Commentaries and Other Bible Study Helps - Prayer Tents - Prayer Tents

2:1 Zion is the place of the Lord's throne. The word generally refers to the temple region but could also signify Jerusalem in its entirety.

2:2 Darkness recalls the Lord's appearance at Sinai (Ex. 19:16-19; Deut. 4:11; 5:22-23). God's appearance at Sinai foreshadows his "day" in the future (Amos 5:18-20; Zeph. 1:14-15).

2:3 Fire devours . . . flame burns. In keeping with biblical imagery regarding God's coming (Ps. 50:3; 97:3; Isa. 30:27; 66:15), the army is associated with destructive fire (see Joel 1:19). like the garden of Eden . . . a desolate wilderness. The destructive power of this "great . . . people" (Hb. ‘am rab, 2:2) can only be compared to the devastation wrought to God's original creation by mankind's fall (Gen. 2:8, 10; 3:17-19; 13:10).

2:4-5 like . . . horses. (Cf. Job 39:19-20; Jer. 51:27.) Locusts and armies have an analogous appearance, movement, and sound; both are used by Joel to capture the presence of the ultimate powerful army (lit., "mighty people" [Hb. ‘am ‘atsum]).

2:7-9 they do not swerve. . . . They do not jostle. This army cannot be thwarted from its assigned course as every member of the unified ranks advances. It executes its actions (leap, run, climb, enter) at will, moving from outside to inside (city, walls, houses, windows).

2:10 before them (lit., "before him"; as in vv. 3, 6). quakes . . . tremble. . . . darkened. Only the day of the Lord could produce this "cosmic shakedown." In many cases in the Prophets, the Hebrew verb ra‘ash (here translated "tremble") was associated with the end of the age, the return of chaos, and God's final judgment (Isa. 13:13; 24:18; Jer. 4:23-24; Amos 8:8-9; Nah. 1:5; Hag. 2:6, 21).

2:11 utters his voice. Thunder is associated with the cosmic events of v. 10 (cf. Job 37:4; Ps. 18:13; 77:17; Jer. 10:13). his army. The force that brings such dread and terror is under God's command. he who executes. The parallelism suggests that "he" refers to the army as executor of the Lord's command (cf. Ezek. 9:1-11).

2:12 Yet even now . . . return. There is still time for the people to return to the Lord, that is, to repent of their coldness toward him. all your heart. God calls for undivided devotion.

2:13 Rend your hearts is an expression of internal anguish. This command, coupled with the wholehearted devotion prescribed in v. 12, echoes Deut. 30:6, where a circumcised heart is one that loves God completely. gracious and merciful. God's unchanging character, described throughout Scripture, is the grounds for his people's repentance (cf. Ex. 34:6-7).

2:14 Who knows. The sovereign God acts according to his own purposes. turn and relent. The language leaves open the possibility that the Lord, in keeping with his revealed character (cf. Jonah 3:9; 4:2), will bring blessing instead of disaster.

2:16 Consecrate the congregation. As in 1:14, every segment of the religious community assembles for worship, readying themselves to call upon the Lord with a fast (2:15). Even nursing infants, i.e., children still being breast-fed, and newlyweds are not exempt.

2:17 The place of prayer was between the entrance hall to the temple (the vestibule or portico) and the altar. Your people is an appeal to God's covenantal care for his people. A byword means a "proverb" or "common saying," often used in scorn. An alternative translation is "to rule over them" (see ESV footnote), which makes sense if a foreign, human invasion is in view. Where is their God? is a mocking question from those who doubt that God defends his people (Ps. 79:10; 115:2).