Back Ground Information on Joel Continued with Nelson and Preachers Commentary Nelsons New Illustrated Bible Commentary General Editor Earl D. Radmacher, Th.D. Old Testament Editor Ronald B. Allen, Th.D. New Testament Editor H. Wayne House, Th.D., J.D. Copyright © 1999 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Joel The Book of Joel Natural disasters—from rising flood waters to violent earthquakes—provoke fear and dread. With all their ingenuity, people still cannot control these powerful and destructive forces. They can only watch in awe. Joel begins his book with a description of such a natural disaster—a plague of ravenous locusts. In the prophets hands, the destructiveness of this plague becomes a vivid warning of the power of Gods coming judgment and a clear appeal to run to the Lord for mercy. Others believe that the Book of Joel is so close in tone and idea to the Book of Zephaniah that it is likely that the two prophets were contemporaries. The primary evidence for this is the fact that both books prominently feature the concept of the impending “day of the Lord” (compare Joe_2:2 with Zep_1:14-16). Since Zephaniahs book dates from around 627 B.C., a number of scholars assign a date of about 600 B.C. for the Book of Joel. If we assume that the book was written early in the reign of Joash, then we can refer to 2 Kin. 11:1—12:21 for background on this period of Judean history. Joash inherited the throne of Judah as a boy. He had survived Athaliahs murder of all potential claimants to the throne only through the heroic efforts of his aunt Jehosheba, who hid him in the temple. Joash was crowned king at the age of seven by Jehoiada the high priest, who had enlisted the captains of the royal guard to dispose of the wicked Athaliah. Jehoiada advised the young king during the early years of his reign. It is possible that during these years the nation of Judah was devastated by a great swarm of locusts. This catastrophe would have given the prophet Joel an occasion to call the people to repentance in view of an even greater judgment to come—the day of the Lord. However, it is not unreasonable to place Joels ministry during the twenty-five years before the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem in 586 B.C. If Joel was a contemporary of Zephaniah, then his message of impending national disaster, using the natural calamity of a recent invasion of locusts, would have been a powerful announcement of the horrible events that soon were to come on Jerusalem. Joels prophecy had two purposes. First, Joel wrote to call the nation to repentance (Joe_2:12) on the basis of its experience of the recent locust plague. The recent disaster was but a token of a more devastating judgment to come. Yet that judgment could be averted by sincere and humble repentance (Joe_2:13-14). In this, Joel shares a common message with other prophets. In the light of impending judgment, there is always a message of hope for those who will return in faith to God. Second, the prophecy was intended to comfort the godly with promises of future salvation and blessing (Joe_2:28-32; Joe_3:18-21). Should the national disaster occur, Joel offered hope to the true believers that all was not over. God would keep His promise; the Savior would one day reign. The author of the book is Joel, the son of Pethuel (Joe_1:1). Little is known about the authors life or circumstances. His name means “The Lord Is God,” suggesting that he was reared in a home where God was honored. The references to Zion, Judah, and Jerusalem (Joe_2:15, Joe_2:23, Joe_2:32; Joe_3:1) indicate that the prophet lived and prophesied in Judah and Jerusalem. His frequent references to the work of priests in the temple (Joe_1:9, Joe_1:13-14; Joe_2:17) lead some to conclude that he was a priest. But Joel also displays considerable interest in agriculture in all of its forms. As a prophet of the Lord, he could have been knowledgeable about the temple in Jerusalem without having been a priest. Scholars have offered various dates for the writing of the Book of Joel, from early preexilic times to as late as 350 B.C. Some believe that internal evidence indicates that the book was written during the reign of Joash king of Judah (835-796 B.C.), and in the time of the high priest Jehoiada. This view is based on the following considerations: (1) The location of the book between Hosea and Amos in the Hebrew canon suggests a preexilic date of writing. (2) The allusion to the neighboring nations as Judahs foes rather than Assyria, Babylon, or Persia points to an early date for the book. (3) The book does not mention any reigning king, which may suggest a time when the responsibility for ruling rested upon the priests and elders—as was the case during the early reign of young king Joash (2 Kin. 11:4—12:21). Outline I. The devastation of the locust plague Joe_1:1-20 II. The coming day of the Lord Joe_2:1-32 A. The desolation of the day of the Lord Joe_2:1-11 B. Exhortation to sincere repentance Joe_2:12-17 C. Deliverance of the land Joe_2:18-27 D. The promise of the pouring out of the Spirit Joe_2:28-32 III. Judgment on the nations Joe_3:1-17 A. The time of the judgment Joe_3:1 B. The place of the judgment Joe_3:2 C. The basis of the judgment Joe_3:3-8 D. The preparation for judgment Joe_3:9-12 E. The execution of judgment Joe_3:13-17 IV. The promise of future blessings Joe_3:18-21 A. The prosperity of the land Joe_3:18 B. The desolation of the nations Joe_3:19 C. The inhabitation of Judah and Jerusalem Joe_3:20 D. The presence of the Lord in Zion Joe_3:21 The Preachers Commentary Copyright © 1982-1992 by Word, Inc. Published in Nashville, Tennessee, by Thomas Nelson, Inc. All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced in any form whatsoever, except for brief quotations in reviews, without written permission from the publisher. Authors Preface This volume on the first five of the Minor Prophets and Walter Kaisers volume on the other seven deal with some of the most challenging Scriptures of the Old Testament. I often think of a comment I heard about the study of these prophets. We were going along just fine until we hit the Minor Prophets, a man said. Then we really got bogged down. Those grim greybeards are difficult to understand and what I did understand was hard to apply to life today! This honest comment was made to me at my banquet table in Kansas City where I was the speaker. The man told me about a Bible study course he and his wife were taking together. He couldnt say enough about what the comprehensive, in-depth study meant to his spiritual growth. Though he had been a Christian for years, he had never spent much time in the Old Testament. He found it all very stimulating and inspiring, except for the Minor Prophets. The mans sentiments are echoed by many church members, and not a few preachers and teachers. Pastors sometimes preach from isolated texts from the Minor Prophets but seldom tackle verse-by-verse, passage-by-passage exposition of them in a prolonged series of messages. Nor are the Minor Prophets often selected as the content of Bible study classes, except on the seminary level. The demanding discipline for the teacher is often considered too great for weekly preparation. The purpose of this commentary is to provide a combination of resources for the contemporary preacher and teacher so that moving through these books will be both understandable and applicable to life today. This volume was written by a communicator for communicators. It is not meant to be only a scholarly treatise, though I hope disciplined scholarship is not lacking at any point. Nor is it designed to be only a popular treatment of profound Scripture, though I pray that preachers and teachers will find practical help in the demanding task of illustrating these Scriptures. I have tried to keep in mind what I need when I sit down to prepare a message or class. I need a thorough analysis of the biblical text, including etymological studies of the words, background on the context, an approach that stimulates my own thinking about ways to help my listeners apply the main thrust of the passage or verse. Whenever possible I have tried to include all of these elements in my treatment of each portion of these biblical books. I must confess that it would have been easier either to add to the many scholarly works on the Minor Prophets or to simply compile a series of sermons. Rather, I have tried to be faithful to the goal of the Preachers Commentary Series that the publishers and I set some years ago, to combine in-depth scholarship with incisive application and illustration. There were times that I would have enjoyed the luxury of staying in the eighth century B.C., dealing with what a prophet said and what it meant in his circumstances. The what does this mean to us today? question often presented the greatest challenge. At this point I was spurred on by the thought that every preacher or teacher of the Minor Prophets grapples with the same problem. I have made a concentrated effort to vary the method of dealing with the passages. Sometimes I begin with our contemporary scene and move into the text. Other times, application follows straight exposition. I hope each of these chapters will serve as a guide for preaching or teaching an exhaustive—but not exhausting—series of messages or classes. The Minor Prophets call us to return to our holy God with righteous living and social justice. What they have to say about Gods judgment rattles our teeth and shakes us in our boots. They confront the shallowness of religion without personal and social obedience. And the prophets messages are not homilies for hermits. The corporate people of God are confronted with the cost of being chosen. The prophets bring us to that frightening place where we see ourselves clearly and we honestly cry out for Calvary to experience grace with greater healing than ever before. The church in America and everywhere needs the bracing messages of the Minor Prophets. We need the thus says the Lord blast of the trumpet to fire our blood and shake us from our lethargy. Renewal happens when we see ourselves and our churches as God sees us and we repent. The Minor Prophets expose our false gods, our willfulness, and our pride. They help us think majestically about God and His choice to be our God and give us a new beginning. —LLOYD J. OGILIVIE Introduction to Joel The Situation of Joel As many of the other Old Testament prophets, Joel spoke to his people at a moment of crisis. The immediate crisis was an extraordinarily severe locust plague combined with drought, which destroyed most of the crops on which their food supply depended. It was so serious that it affected the harvest of more than one year. The very survival of Gods people in Jerusalem and Judah was in question. In the locust invasion Joel saw an even greater danger prefigured—the approach of the day of the Lord, when God would lead a fearsome army in judgment on His wayward people. They remained outwardly religious, but their hearts strayed from Him. Joel spoke to wake up his people, so that they would realize the grave danger in which they were living. Then he exhorted them to come before the Lord sincerely, to return to the Lord with all their hearts, and to pray that the Lord would spare them. Finally Joel spoke Gods words of encouragement to His threatened, but now repentant, people. Since the Book of Joel is located between Hosea and Amos in the Hebrew Bible, we might be tempted to locate Joels ministry in the eighth century B.C. with those prophets. However, the books appear in a different order in the Greek Old Testament. The location of Joel before Amos in the Hebrew canon seems to be based more on links of content (Joe_3:16 with Amo_1:2; Joe_3:4, Joe_3:19 with Amo_1:6-12) than on historical situation. The Book of Joel contains no explicit references that allow us to date the locust plague or the writing of the book with confidence. There is no list of contemporary kings, such as in Hosea or Amos. Scholars have suggested dates ranging from the ninth century B.C. to the Maccabean period. Many have gravitated to the period of Persian rule after the Babylonian exile. However, there is no certainty. This uncertainty of date does not hinder our interpretation of the Book of Joel. Perhaps it is just as well, since the message of Joel has timeless significance. The people of God continue to be faced with crises and tough times. The Book of Joel speaks across the centuries to all of Gods people in trying times. The Structure of Joel Joe_1:1 serves as a title for the whole book. It is a simple superscription, like those of other prophetic books, asserting this to be the word of the LORD that came to Joel. After the title, the book divides into two major sections. Joe_1:2—Joe_2:17 contains a series of exhortations, warnings, and appeals to Joels fellow citizens. In the face of their current agricultural disaster and the threat of greater future dangers, Joel calls the people to return to the Lord and earnestly petition Him to spare His people. The rest of the book, Joel 2:18-3:21 contains assurances that God will answer the peoples prayer. God promises to restore their food supply, to protect them from the great future dangers, to vindicate them against the nations who have oppressed them, and to be vitally present with them. The prophet paints vivid pictures of the restored land and community of God. An Outline of Joel I. Title: The Word of the Lord to Joel: Joe_1:1 II. Words of Exhortation: Joel 1:2-2:17 A. Listen and Tell of the Extraordinary: Joe_1:2-4 B. An Impassioned Call to Lament: Joe_1:5-14 C. The Day of the Lord: Joe_1:15-20 D. Call to Alarm before the Advancing Army: Joe_2:1-11 E. Call to Return to Yahweh: Joe_2:12-17 III. Words of Assurance: Joel 2:18-3:21 A. Promises of Prosperity and Freedom: Joe_2:18-27 B. New Life in the Spirit and Deliverance: Joe_2:28-32 C. God Judges Israels Enemies and Restores His People: Joe_3:1-21
Posted on: Sun, 24 Nov 2013 13:12:47 +0000
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