It is always great to get good news. Imagine how the people of Judah felt when they heard the message of Joel at the beginning of chapter 2. They were faced with really bad news about the devastation they were to face. But there was good news if they were to repent of their sins and turn back to God. Not only that but there was the promise of a future day of the Lord that would bring an incredible newness to the people of God.
The Bad News for Judah. A Day Of Disaster.
Their land was about to be invaded by a swarm of locusts which would bring terrible destruction on the land, “Blow a trumpet in Zion; sound an alarm on my holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the LORD is coming; it is near, 2 a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness! Like blackness there is spread upon the mountains a great and powerful people; their like has never been before, nor will be again after them through the years of all generations. 3 Fire devours before them, and behind them a flame burns. The land is like the garden of Eden before them, but behind them a desolate wilderness, and nothing escapes them.” Joel 2:1-3. Bad news indeed!
The Good News for Judah
But there was good news as well in Joel’s message. If the people were to repent of their sin and turn back to God then calamity might be averted. But their repentance needed to be sincere, from the heart, “Yet even now,” declares the LORD, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; 13 and rend your hearts and not your garments.” 2:12-13
To Turn Back To The Gracious God Would Bring His Blessing
“Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and he relents over disaster. 14 Who knows whether he will not turn and relent, and leave a blessing behind him, a grain offering and a drink offering for the LORD your God?” 2:13-14. A wonderful description of God’s character is given in these verses which echo those in Exodus 34:6-7 “The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands.”
The Good News Of Future Prosperity
God in His grace would be merciful to His people and would provide plentiful abundance for them and protection from their enemies, “Then the LORD became jealous for his land and had pity on his people. 19 The LORD answered and said to his people, “Behold, I am sending to you grain, wine, and oil, and you will be satisfied; and I will no more make you a reproach among the nations. 20 “I will remove the northerner far from you, and drive him into a parched and desolate land, his vanguard into the eastern sea, and his rear guard into the western sea; the stench and foul smell of him will rise, for he has done great things. 21 “Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice, for the LORD has done great things!” 2:18-21.
Restoration Of Missed Blessings And Prosperity
Human sin restricts the fulness of the blessings God wants to bestow on His people. But here God promises the restoration of those blessings, “I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, the hopper, the destroyer, and the cutter, my great army, which I sent among you. 26 “You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, who has dealt wondrously with you. And my people shall never again be put to shame. 27 You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am the LORD your God and there is none else. And my people shall never again be put to shame.” 2:25-27. How wonderful it is to know that our God can restore to us what we have lost in the past. He can even deal with the shame we have felt from our past!
A Prophecy Of God’s Blessing That Would Transform Peoples Of All Nations
The book of Joel may not have been quoted much in the rest of the Bible but in its single mention it was highly significant. St Peter quoted the words which follow in chapter 2, to describe the momentous event on the Day of Pentecost as the Holy Spirit was poured out on the infant church, “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions. 29 Even on the male and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit.” 2:28-29.
On that most significant day St Peter explained what God had done in pouring out His Spirit on all the believers. It was a fulfilment of the prophecy of Joel given several hundred years before. Let’s see how St Peter described it in Acts 2, “But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them: “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. 15 For these people are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. 16 But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel: 17 “‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; 18 even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy. 19 And I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke; 20 the sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day. 21 And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Acts 2:14-21. St Peter in his address quoted almost the whole of the prophecy from Joel chapter 2 and St Luke [who wrote The Acts Of The Apostles] recorded Peter’s words in his book.
We may wonder today if Joel understood the magnitude of the prophecy he had written. St Peter wrote generally about the understanding the prophets had of their messages, “Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, 11 inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. 12 It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look.” 1 Peter 1:10-12.
What is amazing about this prophecy of Joel’s in chapter 2 is the description of the exact nature of the events of Pentecost, some several hundred years in the future. He prophesied that the Holy Spirit would be “poured out” and significantly, it would be upon all flesh, not just upon prophets, priests and kings and a few others as what happened in the Old Testament time in which he lived. “Poured out” in the Greek Old Testament is [ekcheō, ἐκχέω] and St Luke uses the same word in Acts 2:33, “He has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing.“
The final part of Joel’s prophecy in chapter 2 was quoted exactly by St Peter on the day of Pentecost, “And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Acts 2:21. It is interesting that Joel and St Peter both see those who receive the Holy Spirit as those whom the Lord calls to Himself. Joel expresses it as, “For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those who escape, as the LORD has said, and among the survivors shall be those whom the LORD calls.” 2:32. St Peter expressed it as, “For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.” Acts 2:39. The verb used in both verses in the Greek translations is the word [proskaleomai, προσκαλέομαι] meaning to call to oneself. It is humbling to realise that those who call upon the Lord are those whom the Lord has been calling to Himself. No wonder that salvation is from the grace of God.
Blog No.483 posted on Saturday 03 June 2023.
holbeck 
483. The Good News Of A New Beginning. Joel chapter2
It is always great to get good news. Imagine how the people of Judah felt when they heard the message of Joel at the beginning of chapter 2. They were faced with really bad news about the devastation they were to face. But there was good news if they were to repent of their sins and turn back to God. Not only that but there was the promise of a future day of the Lord that would bring an incredible newness to the people of God.
The Bad News for Judah. A Day Of Disaster.
Their land was about to be invaded by a swarm of locusts which would bring terrible destruction on the land, “Blow a trumpet in Zion; sound an alarm on my holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the LORD is coming; it is near, 2 a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness! Like blackness there is spread upon the mountains a great and powerful people; their like has never been before, nor will be again after them through the years of all generations. 3 Fire devours before them, and behind them a flame burns. The land is like the garden of Eden before them, but behind them a desolate wilderness, and nothing escapes them.” Joel 2:1-3. Bad news indeed!
The Good News for Judah
But there was good news as well in Joel’s message. If the people were to repent of their sin and turn back to God then calamity might be averted. But their repentance needed to be sincere, from the heart, “Yet even now,” declares the LORD, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; 13 and rend your hearts and not your garments.” 2:12-13
To Turn Back To The Gracious God Would Bring His Blessing
“Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and he relents over disaster. 14 Who knows whether he will not turn and relent, and leave a blessing behind him, a grain offering and a drink offering for the LORD your God?” 2:13-14. A wonderful description of God’s character is given in these verses which echo those in Exodus 34:6-7 “The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands.”
The Good News Of Future Prosperity
God in His grace would be merciful to His people and would provide plentiful abundance for them and protection from their enemies, “Then the LORD became jealous for his land and had pity on his people. 19 The LORD answered and said to his people, “Behold, I am sending to you grain, wine, and oil, and you will be satisfied; and I will no more make you a reproach among the nations. 20 “I will remove the northerner far from you, and drive him into a parched and desolate land, his vanguard into the eastern sea, and his rear guard into the western sea; the stench and foul smell of him will rise, for he has done great things. 21 “Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice, for the LORD has done great things!” 2:18-21.
Restoration Of Missed Blessings And Prosperity
Human sin restricts the fulness of the blessings God wants to bestow on His people. But here God promises the restoration of those blessings, “I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, the hopper, the destroyer, and the cutter, my great army, which I sent among you. 26 “You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, who has dealt wondrously with you. And my people shall never again be put to shame. 27 You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am the LORD your God and there is none else. And my people shall never again be put to shame.” 2:25-27. How wonderful it is to know that our God can restore to us what we have lost in the past. He can even deal with the shame we have felt from our past!
A Prophecy Of God’s Blessing That Would Transform Peoples Of All Nations
The book of Joel may not have been quoted much in the rest of the Bible but in its single mention it was highly significant. St Peter quoted the words which follow in chapter 2, to describe the momentous event on the Day of Pentecost as the Holy Spirit was poured out on the infant church, “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions. 29 Even on the male and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit.” 2:28-29.
On that most significant day St Peter explained what God had done in pouring out His Spirit on all the believers. It was a fulfilment of the prophecy of Joel given several hundred years before. Let’s see how St Peter described it in Acts 2, “But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them: “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. 15 For these people are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. 16 But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel: 17 “‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; 18 even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy. 19 And I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke; 20 the sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day. 21 And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Acts 2:14-21. St Peter in his address quoted almost the whole of the prophecy from Joel chapter 2 and St Luke [who wrote The Acts Of The Apostles] recorded Peter’s words in his book.
We may wonder today if Joel understood the magnitude of the prophecy he had written. St Peter wrote generally about the understanding the prophets had of their messages, “Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, 11 inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. 12 It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look.” 1 Peter 1:10-12.
What is amazing about this prophecy of Joel’s in chapter 2 is the description of the exact nature of the events of Pentecost, some several hundred years in the future. He prophesied that the Holy Spirit would be “poured out” and significantly, it would be upon all flesh, not just upon prophets, priests and kings and a few others as what happened in the Old Testament time in which he lived. “Poured out” in the Greek Old Testament is [ekcheō, ἐκχέω] and St Luke uses the same word in Acts 2:33, “He has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing.“
The final part of Joel’s prophecy in chapter 2 was quoted exactly by St Peter on the day of Pentecost, “And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Acts 2:21. It is interesting that Joel and St Peter both see those who receive the Holy Spirit as those whom the Lord calls to Himself. Joel expresses it as, “For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those who escape, as the LORD has said, and among the survivors shall be those whom the LORD calls.” 2:32. St Peter expressed it as, “For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.” Acts 2:39. The verb used in both verses in the Greek translations is the word [proskaleomai, προσκαλέομαι] meaning to call to oneself. It is humbling to realise that those who call upon the Lord are those whom the Lord has been calling to Himself. No wonder that salvation is from the grace of God.
Blog No.483 posted on Saturday 03 June 2023.
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About Jim Holbeck
Once an Industrial Chemist working for the Queensland Government but later an Anglican minister in Brisbane, Armidale and Sydney. Last position for eighteen years before retirement in 2006 was as the Leader of the Healing Ministry at St Andrew's Cathedral Sydney.