以下是耶和华对毗土珥的儿子约珥所说的话。

严重的蝗灾

长老们啊,请听我说!
地上的所有居民啊,要留心听!
在你们或你们祖先的时代可曾发生过这样的事?
要把这事告诉你们的子子孙孙,
传到世世代代!

蝗虫吃剩的,蝻子来吃;
蝻子吃剩的,蚱蜢来吃;
蚱蜢吃剩的,蚂蚱来吃[a]

醉汉啊,醒过来哭泣吧!
贪杯的人啊,哀号吧!
你们再无美酒可饮了。
有一群凶猛的蝗虫侵犯我的国土,
它们不计其数,
有雄狮的獠牙和母狮的利齿。
它们毁坏我的葡萄树和无花果树,
剥光树皮,
只留下光秃的树枝。

我的子民啊,你们要像死了未婚夫的少女,
穿上丧服痛哭哀号。
耶和华殿中的素祭[b]和奠祭[c]都停止了,
事奉耶和华的祭司都哀伤。
10 田园荒废,遍地凄凉,
五谷尽毁,
再也没有新酒和油了。

11 农夫啊,你们要忧伤!
照料葡萄园的人啊,
你们要哀号!
因为田间的大麦和小麦全毁了。
12 葡萄树枯死,
无花果树凋残,
石榴树、棕树、苹果树等田野的一切树木枯干。
人间的欢乐消逝了。

13 祭司啊,穿着丧服痛哭吧;
在祭坛前事奉的人啊,要哀号;
我上帝的仆人啊,要披上麻衣过夜;
因为再无素祭和奠祭献到你们上帝的殿中了。

14 你们要定一个禁食的日子,
举行庄严的聚会,
召集全国的长老和人民,
到你们的上帝耶和华的殿中,
向耶和华呼求。

15 太可怕了!耶和华的日子近了,
那是全能者施行毁灭的日子。
16 我们的粮食断绝了,
我们上帝殿中的欢乐消失了。

17 种子在土里腐烂,
五谷干死,仓库荒废,
谷仓被拆毁。

18 牲畜哀鸣,
牛群因找不到草场而四处乱窜,
羊群也受苦。

19 耶和华啊,我向你呼求,
因为火焰吞灭了旷野的草场,
烈火烧光了田野的树木。
20 田野的走兽向你呼求,
因为溪水已经枯干,
火也烧尽了旷野的草场。

Footnotes

  1. 1:4 蝗虫蝻子蚱蜢蚂蚱”四个词希伯来语的确切意思很难考证。
  2. 1:9 素祭就是献上五谷、面粉之类的供物,参见利未记2章。
  3. 1:9 奠祭就是献上新酿的酒。

The word of the Lord that came(A) to Joel(B) son of Pethuel.

An Invasion of Locusts

Hear this,(C) you elders;(D)
    listen, all who live in the land.(E)
Has anything like this ever happened in your days
    or in the days of your ancestors?(F)
Tell it to your children,(G)
    and let your children tell it to their children,
    and their children to the next generation.(H)
What the locust(I) swarm has left
    the great locusts have eaten;
what the great locusts have left
    the young locusts have eaten;
what the young locusts have left(J)
    other locusts[a] have eaten.(K)

Wake up, you drunkards, and weep!
    Wail, all you drinkers of wine;(L)
wail because of the new wine,
    for it has been snatched(M) from your lips.
A nation has invaded my land,
    a mighty army without number;(N)
it has the teeth(O) of a lion,
    the fangs of a lioness.
It has laid waste(P) my vines
    and ruined my fig trees.(Q)
It has stripped off their bark
    and thrown it away,
    leaving their branches white.

Mourn like a virgin in sackcloth(R)
    grieving for the betrothed of her youth.
Grain offerings and drink offerings(S)
    are cut off from the house of the Lord.
The priests are in mourning,(T)
    those who minister before the Lord.
10 The fields are ruined,
    the ground is dried up;(U)
the grain is destroyed,
    the new wine(V) is dried up,
    the olive oil fails.(W)

11 Despair, you farmers,(X)
    wail, you vine growers;
grieve for the wheat and the barley,(Y)
    because the harvest of the field is destroyed.(Z)
12 The vine is dried up
    and the fig tree is withered;(AA)
the pomegranate,(AB) the palm and the apple[b] tree—
    all the trees of the field—are dried up.(AC)
Surely the people’s joy
    is withered away.

A Call to Lamentation

13 Put on sackcloth,(AD) you priests, and mourn;
    wail, you who minister(AE) before the altar.
Come, spend the night in sackcloth,
    you who minister before my God;
for the grain offerings and drink offerings(AF)
    are withheld from the house of your God.
14 Declare a holy fast;(AG)
    call a sacred assembly.
Summon the elders
    and all who live in the land(AH)
to the house of the Lord your God,
    and cry out(AI) to the Lord.(AJ)

15 Alas for that(AK) day!
    For the day of the Lord(AL) is near;
    it will come like destruction from the Almighty.[c](AM)

16 Has not the food been cut off(AN)
    before our very eyes—
joy and gladness(AO)
    from the house of our God?(AP)
17 The seeds are shriveled
    beneath the clods.[d](AQ)
The storehouses are in ruins,
    the granaries have been broken down,
    for the grain has dried up.
18 How the cattle moan!
    The herds mill about
because they have no pasture;(AR)
    even the flocks of sheep are suffering.(AS)

19 To you, Lord, I call,(AT)
    for fire(AU) has devoured the pastures(AV) in the wilderness
    and flames have burned up all the trees of the field.
20 Even the wild animals pant for you;(AW)
    the streams of water have dried up(AX)
    and fire has devoured the pastures(AY) in the wilderness.

Footnotes

  1. Joel 1:4 The precise meaning of the four Hebrew words used here for locusts is uncertain.
  2. Joel 1:12 Or possibly apricot
  3. Joel 1:15 Hebrew Shaddai
  4. Joel 1:17 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.

The Locust Plague in Judah

The word of the Lord that came to (A)Joel the son of Pethuel.

The Land Laid Waste(B)

Hear this, you elders,
And give ear, all you inhabitants of the land!
(C)Has anything like this happened in your days,
Or even in the days of your fathers?
(D)Tell your children about it,
Let your children tell their children,
And their children another generation.

(E)What the chewing [a]locust left, the (F)swarming locust has eaten;
What the swarming locust left, the crawling locust has eaten;
And what the crawling locust left, the consuming locust has eaten.

Awake, you (G)drunkards, and weep;
And wail, all you drinkers of wine,
Because of the new wine,
(H)For it has been cut off from your mouth.
For (I)a nation has come up against My land,
Strong, and without number;
(J)His teeth are the teeth of a lion,
And he has the fangs of a [b]fierce lion.
He has (K)laid waste My vine,
And [c]ruined My fig tree;
He has stripped it bare and thrown it away;
Its branches are made white.

(L)Lament like a virgin girded with sackcloth
For (M)the husband of her youth.
(N)The grain offering and the drink offering
Have been cut off from the house of the Lord;
The priests (O)mourn, who minister to the Lord.
10 The field is wasted,
(P)The land mourns;
For the grain is ruined,
(Q)The new wine is dried up,
The oil fails.

11 (R)Be ashamed, you farmers,
Wail, you vinedressers,
For the wheat and the barley;
Because the harvest of the field has perished.
12 (S)The vine has dried up,
And the fig tree has withered;
The pomegranate tree,
The palm tree also,
And the apple tree—
All the trees of the field are withered;
Surely (T)joy has withered away from the sons of men.

Mourning for the Land

13 (U)Gird yourselves and lament, you priests;
Wail, you who minister before the altar;
Come, lie all night in sackcloth,
You who minister to my God;
For the grain offering and the drink offering
Are withheld from the house of your God.
14 (V)Consecrate a fast,
Call (W)a sacred assembly;
Gather the elders
And (X)all the inhabitants of the land
Into the house of the Lord your God,
And cry out to the Lord.

15 (Y)Alas for the day!
For (Z)the day of the Lord is at hand;
It shall come as destruction from the Almighty.
16 Is not the food (AA)cut off before our eyes,
(AB)Joy and gladness from the house of our God?
17 The seed shrivels under the clods,
Storehouses are in shambles;
Barns are broken down,
For the grain has withered.
18 How (AC)the animals groan!
The herds of cattle are restless,
Because they have no pasture;
Even the flocks of sheep [d]suffer punishment.

19 O Lord, (AD)to You I cry out;
For (AE)fire has devoured the [e]open pastures,
And a flame has burned all the trees of the field.
20 The beasts of the field also (AF)cry out to You,
For (AG)the water brooks are dried up,
And fire has devoured the [f]open pastures.

Footnotes

  1. Joel 1:4 Exact identity of these locusts unknown
  2. Joel 1:6 Or lioness
  3. Joel 1:7 Or splintered
  4. Joel 1:18 LXX, Vg. are made desolate
  5. Joel 1:19 Lit. pastures of the wilderness
  6. Joel 1:20 Lit. pastures of the wilderness