Joel 1:1-20
A message from the Lord came to Joel, the son of Pethuel. Here is what Joel said.
Locusts Attack the Land
Elders, listen to me.
Pay attention, all you who live in the land.
Has anything like this ever happened in your whole life?
Did it ever happen to your people
who lived long ago?
Tell your children about it.
Let them tell their children.
And let their children tell it
to those who live after them.
The giant locusts have eaten
what the common locusts have left.
The young locusts have eaten
what the giant locusts have left.
And other locusts have eaten
what the young locusts have left.
Get up and weep, you people who drink too much!
Cry, all you who drink wine!
Cry because the fresh wine
has been taken away from you.
The locusts are like a mighty army
that has marched into our land.
There are so many of them
they can’t even be counted.
Their teeth are as sharp as a lion’s teeth.
They are like the fangs of a female lion.
The locusts have completely destroyed our vines.
They have wiped out our fig trees.
They’ve stripped off the bark and thrown it away.
They’ve left the branches bare.
My people, mourn like a virgin
who is dressed in the clothes of sadness.
She is sad because she has lost
the young man she was going to marry.
No one brings grain offerings and drink offerings
to the Lord’s house anymore.
So the priests who serve the Lord
are filled with sorrow.
Our fields are wiped out.
The ground is dried up.
The grain is destroyed.
The fresh wine is gone.
And there isn’t any more olive oil.
Farmers, be sad.
Cry, you who grow vines.
Mourn because the wheat and barley are gone.
The crops in the fields are destroyed.
The vines and fig trees are dried up.
The pomegranate, palm and apple trees
don’t have any fruit on them.
In fact, all the trees in the fields are dried up.
And my people’s joy has faded away.
A Call to Mourn
Priests, put on the clothing of sadness and mourn.
Cry, you who serve at the altar.
Come, you who serve my God in the temple.
Spend the night dressed in the clothes of sadness.
Weep because no one brings grain offerings and drink offerings
to the house of your God anymore.
Announce a holy fast.
Tell the people not to eat anything.
Gather them together for a special service.
Send for the elders
and all who live in the land.
Have them come to the house of the Lord your God.
And pray to him.
The day of the Lord is near.
How sad it will be on that day!
The Mighty One is coming to destroy you.
Our food has been taken away
right in front of our eyes.
There isn’t any joy or gladness
in the house of our God.
The seeds have dried up in the ground.
The grain is also gone.
The storerooms have been destroyed.
The barns are broken down.
Listen to the cattle groan!
The herds wander around.
They don’t have any grass to eat.
The flocks of sheep are also suffering.
Lord, I call out to you.
Fire has burned up the desert grasslands.
Flames have destroyed all the trees in the fields.
Even the wild animals cry out to you for help.
The streams of water have dried up.
Fire has burned up the desert grasslands.
Joel 2:1-17
The Lord Sends an Army of Locusts
Priests, blow the trumpets in Zion.
Give a warning on my holy mountain.
Let everyone who lives in the land tremble with fear.
The day of the Lord is coming.
It is very near.
That day will be dark and sad.
It will be black and cloudy.
A huge army of locusts is coming.
They will spread across the mountains
like the sun when it rises.
There has never been an army like it.
And there will never be another
for all time to come.
Like fire they eat up everything in their path.
Behind them it looks as if flames have burned the land.
In front of them the land is like the Garden of Eden.
Behind them it is a dry and empty desert.
Nothing escapes them.
They look like horses.
Like war horses they charge ahead.
They sound like chariots as they leap over the mountaintops.
They crackle like fire burning up dry weeds.
They are like a mighty army
that is ready for battle.
When people see them, they tremble with fear.
All their faces turn pale.
The locusts charge ahead like warriors.
They climb over walls like soldiers.
All of them march in line.
They don’t turn to the right or the left.
They don’t bump into one another.
Each of them marches straight ahead.
They charge through everything that tries to stop them.
But they still stay in line.
They attack a city.
They run along its wall.
They climb into houses.
They enter through windows like robbers.
As they march forward, the earth shakes.
The heavens tremble as they approach.
The sun and moon grow dark.
And the stars stop shining.
The Lord thunders with his mighty voice
as he leads his army.
He has so many forces they can’t even be counted.
The army that obeys his commands is mighty.
The day of the Lord is great and terrifying.
Who can live through it?
Let Your Hearts Be Broken
The Lord announces to his people,
“Return to me with all your heart.
There is still time.
Do not eat any food.
Weep and mourn.”
Don’t just tear your clothes to show how sad you are.
Let your hearts be broken.
Return to the Lord your God.
He is gracious.
He is tender and kind.
He is slow to get angry.
He is full of love.
He won’t bring his judgment.
He won’t destroy you.
Who knows? He might turn toward you
and not bring his judgment.
He might even give you his blessing.
Then you can bring grain offerings and drink offerings
to the Lord your God.
Priests, blow the trumpets in Zion.
Announce a holy fast.
Tell the people not to eat anything.
Gather them together for a special service.
Bring them together.
Set all of them apart to me.
Bring together the elders.
Gather the children and the babies
who are still nursing.
Let the groom leave his bedroom.
Let the bride leave their marriage bed.
Let the priests who serve the Lord weep.
Let them cry between the temple porch and the altar.
Let them say, “Lord, spare your people.
Don’t let others make fun of them.
Don’t let the nations laugh at them.
Don’t let them tease your people and say,
‘Where is their God?’ ”
