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Joel 1-3
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Joel 1-3
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
1 The word of the Lord that came to Joel son of Pethuel:(A)
Lament over the Ruin of the Country
2 Hear this, O elders;
give ear, all inhabitants of the land!
Has such a thing happened in your days
or in the days of your ancestors?(B)
3 Tell your children of it,
and let your children tell their children,
and their children another generation.(C)
4 What the cutting locust left,
the swarming locust has eaten;
what the swarming locust left,
the hopping locust has eaten;
and what the hopping locust left,
the destroying locust has eaten.(D)
5 Wake up, you drunkards, and weep,
and wail, all you wine drinkers,
over the sweet wine,
for it is cut off from your mouth.
6 For a nation has invaded my land,
powerful and innumerable;
its teeth are lions’ teeth,
and it has the fangs of a lioness.(E)
7 It has laid waste my vines
and splintered my fig trees;
it has stripped off their bark and thrown it down;
their branches have turned white.(F)
8 Lament like a virgin dressed in sackcloth
for the husband of her youth.(G)
9 The grain offering and the drink offering are cut off
from the house of the Lord.
The priests mourn,
the ministers of the Lord.(H)
10 The fields are devastated,
the ground mourns,
for the grain is destroyed,
the wine dries up,
the oil fails.(I)
11 Be dismayed, you farmers;
wail, you vinedressers,
over the wheat and the barley,
for the crops of the field are ruined.(J)
12 The vine withers;
the fig tree droops.
Pomegranate, palm, and apple—
all the trees of the field are dried up;
surely, joy withers away
among the people.(K)
A Call to Repentance and Prayer
13 Put on sackcloth and lament, you priests;
wail, you ministers of the altar.
Come, pass the night in sackcloth,
you ministers of my God!
Grain offering and drink offering
are withheld from the house of your God.(L)
14 Consecrate a fast;
call a solemn assembly.
Gather the elders
and all the inhabitants of the land
to the house of the Lord your God,
and cry out to the Lord.(M)
15 Alas for the day!
For the day of the Lord is near,
and as destruction from the Almighty[a] it comes.(N)
16 Is not the food cut off
before our eyes,
joy and gladness
from the house of our God?(O)
17 The seed shrivels under the clods;[b]
the storehouses are desolate;
the granaries are ruined
because the grain has withered.
18 How the animals groan!
The herds of cattle wander about
because there is no pasture for them;
even the flocks of sheep are perishing.(P)
19 To you, O Lord, I cry,
for fire has devoured
the pastures of the wilderness,
and flames have burned
all the trees of the field.(Q)
20 Even the wild animals cry to you
because the watercourses are dried up,
and fire has devoured
the pastures of the wilderness.(R)
2 Blow the trumpet in Zion;
sound the alarm on my holy mountain!
Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble,
for the day of the Lord is coming, it is near—(S)
2 a day of darkness and gloom,
a day of clouds and thick darkness!
Like blackness spread upon the mountains,
a great and powerful army comes;
their like has never been from of old,
nor will be again after them
in ages to come.(T)
3 Fire devours in front of them,
and behind them a flame burns.
Before them the land is like the garden of Eden,
but after them a desolate wilderness,
and nothing escapes them.(U)
4 They have the appearance of horses,
and like war horses they charge.(V)
5 As with the rumbling of chariots,
they leap on the tops of the mountains,
like the crackling of a flame of fire
devouring the stubble,
like a powerful army
drawn up for battle.(W)
6 Before them peoples are in anguish;
all faces grow pale.[c](X)
7 Like warriors they charge;
like soldiers they scale the wall.
Each keeps to its own course;
they do not swerve from their paths.
8 They do not jostle one another;
each keeps to its own track;
they burst through the weapons
and are not halted.
9 They leap upon the city;
they run upon the walls;
they climb up into the houses;
they enter through the windows like a thief.(Y)
10 The earth quakes before them;
the heavens tremble.
The sun and the moon are darkened,
and the stars withdraw their shining.(Z)
11 The Lord utters his voice
at the head of his army;
how vast is his host!
Numberless are those who obey his command.
Truly the day of the Lord is great,
terrible indeed—who can endure it?(AA)
12 Yet even now, says the Lord,
return to me with all your heart,
with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning;(AB)
13 rend your hearts and not your clothing.
Return to the Lord your God,
for he is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love,
and relenting from punishment.(AC)
14 Who knows whether he will not turn and relent
and leave a blessing behind him,
a grain offering and a drink offering
for the Lord your God?(AD)
15 Blow the trumpet in Zion;
consecrate a fast;
call a solemn assembly;(AE)
16 gather the people.
Consecrate the congregation;
assemble the aged;
gather the children,
even infants at the breast.
Let the bridegroom leave his room
and the bride her canopy.(AF)
17 Between the vestibule and the altar,
let the priests, the ministers of the Lord, weep.
Let them say, “Spare your people, O Lord,
and do not make your heritage a mockery,
a byword among the nations.
Why should it be said among the peoples,
‘Where is their God?’ ”(AG)
God’s Response and Promise
18 Then the Lord became jealous for his land
and had pity on his people.(AH)
19 In response to his people the Lord said:
“I am sending you
grain, wine, and oil,
and you will be satisfied;
and I will no more make you
a mockery among the nations.(AI)
20 I will remove the northern army far from you
and drive it into a parched and desolate land,
its front into the eastern sea
and its rear into the western sea;
its stench and foul smell will rise up.”
Surely he has done great things!(AJ)
21 Do not fear, O soil;
be glad and rejoice,
for the Lord has done great things!
22 Do not fear, you animals of the field,
for the pastures of the wilderness are green;
the tree bears its fruit;
the fig tree and vine give their full yield.(AK)
23 O children of Zion, be glad,
and rejoice in the Lord your God,
for he has given the early rain[d] for your vindication;
he has poured down for you abundant rain,
the early and the later rain, as before.(AL)
24 The threshing floors shall be full of grain;
the vats shall overflow with wine and oil.
25 I will repay you for the years
that the swarming locust has eaten,
the hopper, the destroyer, and the cutter,
my great army that I sent against you.(AM)
26 You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied
and praise the name of the Lord your God,
who has dealt wondrously with you.
And my people shall never again be put to shame.(AN)
27 You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel
and that I, the Lord, am your God and there is no other.
And my people shall never again be put to shame.(AO)
God’s Spirit Poured Out
28 [e]Then afterward
I will pour out my spirit on all flesh;
your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
your old men shall dream dreams,
and your young men shall see visions.(AP)
29 Even on the male and female slaves,
in those days I will pour out my spirit.(AQ)
30 I will show portents in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and columns of smoke.(AR) 31 The sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the great and terrible day of the Lord comes.(AS) 32 Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved, for in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those who escape, as the Lord has said, and among the survivors shall be those whom the Lord calls.(AT)
3 [f]For then, in those days and at that time, when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem,(AU) 2 I will gather all the nations and bring them down to the valley of Jehoshaphat, and I will enter into judgment with them there, on account of my people and my heritage Israel, because they have scattered them among the nations. They have divided my land(AV) 3 and cast lots for my people and traded boys for prostitutes and sold girls for wine and drunk it down.(AW)
4 What are you to me, O Tyre and Sidon, and all the regions of Philistia? Are you paying me back for something? If you are paying me back, I will turn your deeds back upon your own heads swiftly and speedily.(AX) 5 For you have taken my silver and my gold and have carried my rich treasures into your temples.[g] 6 You have sold the people of Judah and Jerusalem to the Greeks, removing them far from their own border. 7 But now I will rouse them to leave the places to which you have sold them, and I will turn your deeds back upon your own heads.(AY) 8 I will sell your sons and your daughters into the hand of the people of Judah, and they will sell them to the Sabeans, to a nation far away, for the Lord has spoken.(AZ)
Judgment in the Valley of Jehoshaphat
9 Proclaim this among the nations:
Consecrate yourselves for war;
stir up the warriors.
Let all the soldiers draw near;
let them come up.
10 Beat your plowshares into swords
and your pruning hooks into spears;
let the weakling say, “I am a warrior.”(BA)
11 Come quickly,[h]
all you nations all around;
gather yourselves there.
Bring down your warriors, O Lord.(BB)
12 Let the nations rouse themselves
and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat,
for there I will sit to judge
all the neighboring nations.(BC)
13 Put in the sickle,
for the harvest is ripe.
Go in, tread,
for the winepress is full.
The vats overflow,
for their wickedness is great.(BD)
14 Multitudes, multitudes,
in the valley of decision!
For the day of the Lord is near
in the valley of decision.(BE)
15 The sun and the moon are darkened,
and the stars withdraw their shining.
16 The Lord roars from Zion
and utters his voice from Jerusalem,
and the heavens and the earth shake.
But the Lord is a refuge for his people,
a stronghold for the people of Israel.(BF)
The Glorious Future of Judah
17 So you shall know that I, the Lord your God,
dwell in Zion, my holy mountain.
And Jerusalem shall be holy,
and strangers shall never again pass through it.(BG)
18 In that day
the mountains shall drip sweet wine,
the hills shall flow with milk,
and all the streambeds of Judah
shall flow with water;
a fountain shall come forth from the house of the Lord
and water the Wadi Shittim.(BH)
19 Egypt shall become a desolation
and Edom a desolate wilderness,
because of the violence done to the people of Judah,
in whose land they have shed innocent blood.(BI)
20 But Judah shall be inhabited forever
and Jerusalem to all generations.(BJ)
21 I will avenge their blood, and I will not clear the guilty,[i]
for the Lord dwells in Zion.(BK)
Joel 1-3
New International Version
Joel 1-3
New International Version
1 The word of the Lord that came(A) to Joel(B) son of Pethuel.
An Invasion of Locusts
2 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)
3 Tell it to your children,(G)
and let your children tell it to their children,
and their children to the next generation.(H)
4 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)
5 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.
6 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.
7 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.
8 Mourn like a virgin in sackcloth(R)
grieving for the betrothed of her youth.
9 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.
An Army of Locusts
Let all who live in the land tremble,
for the day of the Lord(BC) is coming.
It is close at hand(BD)—
2 a day of darkness(BE) and gloom,(BF)
a day of clouds(BG) and blackness.(BH)
Like dawn spreading across the mountains
a large and mighty army(BI) comes,
such as never was in ancient times(BJ)
nor ever will be in ages to come.
3 Before them fire(BK) devours,
behind them a flame blazes.
Before them the land is like the garden of Eden,(BL)
behind them, a desert waste(BM)—
nothing escapes them.
4 They have the appearance of horses;(BN)
they gallop along like cavalry.
5 With a noise like that of chariots(BO)
they leap over the mountaintops,
like a crackling fire(BP) consuming stubble,
like a mighty army drawn up for battle.
6 At the sight of them, nations are in anguish;(BQ)
every face turns pale.(BR)
7 They charge like warriors;(BS)
they scale walls like soldiers.
They all march in line,(BT)
not swerving(BU) from their course.
8 They do not jostle each other;
each marches straight ahead.
They plunge through defenses
without breaking ranks.
9 They rush upon the city;
they run along the wall.
They climb into the houses;(BV)
like thieves they enter through the windows.(BW)
10 Before them the earth shakes,(BX)
the heavens tremble,(BY)
the sun and moon are darkened,(BZ)
and the stars no longer shine.(CA)
11 The Lord(CB) thunders(CC)
at the head of his army;(CD)
his forces are beyond number,
and mighty is the army that obeys his command.
The day of the Lord is great;(CE)
it is dreadful.
Who can endure it?(CF)
Rend Your Heart
12 “Even now,” declares the Lord,
“return(CG) to me with all your heart,(CH)
with fasting and weeping and mourning.”
13 Rend your heart(CI)
and not your garments.(CJ)
Return(CK) to the Lord your God,
for he is gracious and compassionate,(CL)
slow to anger and abounding in love,(CM)
and he relents from sending calamity.(CN)
14 Who knows? He may turn(CO) and relent(CP)
and leave behind a blessing(CQ)—
grain offerings and drink offerings(CR)
for the Lord your God.
15 Blow the trumpet(CS) in Zion,(CT)
declare a holy fast,(CU)
call a sacred assembly.(CV)
16 Gather the people,
consecrate(CW) the assembly;
bring together the elders,(CX)
gather the children,
those nursing at the breast.
Let the bridegroom(CY) leave his room
and the bride her chamber.
17 Let the priests, who minister(CZ) before the Lord,
weep(DA) between the portico and the altar.(DB)
Let them say, “Spare your people, Lord.
Do not make your inheritance an object of scorn,(DC)
a byword(DD) among the nations.
Why should they say among the peoples,
‘Where is their God?(DE)’”
The Lord’s Answer
19 The Lord replied[e] to them:
“I am sending you grain, new wine(DH) and olive oil,(DI)
enough to satisfy you fully;(DJ)
never again will I make you
an object of scorn(DK) to the nations.
20 “I will drive the northern horde(DL) far from you,
pushing it into a parched and barren land;
its eastern ranks will drown in the Dead Sea
and its western ranks in the Mediterranean Sea.
And its stench(DM) will go up;
its smell will rise.”
Surely he has done great things!
21 Do not be afraid,(DN) land of Judah;
be glad and rejoice.(DO)
Surely the Lord has done great things!(DP)
22 Do not be afraid, you wild animals,
for the pastures in the wilderness are becoming green.(DQ)
The trees are bearing their fruit;
the fig tree(DR) and the vine(DS) yield their riches.(DT)
23 Be glad, people of Zion,
rejoice(DU) in the Lord your God,
for he has given you the autumn rains
because he is faithful.(DV)
He sends you abundant showers,(DW)
both autumn(DX) and spring rains,(DY) as before.
24 The threshing floors will be filled with grain;
the vats will overflow(DZ) with new wine(EA) and oil.
25 “I will repay you for the years the locusts(EB) have eaten(EC)—
the great locust and the young locust,
the other locusts and the locust swarm[f]—
my great army(ED) that I sent among you.
26 You will have plenty to eat, until you are full,(EE)
and you will praise(EF) the name of the Lord your God,
who has worked wonders(EG) for you;
never again will my people be shamed.(EH)
27 Then you will know(EI) that I am in Israel,
that I am the Lord(EJ) your God,
and that there is no other;
never again will my people be shamed.(EK)
The Day of the Lord
28 “And afterward,
I will pour out my Spirit(EL) on all people.(EM)
Your sons and daughters will prophesy,(EN)
your old men will dream dreams,(EO)
your young men will see visions.
29 Even on my servants,(EP) both men and women,
I will pour out my Spirit in those days.(EQ)
30 I will show wonders in the heavens(ER)
and on the earth,(ES)
blood and fire and billows of smoke.
31 The sun will be turned to darkness(ET)
and the moon to blood
before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.(EU)
32 And everyone who calls
on the name of the Lord(EV) will be saved;(EW)
for on Mount Zion(EX) and in Jerusalem
there will be deliverance,(EY)
as the Lord has said,
even among the survivors(EZ)
whom the Lord calls.[g](FA)
The Nations Judged
3 [h]“In those days and at that time,
when I restore the fortunes(FB) of Judah(FC) and Jerusalem,
2 I will gather(FD) all nations
and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat.[i](FE)
There I will put them on trial(FF)
for what they did to my inheritance, my people Israel,
because they scattered(FG) my people among the nations
and divided up my land.
3 They cast lots(FH) for my people
and traded boys for prostitutes;
they sold girls for wine(FI) to drink.
4 “Now what have you against me, Tyre and Sidon(FJ) and all you regions of Philistia?(FK) Are you repaying me for something I have done? If you are paying me back, I will swiftly and speedily return on your own heads what you have done.(FL) 5 For you took my silver and my gold and carried off my finest treasures to your temples.[j](FM) 6 You sold the people of Judah and Jerusalem to the Greeks,(FN) that you might send them far from their homeland.
7 “See, I am going to rouse them out of the places to which you sold them,(FO) and I will return(FP) on your own heads what you have done. 8 I will sell your sons(FQ) and daughters to the people of Judah,(FR) and they will sell them to the Sabeans,(FS) a nation far away.” The Lord has spoken.(FT)
9 Proclaim this among the nations:
Prepare for war!(FU)
Rouse the warriors!(FV)
Let all the fighting men draw near and attack.
10 Beat your plowshares into swords
and your pruning hooks(FW) into spears.(FX)
Let the weakling(FY) say,
“I am strong!”(FZ)
11 Come quickly, all you nations from every side,
and assemble(GA) there.
Bring down your warriors,(GB) Lord!
12 “Let the nations be roused;
let them advance into the Valley of Jehoshaphat,(GC)
for there I will sit
to judge(GD) all the nations on every side.
13 Swing the sickle,(GE)
for the harvest(GF) is ripe.
Come, trample the grapes,(GG)
for the winepress(GH) is full
and the vats overflow—
so great is their wickedness!”
14 Multitudes,(GI) multitudes
in the valley(GJ) of decision!
For the day of the Lord(GK) is near
in the valley of decision.(GL)
15 The sun and moon will be darkened,
and the stars no longer shine.(GM)
16 The Lord will roar(GN) from Zion
and thunder from Jerusalem;(GO)
the earth and the heavens will tremble.(GP)
But the Lord will be a refuge(GQ) for his people,
a stronghold(GR) for the people of Israel.
Blessings for God’s People
17 “Then you will know(GS) that I, the Lord your God,(GT)
dwell in Zion,(GU) my holy hill.(GV)
Jerusalem will be holy;(GW)
never again will foreigners invade her.(GX)
18 “In that day the mountains will drip new wine,(GY)
and the hills will flow with milk;(GZ)
all the ravines of Judah will run with water.(HA)
A fountain will flow out of the Lord’s house(HB)
and will water the valley of acacias.[k](HC)
19 But Egypt(HD) will be desolate,
Edom(HE) a desert waste,
because of violence(HF) done to the people of Judah,
in whose land they shed innocent blood.
20 Judah will be inhabited forever(HG)
and Jerusalem through all generations.
21 Shall I leave their innocent blood unavenged?(HH)
No, I will not.(HI)”
The Lord dwells in Zion!(HJ)
Footnotes
- Joel 1:4 The precise meaning of the four Hebrew words used here for locusts is uncertain.
- Joel 1:12 Or possibly apricot
- Joel 1:15 Hebrew Shaddai
- Joel 1:17 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
- Joel 2:19 Or Lord will be jealous … / and take pity … / 19 The Lord will reply
- Joel 2:25 The precise meaning of the four Hebrew words used here for locusts is uncertain.
- Joel 2:32 In Hebrew texts 2:28-32 is numbered 3:1-5.
- Joel 3:1 In Hebrew texts 3:1-21 is numbered 4:1-21.
- Joel 3:2 Jehoshaphat means the Lord judges; also in verse 12.
- Joel 3:5 Or palaces
- Joel 3:18 Or Valley of Shittim
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition (NRSVUE)
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.