Joel 1

Joel 1

Chart from recommended resource Jensen's Survey of the OT - used by permission Joel Chart from Charles Swindoll Another Joel Chart John MacArthur's Introduction to Book of Joel Chuck Swindoll's Introduction to the Book of Joel AUTHOR: Joel = YHWH is God DATE: 835 B.C. This makes Joel a pre-exilic prophet, who ministered before the fall of the northern kingdom of Israel (721 B.C.) or the southern kingdom of Judah (586 B.C.). Other pre-exilic prophets include Obadiah, Jonah, Hosea, Amos, Isaiah, and Micah. Joel is one of the earliest prophets—only Obadiah prophesied before his time (845 B.C.). 835 B.C. was a time of turmoil and transition in Judah, at the end of the reign of the Queen Mother Athaliah and the beginning of the reign of King Joash. Athaliah seized power at the sudden death in battle of her son Ahaziah, who only reigned one year (2 Kings 8:26, 2 Kings 11:1). Athaliah killed all her son’s heirs, except for one who was hidden in the temple and escaped—one-year-old Josiah (2 Kings 11:3). Her six-year reign of terror ended in 835 B.C. when the High Priest Jehoiada overthrew Athaliah and set the seven-year-old Josiah on the throne (2 Kings 11:4–21).. During her six years as queen over Judah, Athaliah reigned wickedly. She was the granddaughter of the wicked King Omri of Israel—making her daughter or niece to Ahab, one of Israel’s worst kings (2 Kings 8:26). Athaliah raised her son Ahaziah to reign in the wicked pattern of Ahab, and even brought in Ahab’s counselors to advise him (2 Chronicles 22:2–4). When Ahaziah was killed in battle and she seized power, she set her other sons to evil, even desecrating the temple and its sacred things (2 Chronicles 24:7).. If we are accurate in thinking that Joel prophesied in 835 B.C. then the judgment he described came toward the end of the six-year reign of ungodliness under Queen Athaliah. No wonder God brought a heavy hand on Judah! (Note from David Guzik) The Prophet and His Times Joel, whose name means "Yahweh is God," apparently wrote during the days of young King Jehoash (835-796), who was under the regency of priests when he ascended the throne of Judah at the age of seven (2 Kings 11:21). Though some date the book after the Exile, the enemies of Judah are not identified in the prophecy as Arameans, Assyrians, or Babylonians, as would be the case if the book were written after the captivity (see 3:4, 19). The prophecy was occasioned by a severe drought and an invasion of locusts, which Joel saw as a punishment for the sins of the people. He also depicted this invasion of locusts as an army, a harbinger of a future military campaign in the Day of the Lord. Charles Feinberg - Joel was probably one of the earliest of the minor prophets. Compare the quotation of Joel 3:16 in Amos 1:2 and that of Joel 3:18 in Amos 9:13. The sins denounced by Amos and Hosea are not mentioned here, nor is the sin of idolatry touched upon at all. (The Minor Prophets) The Day of the Lord The Day of the Lord, the major theme of this prophecy, involves God's special intervention in the affairs of human history. Three facets of the Day of the Lord, are discernable: (1) the historical, that is, God's intervention in the affairs of Israel (Zeph. 1:14-18; Joel 1:15) and heathen nations (Isa. 13:6; Jer. 46:10; Ezek. 30:3); (2) the illustrative, whereby an historical incident represents a partial fulfillment of the eschatological Day of the Lord (Joel 2:1-11; Isa. 13:6-13); (3) the eschatological. This eschatological "day" includes the time of the Great Tribulation (Isa. 2:12-19; 4:1), the second coming of Christ (Joel 2:30-32), and the Millennium (Isa. 4:2; 12; 19:23-25; Jer. 30:7-9). Lloyd J. Ogilvie - Seven words. We have heard them said with a sigh of hopeless resignation or with a cry of anguished grief. We hear them in hospital rooms, in deep conversations with friends, in times of calamity and adversity. The seven words expressing the loneliness of suffering are: “I just don’t know where to turn!” We have all said these words. We get to the end of our endurance and do not know what to do. We face seemingly impossible problems that stretch us beyond our understanding and our ability to find solutions. All of the alternatives seem equally unacceptable and unworkable. Sometimes physical suffering brings us to the place where we do not know where to turn. Emotional pain can be just as excruciating. Failures, broken relationships, anxiety, and fear can paint us into a lonely corner. Then there are times when these seven words take on a third person intensity or shared dilemmas. In a marriage in tension, a family facing a crisis, or a church that needs renewal, we cry out, “We just don’t know where to turn!” Also, these words are drenched with dismay when we confront the monumental problems of our society or allow ourselves to empathize with the suffering of the disadvantaged, the poor, and the hungry. And we wring our hands over the lack of morality and integrity around us. Added to all this are the natural disasters that hit us or someone we know. The emergency makes us wonder where to turn. For many people, times when we do not know where to turn expose that we have been living life on two separate tracks that seldom meet. One track is our relationship with God that often lacks vitality and power because of either benign neglect, willful independence, or unconfessed sin. On the other track is the reality of daily life with its mixture of routines, pressures, and busyness pursued with little thought of God. Sometimes this track gets littered with disappointments, frustrations, and conflicts. It is in times of great distress that these two tracks have an opportunity to come together in a profound way. In those times, the vital connection is made between what is happening to or around us and our supreme need for God. Then we can discover the prescription for perplexity: “When you don’t know where to turn, return to the Lord.” This is the central theme of the prophet Joel. He is the prophet of the vital connection. At a time of a national catastrophe in Judah, Joel called the people to return to God. Their only hope was in Him. He helped them connect what was happening and what God wanted to have happen in His people. Preaching and teaching from Joel gives us an opportunity of being communicators of the vital connection. There is a tendency in our day to think that being a Christian should put us on a route bypassing the distresses of life. But shallow triumphalism does not help in the depths of difficulties. If God is only for the up, successful, hurrah times of life, He is excluded from three-fourths of our lives. Joel helps us stand at the intersection of the two tracks of life when painful, heartbreaking things happen. It is then that people exclaim, “What can I say?” and we enable them to ask a much more crucial question, “What is God saying in this?” There is a place to turn. Tough times are the times to return to God. He has something to say to us. (The Preacher's Commentary Series) OUTLINE OF JOEL I. Title Verse: the Author, Joel 1:1 II. Desolation, Joel 1:2-Joel 2:17 A. The Character of the Desolation, Joel 1:2-12 B. The Reactions to the Desolation, Joel 1:13-14 C. The Picture of the Desolation, Joel 1:15-20 D. The Prophecy of Future Desolation, Joel 2:1-11 E. The Exhortation in View of Desolation, Joel 2:12-17 III. Deliverance, Joel 2:18-Joel 3:21 A. The Promise of Immediate Deliverance, Joel 2:18-27 B. The Promise of Future Deliverance, Joel 2:28-Joel 3:21 1. Its initiation, Joel 2:28-32 2. Its judgments, Joel 3:1-17 3. Its consummation, Joel 3:18-21 (Ryrie Study Bible) Joel - Judgment precedes Israel’s future spiritual revival. John Phillips Outline Joel: Prophet Of The Plague Day of the Locust (Joel 1:1-14) Divine Displeasure Expressed (Joel 1:1-5) A Word for the Prophet (Joel 1:1) A Word for the People (Joel 1:2-5) Descendants (Joel 1:2-4) Drunkards (Joel 1:5) Divine Displeasure Expanded (Joel 1:6-14) Desecration (Joel 1:6-7) Desolation (Joel 1:8-12) Desperation (Joel 1:13-14) The Day of the Lord (Joel 1:15-3:21) Day of Assyria (Joel 1:15-2:32) A Day of Destruction (Joel 1:15-20) A Day of Darkness (Joel 2:1-10) A Day of Deliverance (Joel 2:11-32) A Call for Repentance (Joel 2:11-19) A Call for Rejoicing (Joel 2:20-27) A Call for Revival (Joel 2:28-32) Day of Antichrist (Joel 3:1-16) The Gathering of the Hebrew People (Joel 3:1) The Gathering of the Heathen Peoples (Joel 3:2-16) A Gathering of the Wicked (Joel 3:2-8) A Gathering of the Warmongers (Joel 3:9-13) A Gathering of the World (Joel 3:14-16) Day of Anticipation (Joel 3:17-21) (Exploring the Minor Prophets: An Expository Commentary) Sidlow Baxter (Explore the Book) Outline of Joel I. Title Verse: the Author, Joel 1:1 II. Desolation, Joel 1:2-2:17 A. The Character of the Desolation, Joel 1:2-12 B. The Reactions to the Desolation, Joel 1:13-14 C. The Picture of the Desolation, Joel 1:15-20 D. The Prophecy of Future Desolation, Joel 2:1-11 E. The Exhortation in View of Desolation, Joel 2:12-17 III. Deliverance, Joel 2:18-3:21 A. The Promise of Immediate Deliverance, Joel 2:18-27 B. The Promise of Future Deliverance, Joel 2:28-3:21 1. Its initiation, Joel 2:28-32 2. Its judgments, Joel 3:1-17 3. Its consummation, Joel 3:18-21 The following timeline is an estimate as the exact date is not known with absolute certainty (Source: Ryrie Study Bible). Joel 1:1 The word of the LORD that came to Joel, the son of Pethuel. The word of the LORD : Jer 1:2 Eze 1:3 Ho 1:1 2Pe 1:21 that came to Joel: Ac 2:16 Lloyd J. Ogilvie's summary of Joel 1 A Word of the Lord to Joel (1:1) Listen and Tell of the Extraordinary (1:2–4) An Impassioned Call to Lament (1:5–14) A Foretaste of the Day of the Lord (1:15–20) A Diminutive Day of the Lord A VERY SPECIAL WORD FROM JEHOVAH The prophecy of Joel is very special to me, for this is the name we gave our firstborn son. When Marty and I were newly weds in medical school (a long, long time ago, August, 1969), we were told by the fertility experts at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School in Dallas (which was internationally know for its work in this field) that we would never have children. And yet we did not give up and God visited us with our first pregnancy which we quickly lost, thinking that was probably our one in a million chance. And then we got pregnant again and although neither of us were genuine believers (if you had ask us we probably would have said we were "Christians" but neither of us had yet been born again), we named our first born son, Joel, for reasons that I cannot remember as there is no one on either side of our family by that name. Of course Joel's name means "Jehovah is God" (we did not know that at the time), and as God's good hand of blessing would have it as the years passed, both my wife Marty (1982) and I (1984) were born from above (Jn 3:3-8) by the Spirit of God and the Word/Gospel of God (through the ministry of Bible Study Fellowship) and within a very short time Joel and Meredith (our oldest daughter of 4 children by then - so much for "infertility!") also were born again and all four of us had the wonderful experience of being baptized together. O glorious day! As I was writing these notes it dawned on me that instead of the name "Joel," we should have name our son "Matthew" which means "Gift of God," because clearly considering the dire prognosis for fertility by the experts, Joel was truly, indubitably a gift of God! Joel has grown up to be a godly young man, a man of the Book, holding fast to faithful word (Titus 1:9) as an elder and Bible teacher at the Austin Stone, a large evangelical church in Austin, Texas. I apologize for all the personal background, but it helps you understand the context for why the Book of Joel holds such a special place in my heart. And when you combine that with the deep, abiding love that God's Spirit has place in my heart for the Jews and the Nation of Israel, you can see why I consider it an unbelievable blessing and privilege to be allowed to write comments on this incredible prophetic book! (See My Personal Testimony of God's Grace) John Ruskin once said "The Bible is indeed a deep book, when depth is required, that is by a deep people; but it is not intended particularly for profound persons. And, therefore the first, and generally the main and leading idea of the Bible is on its surface, written in the plainest possible Greek, Hebrew, or English, needing ...nothing but what we all might give - attention." (Side note on Ruskin - Margaret Ruskin, an Evangelical Christian, more cautious and restrained than her husband, taught young John to read the King James Bible from beginning to end, and then to start all over again, committing large portions to memory. Its language, imagery and stories had a profound and lasting effect on his writing.) Sidlow Baxter observes that "Both in style and subject this Book of Joel is arresting. For vividness of description and picturesqueness of diction Joel is scarcely equaled. His pen-pictures of the plague-stricken land, the invading locust-army, and the final gathering of all nations to the valley of judgment, are miniature masterpieces of graphic vigour." (Explore the Book) Charles Feinberg on how Joel presages the Day of the LORD Though the plague be literal and the prophet bewails the destruction wrought thereby, yet the plague in its literal sense does not exhaust the intent of the Lord. It points ahead to the coming great visitation of the day of Jehovah. This day is mentioned in Joel 1:15; 2:1, 11, 31; 3:14. Because the day of Jehovah looms so large in prophetic Scriptures, we define it and its relation to other days designated in the Word of God. In 1 Corinthians 4:3 Paul speaks of “man’s day” (see ASV margin). The day here spoken of is that in which we live, when man has sway and governs on the earth. To represent this rule God gave Nebuchadnezzar a dream of an image of a man (Dan 2:1-45). This day will come to an end, as far as the Church is concerned, with the “day of Christ” which is the rapture. (See Phil 1:6.) After the rapture “the day of Jehovah” begins. It comprises the time of the Great Tribulation on earth, the seventieth week of Daniel 9:27, and the time of the rule of the Messiah of Israel over them in Jerusalem on the throne of David. (See not only the Scriptures noted above in Joel, but Amos 5:18; Zep 1:14—2:2 together with Is 2:1-21 among many Scriptures throughout the prophetic books.) At the termination of the day of Jehovah, the “day of God” will begin. In that day the elements will melt with fervent heat and the new heavens and the new earth will result. This day lasts throughout eternity when God is all and in all. (Cp. 1 Co 15:28.) We have purposely elaborated upon these vital days, because the theme of the prophecy of Joel is The Day of Jehovah. With this truth in mind, we can readily discern how the locust plague serves as a harbinger or foreshadowing of the coming Day of Jehovah. Joel rightly views it with alarm. The then present judgment spoke clearly of the future terrifying day of judgment. (The Minor Prophets) The word of the LORD that came to Joel, the son of Pethuel (As to most of the prophets, e.g., Jer 1:2, Ezekiel 1:3, Jonah 1:1, Micah 1:1, Zeph 1:1, Zech 1:1, Hosea 1:1) - What a great phrase "the word of the LORD came" which not only conveys a privilege but also a responsibility! Thank You Jehovah, that You condescended to speak to such frail, depraved creatures as we are since sin entered the world and enthroned itself on our hearts usurping Your rightful rule and reign (cf Ro 5:12, Ro 6:12-14-note), for indeed " — for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God." (2Pe 1:21) This glorious phrase is found some 102 times (NAS) in the Bible. Today all the Words of the LORD to mankind have been given in the Bible and our job (yea, our privilege under grace) is to COME to the Word of the LORD each morning to receive our spiritual nourishment (Lk 4:4-note, Mt 4:4, Deut 8:3) and direction (and protection) for each new day the LORD hath made (Ps 118:24,25). Are you (under grace not law - cf Gal 3:3-note, Ro 6:14-note, Ro 7:4, 5, 6-note) coming to the Word of the LORD which has come to all mankind? Are you heeding what you hear (our responsibility inherent in such a great privilege of being able to read the ACTUAL living Words of the Living God!) See Quiet Time: 7 Minutes With God and Thoughts on the Quiet Time. Ogilvie - The word of Yahweh came not merely to communicate information, but as a word of power, an agent to accomplish the purpose of God in difficult times. The word came “to” Joel, but was not to stop there. It was a word for Joel’s generation and beyond (1:3), continuing to accomplish God’s purpose long after Joel had left the scene. This is the quality of all of God’s word given to us in the Bible (2 Tim. 3:16–17), but seldom is it so explicit as in the opening verses of Joel. (The Preacher's Commentary Series) John