Joel 3
3
1“For, behold, in those days,
and in that time,
when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem,
2 I will gather all nations,
and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat;
and I will execute judgment on them there for my people,
and for my heritage, Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations.
They have divided my land,
3 and have cast lots for my people,
and have given a boy for a prostitute,
and sold a girl for wine, that they may drink.
4“Yes, and what are you to me, Tyre and Sidon,
and all the regions of Philistia?
Will you repay me?
And if you repay me,
I will swiftly and speedily return your repayment on your own head.
5 Because you have taken my silver and my gold,
and have carried my finest treasures into your temples,
6and have sold the children of Judah and the children of Jerusalem to the sons of the Greeks,
that you may remove them far from their border.
7Behold, I will stir them up out of the place where you have sold them,
and will return your repayment on your own head;
8and I will sell your sons and your daughters into the hands of the children of Judah,
and they will sell them to the men of Sheba,
to a faraway nation,
for the LORD has spoken it.”
9Proclaim this among the nations:
“Prepare for war!
Stir up the mighty men.
Let all the warriors draw near.
Let them come up. 10Beat your plowshares into swords,
and your pruning hooks into spears.
Let the weak say, ‘I am strong.’
11Hurry and come, all you surrounding nations,
and gather yourselves together.”
Cause your mighty ones to come down there, LORD.
12“Let the nations arouse themselves,
and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat;
for there I will sit to judge all the surrounding nations.
13Put in the sickle;
for the harvest is ripe.
Come, tread, for the wine press is full,
the vats overflow, for their wickedness is great.”
14Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision!
For the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision.
15The sun and the moon are darkened,
and the stars withdraw their shining.
16The LORD will roar from Zion,
and thunder from Jerusalem;
and the heavens and the earth will shake;
but the LORD will be a refuge to his people,
and a stronghold to the children of Israel.
17“So you will know that I am the LORD, your God,
dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain.
Then Jerusalem will be holy,
and no strangers will pass through her any more.
18It will happen in that day,
that the mountains will drop down sweet wine,
the hills will flow with milk,
all the brooks of Judah will flow with waters;
and a fountain will flow out from the LORD’s house,
and will water the valley of Shittim.
19Egypt will be a desolation
and Edom will be a desolate wilderness,
for the violence done to the children of Judah,
because they have shed innocent blood in their land.
20But Judah will be inhabited forever,
and Jerusalem from generation to generation.
21I will cleanse their blood
that I have not cleansed,
for the LORD dwells in Zion.”
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PUBLIC DOMAIN
Joel 3
3
The nations judged
# In Hebrew texts 3:1-21 is numbered 4:1-21. 1‘In those days and at that time,
when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem,
2I will gather all nations
and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat.#3:2 Jehoshaphat means the Lord judges; also in verse 12.
There I will put them on trial
for what they did to my inheritance, my people Israel,
because they scattered my people among the nations
and divided up my land.
3They cast lots for my people
and traded boys for prostitutes;
they sold girls for wine to drink.
4‘Now what have you against me, Tyre and Sidon and all you regions of Philistia? Are you repaying me for something I have done? If you are paying me back, I will swiftly and speedily return on your own heads what you have done. 5For you took my silver and my gold and carried off my finest treasures to your temples.#3:5 Or palaces 6You sold the people of Judah and Jerusalem to the Greeks, that you might send them far from their homeland.
7‘See, I am going to rouse them out of the places to which you sold them, and I will return on your own heads what you have done. 8I will sell your sons and daughters to the people of Judah, and they will sell them to the Sabeans, a nation far away.’ The Lord has spoken.
9Proclaim this among the nations:
Prepare for war!
Rouse the warriors!
Let all the fighting men draw near and attack.
10Beat your ploughshares into swords
and your pruning hooks into spears.
Let the weakling say,
‘I am strong!’
11Come quickly, all you nations from every side,
and assemble there.
Bring down your warriors, Lord!
12‘Let the nations be roused;
let them advance into the Valley of Jehoshaphat,
for there I will sit
to judge all the nations on every side.
13Swing the sickle,
for the harvest is ripe.
Come, trample the grapes,
for the winepress is full
and the vats overflow –
so great is their wickedness!’
14Multitudes, multitudes
in the valley of decision!
For the day of the Lord is near
in the valley of decision.
15The sun and moon will be darkened,
and the stars no longer shine.
16The Lord will roar from Zion
and thunder from Jerusalem;
the earth and the heavens will tremble.
But the Lord will be a refuge for his people,
a stronghold for the people of Israel.
Blessings for God’s people
17‘Then you will know that I, the Lord your God,
dwell in Zion, my holy hill.
Jerusalem will be holy;
never again will foreigners invade her.
18‘In that day the mountains will drip new wine,
and the hills will flow with milk;
all the ravines of Judah will run with water.
A fountain will flow out of the Lord’s house
and will water the valley of acacias.#3:18 Or Valley of Shittim
19But Egypt will be desolate,
Edom a desert waste,
because of violence done to the people of Judah,
in whose land they shed innocent blood.
20Judah will be inhabited for ever
and Jerusalem through all generations.
21Shall I leave their innocent blood unavenged?
No, I will not.’
The Lord dwells in Zion!
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