Joel Simplified

Title & Author

Joel = “Yahweh is God”

We Know Very Little About Joel

He References Judah and Jerusalem Several Times in the Book

He Also Seems to Have Knowledge of the Activity of Priests and the Temple

This Causes Scholars to Assume He is From Judah and Prophecying to Judah

Date

There is No Consensus Among Scholars as to When Joel Lived and Prophecied

There are Parts of the Book That Seem to Be Referring to Before the Babylonian Exile of Judah

And Some Parts That Seem to Be Referring to After the Babylonian Exile of Judah

No One Knows For Sure

Purpose

God’s Purpose For Joel Was to Call the People of Judah and Jerusalem to Lament and Return to Him

Key Themes

The Day of the Lord

This Was the Day of Destruction Coming Upon God’s Unrepentant People and the Gentile Nations

But For Those Who Repent, it Was the Day of Hope and Restoration

The Day of the Lord is a Day of Judgment and Deliverance

Repentance

If God’s Community of People Would Cry Out to Him…

And Sincerely Turn From Their Sins…

God’s Judgment Would Wouldn’t Be Upon Them

God Dwells With His People

Throughout the OT, Our God Has Always Wanted to Dwell With His People

He Was With Humanity in the Garden

He Lived in Their Midst in the Tabernacle

And in the Last Days, He Lives Within His Sanctified Kingdom Community

“I Will Pour Out My Spirit”

There’s Coming a Day When God Will Pour Out His Spirit On Humankind

Peter Tells Us This Was the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2

All of the Themes of Joel Come to Fruition On Pentecost

The Day of the Lord, Repentance, God Dwelling With His People, and the Outpouring of the Holy Spirit

Judgement Was Pronounced Against Those Who Murdered the Messiah

But Salvation Came to Those Who Repent and Make Him Their Lord and King

When That Decision Happens, God Dwells in Them Through the Holy Spirit

This All Began With the Outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles

Outline

Judgment on Jerusalem (1:1–2:11)

The Locusts (1:1–20)

The Northern Army (2:1–11)

Repentance (2:12–17)

Salvation (2:18–3:21)

Introduction to Divine Response (2:18–19)

Northern Army Destroyed (2:20)

Land Restored (2:21–27)

Pouring Out the Spirit (2:28–32)

Judgment on Gentiles (3:1–21)

There are 2 Chiastic Structures in This Book

The First One Covers From 1:2-2:27

The Second One Overlaps the First One and Covers From 2:20-3:21

1st:

A Punishment: The Locust Plague (1:2–20)

B Punishment: The Northern Army (2:1–11)

C Transition: Repentance and Response (2:12–19)

B′ Forgiveness: The Northern Army Destroyed (2:20)

A′ Forgiveness: The Locust-Ravaged Land Restored (2:21–27)

2nd:

A Judgment: The Northerner Destroyed (2:20)

B Grace: Rain Poured on the Land (2:21–27)

B′ Grace: The Spirit Poured on All People (2:28–32)

A′ Judgment: All Nations Destroyed (3:1–21)

Active Reading