Difference between revisions of "Joel"
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*[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/08419a.htm Catholic Encyclopedia] | *[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/08419a.htm Catholic Encyclopedia] | ||
*[http://www.bible.org/page.asp?page_id=926 Bible.org] | *[http://www.bible.org/page.asp?page_id=926 Bible.org] | ||
| + | *[http://www.soundofgrace.com/piper81/060781m.htm Dr John Piper sermon 1981 on Joel] | ||
==References== | ==References== | ||
Revision as of 10:07, 24 September 2006
Joel (יואל) was the second of the twelve minor prophets and the author of the Book of Joel. He was the son of Pethuel. The name Joel was common in Israel and means "the Lord is God". He was probably a contemporary to Amos and Isaiah, and may have been of priestly descent.
The Prophet
Joel was probably a resident in the Kingdom of Judah, as his commission was to that people. He makes frequent mention of Judah and Jerusalem (1:14; 2:1, 15, 32; 3:1, 12, 17, 20, 21). This means he could have been a resident of Jerusalem.
Historical Context
Scholars debate the date of Joel with three main schools:
- 835-796BC During the time when Joash was too young to govern and Jehoiada did so in his place (2 Kings 11; 2 Chron. 23-24).
Message
Joel prophecies:
- A prophecy of a great calamity, consisting of a famine and a plague of locusts (1:1-2:11). He encourages the people to fast and pray. Chapter 1:2-20, describes a terrible scourge, a plague of locusts, with which the Prophet's land had been visited; these pests had so completely devoured the fields that not even the material for the meat- and drink-offerings existed.
- He then calls on his countrymen to repent and to turn to God, assuring them that God is ready to forgive (2:12-17), and then he foretells the restoration of the land to its accustomed fruitfulness (18-26).
Joel had called the judgment of God in the locust plague "the day of the Lord" (2:11). But now he sees another "day of the Lord" coming "great and terrible" (2:31). It will be signaled by signs in the sky and on earth for all to see and the whole earth will be summoned for judgment: "I will gather all the nations and bring them down to the valley of Jehoshaphat and I will enter into judgment with them there (3:2). But before this cataclysmic judgment occurs God promises that a great outpouring of his Spirit will happen: "I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh" (2:28).
Hundreds of years later the apostle Peter stands up on the day of Pentecost and announces the fulfillment of this prophecy and He says in Acts 2:16, "This is what was spoken by the prophet Joel."
- Then follows a Messianic prophecy, quoted by Peter (Acts 2:39). He is also quoted by the Apostle Paul in Romans. (Compare Joel 2:32 with Romans 10:13)
- Finally, the prophet foretells portents and judgments as destined to fall on the enemies of God.
See Also
It is difficult to tell when the book the book was written. Click on the links below to see some rough histories of what may have been happening at the time of Joel.
