The Lord Had Pity

18 (A)Then the Lord became jealous for his land
    (B)and had pity on his people.
19 The Lord answered and said to his people,
“Behold, (C)I am sending to you
    grain, wine, and oil,
    (D)and you will be satisfied;
and I will no more make you
    a reproach among the nations.

20 “I will remove the northerner far from you,
    and drive him into a parched and desolate land,
his vanguard[a] into (E)the eastern sea,
    and his rear guard[b] into (F)the western sea;
(G)the stench and foul smell of him will rise,
    for he has done great things.

21 “Fear not, O land;
    be glad and rejoice,
    for (H)the Lord has done great things!
22 Fear not, (I)you beasts of the field,
    for (J)the pastures of the wilderness are green;
(K)the tree bears its fruit;
    the fig tree and (L)vine give their full yield.

23 (M)“Be glad, O children of Zion,
    and (N)rejoice in the Lord your God,
for he has given (O)the early rain for your vindication;
    he has poured down for you abundant rain,
    (P)the early and (Q)the latter rain, as before.

24 “The threshing floors shall be full of grain;
    the vats shall overflow with wine and oil.
25 I will restore[c] to you the years
    that (R)the swarming locust has eaten,
(S)the hopper, (T)the destroyer, and (U)the cutter,
    (V)my great army, which I sent among you.

26 (W)“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 (X)shall never again be put to shame.
27 (Y)You shall know that I am (Z)in the midst of Israel,
    and that (AA)I am the Lord your God (AB)and there is none else.
And my people (AC)shall never again be put to shame.

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Footnotes

  1. Joel 2:20 Hebrew face
  2. Joel 2:20 Hebrew his end
  3. Joel 2:25 Or pay back

Words of compassion and promise

18 Then the Lord became passionate about this land,[a] and had pity on his people.

19 The Lord responded to the people:
See, I am sending you
    the corn, new wine, and fresh oil,
        and you will be fully satisfied by it;
    and I will no longer make you
        a disgrace among the nations.
20 I will remove the northern army far from you
    and drive it into a dried-up and desolate land,
        its front into the eastern sea,
        and its rear into the western sea.
    Its stench will rise up;
        its stink will come to the surface.
The Lord is about to do great things!
21 Don’t fear, fertile land;
    rejoice and be glad,
    for the Lord is about to do great things!
22 Don’t be afraid, animals of the field,
        for the meadows of the wilderness will turn green;
    the tree will bear its fruit;
        the fig tree and grapevine will give their full yield.
23 Children of Zion,
        rejoice and be glad in the Lord your God,
    because he will give you the early rain as a sign of righteousness;
        he will pour down abundant rain for you,
            the early and the late rain, as before.[b]
24 The threshing floors will be full of grain;
        the vats will overflow with new wine and fresh oil.
25 I will repay you for the years
        that the cutting locust,
    the swarming locust, the hopping locust, and the devouring locust have eaten—
        my great army, which I sent against you.
26 You will eat abundantly and be satisfied,
        and you will praise the name of the Lord your God,
    who has done wonders for you;
        and my people will never again be put to shame.
27 You will know that I am in the midst of Israel,
        and that I am the Lord your God—no other exists;
        never again will my people be put to shame.

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Footnotes

  1. Joel 2:18 Or then the Lord became jealous for his land
  2. Joel 2:23 Or at the first