Joel 1

1 The Lord’s message that came to Joel, son of Pethuel.

The word of Jehovah that came to Joel the son of Pethuel.

2 Hear this, elders, pay attention, all inhabitants of the land. Has anything like this happened in your days, or in the days of your ancestors?

Hear this, ye old men, and give ear, all ye inhabitants of the land. Has this been in your days, or in the days of your fathers?

3 Recount it to your children; let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the generation that follows.

Tell ye your sons of it, and let your sons tell their sons, and their sons another generation.

4 That which the cutting locust has left, the swarming locust has eaten, that which the swarming locust has left, the hopping locust has eaten, and that which the hopping locust has left, the destroying locust has eaten.

That which the palmer-worm has left the locust has eaten, and that which the locust has left the canker-worm has eaten, and that which the canker-worm has left the caterpillar has eaten.

5 Awake, drunkards, and weep, and wail, all drinkers of wine; the new wine is cut off from your mouth.

Awake, ye drunkards, and weep, and wail, all ye drinkers of wine, because of the sweet wine, for it is cut off from your mouth.

6 For a nation has come up on my land, powerful, and numberless; its teeth are the teeth of a lion, and its jaw-teeth are like those of a lioness.

For a nation has come up upon my land, strong, and without number. His teeth are the teeth of a lion, and he has the jaw-teeth of a lioness.

7 It has laid waste my vines, and barked my fig tree; it has peeled and cast it away, bleached are the branches.

He has laid my vine waste, and barked my fig tree. He has made it clean bare, and cast it away. The branches of it are made white.

8 Wail as a bride, clad in sack-cloth, for the husband of her youth.

Lament like a virgin girded with sackcloth for the husband of her youth.

9 Cut off are the cereal and drink-offerings from the house of the Lord; in mourning are the priests, who minister at the Lord’s altar.

The meal offering and the drink offering are cut off from the house of Jehovah. The priests, Jehovah's ministers, mourn.

10 The fields are blasted, the land is in mourning, for ruined is the corn, the new wine fails and the oil is dried up.

The field is laid waste; the land mourns. For the grain is destroyed, the new wine is dried up, the oil languishes.

11 Be dismayed, farmers; wail, vine-dressers. For the wheat and the barley; for the harvest is lost from the fields.

Be confounded, O ye husbandmen. Wail, O ye vinedressers, for the wheat and for the barley, for the harvest of the field is perished.

12 The vine fails to bear fruit, and the fig tree is drooping; the pomegranate, palm, and apple, all the trees of the field are dried up. The people’s joy withers.

The vine is withered, and the fig tree languishes. The pomegranate tree, the palm tree also, and the apple tree, even all the trees of the field are withered. For joy has withered away from the sons of men.

13 Put on sackcloth, and beat your breasts, priests; wail, ministers of the altar; come, lie all night in sack-cloth, ministers of God; for cereal-offering and drink-offering are cut off from the house of your God.

Gird yourselves with sackcloth, and lament, ye priests. Wail, ye ministers of the altar. Come, lie all night in sackcloth, ye ministers of my God. For the meal offering and the drink offering are withheld from the house of your God.

14 Sanctify a fast, summon an assembly, gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land into the house of the Lord your God, cry to the Lord:

Sanctify a fast. Call a solemn assembly. Gather the old men and all the inhabitants of the land to the house of Jehovah your God, and cry to Jehovah.

15 Alas for the day! Near at hand is the day of the Lord, and as destruction from the Almighty it comes.

Alas for the day! For the day of Jehovah is at hand, and it shall come as destruction from the Almighty.

16 Is not food cut off from before us, gladness and joy from the house of our God?

Is not the food cut off before our eyes, yea, joy and gladness from the house of our God?

17 The grains shrivel under their hoes, the storehouses are desolate, the barns broken down, for the corn is withered.

The seeds rot under their clods. The garners are laid desolate. The barns are broken down. For the grain is withered.

18 How the herds of cattle bellow in distress, for they have no pasture! The flocks of sheep are forlorn.

How do the beasts groan! The herds of cattle are perplexed because they have no pasture, yea, the flocks of sheep are made desolate.

19 To you, the Lord, I cry. For fire has devoured the pastures of the wilderness, and flame has scorched all the trees of the field.

O Jehovah, to thee do I cry. For the fire has devoured the pastures of the wilderness, and the flame has burned all the trees of the field.

20 The wild animals also look up to you longingly, for the water-courses are dried up, and fire has devoured the pastures of the wilderness.

Yea, the beasts of the field pant to thee, for the water brooks are dried up, and the fire has devoured the pastures of the wilderness.