In 2017, many Christians celebrated the 500th anniversary of Martin Luther’s 95 Theses. In his first thesis, Luther wrote, “When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said, ‘Repent’ (Mt 4:17), he willed the entire life of believers to be one of repentance.” For Luther and for Christ, repentance shapes how Christians relate to God, and repentance is also a major theme in the small book of Joel.
The prophecy of Joel is mysterious for several reasons. The only personal information Joel gives is his father’s name. We don’t know where he lived, what his vocation was, or even the specific era in which he lived. Details of his message are also confusing: How many judgments does he refer to? What precisely were the sins the people were committing? What is not mysterious, however, is the importance of repentance. But before Joel calls his hearers to repent, he makes several announcements.
After identifying himself, Joel asks the older members of his audience if they can remember something so devastating as the plague of locusts he describes in 1:4. Although locusts were somewhat common, nothing like the devastation the locusts wrought had happened for generations. Joel mentions four creatures (presumably all locusts) whose precise identity is debatable.
What’s not debatable is Joel’s main point: What one type of locust leaves, the others will take care of. In other words, no unrepentant sinner can avoid God’s judgment through the locusts. Drunkards will lose their access to wine since the abundance will disappear, and farmers will lose their crops. Such a situation is a call for priests to lead the response to God’s judgment by lamenting their sins.
Joel then describes the invasion of an army in 2:1–11. No one would be able to stop the army as soldiers leap over mountains and turn Eden into a desert. This day belongs to the Lord, and no defense can stop His army. Whether this account is a figurative description of the locusts of chapter 1 or another future judgment is a matter of debate.
What’s not debatable again is the central message, which is the same as before: God will judge the unrepentant, whether that judgment is the final Day of the Lord or an earlier manifestation.
The Lord doesn’t end the passage with judgment. Two of the most beautiful words of this passage are, “Even now …” (2:12): Despite God’s warning, “even now” the people could return to the Lord. Their opportunity to repent, as is ours, was rooted in the character of God, who is “gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love” (2:13, ESV).
How should we respond today to Joel’s message?
First, we must remember that the Lord was speaking to those who claimed to be the people of God. The locusts remind us both of God’s previous judgment of the Egyptians (Ex. 10:1–20) and His future judgment (Rev. 9:1–12). The people who merely refer to Him as their Lord without actually repenting will not escape His judgment.
Second, we must prayerfully consider the possibility God is using difficulties to discipline us. Although adversity in this life is certainly not always God’s discipline (see John 9 and the whole book of Job), God can use difficulties to discipline us (1 Cor. 11:30–32; Heb. 12:5–17).
Third, we must repent or return to the Lord when we find ourselves wandering from Him.
Fourth, we can take heart. God is merciful, and the death and resurrection of Jesus illustrates God’s grace and mercy Joel proclaims. Even now, if we return to Him, He will accept us.