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1–15. The Lord's judgment on the nations in the Valley of Jehoshaphat. 16–21. The blessed state of Israel. Joel.3:1. For behold, in those days and at that very time when I will bring back the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem, At the end of Joel 2 the prophet spoke of the day of the Lord in relation to the Jews; in Joel 3 he talks about the significance of this day for the Gentiles. Joel.3.1 is adjacent to Joel 2.32 - salvation will only be in Zion, for all other nations must undergo the Judgment of God. “In those days and at that very time,” that is, at the time when the Holy Spirit will be poured out on all flesh, when the restoration of the prosperity of Judah and Jerusalem will be accomplished. The expression “I will return captivity” (aschiv schevuth) means not only the return of the captives, but also the return to them of what they enjoyed before the captivity (cf. Job 42.10). Speaking about captivity, the prophet could have in mind both the small captivities of the Jews that began in ancient times (cf. Am 1.6–9) and the Babylonian captivity, which he foresaw (St. Cyril of Alexandria). Joel.3:2. I will gather all the nations and bring them into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and there I will execute judgment on them for My people and for My inheritance Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations and divided My land. All pagan nations (kol hagoim), according to the prophet, will be gathered into the valley of Jehoshaphat (emek jehoschafath) for judgment on them. Many commentators take the Hebrew jehoschafath in a common noun meaning - Jehovah judged and the words of the prophet are understood in the sense of a vague indication of a certain valley, which will be the valley of God's Judgment (Merckx, Keil, Novak) (Bishop Palladius). Other interpreters (Ewald, Gitzig, Goonaker, Dobronr.) consider jehoschafath a proper name and see in Joel.3.2 a reference to the valley where, under the Judah king Jehoshaphat, the allied forces of the Ammonites, Moabites and Edomites who attacked Judea were miraculously defeated (2 Chronicles 20.1). In the same valley, the people praised the Lord for his miraculous salvation, which is why the valley received the name emek berachah, valley of blessing (2 Chronicles 20.26). Currently, the name Jehoshaphat is called the valley lying between the Mount of Olives and the Hill of Moriah, east of Jerusalem. But this valley was not the battlefield of Jehoshaphat and was named after him for some other reason, or by assumption (cf. 2 Chronicles 21.1) on it is the burial place of Jehoshaphat or due to the establishment of some institutions here by the king. The Prophet could have meant not this valley, but another, which, as can be seen from 2 Chronicles XX, was located south of Bethlehem in the Fekod desert (now Wadi Bereikut). According to the book Chronicles this valley was called the “valley of blessing,” but besides this name, according to the Talmud, it had other names (Erubin 19a); traces, could also be called the Valley of Jehoshaphat. The words of the prophet that the Lord will gather all nations in the Valley of Jehoshaphat need not be understood in a literal sense (According to the testimony of Blessed Jerome in his comments on the prophet Joel, already in his time the Jews believed that they would all be returned to Jerusalem, and that in the Valley of Jehoshaphat the pagan peoples would be cut with the sword. This belief is preserved among the Jews to this day. See Dobronravov, p. 378.). The Prophet wants to express only the idea that on the day of the Lord’s Judgment over the nations something similar to what happened in the Valley of Blessing under Jehoshaphat will happen. Judgment on the pagan nations, according to Joel.3.2, will be carried out because “they scattered Israel among the nations, and divided my land.” It is difficult to say what facts the prophet has in mind in his last words. Those commentators who consider Joel a post-captivity prophet see in the above words an indication of the period of captivity in the next century, when the land of Judea was divided between the tribes that settled in it. Other commentators understand the words of the prophet either in relation to the misfortunes that befell Judah under Jehoram (cf. 2 Kings 8.20–22; 2 Chronicles 21:8–18), or in relation to all subsequent attacks of enemies, which attacks Joel prophetically cites. In Greek-slav. In the translation, the end of Joel.3.2 deviates from the original: “O Israel, who were scattered among the nations and divided My land.” Joel.3:3. And for my people they cast lots, and gave a boy for a harlot, and sold a girl for wine, and drank. “And for My people they cast lots,” dividing captives by lot was in ancient times the custom of the victors (cf. Nahum 3.10; Oba 1.11). “And they gave the boy for a harlot” (bezzonah), glory. “and gave youth to harlots”: the prophet’s idea is that Jewish youths were given as payment to harlots - they were valued so little. Merckx and Novak, in view of the following words “and they sold the young woman for wine,” suggest in the expression under consideration instead of bazzonah (for harlots) to read bamazzon, for food supplies. Joel.3:4. And what are you to me, Tire and Sidon and all the regions of the Philistines? Do you want to give Me retribution? Do you want to reward Me? Easily and quickly I will bring your retribution upon your heads, Among the nations that will face punishment on the day of judgment, the prophet names the Phoenicians and Philistines. “And what are you to me, Tire and Sidon and all the regions of the Philistines?” The Prophet wants to say with his question that these cities and districts, like others, will be punished. Tire and Sidon are the main cities of Phenicia. By Philistine districts we mean the cities of Gaza, Azoth, Ascalon, Gath and Ekron, located on the western shore of the Mediterranean Sea. Instead of the words “and all the districts of the Philistines” vecol geliloth pelascheth in the LXX it reads καὶ πᾶσα ηαλιλαί ἀλλοφυλών, glory. "and all Galilea of ​​the foreigners". Apparently LXX Heb. geliloth was taken in the sense of the proper name of the northern region of Palestine - Galilee (cf. Josh. 20:7, 21:32; 1 Kings 9.11), which, according to the testimony of Blessed. Theodorite, belonged to Tire. It is also possible that, as in Joshua 22.10, 11; LXX euro geliloth was left without translation, transcribing the word as ηαλιλὼθ; from Γαλιλὼθ, later scribes already made ηαλιλαία (Yakimov). Heb. pelescheth or peloscheth, the name of the land of the Philistines, according to production from obscenity. Ch. palasch, means "land of foreigners". In the LXX, therefore, it is constantly rendered by the word ἀλλιφ`υλος. “Do you want to repay Me?” i.e., do you want to take revenge for the defeats that you suffered from Me. It is believed that the prophet is talking about the Philistine attack on Jerusalem under King Jehoram. With this attack, the Philistines, according to the prophet, seemed to take revenge on the Lord on His chosen people because He allowed them to be tributaries of the Jews during the time of Jehoshaphat (2 Chronicles 17.11). “Do you want to repay Me?” , glory “or are you angry with Me”: the thought is identical to that expressed in the previous sentence. Joel.3:5. because you have taken My silver and My gold, and brought My best jewels into your churches, Joel.3.6. and they sold the children of Judah and the children of Jerusalem to the children of the Greeks, to remove them from their borders. Thus, the crime of the Phoenicians and Philistines (“revenge” on Jehovah) was that they plundered the land of Judah and sold captive Jews to distant countries. According to the explanation of church teachers, in Joel 3:5–6 the prophet refers to future events - the invasion of the Babylonians (Blessed Theodoret), the time of Zerubbabel (St. Ephraim the Syrian) or the era of Roman rule (Blessed Jerome). But one might think that the prophet is talking about the sack of Jerusalem by the Philistines, which occurred during the reign of Joram (2 Chronicles 21:16–17), although the story of 2 Chronicles does not mention the fate of the Phoenicians. The words “silver is Mine” and gold “Mine” convey the idea that both the land of the chosen people and all their property are the property of Jehovah. But most immediately the prophet speaks of the treasures of the church. “And the best jewels”, Heb. umahamaddaj hattovim. in glory “My chosen and good ones”, according to the reading of some Greek. code: τὰ ἐπιλεκτά μου καὶ τὰ καλὰ . “They sold it to the sons of the Greeks,” from Heb. libnej hajjeyanim to the sons of Javan: the prophet Ezekiel mentions (Ezekiel 27.19) the city of Javan (javan), located in happy Arabia. Some commentators (Hitzig, Wünsche) and in the quoted words of the prophet Joel see speech about the inhabitants of Javan of Arabia. But in the Bible javan is usually used as a name for Ionia or Greece (Isa 66.19; Eze 27.13; Zech 9.13). In this meaning, it is most natural to take the word javan in Joel.3.6 of the prophet Joel. The Phoenicians, not only in the post-exilic period, but also in ancient times, were in trade relations with the Greek tribes, and slaves were also traded (Iliad. VI, 28; ХXIII, 741–745; Odis. XV, 402). The Prophet, apparently, speaks specifically about the sale of Jewish captives by the Phoenicians into slavery in Greece. Joel.3:7. Behold, I will raise them up from the place where you sold them, and I will put your wages on your own head. “And I will return your bribe (sl. “your reward”) on your head”: bribe or retribution is called, as in Joel.3.4, an attack of the enemy on Israel, by which the enemies seemed to take revenge on the Lord. Joel.3:8. And I will deliver your sons and your daughters into the hands of the children of Judah, and they will sell them to the Shebes, a distant people; so the Lord said. As punishment for selling the Judean captives, the enemies of Judah are threatened with selling them into slavery to the Sabeans. The country of the Sabeans or Sheba, famous for its fragrant substances, gold and precious stones (Isa 60.6; 1 Kings 10.1; Ps 71.15), which conducted extensive trade, was located in happy Arabia, off the coast of the Red Sea. LXX euro lischevaim (Saveyanam) is taken as plural. h. from schevi captivity, and translated εὶς αὶχμαλωσίαν, from here to glory: “into captivity, to a country far away.” The words of the prophet in Joel 3:7–8 can be understood in a general sense about the return of the scattered Jews to their homeland and their dominion over their enemies (Hengstenberg). But it is possible to see the fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy in those conquests of the Philistine land that were carried out by the Jews under Uzziah and Hezekiah (2 Chronicles 26.6 ff., 2 Kings 18.9), as well as in the post-exilic time, and precisely in the era of the Maccabees (1 Mac. 10:86, 11:60). Joel.3:9. Proclaim this among the nations, prepare for war, arouse the brave; let them speak out, let all the warriors rise up. From Joel.3.9 begins the depiction of the very picture of the general judgment, the onset of which the prophet announced in Joel.3.2. “Proclaim it,” glory. “preach this”: it is not clear to whom the prophet is addressing - to the pagans (Ephraim the Syrian, Blessed Jerome, Keil), or to the Jews (Dobronr.). One can understand the words of the prophet as an appeal, as it were, to heralds who should summon the pagan peoples. "Get ready for war": more precisely from Heb. sanctify the war, kaddeschu milchamah, i.e., make sacrifices, pray (cf. 1 Sam. 7.8; Jer. 6.4). “Arouse the brave” hairu haggjbborim, glory. “restore the cuttings” ch. hairu (from ur) has both real and mean meaning (Job 8.6). Therefore, some understand the above words as an appeal to the brave: get excited, brave ones. “Let them perform,” glory. “bring”, Greek. προσαγάγετε: Ch. προσάγω also has an intransitive meaning (cf. Joshua 3.9), in which it was probably used in the LXX in the place in question. In glory it should be, as in Joshua 3.9; 1 Samuel 9.18, “come near,” “draw near.” Joel.3:10. Beat your plowshares into swords and your pruning hooks into spears; let the weak say: “I am strong.” According to some (Novak), the prophet’s speech is addressed to the pagans, who are invited to prepare weapons in abundance for the upcoming struggle; according to others, to the Jews. The images used in Joel 3.10 are also found in Isa 2.4 and Micah 4.3. Joel.3:11. Hurry and come together, all the surrounding nations, and gather together; there, Lord, lead Your heroes. “There, Lord, lead your heroes”: “there”, that is, to the valley of Jehoshaphat, where judgment will take place; “heroes” (Heb. gibborim strong), i.e. Angels who do the will of God (cf. Ps. 103:20, 77:25) and who will be the instruments of God’s judgment over the pagans. But it should be noted that in ancient translations the given words are read differently than in the original text: in Peshito - “and there Jehovah will crush your fortress”; in hald. paraphr. - “there Jehovah will crush the fortress of their heroes”; at LXX and in glory. - “let the meek be brave.” Joel.3:12. Let the nations arise and descend into the valley of Jehoshaphat; for there I will sit to judge all nations on every side. Joel 3:12–13 represents the Lord’s answer to the prophet’s prayer in Joel 3.11: “lead your heroes.” Joel.3:13. Use your sickles, for the harvest is ripe; Go, go down, for the winepress is full and the winepress overflows, because their wickedness is great. “Put into action the sickles,” etc.: the speech is on behalf of God and is addressed to the heroes, that is, to the Angels whom the Lord brought into the valley of judgment. “Go, go down” go - to the valley of Jehoshaphat; instead of “descend” to glory. "trample" (πατεῖτε); LXX euro redu was produced in accordance with the context, not from jarad to descend (as in Russian), and from radah to trample. “For the winepress is full and the winepress overflows”: a winepress (Heb. gath) is a recess for squeezing grapes and olives, carved into a rock or dug in the ground and lined with stone. The winepress consisted of two parts: the winepress itself, where the grapes or olives were placed, and the winepress, or vat, into which the squeezed juice flowed (cf. Zech 14.10; Isa 5.2; Mt 21.33; Mk 12.1; Rev 14.20). The image of the harvest and the gathering of grapes is an image of the Last Judgment. The image of the harvest conveys the idea that judgment will come at the appointed time, when the harvest is ripe, and that the judgment will be followed by the separation of good from evil, just as after the harvest of bread, during threshing and winnowing, the grains are separated from the chaff (cf. Mt 13.39; Rev 14.15–18). The image of the winepress is an image of the wrath of God, flaming against sinners and consuming them, just as bunches of grapes are crushed in a winepress. - Instead of the words “for the harvest is ripe” in glory: “as the grapes are about to be embraced” (ὁτρυγητός). Greek τρυγητός means not only the harvest of grapes, but also the harvest in general. Joel.3:14. Crowds, crowds in the valley of judgment! For the day of the Lord is near in the valley of judgment! The prophet already contemplates the nations gathered in the valley of judgment. By repeating hamonim, hamonim (crowds, crowds) the prophet refers to the countless number of people gathered. Heb. hamonim means both a shout and a shouting crowd. From here LXX was translated ηχονἐξήχησαν, glory. “glacis proglasishasya”; the second hamonim LXX was probably taken as a predicate and read hamenim - “noisy voices”. "To the Valley of Judgment", Heb. beemek hecharuz. Heb. charuz y Isa 28.27 means “threshing cart”, “thresher”. In this meaning, some commentators (Kredner, Holtzhausen) accept the word charuz in the place under consideration, seeing here an indication that the peoples in the Valley of Jehoshaphat will be dealt with in the same way as the captives who are beaten with threshing machines (cf. 2 Kings 12.30; 2 Kings 13.7, etc.). It is generally accepted, however, to understand charuz in Joel 3.14 to mean judgment, decision. Joel.3.16. And the Lord will roar from Zion, and give His voice from Jerusalem; heaven and earth will tremble; but the Lord will be a defense for his people and a defense for the children of Israel. From Joel 3.16 the prophet speaks about the significance of the day of judgment for the people of God. By defeating the pagans, the Lord will appear as a defense for Israel, who will be blessed. Joel.3.17. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God, who dwells in Zion, on My holy mountain; and Jerusalem will be holy, and foreigners will no longer pass through it. “He who dwells in Zion”: according to the image of the prophet Ezekiel, before the conquest of Jerusalem, the glory of God left the city, and thereby it was presented as prey to the enemies (cf. Ezekiel 8.4, 12, Ezek. 27). In the above words, Joel gives the idea that the triumph of enemies over Jerusalem will no longer be possible, since the Lord will live in Zion. “No longer will foreigners pass through it,” that is, pass through for the purpose of attack or conquest. Joel.3.18. And it will happen in that day: the mountains will drip with wine, and the hills will flow with milk, and all the riverbeds of Judah will be filled with water, and a fountain will come out of the house of the Lord and water the valley of Shittim. A figurative image of the future prosperity of Israel: the mountains on which grapes are grown will be so abundant in them that wine will drip from them, the hills on which cattle graze will flow with milk, and instead of drought there will be an abundance of water. “All channels”, vekol aphikej, i.e. the beds of streams (“vali”), fed with water from the mountains and drying up in the summer. “And a fountain will come out of the house of the Lord and water the valley of Shittim” (nahal haschschittim), in glory. “watercourse of sitia” (source of reeds). The Valley of Shittim or “valley of the acacias” was the name given to the valley in the land of Moab, on the other side of the Jordan (Numbers 25.1 and Joshua 3.1). This valley got its name from schittah acacia, as there were many acacias growing on it, which loved dry soil. According to many commentators, the prophet means precisely the named valley in Joel 3.18. Others understand Hebrew. nahal haschschittim in the sense of a common name, dry land in general, and it is believed that the prophet means either the Kidron Valley (Michaelis) or the Wadi al Sant lying to the west of Jerusalem, through which the road to Askalon runs (Vellg., Novak). With both understandings of the word haschschittim, the meaning of the image is that an abundance of water will appear in the country and the very means of irrigation will miraculously change (cf. Eze 47.1; Zech 14.8). In connection with the promise of the prophet Joel about the outpouring of the Holy Spirit and in the images of Joel 3.18, one can see images of grace pouring out in the Church of Christ. Joel.3.19. Egypt will become a desert and Edom will be an empty steppe - because they oppressed the sons of Judah and shed innocent blood in their land. Of the enemies of Judah, the prophet especially singles out the Egyptians and Edomites, who are accused of oppressing the sons of Judah and shedding their innocent blood. By the shedding of innocent blood, the prophet apparently means either the murders of those Jews who found refuge in Egypt and Idumea (in their land in the land of the Edomites and Egyptians), or murders during the predatory attacks of the Edomites on Judea (then in their land in the land of the Jews). It is unknown what historical facts the prophet has in mind; in any case, such facts could have occurred both in the post-captivity period and in the pre-captivity period. Joel.3.20. And Judah will live forever, and Jerusalem throughout all generations. A similar promise was announced to the people of God by other prophets. (Cf. Isa. 60.21; Ezek. 37:25, 43:7, 9). Joel.3.21. I will wash away their blood, which I have not yet washed away, and the Lord will dwell in Zion. “I will wash away their blood, which I have not yet washed away,” Heb. venikkethi damam lo nikkethi. Ch. nikkah (niel from the common nakah) means to declare someone innocent, to leave without punishment. Therefore, the words of the prophet, giving them an interrogative form, are conveyed (Steiver) as follows: “And will I leave them (i.e., the pagans) without punishment? I won’t leave”; otherwise: “I will declare their blood innocent, which I have not yet declared innocent” (Driver); the meaning of the last translation will be that the punishment of the pagans for shedding the blood of the sons of Judah will be proof of the innocence of this blood in the eyes of God. LXX the expression in question is translated καὶ ἐκζητήσω τὸ αιμα αὐτῶν καὶ οὐμὴ ἀθωώσω, and I will exact for their blood, and I will not leave it unpunished, glory. “And I will require their blood, and will not blame them.” In view of the LXX translation and the context, the Masoretic venikkethi is corrected by the newest commentators (Gesenius, Goonaker) into venikkamthi (from nakam to avenge) and translate the beginning of the verse: “I will avenge their blood, I will not leave them unpunished,” which gives a clearer idea. The Lord makes a promise to avenge the blood of the Jews shed by the enemies. – “The Lord will dwell in Zion”: the Lord’s dwelling in Zion will be the source of Israel’s prosperity. The prophet Joel's depiction in Joel.3 of the judgment of the world and the salvation of the chosen people, without a doubt, cannot be understood in the literal sense. The entire speech of the prophet in Joel 3 is figurative. Since Joel’s prophecy about judgment has not yet been realized in its entirety, it is still impossible to distinguish in this prophecy the images and ideas that are embodied by the prophet in their image. And in general this distinction between images and ideas constitutes the most difficult point in the interpretation of prophecies. One thing is certain, that having proclaimed the most sublime promise of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on all flesh and the illumination of all people by this Spirit, Joel could not present the Lord’s judgment on the world as a judgment exclusively on the pagans (Joel 2.16), as a gathering of nations in a small valley (Joel 3.12), as a struggle with the pagans (Joel 3:9-13), but as the prosperity of Israel, as an abundance of wine, water and milk (Joel 3.18); all these are only images and symbols of the mysterious and terrible judgment of the Lord and the eternal bliss of the righteous that will follow after it. You might be interested in: