Joel 3

1 “For behold, in those days, and in that time, When I turn back [to] the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem,

[Yahweh says this]: “At that time [DOU], I will enable [the people of] Jerusalem and [other places in] Judah to prosper again.

2 Then I have gathered all the nations, And caused them to go down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat, And I have been in judgment with them there, Concerning My people and My inheritance—Israel, Whom they scattered among nations, And My land they have apportioned.

[Then] in the Valley of Judgment I will gather together [the people of] all the [other] nations; I will judge [and punish] them because they scattered my Israeli people and forced them to go to other countries. They divided up my land

3 And for My people they cast a lot, And they give the young man for a harlot, And have sold the young woman for wine, That they may drink.

and they (threw marked stones/cast lots) to determine who would get [each of] my people. Then they sold [some of] the Israeli boys and girls [to get money to pay] for prostitutes and wine to drink.

4 And also, what [are] you to Me, O Tyre and Sidon, And all circuits of Philistia? Are you rendering repayment to Me? And if you are giving repayment to Me, Swiftly, quickly, I return your repayment on your head.

You [people of] [APO] Tyre and Sidon [cities] and [you people of] the Philistia [region], I certainly have not [RHQ] done anything to harm you! [So] if you are trying to get revenge on me, I will very quickly get revenge on you.

5 In that My silver and My gold you took, And My desirable things that are good, You have brought into your temples.

You have taken the silver and gold and [other] things from my temple and put them in your temples.

6 And sons of Judah, and sons of Jerusalem, You have sold to the sons of Javan, To put them far off from their border.

[You dragged away] the people of Jerusalem and [other places in] Judah, and you took them far away and sold them to people in Greece.

7 Behold, I am stirring them up out of the place To where you have sold them, And I have turned back your repayment on your head,

But I will cause my people to want to return from the places to which you sold them, and I will do to you what you did to them.

8 And have sold your sons and your daughters Into the hand of the sons of Judah, And they have sold them to Sabeans, To a nation far off, for YHWH has spoken.”

Then I will cause [some of] your sons and your daughters to be sold to the people of Judah! And [some of] them will be sold to the Sabea people-group, who live far away. [That will certainly happen because I], Yahweh, have said it.”

9 Proclaim this among nations, Sanctify a war, stir up the mighty ones, Come near, come up, let all the men of war.

Proclaim to the [people of all] nations, “Prepare for a war! Summon your soldiers, and tell them to stand in their battle positions.

10 Beat your plowshares to swords, And your pruning-hooks to javelins, Let the weak say, “I [am] mighty.”

[Take] your plows and make swords from them, and [take] your pruning knives and make spears from them. [Even] the weak people must [also] be like [MET] [strong] soldiers.

11 Hurry, and come in, all you nations around, And be gathered together, There cause to come down, O YHWH, Your mighty ones.

All you [people from the] nations that are near [Judah] must come quickly and gather [in the Valley of Judgment].” But Yahweh, [when that happens], send your army [of angels to attack them]!

12 “Let the nations wake and come up to the Valley of Jehoshaphat, For there I sit to judge all the nations around.

The [people in] the nations near [Judah] must get ready and come to the Valley of Judgment. There Yahweh will sit and judge [and punish] them.

13 Send forth a sickle, For harvest has ripened, Come in, come down, for the press has been filled, Winepresses have overflowed, For great [is] their wickedness.”

[They are like] [MET] crops that are ready to be harvested; so [strike them like] [MET] [a farmer] swings his sickle to cut the grain. They are like [MET] grapes that are piled high in the pits where they will be pressed; because they are very wicked, [punish them severely] [MET] now, like [MET] [a farmer] tramples on the grapes until the pits are full of juice.

14 Multitudes, multitudes [are] in the Valley of Decision, For near [is] the Day of YHWH in the Valley of Decision.

[There will be] huge crowds of people in that Valley of Judgment. It will soon be the time that Yahweh [will punish them].

15 Sun and moon have been black, And stars have gathered up their shining.

[At that time] there will be no light from the sun or moon, and the stars will not shine.

16 And YHWH roars from Zion, And gives forth His voice from Jerusalem, And the heavens and earth have shaken, And YHWH [is] a refuge to His people, And a stronghold to sons of Israel.

From Zion [Hill] in Jerusalem Yahweh will shout, and his voice will be like thunder, and his voice will cause the sky and the earth to shake. But Yahweh will protect [MET] his people; he will be like [MET] a strong wall behind which the people of Israel will be protected.

17 “And you have known that I [am] your God YHWH, Dwelling in Zion, My holy mountain, And Jerusalem has been holy, And strangers do not pass over into it again.”

[Yahweh says], “At that time, you Israeli people will know that I am Yahweh, your God. I live on Zion, my sacred hill. Jerusalem will be a sacred [city], and [soldiers from] other countries will never conquer it again.

18 And it has come to pass in that day, The mountains drop down juice, And the hills flow [with] milk, And all streams of Judah go [with] water, And a fountain from the house of YHWH goes forth, And has watered the Valley of Shittim.

At that time, there will be vineyards covering [MTY] the hills, and [your cattle and goats on] those hills will produce plenty of milk. The streams in Judah will never dry up. And a stream will flow from my temple into the Acacia Valley [northeast of the Dead Sea].

19 “Egypt becomes a desolation, And Edom becomes a desolation, a wilderness, For violence [to] sons of Judah, Whose innocent blood they shed in their land.

[The armies of] Egypt and Edom attacked the people of Judah and killed [MTY] many people who had not done anything that was wrong. So [now] those countries will become deserts,

20 And Judah dwells for all time, And Jerusalem to generation and generation.

but there will always be people living in Jerusalem and [in other places] in Judea.

21 And I have declared their blood innocent, [That] I did not declare innocent, And YHWH is dwelling in Zion!”

[I], Yahweh, live on Zion [Hill in Jerusalem], and I will get revenge on the people [of Egypt and Edom] who killed [MTY] [many of my people].”