JoelChapter 2

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¹Blow the ram's horn in Zion!
Sound the alarm on my holy mountain!
Let all who live in the land tremble.
For the Day of the LORD is coming.
Yes, it is near— ²a day of darkness and gloom,
a day of clouds and thick darkness.
Like dawn spreading over the mountains,
a great and strong army comes.
There has never been one like it before.
And there will never be one like it again
in all the years to come. ³In front of them a fire burns everything up.
Behind them a flame scorches.
In front of them the land is like the Garden of Eden.
Behind them it is like an empty desert.
Surely nothing will escape them. ⁴They look like horses.
They gallop like fast war horses. ⁵They leap over the mountaintops
with a sound like chariots.
They sound like the crackling of fire burning dry stalks.
They are like a mighty army lined up for battle. ⁶Nations shake in fear before them.
Every face turns pale. ⁷They charge like mighty soldiers.
They climb walls like men of war.
Each one marches in line
and does not turn aside from the path. ⁸They do not push one another.
Each one goes straight ahead in his path.
They break through the defenses
without ever getting out of line. ⁹They rush into the city.
They run along the wall.
They climb into houses.
They go in through windows like thieves. ¹⁰The earth shakes before them.
The sky trembles.
The sun and moon grow dark,
and the stars lose their light. ¹¹The LORD shouts out
in front of his army.
His camp is very large,
for those who obey his command are mighty.
For the Day of the LORD is great and very terrible.
Who can live through it? ¹²"Yet even now," says the LORD,
"return to me with all your heart.
Come with fasting, weeping, and mourning." ¹³Tear your hearts, and not your clothes.
Return to the LORD your God.
For he is gracious and full of compassion.
He is slow to get angry
and full of faithful love.
And he holds back from sending disaster. ¹⁴Who knows?
He may turn and hold back.
He may leave a blessing behind him—
grain offerings and drink offerings
for the LORD your God. ¹⁵Blow the ram's horn in Zion!
Set apart a time to fast.
Call a holy gathering. ¹⁶Gather the people.
Make the whole group holy.
Bring together the old people.
Gather the children,
even the babies who are nursing.
Let the groom leave his room,
and the bride her room too. ¹⁷Let the priests who serve before the LORD
weep between the porch and the altar.
Let them say, "Spare your people, LORD.
Do not let your own people become a disgrace,
a thing the nations make fun of.
Why should people among the nations say,
'Where is their God?'" ¹⁸Then the LORD became jealous for his land,
and he took pity on his people. ¹⁹The LORD answered his people,
"Look, I will send you grain, new wine, and oil.
You will be satisfied with them.
I will never again make you a disgrace among the nations. ²⁰I will drive the northern army far from you.
I will push it into a dry and empty land.
Its front lines will go into the Eastern Sea.
Its back lines will go into the Western Sea.
Its stink will rise up.
Its bad smell will go up.
For he has done great things.a ²¹Do not be afraid, land.
Be glad and rejoice,
for the LORD has done great things. ²²Do not be afraid, wild animals,
for the open pastures have turned green.
The trees are bearing their fruit.
The fig tree and the vine give their best. ²³Be glad, people of Zion!
Rejoice in the LORD your God!
For he has given you the autumn rains
to show you are in the right.
He sends you showers,
both autumn and spring rains, as before.b ²⁴The threshing floors will be full of grain.
The vats will overflow with new wine and oil. ²⁵I will pay you back for the years the locusts ate—
the swarming locust, the young locust,
the destroying locust, and the devouring locust.
They were my great army that I sent against you. ²⁶You will have plenty to eat,
until you are full.
You will praise the name of the LORD your God,
who has done wonders for you.
My people will never again be put to shame. ²⁷Then you will know that I am here in Israel.
You will know that I am the LORD your God,
and there is no other.
My people will never again be put to shame. ²⁸And after this, I will pour out my Spirit on all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy.
Your old men will dream dreams.
Your young men will see visions. ²⁹Even on my male and female servants,
I will pour out my Spirit in those days. ³⁰I will show wonders in the sky and on the earth:
blood and fire and columns of smoke. ³¹The sun will be turned to darkness,
and the moon to blood,
before the great and awesome Day of the LORD comes. ³²And everyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved.
For on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem
there will be rescue,
as the LORD has promised.
It will be among the survivors whom the LORD calls.