Joel 1

1 The word of Jehovah that came to Joel the son of Pethuel.

A word of YHWH that has been to Joel, son of Pethuel:

2 Hear this, ye old men, and give ear, all ye inhabitants of the land. Has this been in your days, or in the days of your fathers?

Hear this, you aged ones, And give ear, all you inhabitants of the land, Has this been in your days? Or in the days of your fathers?

3 Tell ye your sons of it, and let your sons tell their sons, and their sons another generation.

Concerning it talk to your sons, And your sons to their sons, And their sons to another generation.

4 That which the palmer-worm has left the locust has eaten, and that which the locust has left the canker-worm has eaten, and that which the canker-worm has left the caterpillar has eaten.

What is left of the palmer-worm, the locust has eaten, And what is left of the locust, The cankerworm has eaten, And what is left of the cankerworm, The caterpillar has eaten.

5 Awake, ye drunkards, and weep, and wail, all ye drinkers of wine, because of the sweet wine, for it is cut off from your mouth.

Awake, you drunkards, and weep, And howl all drinking wine, because of the juice, For it has been cut off from your mouth.

6 For a nation has come up upon my land, strong, and without number. His teeth are the teeth of a lion, and he has the jaw-teeth of a lioness.

For a nation has come up on My land, Strong, and there is no number, Its teeth [are] the teeth of a lion, And it has the jaw-teeth of a lioness.

7 He has laid my vine waste, and barked my fig tree. He has made it clean bare, and cast it away. The branches of it are made white.

It has made My vine become a desolation, And My fig tree become a splinter, It has made it thoroughly bare, and has cast down, Its branches have been made white.

8 Lament like a virgin girded with sackcloth for the husband of her youth.

Wail, as a virgin girds with sackcloth, For the husband of her youth.

9 The meal offering and the drink offering are cut off from the house of Jehovah. The priests, Jehovah's ministers, mourn.

Present and drink-offering have been cut off from the house of YHWH, The priests have mourned, servants of YHWH.

10 The field is laid waste; the land mourns. For the grain is destroyed, the new wine is dried up, the oil languishes.

The field is spoiled, The ground has mourned, For the grain is spoiled, New wine has been dried up, oil languishes.

11 Be confounded, O ye husbandmen. Wail, O ye vinedressers, for the wheat and for the barley, for the harvest of the field is perished.

Be ashamed, you farmers, Howl, vinedressers, for wheat and for barley, For the harvest of the field has perished.

12 The vine is withered, and the fig tree languishes. The pomegranate tree, the palm tree also, and the apple tree, even all the trees of the field are withered. For joy has withered away from the sons of men.

The vine has been dried up, And the fig tree languishes, Pomegranate, also palm, and apple-tree, All trees of the field have withered, For joy has been dried up from the sons of men.

13 Gird yourselves with sackcloth, and lament, ye priests. Wail, ye ministers of the altar. Come, lie all night in sackcloth, ye ministers of my God. For the meal offering and the drink offering are withheld from the house of your God.

Gird, and lament, you priests, Howl, you servants of the altar, Come in, lodge in sackcloth, servants of my God, For present and drink-offering have been withheld from the house of your God.

14 Sanctify a fast. Call a solemn assembly. Gather the old men and all the inhabitants of the land to the house of Jehovah your God, and cry to Jehovah.

Sanctify a fast, proclaim a restraint, Gather [the] elderly [and] all those inhabiting the land, [Into the] house of your God YHWH,

15 Alas for the day! For the day of Jehovah is at hand, and it shall come as destruction from the Almighty.

And cry to YHWH, “Aah! For the day! For [the] Day of YHWH [is] near, And it comes as destruction from [the] Almighty.

16 Is not the food cut off before our eyes, yea, joy and gladness from the house of our God?

Is food not cut off before our eyes? Joy and rejoicing from the house of our God?

17 The seeds rot under their clods. The garners are laid desolate. The barns are broken down. For the grain is withered.

Scattered things have rotted under their clods, Storehouses have been desolated, Granaries have been broken down, For the grain has withered.

18 How do the beasts groan! The herds of cattle are perplexed because they have no pasture, yea, the flocks of sheep are made desolate.

How livestock have sighed! Perplexed have been droves of oxen, For there is no pasture for them, Also droves of sheep have been desolated.

19 O Jehovah, to thee do I cry. For the fire has devoured the pastures of the wilderness, and the flame has burned all the trees of the field.

To You, O YHWH, I call, For fire has consumed lovely places of a wilderness, And a flame has set on fire all trees of the field.

20 Yea, the beasts of the field pant to thee, for the water brooks are dried up, and the fire has devoured the pastures of the wilderness.

Also the livestock of the field long for You, For dried up have been streams of water, And fire has consumed lovely places of a wilderness!”