“In those days and at that time,
when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem,
I will gather all nations
and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat.
There I will put them on trial
for what they did to my inheritance, my people Israel,
because they scattered my people among the nations
and divided up my land.
They cast lots for my people
and traded boys for prostitutes;
they sold girls for wine to drink.
“Now what have you against me, Tyre and Sidon and all you regions of Philistia? Are you repaying me for something I have done? If you are paying me back, I will swiftly and speedily return on your own heads what you have done. For you took my silver and my gold and carried off my finest treasures to your temples. You sold the people of Judah and Jerusalem to the Greeks, that you might send them far from their homeland.
“See, I am going to rouse them out of the places to which you sold them, and I will return on your own heads what you have done. I will sell your sons and daughters to the people of Judah, and they will sell them to the Sabeans, a nation far away.” The Lord has spoken.
Proclaim this among the nations:
Prepare for war!
Rouse the warriors!
Let all the fighting men draw near and attack.
Beat your plowshares into swords
and your pruning hooks into spears.
Let the weakling say,
“I am strong!”
Come quickly, all you nations from every side,
and assemble there.
Bring down your warriors, Lord!
“Let the nations be roused;
let them advance into the Valley of Jehoshaphat,
for there I will sit
to judge all the nations on every side.
Swing the sickle,
for the harvest is ripe.
Come, trample the grapes,
for the winepress is full
and the vats overflow—
so great is their wickedness!”
Multitudes, multitudes
in the valley of decision!
For the day of the Lord is near
in the valley of decision.
The sun and moon will be darkened,
and the stars no longer shine.
The Lord will roar from Zion
and thunder from Jerusalem;
the earth and the heavens will tremble.
But the Lord will be a refuge for his people,
a stronghold for the people of Israel.
“Then you will know that I, the Lord your God,
dwell in Zion, my holy hill.
Jerusalem will be holy;
never again will foreigners invade her.
“In that day the mountains will drip new wine,
and the hills will flow with milk;
all the ravines of Judah will run with water.
A fountain will flow out of the Lord’s house
and will water the valley of acacias.
But Egypt will be desolate,
Edom a desert waste,
because of violence done to the people of Judah,
in whose land they shed innocent blood.
Judah will be inhabited forever
and Jerusalem through all generations.
Shall I leave their innocent blood unavenged?
No, I will not.”
The Lord dwells in Zion!
- Joel 3:1-21
Noted Biblical Scholars, Teachers, and Preachers Comments
Joel 3:1-17 ‘The Judgment of the Gentiles’: “The remainder of Joel, or the third segment, comprises the fourth chapter of Joel in the Hebrew Bible and deals with the judgment of the Gentiles. Following Israel’s national salvation, there will be a judgment of all living Gentiles. This is the same judgment as that described in Matthew 25:31-46.”
- Tim LaHaye and Ed Hindson, Exploring Bible Prophecy
Joel 3:1-16 ‘Valley of Jehoshaphat’: “When God restores the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, he will enter into judgment with the godless nations (3:1-2). Because of how they treated the Lord’s people, he will bring retribution on [their) heads (3:7). He will gather them in the Valley of Jehoshaphat (3:2, 12), which means ‘the Lord judges’. Because there is no known valley with this name and it’s also referred to as the valley of decision (3:14), it’s likely the site of the end-time battle of Armageddon (see Rev 16:16), meaning ‘hill or mount of Megiddo.’ Megiddo was in the Valley of Jezreel, the site of many significant battles (e.g. Judg 5:19; 2 Kgs 9:27; 23:29-30). God will go to war with the nations, and he will triumph easily.”
- Tony Evans, The Tony Evans Bible Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)
Joel 3:1 ‘God will restore the Jews to the land’: “God will restore the Jews to their land, their fortunes and the covenant he made with them (Jer 30:18; 31:23). God will judge the nations concerning their treatment of his people (Ro 11:25–26). God will initiate the final day of judgment, and he will bring all the nations to the Valley of Jehoshaphat (lit., ‘Yahweh judges’). This valley’s importance is more theological than topographical. The character of the judgment, not the location, is emphasized (Joel 3:12).”
- Dorothy Kelley Patterson, General Editor, NIV Woman’s Study Bible (Karen H. Jobes, Minor Prophets contributor)
Joel 3:2 ‘Prepare for Judgment’: ”In Joel 3, the prophet returns to the end times and beyond. All that he sees of the age of the Spirit is the great mark of the Spirit’s presence-but beyond that he sees that God will restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem.
“Jesus said, ‘When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before him’ (Matt. 25:31-32). And then the Son of Man will judge them and divide them, as a shepherd divides the sheep from the goats. Those who are righteous will be invited in to share the Father’s inheritance, while the unrighteous will be sent away. This is the valley of judgment.“
- Ray C. Stedman, Adventuring Through the Bible
Joel 3:3 ‘Quote’: “You cannot be half a saint. You must be a whole saint or no saint at all. – St. Therese of Lisieux”
- Dorothy Kelley Patterson, General Editor, NIV Woman’s Study Bible (Karen H. Jobes, Minor Prophets contributor)
Joel 2:4-6 ‘The Economic Oppressors, Tyre and Sidon’: “The coastline of Palestine was (and still is) crucially important for the political and economic balance of power in the Near East. The Persians sought to establish a western section of their empire, extending from Egypt, located south of Tyre and Sidon, all the way to Asia Minor and Greece to the north. Tyre and Sidon, as a central point in this western section, were important for providing fleets for trade and for fighting the Greeks.
“When the Jews returned to Jerusalem during the Persian period, Tyre and Sidon possessed both wealth and a degree of political importance. In contrast, the small Persian province of Judah was poor and politically important only as the backdoor into Egypt.
“City-states along ‘the coasts of Philistia,’ as well as Tyre and Sidon (Joel 3:4), seemingly took economic advantage of Judah, their weaker neighbor to the east. For instance, during Nehemiah’s governorship of Judah, ‘men of Tyre’ sold fish and other goods in Jerusalem on the Sabbath (Neh. 13:16). While Nehemiah shut down this practice, there is no doubt that Judah operated under a strong trade deficit with coastal city-states like Tyre and Sidon.
“Economically, this would have drained Judah of its precious metals and other resources—Yahweh’s silver and gold (Joel 3:5). Lacking goods to pay their debts, Judeans would have been forced to trade in the one commodity they possessed—their own sons and daughters. The coastal traders would have sold them to the Greeks, the available market. The Greeks, in turn, would ‘remove them far from their borders’ (Joel 3:6) into Greece or Asia Minor.
“Because of such economic exploitation of God’s people, the prophet Joel announced God’s judgment against ‘Tyre and Sidon, and all the coasts of Philistia.’ What they had done to the Judeans would soon happen to them (Joel 3:4, 7, 8).”
- Timothy B. Cargal, et al., The Chronological Study Bible
Joel 3:4 ‘looting and slavery’: “The neighbors who perennially harassed Judah included Tyre, Sidon, Philistia, Egypt and Edom (v. 19). Many of these nations engaged in slave trade. Punishment would be delivered especially for two crimes—the looting of treasures (probably from the temple in Jerusalem) and the selling of God’s people into slavery.”
- Dorothy Kelley Patterson, General Editor, NIV Woman’s Study Bible (Karen H. Jobes, Minor Prophets contributor)
Joel 3:6 ‘the Greeks’: “Although not prominent militarily, the Greeks were active in commerce on the Mediterranean in the 9th century B.C.”
- John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)
Joel 3:8 ‘Sabeans’: “Trading merchants who lived in Arabia (1 Kin. 10; Jer. 6:20).”
- John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)
Joel 3:9-12 ‘peace had not yet arrived’: “Joel deliberately reversed the commands in which the peace and blessings of the messianic kingdom were anticipated (Isa 2:4; Mic 4:3). The time for peace had not yet arrived. The present time, declared Joel, would be a time for war. The nations would gather their forces, but the Sovereign Lord would not be anxious or moved. He would be the final judge. Joel 3:12 offers great hope for the believer.”
- Dorothy Kelley Patterson, General Editor, NIV Woman’s Study Bible (Karen H. Jobes, Minor Prophets contributor)
Joel 2:9-10 ‘plowshares and pruning hooks’: ” Joel’s prophecy speaks of a time when plowshares will be beaten into swords. Micah’s prophecy says the opposite-swords will be beaten into plowshares. Joel’s prophecy comes first, and its fulfillment will come first. The nations will remain at war with each other until God finally tells them, ‘Beat your swords into plowshares and your spears into pruning hooks:’
“There will be wars and rumors of wars, culminating in the final gathering of multitudes in ‘the valley of decision;’ as Joel says in 3:14. Whose decision? Not our decision. Not the decision of nations or kings. The day of the Lord will be the day that God makes His decision. God will enter the valley of decision and the multitudes of the nations will be gathered before Him.“
- Ray C. Stedman, Adventuring Through the Bible
Joel 2:13 ‘destruction of the enemies of God’: “Joel used an agricultural theme throughout the book. Now the harvest imagery changed from grains and wine to the destruction and judgment of the enemies of God.”
- Dorothy Kelley Patterson, General Editor, NIV Woman’s Study Bible (Karen H. Jobes, Minor Prophets contributor)
Joel 3:14-21 ‘The Book of Joel’: “The Persian era suits Joel’s prophecies in other ways. Like Malachi, Joel shows a strong priestly orientation. He sees repentance as an official priestly task instead of an individual responsibility (Joel 2:17). He refers once to the Greeks (3:6), a reference that would make the most sense when the Greek city-states were gaining international recognition for their wars against Persia. Finally, Joel shows an amazing awareness of earlier prophecies, quoting extensively from their works. His most interesting quotation (Joel 3:10) reverses an earlier prophecy found in both Isaiah (Is. 2:4) and Micah (Mic. 4:3). Now plowshares would become swords and pruning hooks, spears.
“In whatever era Joel spoke, the immediate concern of his prophecy was a plague of locusts. To an agricultural society, the vast swarms of locusts that occasionally appeared in the ancient Near East spelled famine and death. Joel uses one such disaster to call the people back to true faith in God. The locust swarm was a ‘day of the Lord,’ and a still more devastating, universal day of the Lord was still to come (Joel 2:30, 31; 3:14–16). Only if the people truly repented could Jerusalem become the holy and eternal city that it was meant to be (3:17, 20, 21).”
- Timothy B. Cargal, et al., The Chronological Study Bible
Joel 2:14 ‘valley of decision’: “This location is the same as the Valley of Jehoshaphat where the sentence of judgment will be carried out (cf. 3:2, 12).”
- John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)
Joel 3:16 ‘heaven and earth are shaking’: “The climax of the battle is described in poetic terms, enabling the reader to picture the judgment of God more vividly. While the heavens and earth are shaking, the Lord will be a shelter for his people.”
- Dorothy Kelley Patterson, General Editor, NIV Woman’s Study Bible (Karen H. Jobes, Minor Prophets contributor)
Joel 3:17 ‘Zion My holy mountain’: “This will be the earthly location of God’s presence in the millennial temple (cf. Ezek. 40–48) at Jerusalem. ever pass through her again. God has promised a future time when His glory in Judah will not be eclipsed. This time of ultimate peace and prosperity will be experienced after Christ conquers the world and sets up His millennial kingdom on earth (cf. Ezek. 37:24–28; Matt. 24, 25; Rev. 19).”
- John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)
Joel 3:18-21 ‘The Messianic Kingdom’: “In 3:18-21, Joel states five facts about the messianic kingdom. First, there will be much water in the land, and the land will never lack water again (verse 18). Second, there will be a special millennial river (verse 18). This river is also mentioned in Zechariah 14:8 and Ezekiel 47:1-12. Third, there will be a desolation of Egypt and Edom (verse 19). The desolation of Egypt is limited to only 40 years-the first 40 years of the messianic kingdom, according to Ezekiel 29:8-14. But Edom will be desolate throughout the 1000 years of the millennial kingdom. The reason that Egypt and Edom (southern Jordan) will be desolate is because of their earlier violence against the Jews. Fourth, Israel will live in security (verse 20). And fifth, Israel will experience a national salvation (verse 21).”
- Tim LaHaye and Ed Hindson, Exploring Bible Prophecy
Joel 2:18 ‘A plan in the heavenly world’: “It is an idyllic picture of Judah and the temple. Over the centuries, the land of Israel has been ravaged by wars, famines, droughts, and invasions of insects. But a day is coming when the land will be like the garden of Eden. Joel’s description matches well with the vision of the New Jerusalem in Revelation 22. …
“Jerusalem is the only city of antiquity that was not built near a great river. The Egyptians had the Nile. The Babylonians had the Tigress and Euphrates. Rome had the Tiber. But in His eternal kingdom, Jerusalem will have a life-giving river that proceeds from the very throne of God.”
- Jay McCluskey, A Long Walk with the Minor Prophets
Joel 3:19 ‘Egypt and Edom’: “God will judge Egypt and Edom even into the millennial kingdom. They have always been enemies of the nation Israel.”
- J. Vernon McGee, Thru the Bible, Vol III, Proverbs to Malachi
Joel 3:20-21 ‘final judgment for sin’: “The judgment for sin will finally be over. Atonement for the enormous bloodguilt of God’s people was finally and completely made by Jesus Christ in his death on the cross (Heb 9:28; 10:10). Joel reiterated the promise that the people of God would return to their land and to Jerusalem, and God would reign and live in Zion with his people forever.”
- Dorothy Kelley Patterson, General Editor, NIV Woman’s Study Bible (Karen H. Jobes, Minor Prophets contributor)
Joel 3:20 ‘Judah … forever’: “This is in reference to Christ’s millennial kingdom on earth, which is yet to be fulfilled.”
- John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)
Joel 3:21 ‘Thoroughly cleansed’: “A great truth of God lies at the foundation of the gospel system, that the blood of Jesus Christ, God’s dear Son, cleanses us from all sin. When someone is washed in the sacred laver that is filled with the blood of the atonement, he is not partially cleansed; he is thoroughly cleansed.“
- Charles H. Spurgeon, from sermon notes
My Thoughts
God will judge the nations. Those nations scattered His people. They sold children into slavery.
Tyre, Sidon, and Philistia did their part in bankrolling the scattering of God’s Chosen People.
God will bring back His people and those nations who sold God’s people will be judged. Joel calls for war. He suggests they take farm tools and make weapons to fight this war. It involves the End Times, but this will be a just war.
Joel calls to the Lord to have the Lord bring down His warriors to fight the battle.
While the skies were dark in the time that Jesus was on the cross paying for our sins, the sun and moon growing dark are End Times prophecies. The end of the Tribulation with judgment to follow. And then the sun and moon will not be needed, since Jesus will be among us.
Then the people of the Lord will be blessed. Wine, milk, and water will flow. I hope that means they will be in great abundance. Having rivers of wine and milk seems strange, if not unsanitary. But Egypt and Edom will be desolate.
I like all these flowing metaphors due to what Rev. McCluskey wrote that Jerusalem was the only city of antiquity not built near a major body of water. So, liquids flowing from the city is the work of God.
Judah will be inhabited forever. Jerusalem for all generations, thus forever.
God will set things right.
The Lord Dwells in Zion.
Some Serendipitous Reflections
Joel 3:1-16 The Nations Judged 1. Where you live, how might people be ‘sold’ or ‘traded’? Is prostitution or child pornography a problem in your area? Likewise, refugee relocation and prisoners of conscience? What do you suppose God thinks of this?
“2. How do you respond to Joel saying, “God will return on your heads what you have done”?
“3. Does Joel thus disturb your image of God? How so? Does your image of God allow, preclude, or demand this kind of judgment on sinful nations or persons?
“4. What ‘payback’ schedule are you on with your parents? With creditors? With God? To those whom you are in spiritual debt?
“5. When, if ever, have you felt slain in the ‘Valley of Decision’-? When have you felt secure in Lord’s stronghold? What would get you out of the valley into the stronghold?
Joel 3:17-21 Blessings for God’s People 1. If the presence of the Lord in Jerusalem made it holy (v.17), then what does the Lord’s presence in your life mean? What evidence is there of this?
“2. If your privacy or property has been invaded one or more times (as with Israel), what comfort do you draw from Joel? How can the fountain of God’s blessing heal the wounds inflicted by those invaders?
“3. How can you imitate Joel today?”
- Lyman Coleman, et al, The NIV Serendipity Bible for Study Groups
Joel 3 has two sets of questions as noted.
Substitute whatever group for any reference to a small group or ask who could come to your aid.
If you like these Thursday morning Bible studies, but you think you missed a few, you can use this LINK. I have set up a page off the home page for links to these Thursday morning posts. I will continue to modify the page as I add more.
Soli Deo Gloria. Only to God be the Glory.
Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley 
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