Joel 2
1 Blow ye the trumpet in Zion; Sound an alarm in my holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble! For the day of Jehovah cometh, for it is near!
Blow trumpets on Zion [Hill], God’s sacred hill [in Jerusalem]! Tell the people of Judah that they should tremble, because it will soon be the time for Yahweh [to punish us further].
2 A day of darkness, and gloominess, A day of clouds, and thick darkness. As the morning light spreadeth itself upon the mountains, There cometh a numerous people and a strong; Like them there have been none of old time, And after them there shall not be, Even to the years of many generations.
[That will be a very] dark and gloomy day; there will be [black] clouds and it will be very dark. A huge [swarm of locusts] has covered the mountains like [SIM] a black [cloud]. Nothing like this has ever happened before, and nothing like this will ever [happen] again.
3 A fire devoureth before them, And behind them a flame burneth; The land is as the garden of Eden before them. And behind them a desolate wilderness! Yea, nothing escapeth them.
[It is as though the locusts bring] flames of fire from which no one can escape. In front of them, the land was [beautiful] like [SIM] the garden of Eden, but behind them [the land is like] a desert and nothing survives.
4 Their appearance is like the appearance of horses, And like horsemen do they run;
[The locusts] resemble horses, and they run like [SIM] war horses.
5 Like rattling chariots they leap on the tops of the mountains; Like the crackling flame of fire, which devoureth stubble; Like a mighty host set in battle array.
Leaping over the mountaintops, they make a noise like rumbling chariots, like [SIM] a mighty army that is preparing for a battle, or like [SIM] the roar of a fire that burns up stubble [in a field].
6 Before them the people tremble, And all faces gather blackness.
When people see them coming, they become very pale and frightened.
7 They run like mighty men; They climb the wall like warriors; They march every one on his way; They change not their paths.
[The locusts] climb over walls like soldiers do; they march along in columns and never turn aside [from their columns].
8 One doth not thrust another; They march every one in his path, And though they rush among weapons, they are not wounded.
They rush straight ahead without pushing each other. [Even though people throw] spears and javelins at them, that will not cause them to stop.
9 They run through the city; They run upon the wall; They go up into the houses; They enter in at the windows, like a thief.
They swarm over the city walls and enter our houses; they enter through our windows like [SIM] thieves do.
10 The earth quaketh before them, And the heavens tremble; The sun and the moon are darkened, And the stars withdraw their shining.
[It is as though] they cause the earth to shake and the sky to tremble. The sun and the moon become dark and the stars do not shine [because there are so many locusts in the sky].
11 Jehovah uttereth his voice before his army; For very great is his host; Yea, it is mighty, executing his word; The day of Jehovah is great, and very terrible; Who shall be able to bear it?
Yahweh leads this army [of countless locusts], and they obey his commands. This time when he is judging and punishing us is very terrible, [with the result that it seems that] no one [RHQ] can survive it.
12 Yet even now, saith Jehovah, Turn ye to me with all your heart, With fasting, with weeping, and with mourning!
But Yahweh says, “In spite of [these disasters that you have experienced], you can return to me with all your inner beings. Weep, and mourn, and (fast/abstain from eating food) [to show that you are sorry for having abandoned me].
13 And rend your hearts, and not your garments, And turn to Jehovah your God, For he is gracious and merciful, Slow to anger, and of great kindness, And repenteth of a threatened evil.
Do not tear your clothes [to show that you are sorry]; instead, show [MET] that you are sorry.” Yahweh is merciful and kind; he does not quickly become angry; he faithfully loves [people]. He does not quickly become angry; instead, he greatly and faithfully loves [you], and he does not like to punish you.
14 Who knoweth but he will turn and repent, And leave a blessing behind him, Even a flour-offering and a drink-offering for Jehovah your God.
No one knows [RHQ] if he will change his mind [about punishing you] and if instead he will act mercifully [toward you]. If he does that, he will bless you [by giving you plenty of grain and wine] in order that you can offer [some of] those things as sacrifices to him.
15 Blow ye the trumpet in Zion; Appoint yea fast; proclaim a solemn assembly!
Blow the trumpets on Zion [Hill]! Gather the people together! Show by fasting that you are sorry [for the sins that you have committed].
16 Gather the people; appoint a congregation; Assemble the elders; Gather the children and the sucklings! Let the bridegroom come forth from his chamber, And the bride from her nuptial bed!
Perform the rituals to cause yourselves to be acceptable to Yahweh. Gather everyone together— the old people and the children, even the babies, and summon brides and bridegrooms from their rooms.
17 Let the priests, the servants of Jehovah, Weep between the porch and the altar, And say, Spare thy people, O Jehovah, And give not thine inheritance to reproach, And to be a by-word to the nations! Why should they say among the nations, Where is their God?
Tell the priests who serve Yahweh to cry between the altar and the entrance to the temple and to pray [this]: “Yahweh, rescue/save [us] your people; do not allow people from other nations to despise us; do not allow them to ridicule us and say, ‘Why has [RHQ] their God [abandoned them]?’”
18 Then will Jehovah be zealous for his land, And have compassion on his people,
But Yahweh [showed that he] was concerned about his people and that he would act mercifully toward them.
19 Yea, Jehovah will answer, and say to his people, Behold, I will send you corn, And new wine, and oil, and ye shall be satisfied therewith; And I will no more make you a reproach among the nations.
When the people prayed, Yahweh answered and said, “I will give you [plenty of] grain and wine and [olive] oil, and you will be satisfied. And I will no longer allow other nations to insult you.
20 I will remove far from you the northern host, And I will drive it into a dry and desolate land; Its van toward the Eastern sea, And its rear toward the Western sea. And its scent shall come up, And its ill savor shall come up, Because it hath done great things.
Another army [of locusts will come] from the north [to attack you], but I will force them to continue [past Jerusalem] into the desert. Some will go into the Dead Sea in the east and some will go into the [Mediterranean] Sea in the west. [There] they will [all die, and their bodies] will stink.” Yahweh does great things!
21 Fear not, O land, exult and rejoice, For Jehovah hath done great things!
He does wonderful things! So even the ground should rejoice!
22 Fear not, O ye beasts of the field, For the pastures of the desert spring up, For the tree beareth its fruit; The fig-tree and the vine yield their strength!
And the wild animals should not be afraid, because the meadows will soon become green again; the fig trees and [other] trees will be full of fruit, and the grapevines will be covered with grapes.
23 And, O ye sons of Zion, exult, And rejoice in Jehovah your God! For he giveth you the former rain in just measure, And causeth showers to come down upon you, Even the former rain, and the latter rain, as aforetime.
You people of Jerusalem, rejoice about what Yahweh, your God, [will be doing for you]. He will send abundant rain at the (right time/time when it is needed)— (in the spring/early in the year) and (in the autumn/late in the year) like he did previously.
24 And the threshing-floors shall be full of wheat, And the vats shall overflow with new wine and oil.
The ground where you thresh the grain will be covered with grain, and your vats where you store grape juice and [olive] oil will be full.
25 And I will restore to you the years Which the swarming-locust hath eaten, The licking-locust, the consuming-locust, and the gnawing-locusts, My great army, which I sent among you.
[Yahweh said, ] “I will repay you for everything that was destroyed by those great swarms of locusts that I sent to attack you.
26 Ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, And praise the name of Jehovah your God, Who hath dealt wondrously with you; And my people shall never be put to shame.
You, my people, will eat until your stomachs are full. Then you will praise me [MTY], Yahweh, your God, for the wonderful things that I have done for you. And never again will you be disgraced.
27 Ye shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, And that I am Jehovah, your God, and none else; And my people shall never be put to shame.
When that happens, you will know that I am [always] among you, and that I am Yahweh, your God, and that there is no other [God]. Never again will you be disgraced.”
28 And it shall come to pass afterward, That I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; And your sons and your daughters shall prophesy; Your old men shall dream dreams, Your young men shall see visions.
“Some time later, I will give my Spirit to many [HYP] people. Your sons and daughters will proclaim messages that come directly from me. Your old men will have dreams [that come from me], and your young men will have visions [that come from me].
29 Upon the men-servants also, and upon the handmaids, Will I pour out my spirit in those days.
At that time, I will give my Spirit even to servants, both men and women.
30 And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth; Blood and fire, and pillars of smoke.
I will do unusual/amazing things on the earth and in the sky. [On the earth] [CHI], there will be much blood [shed] and [there will be very large] fires and smoke that resembles huge clouds.
31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, And the moon into blood, Before the day of Jehovah cometh, The great and the terrible day. Then whoever calleth on the name of Jehovah shall be delivered;
[In the sky, ] the sun will become dark and the moon will become [as red as] [MET] blood. [Those things will happen] before that great and terrible day when [I], Yahweh, appear.
32 For upon mount Zion, and in Jerusalem, shall be deliverance, As Jehovah hath spoken; And among the remnant, whom Jehovah shall call.
But at that time [I] will save everyone who worships me. I promise that some people in Jerusalem [DOU] will escape [those disasters]; those whom I have chosen will survive.”
