Joe 2:1-2 | MHM | STEP | Threatenings of Judgment In this section, God is shown bringing judgment on His own people because of their sins, just as He promised in the law. The prophet Joel describes a coming disaster using the image of a mighty army of locusts. This terrible event is a warning for everyone to take seriously the consequences of disobeying God. Even Jerusalem, God’s holy city, is not safe when people turn away from Him. The judgment is not only a real disaster, but also a picture of how God’s power and justice work in the world. v. 1 : Joel commands, “Blow the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain!” . The trumpet is blown to warn the people that disaster is coming. It is the responsibility of the priests to give this warning. Everyone in the land should tremble because God’s judgment is near. Even those in Jerusalem are not protected if they do not listen to God (Numbers 10:8; Amos 3:6 ).

‏ Joel 2:1-2

Threatenings of Judgment

In this section, God is shown bringing judgment on His own people because of their sins, just as He promised in the law. The prophet Joel describes a coming disaster using the image of a mighty army of locusts. This terrible event is a warning for everyone to take seriously the consequences of disobeying God. Even Jerusalem, God’s holy city, is not safe when people turn away from Him. The judgment is not only a real disaster, but also a picture of how God’s power and justice work in the world.

v. 1: Joel commands, “Blow the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain!” . The trumpet is blown to warn the people that disaster is coming. It is the responsibility of the priests to give this warning. Everyone in the land should tremble because God’s judgment is near. Even those in Jerusalem are not protected if they do not listen to God (Numbers 10:8; Amos 3:6 ^a).

v. 2: Joel describes the coming day as “a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness” . This means it will be a time of sadness and trouble. The swarm of locusts is so thick that it darkens the sky (Exodus 10:15 ^b). The disaster will come quickly and spread like the sunrise over the mountains.