Joel 2

1 Sound the trumpet in Sion, make a proclamation in my holy mountain, and let all the inhabitants of the land be confounded: for the day of the Lord is near;

Blow trumpets on Zion [Hill], God’s sacred hill [in Jerusalem]! Tell the people of Judah that they should tremble, because it will soon be the time for Yahweh [to punish us further].

2 for a day of darkness and gloominess is near, a day of cloud and mist: a numerous and strong people shall be spread upon the mountains as the morning; there has not been from the beginning one like it, and after it there shall not be again even to the years of many generations.

[That will be a very] dark and gloomy day; there will be [black] clouds and it will be very dark. A huge [swarm of locusts] has covered the mountains like [SIM] a black [cloud]. Nothing like this has ever happened before, and nothing like this will ever [happen] again.

3 Before them is a consuming fire, and behind them is a flame kindled: the land before them is as a paradise of delight, and behind them a desolate plain: and there shall none of them escape.

[It is as though the locusts bring] flames of fire from which no one can escape. In front of them, the land was [beautiful] like [SIM] the garden of Eden, but behind them [the land is like] a desert and nothing survives.

4 Their appearance is as the appearance of horses; and as horsemen, so shall they pursue.

[The locusts] resemble horses, and they run like [SIM] war horses.

5 As the sound of chariots on the tops of mountains shall they leap, and as the sound of a flame of fire devouring stubble, and as a numerous and strong people setting themselves in array for battle.

Leaping over the mountaintops, they make a noise like rumbling chariots, like [SIM] a mighty army that is preparing for a battle, or like [SIM] the roar of a fire that burns up stubble [in a field].

6 Before them shall the people be crushed: every face [shall be] as the blackness of a caldron.

When people see them coming, they become very pale and frightened.

7 As warriors shall they run, and as men of war shall they mount on the walls; and each shall move in his [right] path, and they shall not turn aside from their tracks:

[The locusts] climb over walls like soldiers do; they march along in columns and never turn aside [from their columns].

8 and not one shall stand aloof from his brother: they shall go on weighed down with their arms, and they fall upon their weapons, yet shall they in no wise be destroyed.

They rush straight ahead without pushing each other. [Even though people throw] spears and javelins at them, that will not cause them to stop.

9 They shall seize upon the city, and run upon the walls, and go up upon the houses, and enter in through the windows as thieves.

They swarm over the city walls and enter our houses; they enter through our windows like [SIM] thieves do.

10 Before them the earth shall be confounded, and the sky shall be shaken: the sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their light.

[It is as though] they cause the earth to shake and the sky to tremble. The sun and the moon become dark and the stars do not shine [because there are so many locusts in the sky].

11 And the Lord shall utter his voice before his host: for his camp is very great: for the execution of his words is mighty: for the day of the Lord is great, very glorious, and who shall be able to [resist] it?

Yahweh leads this army [of countless locusts], and they obey his commands. This time when he is judging and punishing us is very terrible, [with the result that it seems that] no one [RHQ] can survive it.

12 Now therefore, says the Lord your God, turn to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with lamentation:

But Yahweh says, “In spite of [these disasters that you have experienced], you can return to me with all your inner beings. Weep, and mourn, and (fast/abstain from eating food) [to show that you are sorry for having abandoned me].

13 and rend your hearts, and not your garments, and turn to the Lord your God: for he is merciful and compassionate, longsuffering, and plenteous in mercy, and repents of evils.

Do not tear your clothes [to show that you are sorry]; instead, show [MET] that you are sorry.” Yahweh is merciful and kind; he does not quickly become angry; he faithfully loves [people]. He does not quickly become angry; instead, he greatly and faithfully loves [you], and he does not like to punish you.

14 Who knows if he will return, and repent, and leave a blessing behind him, even a meat-offering and a drink-offering to the Lord your God?

No one knows [RHQ] if he will change his mind [about punishing you] and if instead he will act mercifully [toward you]. If he does that, he will bless you [by giving you plenty of grain and wine] in order that you can offer [some of] those things as sacrifices to him.

15 Sound the trumpet in Sion, sanctify a fast, proclaim a [solemn] service:

Blow the trumpets on Zion [Hill]! Gather the people together! Show by fasting that you are sorry [for the sins that you have committed].

16 gather the people, sanctify the congregation, assemble the elders, gather the infants at the breast: let the bridegroom go forth of his chamber, and the bride out of her closet.

Perform the rituals to cause yourselves to be acceptable to Yahweh. Gather everyone together— the old people and the children, even the babies, and summon brides and bridegrooms from their rooms.

17 Between the porch and the altar let the priests that minister to the Lord weep, and say, Spare your people, O Lord, and give not your heritage to reproach, that the heathen should rule over them, lest they should say among the heathen, Where is their God?

Tell the priests who serve Yahweh to cry between the altar and the entrance to the temple and to pray [this]: “Yahweh, rescue/save [us] your people; do not allow people from other nations to despise us; do not allow them to ridicule us and say, ‘Why has [RHQ] their God [abandoned them]?’”

18 But the Lord was jealous of his land, and spared his people.

But Yahweh [showed that he] was concerned about his people and that he would act mercifully toward them.

19 And the Lord answered and said to his people, Behold, I [will] send you corn, and wine, and oil, and you shall be satisfied with them: and I will no longer make you a reproach among the Gentiles.

When the people prayed, Yahweh answered and said, “I will give you [plenty of] grain and wine and [olive] oil, and you will be satisfied. And I will no longer allow other nations to insult you.

20 And I will chase away from you the northern [adversary], and will drive him away into a dry land, and I will sink his face in the former sea, and his back parts in the latter sea, and his ill savor shall come up, and his stink come up, because he has wrought great things.

Another army [of locusts will come] from the north [to attack you], but I will force them to continue [past Jerusalem] into the desert. Some will go into the Dead Sea in the east and some will go into the [Mediterranean] Sea in the west. [There] they will [all die, and their bodies] will stink.” Yahweh does great things!

21 Be of good courage, O land; rejoice and be glad: for the Lord has done great things.

He does wonderful things! So even the ground should rejoice!

22 Be of good courage, you beasts of the plain, for the plains of the wilderness have budded, for the trees have borne their fruit, the fig tree and the vine have yielded their strength.

And the wild animals should not be afraid, because the meadows will soon become green again; the fig trees and [other] trees will be full of fruit, and the grapevines will be covered with grapes.

23 Rejoice then and be glad, you children of Sion, in the Lord your God: for he has given you food fully, and he will rain on you the early and the latter rain, as before.

You people of Jerusalem, rejoice about what Yahweh, your God, [will be doing for you]. He will send abundant rain at the (right time/time when it is needed)— (in the spring/early in the year) and (in the autumn/late in the year) like he did previously.

24 And the floors shall be filled with corn, and the presses shall overflow with wine and oil.

The ground where you thresh the grain will be covered with grain, and your vats where you store grape juice and [olive] oil will be full.

25 And I will recompense you for the years which the locust, and the caterpillar, and the palmerworm, and the cankerworm have eaten, [even] my great army, which I sent against you.

[Yahweh said, ] “I will repay you for everything that was destroyed by those great swarms of locusts that I sent to attack you.

26 And you shall eat abundantly, and be satisfied, and shall praise the name of the Lord your God [for the things] which he has wrought wonderfully with you: and my people shall not be ashamed for ever.

You, my people, will eat until your stomachs are full. Then you will praise me [MTY], Yahweh, your God, for the wonderful things that I have done for you. And never again will you be disgraced.

27 And you shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and [that] I am the Lord your God, and [that] there is none else beside me; and my people shall no more be ashamed for ever.

When that happens, you will know that I am [always] among you, and that I am Yahweh, your God, and that there is no other [God]. Never again will you be disgraced.”

28 And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.

“Some time later, I will give my Spirit to many [HYP] people. Your sons and daughters will proclaim messages that come directly from me. Your old men will have dreams [that come from me], and your young men will have visions [that come from me].

29 And on my servants and on [my] handmaids in those days will I pour out of my Spirit.

At that time, I will give my Spirit even to servants, both men and women.

30 And I will show wonders in heaven, and upon the earth, blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke.

I will do unusual/amazing things on the earth and in the sky. [On the earth] [CHI], there will be much blood [shed] and [there will be very large] fires and smoke that resembles huge clouds.

31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and glorious day of the Lord come.

[In the sky, ] the sun will become dark and the moon will become [as red as] [MET] blood. [Those things will happen] before that great and terrible day when [I], Yahweh, appear.

32 And it shall come to pass [that] whoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved: for in mount Sion and in Jerusalem shall the saved one be as the Lord has said, and they that have glad tidings preached to them, whom the Lord has called.

But at that time [I] will save everyone who worships me. I promise that some people in Jerusalem [DOU] will escape [those disasters]; those whom I have chosen will survive.”