Joel

A Brief Introduction 

Global Message for Today 

Disasters happen by divine appointment. Throughout the world there are earthquakes, floods, and storms of every sort that destroy property and claim lives. Rather than these being random occurrences with purely natural explanations, they are the workings of divine providence, all of which declares the glory of God. It is a source of comfort to Christians to know that regardless of how terrible circumstances may be, there is a good and all-wise God who is working His purpose. 

The knowledge that disasters happen by divine appointment ought to generate a conscious awareness or fear of God and motivate repentance and dependence on the Lord. Natural disasters are a means that God uses to knock out every prop of selfreliance. 

Joel 2:12–13 provides occasion to reflect on the nature of evangelical repentance. As the Hebrew word “turn” implies, repentance involves a reversal of direction, demanding a new way of thinking and living. The Westminster Shorter Catechism’s definition would be a good place to start: “Repentance unto life is a saving grace whereby a sinner, out of a true sense of his sin, and apprehension of the mercy of God in Christ, doth, with grief and hatred of his sin, turn from it unto God, with full purpose of, and endeavor after, new obedience” (Q. 87). Joel’s invitation encompasses most of these elements. It stresses particularly the inward focus. Sometimes people doubt the reality of their own repentance on the basis of outward manifestations of contrition (weeping and mourning). There must be the contrition over sin, but how that contrition is shown often depends on personality. This is why Joel stresses the rending of the heart rather than the outward shows of rending garments. What God sees is more important than what man sees. 

God’s promise to restore what the locusts had eaten (2:25) is an encouragement. The consequences of sin are a tragic reality, but where sin abounds grace superabounds (Rom. 5:20). Sometimes people convince themselves that their sin has been so great or so much of life has been wasted that God would never save them or ever use them. The locusts had so consumed the land that nothing was left, but God said He would restore it all. So God’s power and grace is sufficient to restore His people to usefulness. 

On the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came upon every believer, who then in the power of the Spirit evangelized Jerusalem (Acts 2:4). Peter explained the wonders of Pentecost by saying “this is that” which Joel prophesied concerning, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:16). What Pentecost started continues, and every Christian has the power of the Spirit available to serve Christ and His church. 

Use 3:14 as a solemn reminder of the importance of conversion before it is too late. A day of judgment is coming when God will declare His guilty verdict and pronounce His sentence upon the wicked, who will have no recourse or way to escape. 

Reflect on vv. 16–21 regarding the safety and security that God’s presence offers believers regardless of external circumstances. Notwithstanding the eschatological (endtime) implications of these verses, they sum up a timeless and universal truth. Psalm 91 would be a good parallel passage: the Lord is our security; He provides our safety; and He promises our salvation.