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

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

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

That which the palmerworm hath left hath the locust eaten; and that which the locust hath left hath the cankerworm eaten; and that which the cankerworm hath left hath the caterpiller eaten.

Awake, ye drunkards, and weep; and howl, all ye drinkers of wine, because of the new wine; for it is cut off from your mouth.

For a nation is come up upon my land, strong, and without number, whose teeth are the teeth of a lion, and he hath the cheek teeth of a great lion.

He hath laid my vine waste, and barked my fig tree: he hath made it clean bare, and cast it away; the branches thereof are made white.

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

The meat offering and the drink offering is cut off from the house of the Lord; the priests, the Lord's ministers, mourn.

10 The field is wasted, the land mourneth; for the corn is wasted: the new wine is dried up, the oil languisheth.

11 Be ye ashamed, O ye husbandmen; howl, O ye vinedressers, for the wheat and for the barley; because the harvest of the field is perished.

12 The vine is dried up, and the fig tree languisheth; the pomegranate tree, the palm tree also, and the apple tree, even all the trees of the field, are withered: because joy is withered away from the sons of men.

13 Gird yourselves, and lament, ye priests: howl, ye ministers of the altar: come, lie all night in sackcloth, ye ministers of my God: for the meat offering and the drink offering is withholden from the house of your God.

14 Sanctify ye a fast, call a solemn assembly, gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land into the house of the Lord your God, and cry unto the Lord,

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

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

17 The seed is rotten under their clods, the garners are laid desolate, the barns are broken down; for the corn is 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.

19 O Lord, to thee will I cry: for the fire hath devoured the pastures of the wilderness, and the flame hath burned all the trees of the field.

20 The beasts of the field cry also unto thee: for the rivers of waters are dried up, and the fire hath devoured the pastures of the wilderness.

Devastación de la tierra por la langosta

Palabra de Jehová que vino a Joel, hijo de Petuel.

Oíd esto, ancianos, y escuchad, todos los moradores de la tierra. ¿Ha acontecido algo semejante en vuestros días, o en los días de vuestros padres?

De esto contaréis a vuestros hijos, y vuestros hijos a sus hijos, y sus hijos a la otra generación.

Lo que quedó de la oruga se lo comió la langosta, y lo que quedó de la langosta se lo comió el pulgón; y el saltón se comió lo que del pulgón había quedado.

Despertad, borrachos, y llorad; aullad, todos los que bebéis vino, a causa del vino nuevo, porque se os ha quitado de vuestra boca.

Porque un pueblo fuerte e innumerable subió a mi tierra; sus dientes son dientes de león, y tiene muelas de leona.

Asoló mi viña, y descortezó mi higuera; del todo la desnudó y derribó; sus ramas quedaron blancas.

Llora tú como joven vestida de cilicio por el marido de su juventud.

Desapareció de la casa de Jehová la ofrenda y la libación; los sacerdotes ministros de Jehová están de duelo.

10 El campo está asolado, se enlutó la tierra; porque el trigo fue destruido, se agotó el mosto, se perdió el aceite.

11 Confundíos, labradores; lamentaos, viñadores, por el trigo y la cebada, porque se perdió la cosecha del campo.

12 La viña está seca, y se amustió la higuera; el granado también, la palmera y el manzano, todos los árboles del campo se secaron, por lo cual se extinguió el gozo de los hijos de los hombres.

13 Ceñíos y lamentad, sacerdotes; gemid, ministros del altar; venid, pasad la noche en sacos, ministros de mi Dios; porque la casa de vuestro Dios se ha quedado sin ofrenda y sin libación.

14 Proclamad un ayuno, convocad a asamblea; reuníos, ancianos y todos los moradores de la tierra en la casa de Jehová, vuestro Dios, y clamad a Jehová.

15 ¡Ay de ese día!, porque cercano está el día de Jehová, y vendrá como una devastación de parte del Todopoderoso.

16 ¿No fue arrebatado el alimento de delante de nuestros ojos, la alegría y el placer de la casa de nuestro Dios?

17 El grano se pudrió debajo de los terrones, los graneros fueron asolados, los alfolíes destruidos; porque se agotó el trigo.

18 ¡Cómo mugen las bestias!, ¡cuán consternados vagan los hatos de los bueyes, porque no tienen pastos! También perecieron los rebaños de las ovejas.

19 A ti, oh Jehová, clamo; porque el fuego consumió los pastos del desierto, y la llama abrasó todos los árboles del campo.

20 Hasta las bestias del campo jadean tras de ti, porque se secaron los arroyos de las aguas, y el fuego consumió las praderas del desierto.

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

The word of the Lord that came to Joel, the son of Pethuel:

An Invasion of Locusts

(A)Hear this, (B)you elders;
    give ear, (C)all inhabitants of the land!
(D)Has such a thing happened in your days,
    or in the days of your fathers?
(E)Tell your children of it,
    and let your children tell their children,
    and their children to another generation.

What (F)the cutting locust left,
    (G)the swarming locust has eaten.
What the swarming locust left,
    (H)the hopping locust has eaten,
and what the hopping locust left,
    (I)the destroying locust has eaten.

Awake, you drunkards, and weep,
    and (J)wail, all you drinkers of wine,
because of (K)the sweet wine,
    for it is cut off from your mouth.
For (L)a nation has come up against my land,
    (M)powerful and beyond number;
(N)its teeth are lions' teeth,
    and it has the fangs of a lioness.
It has laid waste my vine
    and splintered my (O)fig tree;
it has stripped off their bark and thrown it down;
    their branches are made white.

Lament like a virgin[a] (P)wearing sackcloth
    for the bridegroom of her youth.
(Q)The grain offering and the drink offering are cut off
    from the house of the Lord.
(R)The priests mourn,
    (S)the ministers of the Lord.
10 The fields are destroyed,
    (T)the ground mourns,
because (U)the grain is destroyed,
    (V)the wine dries up,
    the oil languishes.

11 (W)Be ashamed,[b] O tillers of the soil;
    wail, O vinedressers,
for the wheat and the barley,
    (X)because the harvest of the field has perished.
12 The vine dries up;
    (Y)the fig tree languishes.
Pomegranate, palm, and apple,
    all the trees of the field are dried up,
and (Z)gladness dries up
    from the children of man.

A Call to Repentance

13 (AA)Put on sackcloth and lament, (AB)O priests;
    (AC)wail, O ministers of the altar.
Go in, (AD)pass the night in sackcloth,
    (AE)O ministers of my God!
(AF)Because grain offering and drink offering
    are withheld from the house of your God.

14 (AG)Consecrate a fast;
    (AH)call a solemn assembly.
Gather (AI)the elders
    and (AJ)all the inhabitants of the land
to the house of the Lord your God,
    and cry out to the Lord.

15 Alas for the day!
(AK)For the day of the Lord is near,
    and as destruction from the Almighty[c] it comes.
16 Is not the food cut off
    before our eyes,
(AL)joy and gladness
    from the house of our God?

17 (AM)The seed shrivels under the clods;[d]
    the storehouses are desolate;
the granaries are torn down
    because (AN)the grain has dried up.
18 How (AO)the beasts groan!
    The herds of cattle are perplexed
because there is no pasture for them;
    even the flocks of sheep suffer.[e]

19 To you, (AP)O Lord, I call.
(AQ)For fire has devoured
    the pastures of the wilderness,
(AR)and flame has burned
    all the trees of the field.
20 Even the beasts of the field (AS)pant for you
    because the water brooks are dried up,
(AT)and fire has devoured
    the pastures of the wilderness.

Footnotes

  1. Joel 1:8 Or young woman
  2. Joel 1:11 The Hebrew words for dry up and be ashamed in verses 10–12, 17 sound alike
  3. Joel 1:15 Destruction sounds like the Hebrew for Almighty
  4. Joel 1:17 The meaning of the Hebrew line is uncertain
  5. Joel 1:18 Or are made desolate