Joel 2
1 Blow a horn in Zion, And shout in My holy hill, All inhabitants of the earth tremble, For the Day of YHWH is coming, for [it is] near!
Blow the trumpet in Zion! Sound the alarm on my holy mountain! Let all who live in the land tremble for the day of the Lord is coming—it's definitely near!
2 A day of darkness and thick darkness, A day of cloud and thick darkness, As darkness spread on the mountains, A people numerous and mighty, Like there has not been from of old, And after it there is not again—Until the years of generation and generation.
It's a gloomy day of darkness, a day of thick clouds and heavy shadows. Like the dawn spreading over the mountains, an army appears, so large and powerful that there has never ever been anything like it before, nor will there ever be anything like it again.
3 Before it fire has consumed, And after it a flame burns, As the Garden of Eden [is] the land before it, And after it a wilderness—a desolation! And also there has not been to it an escape,
Fire blazes in front of them, behind them flames are burning. In front of them the land looks like the Garden of Eden, behind them is a desert of total desolation: not a single survivor remains.
4 As the appearance of horses [is] its appearance, And as horsemen, so they run.
They have the appearance of horses; they charge like cavalry.
5 As the noise of chariots, they skip on the tops of the mountains, As the noise of a flame of fire devouring stubble, As a mighty people set in array for battle.
Listen to the sound: they are like rumbling chariots leaping over the mountain tops, they are like crackling flames burning stubble, they are like a mighty army marching in formation into battle.
6 Pained are peoples from its face, All faces have gathered paleness.
Terror seizes all those in their path; all the people's faces grow pale.
7 They run as mighty ones, As men of war they go up a wall, And they each go in his own ways, And they do not change their paths.
They attack like mighty warriors; they scale walls like soldiers. They all march as one, never breaking ranks.
8 And each does not press his brother, They each go on in his way, If they fall by the missile, they are not cut off.
They do not jostle one another, they stay on track; and even if some are cut down, they are not stopped.
9 In the city they run to and fro, On the wall they run, Into houses they go up by the windows, They go in as a thief.
They rush to and fro in the city; they run along the walls; they climb into houses, entering through the windows like thieves.
10 At their face the earth has trembled, The heavens have shaken, Sun and moon have been black, And stars have gathered up their shining.
The earth quakes before them, the heavens tremble, the sun and the moon grow dark, the stars stop shining.
11 And YHWH has given forth His voice before His force, For His camp [is] very great, For mighty [is] the doer of His word, For great [is] the Day of YHWH—very fearful, And who bears it?
The Lord shouts his commands at the head of his army. His camp his immense, and those who carry out his orders are powerful. The day of the Lord is totally terrifying—who can stand it?
12 “And also now,” a declaration of YHWH, “Turn back to Me with all your heart, And with fasting, and with weeping, And with lamentation.”
“Yet even now,” says the Lord, “Come back to me while there is still time. Come to me with all your heart, with fasting and prayer.
13 And tear your heart, and not your garments, And turn back to your God YHWH, For He [is] gracious and merciful, Slow to anger, and abundant in kindness, And relenting from evil.
Repent in your minds, and not by tearing your clothes.” Come back to the Lord your God for he is gracious and kind. He is slow to get angry and full of faithful love, and changes his mind about sending punishment.
14 Who knows—He turns back, Indeed—He has relented, And He has left behind Him a blessing, A present and drink-offering of your God YHWH?
Who knows? Maybe he will change his mind, leaving behind a blessing so that you will be able to make grain and wine offerings to the Lord your God.
15 Blow a horn in Zion, Sanctify a fast—proclaim a restraint.
Blow the trumpet in Zion! Proclaim a fast; call a solemn assembly.
16 Gather the people, sanctify an assembly, Assemble the aged, Gather infants and sucklings of the breasts, Let a bridegroom go out from his inner chamber, And a bride out of her closet.
Gather the people together: the elders, the children, even the babies. Let the bridegroom leave his room; let the bride leave her room.
17 Let the priests weep between the porch and the altar, servants of YHWH, And let them say: “Have pity, O YHWH, on Your people, And do not give Your inheritance to reproach, To the ruling over them of nations, Why do they say among peoples, Where [is] their God?”
Let the priests, the ministers of the Lord, weep between the porch and the altar of the Temple. Let them say, “Lord, please take pity on your people, and do not let your inheritance be disgraced, ruled over by foreign nations, so that the people of these nations could ask, ‘Where is their God?’”
18 And let YHWH be zealous for His land, And have pity on His people.
Now the Lord is very protective of his land and takes pity on his people.
19 Let YHWH answer and say to His people, “Behold, I am sending to you the grain, And the new wine, and the oil, And you have been satisfied with it, And I make you no longer a reproach among nations,
The Lord will reply, saying to his people, “Look! I am sending you grain and new wine and olive oil, and you will be satisfied. You will no longer be a disgrace among the foreign nations.
20 And the northern I put far off from you, And have driven him to a land dry and desolate, With his face toward the Eastern Sea, And his rear to the Western Sea, And his stink has come up, And his stench comes up, For he has exerted himself to work.”
I will remove from you the army from the north; I will drive them into the desolate wilderness—the front into the eastern sea, and the rear into the western sea. The stench of the dead army will rise up—a real stink—for it has done terrible things.”
21 Do not fear, O land! Be glad and rejoice, For YHWH has exerted Himself to work.
Don't be afraid, people of the land! Be happy and celebrate, for the Lord has done incredible things!
22 Do not fear, O livestock of the field! For pastures of a wilderness have sprung up, For the tree has borne its fruit, Fig tree and vine have given their strength!
Don't be afraid, wild animals! For the pastures of the wilderness are turning green. The trees are fruiting again—the fig trees and the grapevines are producing a good crop.
23 And you sons of Zion, Be glad and rejoice in your God YHWH, For He has given to you the Teacher for righteousness, And causes a shower to come down to you, Early rain and spring rain [as] in the beginning.
People of Jerusalem! Celebrate and be happy in the Lord your God because he has given you rain to show his goodness. As before he sends the autumn and the spring rains.
24 And the floors have been full [with] pure grain, And the presses have overflown [with] new wine and oil.
The threshing floors will be full of grain, the vats will overflow with new wine and olive oil.
25 “And I have repaid to you the years that the locust consumed, The cankerworm, and the caterpillar, and the palmer-worm, My great force that I sent against you.
“I will give back to you what you lost over the years to the swarming, hopping, destroying, and cutting locusts, this great army that I sent against you.
26 And you have eaten, eating and being satisfied, And have praised the Name of your God YHWH, Who has dealt with you wonderfully, And My people are not ashamed for all time.
You will have plenty to eat, and you will be satisfied, and you will praise the name of the Lord your God who has done miracles for you. My people will never again be ashamed.
27 And you have known that I [am] in the midst of Israel, And I [am] your God YHWH, and there is none else, And My people are not ashamed for all time.
You will know that I am in the midst of my people Israel, that I am the Lord your God, and that there is no other. My people will never again be ashamed.
28 And it has come to pass afterward, I pour out My Spirit on all flesh, And your sons and your daughters have prophesied, Your old men dream dreams, Your young men see visions.
After this I will pour out my spirit on everyone. Your sons and daughters will be my prophets, your old men will dream dreams, and your young men will see visions.
29 And also on the menservants and on the maidservants, In those days I pour out My Spirit.
In those days I will also pour out my spirit on male slaves and female slaves.
30 And I have given wonders in the heavens and in the earth: Blood, and fire, and columns of smoke.
I will place wonders in the heavens and on earth: blood, and fire, and columns of smoke.
31 The sun is turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, Before the coming of the Day of YHWH, The great and the fearful.
The sun will turn dark, and the moon will turn red like blood at the coming of the great and fearful day of the Lord.”
32 And it has come to pass, Everyone who calls on the Name of YHWH is delivered, For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there is an escape, As YHWH has said, And among the remnants whom YHWH is calling!”
Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved, rescued from Mount Zion and Jerusalem, as the Lord has said—these are among the survivors the Lord has called.
