Is God Trying to Get Our Attention? Lessons from Joel

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The Book of Joel offers a powerful prophetic message that connects a devastating locust plague to God's warnings, calls for genuine repentance, and promises ultimate restoration through the outpouring of His Spirit.

• Joel likely prophesied in 9th century BC Judah during King Joash's reign
• The locust plague devastated crops, economy, and interrupted temple worship
• God had previously warned about locust destruction in Deuteronomy 28 as consequence for disobedience
• "The Day of the Lord" appears throughout Joel as both immediate judgment and future prophecy
• Joel calls for genuine heart repentance, not just outward expressions of mourning
• God promises to restore everything lost when people truly repent
• The prophecy in Joel 2:28-32 about God pouring out His Spirit was fulfilled at Pentecost (Acts 2)
• Joel emphasizes God's character as both just and merciful
• The book provides three key messages: wake up and repent; God will restore; future hope
• Joel's prophecy ultimately points to restoration through Jesus Christ

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Sources:

• Fee, G. D., & Stuart, D. (2002). How to read the Bible book by book: A guided tour. Zondervan.
• MacArthur, J. (2006). The MacArthur study Bible (Rev. & updated ed.). Thomas Nelson.
• Nelson, T. (Ed.). (1997). The NIV Open Bible: Complete reference system. Thomas Nelson.
• Prior, D. (1988). The message of Joel, Micah and Habakkuk: Listening to the voice of God (J. A. Motyer & D. Tidball, Eds.). Inter-Varsity Press. (The Bible Speaks Today series)
• Thomas Nelson (Ed.). (1997). The Word in Life Study Bible (NIV ed.). Thomas Nelson.

Related Episodes:

• The Prophets: Messengers of God's Word in the Bibile - Pt 1
• The Prophets: Messengers of God's Word in the Bible - Pt 2 (Historical Context)

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Note: All scripture references are from the NIV translation unless otherwise indicated.

Episode Transcript

Jacqui (00:12):
Greetings listeners.
Today we're exploring the bookof Joel, a short but powerful
prophetic message aboutdevastation, repentance and the
incredible promise of God'srestoration.
Imagine waking up to find yourentire food supply gone, not

(00:34):
because of war or theft, butbecause of an unstoppable
swarming plague of locusts.
That was the scene in Joel'stime and it became the backdrop
for his urgent message to thepeople of Judah.
Well, welcome everyone.
I'm your host, Jacqui Adewole,and this is the Bible Basics

(00:57):
Podcast, where, weekly, we breakdown the basics of the Bible
into understandable, bite-sizedchunks.
Whether you're new to readingscripture or just want a
refresher, you're in the rightplace.
Today we're exploring the bookof Joel, a prophecy of

(01:20):
devastation, repentance andrestoration.
We'll look at its historicalsetting, the urgent call to turn
back to God and the incrediblepromises of renewal that still
speak to us today.
Joel's prophecy takes place inJudah, likely in Jerusalem, but

(01:41):
the exact time period isn'tcertain.
Unlike other prophets, joeldoesn't mention specific kings
or historical events.
Scholars estimate that he wrotesomewhere between the 9th and
5th centuries BC, but strongevidence points to the 9th
century, possibly during thereign of King Joash, which would

(02:05):
have been between 835 and 796BC.
If that's the case, Joel wouldbe one of the earliest prophetic
books in the Bible.
What we do know for sure isthat Judah had just endured a
devastating locust plague, andin an agricultural society this

(02:28):
wasn't just inconvenient, it wascatastrophic Crops were wiped
out, food was scarce and theeconomy was in ruins.
But Joel saw something deeper.
This wasn't just a naturaldisaster, it was a divine
warning.

(02:48):
So who was Joel?
Well, joel was a prophet, theson of Pethewel, but beyond that
, we don't have many personaldetails about him.
His father isn't even mentionedanywhere else in scripture
tales about him.

(03:09):
His father isn't even mentionedanywhere else in scripture.
His name means Yahweh is God,which fits perfectly with his
message.
His audience was the people ofJudah, but his message reached
far beyond them.
Joel himself says it's for afuture generation.
You can read in chapter 1,verse 3, quote tell it to your
children and let your childrentell it to their children and

(03:32):
their children to the nextgeneration.
Unquote.
This shows that the lessonsfrom the locust plague and the
call to repentance are meant tobe remembered and applied long
after Joel's day.
Unlike some prophets who focuson calling out specific sins,

(03:54):
joel's approach is broader.
He points to the disaster athand and urges everyone to turn
back to God.
And this disaster wasn't random.
It was exactly the kind ofwarning God had given Israel
centuries earlier In the book ofDeuteronomy.

(04:14):
Long before Joel's time, godmade a covenant or a sacred
agreement with Israel.
He told them if they followedhim, they would experience
blessings, but if they turnedaway, their land would suffer.
One of the specific warningswas about locusts Quote you will

(04:34):
have much seed in the field,but you will harvest little,
because locusts will devour it.
Unquote.
And that's in Deuteronomy,chapter 28, verse 38.
Now, in Joel's time, thatwarning had become a reality.
The people had strayed from Godand the land was facing the

(04:56):
very consequences he promised.
I encourage you to readDeuteronomy 28 to get a lot more
information about that.
But here's the good news God'scovenant didn't just include
judgment, it also included a wayback.
If the people turned back tohim and repented, god promised

(05:17):
to restore them.
That same thing runs throughJoel's prophecy A call to repent
, followed by the promise ofrestoration.
And we see that in Deuteronomy,chapter 30, verse 1 through 3.
Now let's talk a little moreabout the book of Joel.
It's just three chapters long,making it one of the shortest

(05:42):
books in the Bible, but that'snot unusual for the minor
prophets.
Now, when we say minor prophets, it doesn't mean these books
are less important, it justrefers to their length.
Unlike the major prophets likeIsaiah, Jeremiah or Ezekiel,
whose writings are much longer,the minor prophets deliver

(06:03):
concise, powerful messages thatstill carry immense weight.
Joel may be short, but hismessage is profound.
Now let's dig into his mainmessage.
Joel begins with a horrifyingdisaster, a locust plague so

(06:24):
severe that it wipes out everycrop in the land, and we see
that in chapter 1, verses 7through 20.
He describes wave after wave oflocusts.
In chapter 1, verse 4, hedescribes what the great locusts

(06:46):
have left.
The young locusts have eatenwhat the great locusts have left
.
The young locusts have eatenwhat the young locusts have left
, other locusts have eatenUnquote.
This isn't just poetic imagery.
It's a real event thatdevastated the economy, the food
supply and even worship inJudah.

(07:06):
The economy, the food supplyand even worship in Judah.
Without grain or wine theycouldn't even bring offerings to
God in the temple, and we seethat in chapter 1, verse 9.
But Joel isn't just describinga natural disaster.
He presents it as a sign ofsomething greater.
The locust plague is a warningforeshadowing an even more

(07:30):
severe judgment to come the dayof the Lord.
This one phrase echoesthroughout Joel's prophecy, as
well as other places in the Oldand New Testaments the day of
the Lord.
This phrase appears 18 timesacross eight Old Testament books

(07:51):
.
It doesn't refer to just oneevent in history, but to any
time when God steps in to judgeevil, call his people to
repentance and bring restoration.
It's a time of severe judgmenton his people and nations that
have rebelled against him, butit's also a time of future

(08:14):
blessings on the people andnations who have trusted in him.
In Joel's day, the locustplague was a day of the Lord
moment, a wake-up call to turnback to God.
But Joel makes it clear there'sa greater day of the Lord
coming, one that will impact notjust Judah but the whole world,

(08:37):
and that ultimate day of theLord is still to come.
When Jesus returns.
Quote Blow the trumpet in Zion,sound the alarm on my holy hill,
let all who live in the landtremble, for the day of the Lord
is coming.
It is close at hand.

(08:58):
A day of darkness and gloom, aday of clouds and blackness,
like a dawn spreading across themountains.
A large and mighty army comes,such as never was in ancient
times, nor ever will be in agesto come.
That's chapter 2, verse 1through 2.

(09:20):
So what is it that Joel wantshis readers to understand?
His message is both a warningand a promise.
He lays it out in three keyparts First, wake up and repent,
then God will restore andfinally, a future hope.
Let's take a closer look.
Let's look at main message onewake up and repent.

(09:44):
As I've said, joel didn't seethe locust plague as just a
natural disaster.
He saw it as a judgment fromGod.
This invasion was only thebeginning, a preview of
something far worse.
It could mean an enemy attackfrom the north, but ultimately
it points to the final day ofjudgment.

(10:05):
One thing is clear Joel issounding the alarm that great
and terrible day is coming soon.
God is speaking personally,directly and urgently.
Twice Joel calls the people toturn back to him before it's too

(10:26):
late.
The first call comes after thelocust plague has devastated the
land.
Since the temple, sacrificeshave stopped due to the famine,
joel calls the priests andelders to take the lead in
mourning and fasting, saying Puton sackcloth, you priests, and
mourn Wail you who ministerbefore the altar.

(10:49):
Come, spend the night insackcloth, you who minister
before my God, for the grainofferings and the drink
offerings are withheld from thehouse of your God.
Declare a holy fast, call asacred assembly, summon the
elders and all who live in theland to the house of the Lord,

(11:10):
your God.
That's chapter 1, verses 13 and14.
The second call comes before theprophecy of a future coming day
of the Lord.
Unlike the first call, whichwas focused on the leaders, this
one is for everyone.

(11:32):
God calls them to not just showoutward signs of grief but to
have genuine hearttransformation.
He cries out, quote Even nowdeclares the Lord return to me
with all your heart, withfasting and weeping and mourning
.
Render your heart and not yourgarments.

(11:54):
Return to the Lord, your God,for he is gracious and
compassionate, slow to anger andabounding in love, and he
relents from sending calamity.
Who knows he may turn andrelent and leave behind a

(12:14):
blessing.
Grain offerings and drinkofferings for the Lord, your God
.
That's chapter 2, verses 12through 14.
This is the heart of Joel'smessage Warnings of God's
judgment, for sin always leavesroom for repentance, even in

(12:35):
discipline.
God's grace and mercy are great.
So the second main message isGod will restore.
So Joel's message isn't just towake up and repent, it's also
about restoration.
After calling the people torepentance, joel shifts,
dramatically speaking as iftheir prayers had already been

(12:58):
answered.
In chapter 2, verse 18, we seequote then the Lord was jealous
for his land and took pity onhis people.
Unquote.
So though the book doesn'tdescribe Judah's response to the
prophet's messages in detail,the tone of chapter 2, verse 18

(13:20):
suggested they listened, theyrepented and God, true to his
character, responded withcompassion and restoration.
Joel's message shows us whathappens when people take God
seriously.
He meets them with mercy.
As a result of the people'srepentance, God promised to

(13:44):
restore everything that was lost.
The armies of destruction wouldbe driven away.
That's chapter 2, verse 20.
The land would be fruitfulagain.
That's chapter 2, verse 22.
And the people would never beput to shame again.
That's chapter 2, verse 26.
This shows God's heart.

(14:05):
He isn't just the God ofjudgment, he is a God of
restoration.
And that brings us to the thirdmain message of future hope.
Joel's prophecy goes evenfurther.
Physical restoration is justthe beginning.
God has a greater promise instore.

(14:26):
He won't just renew the land,he will pour out His Spirit on
His people.
Quote I will pour out my Spiriton all people.
Your sons and daughters willprophesy.
Your old men will dream dreams.
Your young men will see visions.
That's chapter 2, verse 28.

(14:48):
If this sounds familiar, it'sbecause this prophecy is
directly quoted in the NewTestament by Peter in Acts 2.
On the day of Pentecost, whenthe Holy Spirit comes upon the
disciples, peter stands up anddeclares Peter stands up and
declares quote this is what wasspoken by the prophet Joel In

(15:11):
the last days.
God says I will pour out mySpirit on all people.
Your sons and daughters willprophesy.
Your young men will see visions.
Your old men will dream dreams.
Unquote.
The old men will dream dreams.
Unquote.
Heeder saw the outpouring ofthe Holy Spirit at Pentecost as

(15:32):
the beginning of Joel's prophecycoming true.
This marked a new era whereGod's spirit would dwell in
believers, just as Joel hadforetold.
But this prophecy also pointsahead to something even greater
the final day of the Lord, whenGod will fully and finally bring

(15:55):
his plan to completion.
Joel ends with the kingdomblessings upon the remnant of
faithful Judah.
Quote Judah will be inhabitedforever and Jerusalem through
all generations.
That's in the last, chapter 3,verse 20.
So let's summarize Besidesprophesying of the great

(16:20):
outpouring of God's Spirit.
The book of Joel is especiallyconcerned with the great themes
of the biblical story God'sjudgment on human sin, the need
for repentance and, by themerciful grace of God, he
restores and gives us hope.
It reminds us of these points.

(16:42):
Judgment and hardship can be awake-up call.
Sometimes difficulties aremeant to turn us away from sin
and bring us back to God whenwe're His.
God responds to repentance withrestoration, whether we're
repenting from big things orlittle things.

(17:03):
When we turn back, god respondswith mercy and renewal.
And God offers those who arehis hope.
As we consider the state of theworld today and its prospects
for the future, hold on to God'spromises of hope.
Quote Whoever calls on the nameof the Lord shall be saved.

(17:28):
Unquote.
That's chapter 2, verse 32.
And God wants us to pass alegacy of faith to the next
generation.
And ultimately, god's plan iscentered on Jesus.
Joel's prophecy points us tohim, the one who will one day

(17:51):
return to establish his kingdomfully.
The book of Joel may be short,but its impact is huge.
It reminds us that even injudgment, God's heart is for
restoration and that restorationfinds its fulfillment in Jesus.
Next time we'll explore anotherpowerful prophetic book.

(18:16):
So stay tuned.
Until then, keep reading, keepseeking and keep growing in your
faith so that we spread God'sword further.
Please share, like, follow,comment and subscribe.