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INTRODUCTION TO JOEL

INTRODUCTION TO JOEL

     The author of this book is Joel. We know very little about Joel – only that he was a prophet and the son of Pethuel. His name means “The Lord is God.” The Prophet Joel is mentioned by name only here and in the book of Acts. He may have lived in Jerusalem, because his audience was Judah, the southern Kingdom. This book was not only written to the people of Judah, the southern kingdom, but also to God’s people everywhere. Whoever he was, Joel speaks forcefully in his short and powerful book. He is possibly writing after the people returned from Babylonian captivity, since there is no mention of a king, and life seems to be centered around the temple This means that Joel may have prophesied from about 835 to 796 B.C., in and around the time that Jehoash became the king of Judah. He writes against the background of a devastating plague of locusts, followed by a drought. His message is one of foreboding and warning, but it is also filled with hope He warns Judah of God’s impending judgment because of their sins and urges them to turn back to God. He looks far into the future at coming judgment and coming joys.

 

Joel begins by describing a terrible plague of locusts that covers the land and devours the crops. The devastation wrought by these creatures is but a foretaste of the coming judgment of God, the “Day of the Lord.” God blessed the land, but, instead of seeking God, the people became pleasure-seeking. The people of Judah had become prosperous and complacent. They were taking God for granted. They had turned to self centeredness, idolatry and to sin.  The materialistic, self-indulgent lifestyle of the people displeased God. And so Joel warned them that this kind of life-style would inevitably bring down God’s judgment. On the coming “Day of the Lord”, God will judge all the unrighteousness and disobedience – all accounts will be settled and the crooked made straight. Joel sees the locusts as God’s warning to his people to repent and restore their relationship with him. Joel, therefore, urges the people to turn from sin and turn back to God. Great blessings, which God promises to pour out upon his people in the latter days, are described.

 

Just as Joel states that our Creator, is the omnipotent Judge, he also wants his audience to know that God is also merciful, and he wants to bless all those who trust him. Woven into this message of judgment and the need for repentance is an affirmation of God’s kindness and the blessings he promises for all those who follow him. In fact, “everyone who call on the name of the Lord will be saved.” (2:32) The prophet promises that God’s people will be restored after repentance, and those who harassed and persecuted them will be judged on the Day of the Lord.

 

The Life Application Study Bible divides this book into two sections, Part l: The day of the locusts (1:1 to 2:27) and Part 2: The day of the Lord. (2:28-3:21) The Scofield Reference Bible divides into three parts. First, God’s punishment and its removal (1:1-2:27). Second, The promise of the Holy Spirit. (2:28-29) And third, future deliverance in the Coming Day of the Lord. (2:30-3:21) (Scofield Reference Bible p. 903) We are going to break it up into three parts, Chapter 1, 2 and 3 to make is simple for this Bible School. Three days…three chapters…simple.

 

There are several “mega themes” that permeate this book. First, there is the theme of punishment. Like a destroying army of locusts, God’s punishment for sin is overwhelming, dreadful and unavoidable. All must know that the day of settling accounts with God, for how we have lived, is approaching. Second, there is the theme of forgiveness. God is always ready to forgive and restore all those who would come to him and turn away from sin. God always wants to shower his people with his love and restore them to a proper relationship with him. Third, there is the promise of the Holy Spirit. Joel predicts a time when God will pour out his Holy Spirit on all people. It will the beginning of the a new and fresh worship of God by those who believe in him, but also the beginning of judgment on all who reject him. As you read Joel, catch his vision of the power and might of God and of God’s ultimate judgment of sin. Choose to follow, obey, and worship God alone as your sovereign Lord. (Life Application Study Bible. p. 1527)

 

References    1.  Life Application Study Bible; 2. Scofield Reference Bible 3. UBF Daily Bread




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