Joel 2:18-27

Joel 2:18-27

[18] Then will the LORD  be jealous  for his land,  and pity  his people.  [19] Yea, the LORD  will answer  and say  unto his people,  Behold, I will send  you corn,  and wine,  and oil,  and ye shall be satisfied  therewith: and I will no more make  you a reproach  among the heathen:  [20] But I will remove far off  from you the northern  army, and will drive  him into a land  barren  and desolate,  with his face  toward the east  sea,  and his hinder part  toward the utmost  sea,  and his stink  shall come up,  and his ill savour  shall come up,  because he hath done  great things.  [21] Fear  not, O land;  be glad  and rejoice:  for the LORD  will do  great things.  [22] Be not afraid,  ye beasts  of the field:  for the pastures  of the wilderness  do spring,  for the tree  beareth  her fruit,  the fig tree  and the vine  do yield  [23] Be glad  then, ye children  of Zion,  and rejoice  in the LORD  your God:  for he hath given  you the former rain  moderately,  and he will cause to come down  for you the rain,  the former rain,  and the latter rain  in the first  month. [24] And the floors  shall be full  of wheat,  and the fats  shall overflow  with wine  and oil.  [25] And I will restore  to you the years  that the locust  hath eaten,  the cankerworm,  and the caterpiller,  and the palmerworm,  my great  which I sent  among you. [26] And ye shall eat  and be satisfied,  and praise  the name  of the LORD  your God,  that hath dealt  wondrously  with you: and my people  shall never  be ashamed.  [27] And ye shall know  that I am in the midst  of Israel,  and that I am the LORD  your God,  and none else: and my people  shall never  be ashamed. 

What does Joel 2:18-27 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

Joel next revealed the Lord"s response and comforting words in view of the people"s private and public repentance. It is unclear whether he meant that the Lord had responded or would respond. The problem is the Hebrew perfect verbs, which can be rendered in English with either past or future verbs. Several English translations (NASB, NIV, AV) interpreted the Lord"s response as being conditioned on the people"s repentance and translated the verbs in the future tense. It is equally possible that Joel meant that God had already responded positively because the people had repented, which the prophet did not record. I view this section as what God promised to do if the people responded to Joel"s call to repentance. Sometime before the destruction of Jerusalem in586 B.C. God told the Israelites that they had passed the point of no return and that captivity was inevitable ( Jeremiah 7:16; Jeremiah 11:14; Jeremiah 14:11-12). Since repentance was still possible for the Israelites when Joel wrote, this prophecy evidently does not deal with that time.
"Laments in the OT are sometimes followed by a divine oracle in which Yahweh, through a prophet, assures his people that their prayers will be answered (or sometimes rejected)." [1]