Joel

About Joel

Joel begins with a devastating locust plague that strips the land bare, and he reads it as a wake-up call: the day of the LORD is near. He calls the people to tear their hearts, not just their clothes, and return to a God who is gracious and slow to anger. Then he looks further ahead, to a day when God pours out His Spirit on all people. In the Bible's story, that promise explodes into life at Pentecost.

Written by

The book gives us only the prophet's name, Joel son of Pethuel; nothing else is known about him.

When

Joel mentions no kings or datable events, so scholars honestly disagree on its date, with proposals ranging from the 800s BC to after the exile, and many favoring the later period.

Themes

• The day of the LORD
• Return with all your heart
• God's grace after loss
• The Spirit poured out on everyone
• Restoration of what was lost

Key verses

• Joel 2:13And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the LORD your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil.
• Joel 2:28-29¶ And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit.
• Joel 2:32And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call.