Day 174 – Joel: Theme
“Hear this, you leaders of the people. Listen, all who live in the land. In all your history, has anything like this happened before? Tell your children about it in the years to come, and let your children tell their children. Pass the story down from generation to generation.” Joel 1:2-3 NLT
We know very little about Joel – only that he was a prophet of the Lord and the son of Pethuel. He may have lived in Jerusalem because his audience was Judah, the southern kingdom. Whoever he was, Joel speaks forthrightly and forcefully in this short and powerful book. His message is one of foreboding and warning, but it is also filled with hope. Joel states that our creator, the omnipotent judge, is also merciful, and he wants to bless all those who trust him.
Joel begins by describing a terrible plague of locusts that cover the land and devour the crops. The devastation wrought by these creatures is but a forestate of the coming judgment of God – the “day of the Lord.” Joel, therefore, urges the people to turn from their sin to God. Woven into this message of judgment and the need for repentance is an affirmation of God’s kindness and the blessings He promises for all who follow Him. In fact, “everyone who calls on the Name of the Lord will be saved.” (2:32)
As you read Joel, catch his vision of the power and might of God and God’s ultimate judgment of sin. Choose to follow, obey, and worship God alone as your sovereign Lord.
Prayer: Father, I pray that there will be an urgency on all the lips of Your children to pray for the judgment of the coming of Your Day. Holy Spirit, help us to intercede for those who are lost in their sin, and that they may repent and turn to God so no soul is lost to eternal damnation. Amen.
