Joel 1

Study Guide 69: Joel FINAL JUDGMENT Overview No date is given by Joel, son of Pethuel, for his ministry. He mentions a still-standing Jerusalem. The enemies he speaks of are those of Judah before the Babylonian Captivity. But we cannot fix the exact time of his writing. The structure of Joel is simple. The prophet is moved by a plague of locusts, sent as divine discipline. He envisions a great act of judgment at history’ s end which will purify his people and lead to national conversion. Many powerful phrases and wonderful promises dot this brief Old Testament prophetic book. “ Rend your heart, and not your garments” (Joe 2:13). “ I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten” (Joe 2:25). “ I will pour out My Spirit on all people” (Joe 2:28). Against the background of a series of superficial revivals in Judah, Joel uttered a call for deep commitment to God — and described the blessings that total commitment would bring. LOCUSTS. Nine Hebrew words are translated “ locusts” in English versions, suggesting the importance of these terrifying insects. They multiplied at an incredible rate, swarming together in clouds that blotted out the sun. Every living plant was stripped to the ground where they passed. One swarm that crossed the Red Sea in 1899 was estimated to cover 2,000 square miles! What an appropriate symbol of devastation! No wonder locusts who visited Judah suggested final judgment to Joel.

Commentary When Solomon’ s kingdom was torn in 931 b.c., the Southern Kingdom, Judah, comprised considerably less territory and had a much smaller population than the Northern. In the initial years of conflict between the two kingdoms, however, many from Israel drifted across the border. Committed to the worship of Yahweh, they remained faithful to the Jerusalem temple and to the festivals that God had instituted through Moses. They rejected Bethel and Dan and the counterfeit priesthood ordained for the North by King Jeroboam I. But as the decades passed, the once-united nation accepted its divided state. And any initial claim of Judah to a special godliness was lost. Of Judah’ s 19 kings, Scripture marks out 8 as “ good.” Generally these kings stimulated revivals. Yet the fact that the Southern Kingdom even needed revival, plus the Bible’ s description of the sins that were put away, tells us that Judah tended to fall into the same apostasy that plagued Israel. King Asa, who ruled from 911-870 b.c. (2 Chron. 14-15), removed idols from the land as well as the male prostitutes associated with their worship. He also deposed his grandmother as queen mother because she had made an idol to Asherah. Encouraged by the Prophet Azariah, Asa led the people of Judah to renew their covenant promises to God. Yet Asa himself did not remain committed to God. In his later years, he imprisoned the Prophet Hanani for rebuking him, and he failed to turn to God for aid when he was ill (2 Chronicles 16:1-14). Jehoshaphat, Asa’ s son, also followed the Lord. Like Asa, he attempted to root out the worship of Baal and removed many “ high places.” These high places (bamoth) were elevations set aside for pagan worship. Each contained an altar featuring idols. Sometimes the Hebrews would set aside a high place for the worship of the Lord and would ordain local priests. This practice was in direct violation of Old Testament Law, which called for a single worship center and for a priesthood drawn entirely from descendants of Aaron. The pagan associations of worship were much too strong: worship there would soon take on the characteristics of occultism and immorality. So Jehoshaphat’ s attack on the high places was undertaken out of zeal for God, as was his insistence that the Levites resume their ministry of traveling throughout Judah to teach the “ Book of the Law” (2 Chronicles 17:9). The next kings of Judah were evil, and set an example gladly followed by the people. Athaliah, a daughter of Jezebel (wife of Israel’ s King Ahab), actually came to reign in Judah, and she aggressively promoted the cult of Baal. However, there was a core of godly resistance. After six years, Jehoiada, the high priest, secretly crowned seven-year-old Joash as king. The boy had been hidden from Athaliah for six years, for she had had all other possible claimants to the throne executed. But now military and religious leaders combined to bring about the coup, and Athaliah was executed (cf. 22:10-23:15). Joash and the four kings who followed him were relatively good kings. Under Joash (835-796 b.c.) the priests of Baal were killed and the pagan altars and idols destroyed. The temple was repaired, and worship of God was reinstituted. But in Joash’ s later years, he also faltered. After the high priest who had crowned and advised him died, Joash turned aside from the Lord. Under the later kings, Judah knew both trial and triumph. As in the Northern Kingdom, increasing prosperity led to the neglect of faith. Ahaz, Judah’ s king from 732-715 b.c., the years preceding the destruction of Samaria, committed himself to evil. He promoted the worship of Baal and even engaged in infant sacrifice (2 Chronicles 28:3). He also established a pagan altar in the Jerusalem temple as the official place of sacrifice. Finally he closed the temple to force his people into the ways of worship that he wanted. Micah, a contemporary prophet, cried out against Judah in those days: You have observed the statutes of Omri and all the practices of Ahab’ s house, and you have followed their traditions. Therefore I will give you over to ruin and your people to derision; you will bear the scorn of the nations. Micah 6:16How little difference could be seen between the sins of the Northern Kingdom and the lifestyle of “ godly” Judah! Much later, as the destruction Micah foretold actually struck, Jeremiah looked back on the captivity of the Northern Kingdom as a special lesson to Judah — a unique call to revival. The words God communicated to Jeremiah clearly indicated that all the revivals of the Southern Kingdom, even the greatest under Hezekiah and Josiah, had not touched the hearts of God’ s chosen. “ Have you seen what faithless Israel has done? She has gone up on every high hill and under every spreading tree and has committed adultery there. I thought that after she had done all this she would return to Me but she did not, and her unfaithful sister Judah saw it. I gave faithless Israel her certificate of divorce and sent her away because of all her adulteries. Yet I saw that her unfaithful sister Judah had no fear; she also went out and committed adultery. Because Israel’ s immorality mattered so little to her, she defiled the land and committed adultery with stone and wood. In spite of all this, her unfaithful sister Judah did not return to Me with all her heart, but only in pretense,” declares the Lord. Jeremiah 3:6-10These words give us the key to understanding the burden of Joel. Judah had often “ returned to God” in a series of revivals stimulated by godly kings. But “ in deception.” The outward form of religion in Judah might have been correct then. But the hearts of the men and women of Judah had drifted as far from God as had the hearts of those of Israel.

Joel By 830 b.c., the approximate date most conservative scholars set for the ministry of Joel, the pattern of revival and decline in Judah had become clear. Just as Jonah’ s book communicated a basic message to the North — a message promising a second chance if the people would return to God — so the Book of Joel contained a basic message to Judah. Through the decades of ups and downs, of revival and apostasy, the words of Joel would echo in the ears of a “ religious” people as a call for wholehearted return. Superficial reform, or ritual revival, could never bring the blessing that would follow true revival. Listen to Joel’ s words, as his message is made perfectly clear. “ Even now,” declares the Lord, “ return to Me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning.” Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and He relents from sending calamity. Who knows? He may turn and have pity and leave behind a blessing — grain offerings and a drink offering for the Lord your God. Blow the trumpet in Zion, declare a holy fast, call a sacred assembly. Gather the people, consecrate the assembly; bring together the elders, gather the children, those nursing at the breast. Let the bridegroom leave his room and the bride her chamber. Let the priests, who minister before the Lord, weep between the temple porch and the altar. Let them say, “ Spare Your people, O Lord. Do not make Your inheritance an object of scorn, a byword among the nations. Why should they say among the peoples, ‘ Where is their God?’” Then the Lord will be jealous for His land and take pity on His people. Joe 2:12-18Joel’ s message breaks naturally into two sections. The first, 1:2-2:17, is words of the prophet himself rather than a divine revelation. Apparently a series of calamities, especially a great swarm of locusts, had struck Judah. Joel looked on this insect horde as a forerunner of even more terrible punishments. Unless God’ s people came to genuine repentance. Both the locusts and the human enemy they might foreshadow were recognized by Joel as being led by Yahweh Himself. Only destruction could follow should God’ s people waver between holiness and evil; between the Lord and the sensual pagan gods of Canaan. The second section of Joel (2:18-3:21) contains Yahweh’ s response. God promised that after His people returned to Him “ with all your heart” they would know the fullness of blessing promised under the ancient Abrahamic Covenant. The land would overflow with produce (Joe 2:19, Joe 2:21-26; Joe 3:18). Judah’ s enemies would be overcome (Joe 2:20; Joe 3:1-17, Joe 3:19-20). God Himself would be among His people in a unique way (Joe 2:27), and they would be regathered from the lands in which they have been scattered (Joe 3:5-7). Great spiritual blessing would be poured out on all mankind as a consequence of the return of God’ s people to Him (Joe 2:28-32). The message of Joel can be summarized in three simple statements. (1) Calamities are God’ s warning of judgment to come. (2) Heed these warnings, and return to God with all your heart. (3) When you return to God, God’ s fullest blessings will be poured out on you and on all people. Judah, which had become a land of superficial religion, had in Joel’ s prophecy a basic message that would be reflected in the ministry of each prophet God would later send. But the revivals that did follow would never penetrate to the heart, or call forth the full commitment of God’ s people. Like her sister kingdom to the North, Judah would appear at public worship and pretend, but then would slip away to the high places and be unfaithful to her God.

Predictive Elements There are elements in Joel’ s prophecy which modern scholars believe firmly refer to events that lie in our own future. And the great promise of the pouring out of God’ s Spirit, partially fulfilled and surely illustrated on the Day of Pentecost (see Acts 2:14-36), is something that has already come to pass. But we need to be careful. Very often Old Testament books are studied solely to isolate their indications on the future, and to discover details which can be slipped into our eschatological charts. There is a still-future dimension to many Old Testament writings. In some prophetic books, large sections are specifically devoted to pictures of the future. But when we read an Old Testament prophet such as Joel, we must realize that first of all, each prophet presented a message to the people of his own time. Joel and the rest were God’ s spokesmen to a living people. Each message was shaped to his own historical setting and conditions. Whatever picture Joel may give of the future, we need to concentrate on the book’ s purpose in that historical setting if we are to understand its basic message for us today. With Joel, that message is clear. To a land that knew many superficial revivals, God’ s prophet communicated a vital truth. Superficial religion and a divided heart can never satisfy God. Any revival that substitutes emotionalism, with repeated altar calls and repeated failures, is no pattern for our relationship with God. To know God and to be His people calls for full commitment. Christ’ s invitation in the Gospel is not just to return, but to return with all our heart. Complete commitment remains God’ s unchanging avenue to blessing.

Teaching Guide Prepare Select from Joel one verse which seems to you to best sum up the message most needed by your group members.

Explore Begin with a minilecture, sketching the historical context of Joel’ s message. You’ ll want to review the pattern of revivalism seen in Judah — and the evidence that these returns did not represent a true national return to the Lord. Explain that Joel called for a wholehearted return to God rather than a superficial revival.

Expand

1. Put the following outline of Joel on the chalkboard:

I. The Locust Plague1:1-2:27 II. The Day of the Lord2:28-3:21Explain how the actual plague of locusts, a contemporary judgment on Judah, stimulated the prophet to a vision of final judgment and to his warning of Judah. List the three themes of that message given in this unit. Ask group members to select one of the three to explore. Those who select the same theme can work together to discover just what Joel said about this subject and to prepare a report for your other group members. The themes are: (a) Calamities are God’ s warning of judgments to come. (b) Heed the warnings, and return with all your heart. (c) When you return, God’ s fullest blessing will be poured out on you and all people. 2. Or, understanding the basic thrust of Joel’ s ministry, work in teams to select key verses on the following themes: God judges sin. God demands full commitment. God blesses those who commit themselves to Him. Each team is to select key verses and plan a five-minute message around them, which might be given to a modern Christian community. After the planning stage, have each team select one spokesman, who will then share that five-minute message with your group.

Apply Have each group member select one verse from Joel which seems most important to him or her personally. As you close, share verses and a brief word about why the verse is or has been important to you.