appearance is like the appearance of horses; And like war horses, so they run. With a noise as of chariots They leap on the tops of the mountains, Like the crackling of a flame of fire consuming the stubble, Like a mighty people arranged for battle." The Romans called locusts "burners of the field" because after they swept through an area the place would look like a wilderness that had been completely consumed by fire.
Vs. 6-9 - "Before them the people are in anguish; All faces turn pale. They run like mighty men, They climb the wall like soldiers; And they each march in line, Nor do they deviate from their paths. They do not crowd each other, They march everyone in his path; When they burst through the defenses, They do not break ranks. They rush on the city, They run on the wall; They climb into the houses, They enter through the windows like a thief." Joel points out that the swarm of locusts moves together as an army. They don't break ranks, and they move together as one, completely consuming everything in their path. The writer of Proverbs says the same thing in Proverbs 30:27 which says - "The locusts have no king, Yet all of them go out in ranks."
Vs. 10 - "Before them the earth quakes, The heavens tremble, The sun and the moon grow dark And the stars lose their brightness." Those who have experienced this kind of swarm tell us that as well as making a terrible noise (vs. 4-5) and consuming everything in their paths, the locust can become so thick that they obscure any natural light. In 1915 a swarm of locusts came into this area in the middle east and we're told that it was so thick that the light of the sun wasn't seen for upwards of three months, until a strong wind finally came up and pushed the locusts into the sea and they drowned. That's what Joel is saying here, when the locusts come in the sun and the moon grow dark and the stars lose their brightness.
As I said, these first ten verses parallel with something far worse that's going to happen in the day of the Lord, spoken of in Revelation 9. Revelation 9:1-10 says this - "Then the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star from heaven which had fallen to the earth; and the key of the bottomless pit was given to him. He opened the bottomless pit, and smoke went up out of the pit, like the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by the smoke of the pit. Then out of the smoke came locusts upon the earth, and power was given them, as the scorpions of the earth have power. They were told not to hurt the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree, but only the men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads. And they were not permitted to kill anyone, but to torment for five months; and their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it stings a man. And in those days men will seek death and will not find it; they will long to die, and death flees from them. The appearance of the locusts was like horses prepared for battle; and on their heads appeared to be crowns like gold, and their faces were like the faces of men. They had hair like the hair of women, and their teeth were like the teeth of lions. They had breastplates like breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings was like the sound of chariots, of many horses rushing to battle. They have tails like scorpions, and stings; and in their tails is their power to hurt men for five months." These locusts in the day of the Lord are far worse than those that came upon the land in the days of Joel. These locusts in Revelation 9 are actually demonic powers that are set loose upon the earth. These aren't your average every day locust. The locusts in Joels day destroyed every plant, all the fruit, the trees, all the grass of the field, every green thing was destroyed, and it caused great anxiety in the hearts of the people. But these locusts, these demons in Revelation 9 are told "not to hurt the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree, but only the men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads." These locusts don't touch the plants, they only torment those who have not turned to Christ. And we're told that their torment is like the torment of scorpions. The torment is going to be so bad that men are going to seek death, their going to want to die, but death is going to flee from them. They won't even be able to commit suicide.
Speaking of the day of the Lord, Joel says "A day of darkness and gloom, A day of clouds and thick darkness." and "Before them the earth quakes, The heavens tremble, The sun and the moon grow dark And the stars lose their brightness." Revelation says "He opened the bottomless pit, and smoke went up out of the pit, like the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by the smoke of the pit. Then out of the smoke came locusts upon the earth, and power was given them, as the scorpions of the earth have power."
Joel says "Their appearance is like the appearance of horses; And like war horses, so they run." Revelation says "The appearance of the locusts was like horses prepared for battle."
Joel says "With a noise as of chariots They leap on the tops of the mountains, Like the crackling of a flame of fire consuming the stubble, Like a mighty people arranged for battle." Revelation says "the sound of their wings was like the sound of chariots, of many horses rushing to battle." In number, in appearance, and in sound the locusts in Joel and in Revelation are very similar, but there are two major differences. The first major difference is that the locusts in the days of Joel only consumed the agriculture, whereas the locusts, the demons that will come during the day of the Lord will not touch the plants of the field nor the fruit of the vine, but only those men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads. The locusts in the day of Joel were only a picture of something far worse that is yet to come.
The second major difference is that in Revelation 9 it says "They have as king over them, the angel of the abyss; his name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in the Greek he has the name Apollyon." These demons were lead by a demon, whereas we go on to read in Joel 2:11 - "The LORD utters His voice before His army; Surely His camp is very great, For strong is he who carries out His word. The day of the LORD is indeed great and very awesome, And who can endure it?" The Lord is the one who sent the locust on the land. He is the one who directed the movement of the locusts. Nothing was consumed by them without His permission. It may seem kind of strange to you that the Lord would allow, let alone, send these locusts into Judah to consume the land. Why would He do such a thing? He did it to get the peoples attention, to bring them back to Himself, and we're going to see that as we go on.
The study of end times and the day of the Lord is all very interesting, but what about the people in Joels day? They probably weren't very concerned about the day of the Lord. They looked around and saw the devastation of the locust and thought, what about right now?
Vs.12-14 - “Yet even now,” declares the LORD, “Return to Me with all your heart, And with fasting, weeping and mourning; And rend your heart and not your garments.” Now return to the LORD your God, For He is gracious and compassionate, Slow to anger, abounding in lovingkindness And relenting of evil. Who knows whether He will not turn and relent And leave a blessing behind Him, Even a grain offering and a drink offering For the LORD your God?" The Lord tells the people, "Right now, I want you to turn back to Me." He tells them to rend their hearts and not their garments. Back in those days people would tear their garments as an outward sign of sorrow and repentance, but the Lord say, in effect, "I don't want the outward sign, I want the inward reality. I want you to be truly broken about the things that you've allowed to come between us." It all comes down to a value system. Anything that will draw us closer to the Lord is truly valuable, but on the other hand, anything that does not draw us closer to Him is just worthless. The people of Judah weren't worshiping idols or following false gods, they simply grew stagnant in their relationship with God, they stopped growing closer to Him, they became lukewarm and God wanted to draw them out of that. He wanted them to realize their spiritual condition and be broken about in, in order that He might draw them closer to Him.
And the Lord works the same way in our lives. He wants to draw us closer to Himself, and He might just have to send a swarm of locusts into our lives, some trial into our lives to get our attention, in order that we might be broken about our true spiritual condition and do away with the worthless things that are holding God at arms length.
Vs. 15-17 - "Blow a trumpet in Zion, Consecrate a fast, proclaim a solemn assembly, Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, Assemble the elders, Gather the children and the nursing infants. Let the bridegroom come out of his room And the bride out of her bridal chamber. Let the priests, the LORD’S ministers, Weep between the porch and the altar, And let them say, “Spare Your people, O LORD, And do not make Your inheritance a reproach, A byword among the nations. Why should they among the peoples say, ‘Where is their God?’"
This is the second trumpet call in this chapter, again, referring back to Numbers chapter 10. The first call was used to alert the people of an invading army, but this second trumpet call is used to assemble the people before the Lord. The people had neglected to meet together before the Lord, they got so caught up in the blessings of the Lord, the plentiful crops, the abundant fields that the Lord had blessed them with that they forgot the One who made them prosperous. So He sends this swarm of locusts to get their attention, He tells them to rend their hearts, to be broken before Him, and He calls them to gather together again before Him. Gathering together with the Lords people is vital to our spiritual growth. That's why we're told in Hebrews 10 to - "not forsake the assembling of ourselves together." Joel calls the people to assemble together before the Lord. All the people, the elders to the children and nursing infants. Everyone is called to come together before the Lord.
The Lord calls the people to repent, to rend their hearts, and He calls them to assemble together before Him, and as a result we're told in Vs. 18-20 - "Then the LORD will be zealous for His land And will have pity on His people. The LORD will answer and say to His people, “Behold, I am going to send you grain, new wine and oil, And you will be satisfied in full with them; And I will never again make you a reproach among the nations. “But I will remove the northern army far from you, And I will drive it into a parched and desolate land, And its vanguard into the eastern sea, And its rear guard into the western sea. And its stench will arise and its foul smell will come up, For it has done great things.”
In 2 Chronicles chapter 7 Solomon had just finished building the temple and dedicating it to the Lord, and we read this in verses 12-14 - "Then the LORD appeared to Solomon at night and said to him, “I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place for Myself as a house of sacrifice. If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people, and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land." This is what the Lord reminds the people of through the prophet Joel. The Lord says "If I command the locust to devour the land... and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray..." If they are truly broken about their standing with me and they truly repent "...and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways..." If they assemble together before Me and seek Me, "...then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land." The locusts were sent on the land in order to bring the people spiritual healing. In order to bring the people back to God. And He says that once they return to Him, once they receive that spiritual healing, then He will drive out the locusts and heal their land.
Vs. 21-27 - "Do not fear, O land, rejoice and be glad, For the LORD has done great things. Do not fear, beasts of the field, For the pastures of the wilderness have turned green, For the tree has borne its fruit, The fig tree and the vine have yielded in full. So rejoice, O sons of Zion, And be glad in the LORD your God; For He has given you the early rain for your vindication. And He has poured down for you the rain, The early and latter rain as before. The threshing floors will be full of grain, And the vats will overflow with the new wine and oil. “Then I will make up to you for the years That the swarming locust has eaten, The creeping locust, the stripping locust and the gnawing locust, My great army which I sent among you. “You will have plenty to eat and be satisfied And praise the name of the LORD your God, Who has dealt wondrously with you; Then My people will never be put to shame. “Thus you will know that I am in the midst of Israel,
And that I am the LORD your God, And there is no other; And My people will never be put to shame."
Twice in these verses the people are told to rejoice. God lists all these things that He's going to do, and He tells the people to rejoice. The locusts were still in the land, the Lord hadn't driven them out yet, but He tells them to rejoice nonetheless. To rejoice in what the Lord is going to do, even if we don't see it yet. That's faith. The ability to rejoice in spite of our circumstances, taking God at His word, that because He said it it will come to pass. Faith doesn't rejoice in circumstances, but rather in the Lord. It's like Paul said to the Philippians - "Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!" And to the Thessalonians - "Rejoice always." That has to be an act of faith. In spite of our circumstances, we can rejoice in the Lord. Our circumstances constantly change, but the Lord never does.
Notice that in verse 25 the Lord again refers to the locusts as "My great army which I sent among you" Not only did the Lord know about the plague, but He actually sent it. No trial can come into our lives with the Lord either sending it directly, or allowing it in order to draw us closer to Himself. Notice also what He says in verse 25 - "Then I will make up to you for the years That the swarming locust has eaten." God doesn't only promise to pick them up and carry them on after they turn back to Him, but He actually promises restoration. He says "I will restore to you the years that the locust has eaten." What a great promise. You feel like you've suffered lose in this area or that, through one trial or another, but the Lord says "I will restore it to you. Turn to Me with all your heart, rend you heart and not you garments, assemble before Me, rejoice in Me in spite of your circumstances. Because this trial, whatever it may be, I sent it to draw you closer to Myself."
I don't know what trial your facing right now, I don't know what is eating at you, what's devouring you, but the message that the Lord gave to Joel is not only one for the people in his day, it's not only to point to what the Lord is going to do during the day of the Lord, but the message that the Lord gave to Joel is for everyone who is going through a trial. The Lord showed the people that the plague of locusts was from Him. It was sent by Him. And the same thing is true of our trials. The Lord allows us to suffer lose in order that we might draw near to Him. Rend your hearts. Assemble together before the Lord. And rejoice in the Lord always.
Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. For momentary light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are unseen; For the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are unseen are eternal.
For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared to the glory that will be revealed.
Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials, that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold that is perishable, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; and while being reviled He did not revile in return; while suffering He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously.
For it is better, if God should will it so, that you suffer for doing what is right rather than for doing what is wrong.
Therefore since Christ has suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same purpose also, because He who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin.
Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which has come upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing; so that also at the revelation of His glory, you may rejoice with exaltation.
Therefore let those also who suffer according to the will of God entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right.
And after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you. To Him be dominion forever and ever. Amen.
As well as speaking to the people of Judah, historically, and of the future judgment, prophetically, Joel also speaks to you and I today. Anyone who feels like they're going through a time of fruitlessness in their lives, or anyone who feels like they have suffered loss in one area or another in their lives, Joel has a message from the Lord for you.
Joel 1:1-4 - "The word of the LORD that came to Joel, the son of Pethuel: Hear this, O elders, And listen, all inhabitants of the land. Has anything like this happened in your days Or in your fathers’ days? Tell your sons about it, And let your sons tell their sons, And their sons the next generation. What the gnawing locust has left, the swarming locust has eaten; And what the swarming locust has left, the creeping locust has eaten; And what the creeping locust has left, the stripping locust has eaten."
The Lord gives a message to Joel that He doesn't want forgotten. He tells them to pass it on from generation to generation. In Verse 4 he begins to tell us of the devastation of the locusts and he mentions four stages, or for species of locust. There are over 23,000 species of locust in the world, so it is likely that these four different names here refer to four different species of locust. They came upon the land one after the other and they devoured more and more, deeper and deeper as they went along.
Vs. 5 - "Awake, drunkards, and weep; And wail, all you wine drinkers, On account of the sweet wine That is cut off from your mouth." Because of the locusts the fruit of the vine was completely cut off, and he tells the drunkards to weep. It was an immediate withdrawal program that they were all forced to go through. Interestingly enough, Joel makes drunkenness out to be the primary sin of the people in this book. Unlike the other prophets, Joel doesn't deal with false gods or idols. The people hadn't turned to worship false gods, but instead it seems that in their prosperity they had simply forgotten the Lord.
Vs. 6-7 - "For a nation has invaded my land, Mighty and without number; Its teeth are the teeth of a lion, And it has the fangs of a lioness. It has made my vine a waste And my fig tree splinters. It has stripped them bare and cast them away; Their branches have become white." The locusts not only devoured the fruit and the leaves of the plants, but they even stripped the bark off. The land was stripped bare, completely devoured.
Vs. 8-12 - "Wail like a virgin girded with sackcloth For the bridegroom of her youth. The grain offering and the drink offering are cut off From the house of the LORD. The priests mourn,
The ministers of the LORD. The field is ruined, The land mourns; For the grain is ruined, The new wine dries up, Fresh oil fails. Be ashamed, O farmers, Wail, O vinedressers, For the wheat and the barley; Because the harvest of the field is destroyed. The vine dries up And the fig tree fails; The pomegranate, the palm also, and the apple tree, All the trees of the field dry up. Indeed, rejoicing dries up From the sons of men." As a result of the devastation the entire economy collapses. The locusts don't only bring hard times as far as food is concerned, but also economic collapse, which indeed happened. We in America have always felt pretty secure economically, with all our technology and all the ways that we've advanced in the last few decades, but there is really no economic security in any earthly system. A collapse of the entire system can be brought about very quickly, and all it takes is a swarm of grasshoppers.
After experiencing a time of great prosperity in the nation of Judah, this plague of locusts comes upon the land and completely lays it waste.
Vs.13 - "Gird yourselves with sackcloth And lament, O priests; Wail, O ministers of the altar! Come, spend the night in sackcloth O ministers of my God, For the grain offering and the drink offering Are withheld from the house of your God." Nothing was unaffected. Even the sacrificial system was hindered. Not only were the effected economically, but spiritually as well. Since everything had been devoured they not only had nothing to eat, but they had nothing to sacrifice to the Lord either.
In Deuteronomy 8, when the Lord was preparing the children of Israel to bring them into the land of Canaan, He says this to them in verses 11-14 - "Beware that you do not forget the LORD your God by not keeping His commandments and His ordinances and His statutes which I am commanding you today; otherwise, when you have eaten and are satisfied, and have built good houses and lived in them, and when your herds and your flocks multiply, and your silver and gold multiply, and all that you have multiplies, then your heart will become proud and you will forget the LORD your God who brought you out from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery." This had been the situation for the people in Joel's day. They hadn't completely turned from the Lord to serve other gods, but in their prosperity they had simply forgotten the Lord. Since everything was going so well for them they drifted into a state of lukewarmness, forgetting what the Lord had done for them and delighting in the provision rather than in the Provider. So the Lord sends this plague of locusts on the land to draw the people back to Himself.
Vs. 14 - "Consecrate a fast, Proclaim a solemn assembly; Gather the elders And all the inhabitants of the land To the house of the LORD your God, And cry out to the LORD." The Lord calls the people to consecrate a fast, which would be pretty easy to do considering that all the food in the land had been devoured by the locusts, and He tells them to gather together before Him. He wants them to come back to Him.
Vs. 15 - "Alas for the day! For the day of the LORD is near, And it will come as destruction from the Almighty." This verse is key to understanding the book of Joel. There are three things that Joel is dealing with: 1)The situation of Judah, historically. 2) The day of the Lord, prophetically. 3) Your life today, practically. And it is that second thing that Joel points out here in verse 15. He's telling the people that this day of the locust is only foreshadowing and pointing to a far worse day, the day of the Lord, that is yet to come. This day of the locust is pointing to a time that is going to come after the rapture of the church. The church is going to be raptured and God is going to pour out His wrath upon a Christ rejecting world, a time known as the tribulation, or "the time of Jacobs trouble." As bad a the locusts are, the prophet is saying, it's going to get far worse. So as we go through this book we need to keep these three dimensions in mind.
There are 4 major days spoken of in scripture. Not 24 hour days, but more like an era. The first is called the "day of man" spoken of in 1 Corinthians 4:3. This is the time we're living in right now. This is the time when mankind is having his way on the earth. The second day is called "the day of Jesus Christ" spoken of in 1 Corinthians 1:7-8, 2 Corinthians 1:4, Philippians 1, as well as other places in Scripture. The day of Jesus Christ speaks of the rapture of the church. When Jesus comes in the clouds and calls us up to Himself. 1 Thessalonians 4 is the classic passage dealing with the day of Jesus Christ. The third day spoken of is "the day of the Lord". This day is mentioned in Isaiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Zechariah, it's talked about in the New Testament, 5 times the day of the Lord is mentioned in this small book of Joel. The day of the Lord is speaking of a time shortly following the rapture of the church. The day of the Lord begins with the seven year tribulation, Revelation 6-19, the time when the Lord is trying to get the attention of those who did not respond to His love. And it continues through the 1000 year reign of Christ on the earth, a time known as the millennial kingdom, a time of peace on the earth in which the Lord Himself will sit on the throne. The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. We're also told that the heavens and earth will be destroyed in the day of the Lord. 2 Peter 3:10 says - "But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up." The fourth and final day spoken of in Scripture is "the day of God" spoken of in 2 Peter 3:12. The day of God is the eternal state.
It's is that third day, "the day of the Lord" that's being foreshadowed here in the book of Joel.
Vs 16-20 - "Has not food been cut off before our eyes, Gladness and joy from the house of our God? The seeds shrivel under their clods; The storehouses are desolate, The barns are torn down, For the grain is dried up. How the beasts groan! The herds of cattle wander aimlessly Because there is no pasture for them; Even the flocks of sheep suffer. To You, O LORD, I cry;
For fire has devoured the pastures of the wilderness And the flame has burned up all the trees of the field. Even the beasts of the field pant for You; For the water brooks are dried up And fire has devoured the pastures of the wilderness." Everything was devoured, even the grass of the field. There was nothing to eat for either man or beast. Maybe that's how you feel in one area or another in your life. Maybe you feel like you've been devoured, somethings eating at you. Some plague of locusts, some trial has come into your life and consumed you. How do we deal with that? What's going on? Why has the Lord allowed this to happen? And what do I need to do about it? The Lord goes on to answer the questions in chapter 2.
Chapter 2
Vs. 1-2 - "Blow a trumpet in Zion, And sound an alarm on My holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, For the day of the LORD is coming; Surely it is near, A day of darkness and gloom, A day of clouds and thick darkness. As the dawn is spread over the mountains, So there is a great and mighty people; There has never been anything like it, Nor will there be again after it To the years of many generations." Twice in this chapter the people are told to "Blow a trumpet in Zion." This references back to Numbers chapter 10. In Numbers chapter 10 the Lord instructs Moses to make to silver trumpets, and the trumpets were to be used for two different purposes. Coincidentally the trumpets are used for both purposes here in Joel chapter 2. The first purpose of the trumpets was to sound an alarm, to warn the people of an invading army. The second purpose was to call the people to assemble before the Lord their God. The trumpet is used for the first purpose here in verse 1 - "Blow a trumpet in Zion, And sound an alarm on My holy mountain!" This trumpet was blown to warn the people of the invasion of the army of locusts that was coming upon them, but it was also to warn them about the soon coming day of the Lord.
He goes on in chapter two to describe the swarm of locusts that is coming against them, and it parallels very closely with an event that will happen during the great and terrible day of the Lord, talked about in Revelation chapter 9.
Vs. 3-5 - "A fire consumes before them And behind them a flame burns. The land is like the garden of Eden before them But a desolate wilderness behind them, And nothing at all escapes them. Their appearance is like the appearance of horses; And like war horses, so they run. With a noise as of chariots They leap on the tops of the mountains, Like the crackling of a flame of fire consuming the stubble, Like a mighty people arranged for battle." The Romans called locusts "burners of the field" because after they swept through an area the place would look like a wilderness that had been completely consumed by fire.
Vs. 6-9 - "Before them the people are in anguish; All faces turn pale. They run like mighty men, They climb the wall like soldiers; And they each march in line, Nor do they deviate from their paths. They do not crowd each other, They march everyone in his path; When they burst through the defenses, They do not break ranks. They rush on the city, They run on the wall; They climb into the houses, They enter through the windows like a thief." Joel points out that the swarm of locusts moves together as an army. They don't break ranks, and they move together as one, completely consuming everything in their path. The writer of Proverbs says the same thing in Proverbs 30:27 which says - "The locusts have no king, Yet all of them go out in ranks."
Vs. 10 - "Before them the earth quakes, The heavens tremble, The sun and the moon grow dark And the stars lose their brightness." Those who have experienced this kind of swarm tell us that as well as making a terrible noise (vs. 4-5) and consuming everything in their paths, the locust can become so thick that they obscure any natural light. In 1915 a swarm of locusts came into this area in the middle east and we're told that it was so thick that the light of the sun wasn't seen for upwards of three months, until a strong wind finally came up and pushed the locusts into the sea and they drowned. That's what Joel is saying here, when the locusts come in the sun and the moon grow dark and the stars lose their brightness.
As I said, these first ten verses parallel with something far worse that's going to happen in the day of the Lord, spoken of in Revelation 9. Revelation 9:1-10 says this - "Then the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star from heaven which had fallen to the earth; and the key of the bottomless pit was given to him. He opened the bottomless pit, and smoke went up out of the pit, like the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by the smoke of the pit. Then out of the smoke came locusts upon the earth, and power was given them, as the scorpions of the earth have power. They were told not to hurt the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree, but only the men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads. And they were not permitted to kill anyone, but to torment for five months; and their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it stings a man. And in those days men will seek death and will not find it; they will long to die, and death flees from them. The appearance of the locusts was like horses prepared for battle; and on their heads appeared to be crowns like gold, and their faces were like the faces of men. They had hair like the hair of women, and their teeth were like the teeth of lions. They had breastplates like breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings was like the sound of chariots, of many horses rushing to battle. They have tails like scorpions, and stings; and in their tails is their power to hurt men for five months." These locusts in the day of the Lord are far worse than those that came upon the land in the days of Joel. These locusts in Revelation 9 are actually demonic powers that are set loose upon the earth. These aren't your average every day locust. The locusts in Joels day destroyed every plant, all the fruit, the trees, all the grass of the field, every green thing was destroyed, and it caused great anxiety in the hearts of the people. But these locusts, these demons in Revelation 9 are told "not to hurt the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree, but only the men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads." These locusts don't touch the plants, they only torment those who have not turned to Christ. And we're told that their torment is like the torment of scorpions. The torment is going to be so bad that men are going to seek death, their going to want to die, but death is going to flee from them. They won't even be able to commit suicide.
Speaking of the day of the Lord, Joel says "A day of darkness and gloom, A day of clouds and thick darkness." and "Before them the earth quakes, The heavens tremble, The sun and the moon grow dark And the stars lose their brightness." Revelation says "He opened the bottomless pit, and smoke went up out of the pit, like the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by the smoke of the pit. Then out of the smoke came locusts upon the earth, and power was given them, as the scorpions of the earth have power."
Joel says "Their appearance is like the appearance of horses; And like war horses, so they run." Revelation says "The appearance of the locusts was like horses prepared for battle."
Joel says "With a noise as of chariots They leap on the tops of the mountains, Like the crackling of a flame of fire consuming the stubble, Like a mighty people arranged for battle." Revelation says "the sound of their wings was like the sound of chariots, of many horses rushing to battle." In number, in appearance, and in sound the locusts in Joel and in Revelation are very similar, but there are two major differences. The first major difference is that the locusts in the days of Joel only consumed the agriculture, whereas the locusts, the demons that will come during the day of the Lord will not touch the plants of the field nor the fruit of the vine, but only those men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads. The locusts in the day of Joel were only a picture of something far worse that is yet to come.
The second major difference is that in Revelation 9 it says "They have as king over them, the angel of the abyss; his name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in the Greek he has the name Apollyon." These demons were lead by a demon, whereas we go on to read in Joel 2:11 - "The LORD utters His voice before His army; Surely His camp is very great, For strong is he who carries out His word. The day of the LORD is indeed great and very awesome, And who can endure it?" The Lord is the one who sent the locust on the land. He is the one who directed the movement of the locusts. Nothing was consumed by them without His permission. It may seem kind of strange to you that the Lord would allow, let alone, send these locusts into Judah to consume the land. Why would He do such a thing? He did it to get the peoples attention, to bring them back to Himself, and we're going to see that as we go on.
The study of end times and the day of the Lord is all very interesting, but what about the people in Joels day? They probably weren't very concerned about the day of the Lord. They looked around and saw the devastation of the locust and thought, what about right now?
Vs.12-14 - “Yet even now,” declares the LORD, “Return to Me with all your heart, And with fasting, weeping and mourning; And rend your heart and not your garments.” Now return to the LORD your God, For He is gracious and compassionate, Slow to anger, abounding in lovingkindness And relenting of evil. Who knows whether He will not turn and relent And leave a blessing behind Him, Even a grain offering and a drink offering For the LORD your God?" The Lord tells the people, "Right now, I want you to turn back to Me." He tells them to rend their hearts and not their garments. Back in those days people would tear their garments as an outward sign of sorrow and repentance, but the Lord say, in effect, "I don't want the outward sign, I want the inward reality. I want you to be truly broken about the things that you've allowed to come between us." It all comes down to a value system. Anything that will draw us closer to the Lord is truly valuable, but on the other hand, anything that does not draw us closer to Him is just worthless. The people of Judah weren't worshiping idols or following false gods, they simply grew stagnant in their relationship with God, they stopped growing closer to Him, they became lukewarm and God wanted to draw them out of that. He wanted them to realize their spiritual condition and be broken about in, in order that He might draw them closer to Him.
And the Lord works the same way in our lives. He wants to draw us closer to Himself, and He might just have to send a swarm of locusts into our lives, some trial into our lives to get our attention, in order that we might be broken about our true spiritual condition and do away with the worthless things that are holding God at arms length.
Vs. 15-17 - "Blow a trumpet in Zion, Consecrate a fast, proclaim a solemn assembly, Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, Assemble the elders, Gather the children and the nursing infants. Let the bridegroom come out of his room And the bride out of her bridal chamber. Let the priests, the LORD’S ministers, Weep between the porch and the altar, And let them say, “Spare Your people, O LORD, And do not make Your inheritance a reproach, A byword among the nations. Why should they among the peoples say, ‘Where is their God?’"
This is the second trumpet call in this chapter, again, referring back to Numbers chapter 10. The first call was used to alert the people of an invading army, but this second trumpet call is used to assemble the people before the Lord. The people had neglected to meet together before the Lord, they got so caught up in the blessings of the Lord, the plentiful crops, the abundant fields that the Lord had blessed them with that they forgot the One who made them prosperous. So He sends this swarm of locusts to get their attention, He tells them to rend their hearts, to be broken before Him, and He calls them to gather together again before Him. Gathering together with the Lords people is vital to our spiritual growth. That's why we're told in Hebrews 10 to - "not forsake the assembling of ourselves together." Joel calls the people to assemble together before the Lord. All the people, the elders to the children and nursing infants. Everyone is called to come together before the Lord.
The Lord calls the people to repent, to rend their hearts, and He calls them to assemble together before Him, and as a result we're told in Vs. 18-20 - "Then the LORD will be zealous for His land And will have pity on His people. The LORD will answer and say to His people, “Behold, I am going to send you grain, new wine and oil, And you will be satisfied in full with them; And I will never again make you a reproach among the nations. “But I will remove the northern army far from you, And I will drive it into a parched and desolate land, And its vanguard into the eastern sea, And its rear guard into the western sea. And its stench will arise and its foul smell will come up, For it has done great things.”
In 2 Chronicles chapter 7 Solomon had just finished building the temple and dedicating it to the Lord, and we read this in verses 12-14 - "Then the LORD appeared to Solomon at night and said to him, “I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place for Myself as a house of sacrifice. If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people, and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land." This is what the Lord reminds the people of through the prophet Joel. The Lord says "If I command the locust to devour the land... and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray..." If they are truly broken about their standing with me and they truly repent "...and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways..." If they assemble together before Me and seek Me, "...then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land." The locusts were sent on the land in order to bring the people spiritual healing. In order to bring the people back to God. And He says that once they return to Him, once they receive that spiritual healing, then He will drive out the locusts and heal their land.
Vs. 21-27 - "Do not fear, O land, rejoice and be glad, For the LORD has done great things. Do not fear, beasts of the field, For the pastures of the wilderness have turned green, For the tree has borne its fruit, The fig tree and the vine have yielded in full. So rejoice, O sons of Zion, And be glad in the LORD your God; For He has given you the early rain for your vindication. And He has poured down for you the rain, The early and latter rain as before. The threshing floors will be full of grain, And the vats will overflow with the new wine and oil. “Then I will make up to you for the years That the swarming locust has eaten, The creeping locust, the stripping locust and the gnawing locust, My great army which I sent among you. “You will have plenty to eat and be satisfied And praise the name of the LORD your God, Who has dealt wondrously with you; Then My people will never be put to shame. “Thus you will know that I am in the midst of Israel,
And that I am the LORD your God, And there is no other; And My people will never be put to shame."
Twice in these verses the people are told to rejoice. God lists all these things that He's going to do, and He tells the people to rejoice. The locusts were still in the land, the Lord hadn't driven them out yet, but He tells them to rejoice nonetheless. To rejoice in what the Lord is going to do, even if we don't see it yet. That's faith. The ability to rejoice in spite of our circumstances, taking God at His word, that because He said it it will come to pass. Faith doesn't rejoice in circumstances, but rather in the Lord. It's like Paul said to the Philippians - "Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!" And to the Thessalonians - "Rejoice always." That has to be an act of faith. In spite of our circumstances, we can rejoice in the Lord. Our circumstances constantly change, but the Lord never does.
Notice that in verse 25 the Lord again refers to the locusts as "My great army which I sent among you" Not only did the Lord know about the plague, but He actually sent it. No trial can come into our lives with the Lord either sending it directly, or allowing it in order to draw us closer to Himself. Notice also what He says in verse 25 - "Then I will make up to you for the years That the swarming locust has eaten." God doesn't only promise to pick them up and carry them on after they turn back to Him, but He actually promises restoration. He says "I will restore to you the years that the locust has eaten." What a great promise. You feel like you've suffered lose in this area or that, through one trial or another, but the Lord says "I will restore it to you. Turn to Me with all your heart, rend you heart and not you garments, assemble before Me, rejoice in Me in spite of your circumstances. Because this trial, whatever it may be, I sent it to draw you closer to Myself."
I don't know what trial your facing right now, I don't know what is eating at you, what's devouring you, but the message that the Lord gave to Joel is not only one for the people in his day, it's not only to point to what the Lord is going to do during the day of the Lord, but the message that the Lord gave to Joel is for everyone who is going through a trial. The Lord showed the people that the plague of locusts was from Him. It was sent by Him. And the same thing is true of our trials. The Lord allows us to suffer lose in order that we might draw near to Him. Rend your hearts. Assemble together before the Lord. And rejoice in the Lord always.
Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. For momentary light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are unseen; For the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are unseen are eternal.
For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared to the glory that will be revealed.
Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials, that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold that is perishable, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; and while being reviled He did not revile in return; while suffering He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously.
For it is better, if God should will it so, that you suffer for doing what is right rather than for doing what is wrong.
Therefore since Christ has suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same purpose also, because He who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin.
Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which has come upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing; so that also at the revelation of His glory, you may rejoice with exaltation.
Therefore let those also who suffer according to the will of God entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right.
And after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you. To Him be dominion forever and ever. Amen.
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