Joel 2:1-12
Joel’s View
We continue our study into the End Times. Two thoughts for your
consideration as we do so.
1. The Book of Revelation gives us a picture of the Tribulation
from the world’s prospective. The Old Testament prophecies
give us a picture of the Tribulation from Israel’s
prospective.
a. By that, I do not mean that the Revelation does not talk
about Israel or that what the Old Testament prophet’s saw
does not affect the world.
b. Both overlap, but Revelation zooms out a great deal to
tell us what is happening across the entire world during
the Tribulation while the Old Testament prophet’s zoom in
a great deal to tell us what happening in Israel during
that time period.
c. That is one reason why we have spent so much time studying
the Tribulation from the Old Testament, i.e. We want to
see what happens in Israel during the Tribulation.
d. For the last several weeks, we have been looking at the
Tribulational wars or battles that will take place.
(1) Even in that study, we can see how Revelation zooms
out to show us the whole world while the Old
Testament prophets zoomed in to show us about
Israel.
(a) Daniel 9 - IF there is a battle (and I think it
is very likely), it will effect Israel and the
near-by Islamic countries giving to Israel the
freedom and the right to build their Jewish
temple on or near the Islamic Dome of the Rock.
(b) Daniel 11-12 sees armies coming from multiple
directions—apparently against the anti-Christ;
but the battle takes place in the region of
Israel.
(c) Ezekiel 38-39 definitely occurs in the mountains
of Israel.
(d) Zech 14 - The last battle of the Tribulation will
take place at Jerusalem.
(2) But the two conflicts that we saw from Revelation do
not tell us if Israel was to be involved in them or
not.
(a) From Revelation 6, we are only told us that the
Spirit of Conquest went out with authority over
1/4 of the world to kill it with the sword,
hunger, death, and the beasts of the earth.
(b) Revelation 19, which we supposed to be the Battle
of Jerusalem, does not mention any specific
location at all!
(c) From those two passages alone, we would not know
if Israel was involved in any batter.
(d) Why? Because John did not zoom in specifically
on Israel.
2. Reading prophecy in the Old Testament is very, very difficult.
a. It is hard to tell the near-at-hand judgments from the
far-away-judgments.
(1) Most every prophet starts by describing a near-at-
hand judgment, but many of them begin to include
details of an even greater judgment that is coming,
a far-away judgment.
(2) In most cases, distinguishing the two is very
difficult.
b. Old Testament prophets jump all over the time spectrum.
(1) They may be in the present, then the near-at-hand
events, then the past, and then the end-time-
judgments.
(a) There is no pattern.
(b) There are no time-change warnings.
(c) There is no guarantee that the prophecies have
been grouped by together by time.
(2) At least, I have not been able to discern that any of
these is true.
c. Much of a prophet’s language is so cryptic that even if
you think you understand it, you won’t know for sure.
I tell you all of that because I want to show you what I believe the
Tribulation looked like to Joel. Joel was an Old Testament prophet,
but we really are not sure when he prophesied or whether it was to
the Northern or Southern Kingdom. The book is very short, 3 chapters,
and interlaces events that were happening in Israel at that time with
near-at-hand prophecies and far-away prophecies.
I. Joel 1 - A Then-Present Plague from God
A. God had sent a series of insects across Israel to destroy
their crops.
1. It was a judgment sent by God to turn them to Him.
2. Yet, what had happened was but a small picture of the kind
of judgments that God would send.
B. Some see this army of insects as a picture of God’s end time
army.
1. Maybe they are. Maybe they aren’t.
2. It doesn’t matter.
3. The army of insects was real to Israel years ago.
4. The army of soldiers will be real to Israel in the future.
5. There will be similarities between the two.
6. How similar they are to one another is not important.
II. \\#Joe 2:1-11\\ Describes an End Time Army and an End Time Defeat
A. Some think this is a description of the insects, moving like
an unstoppable army.
1. It could be, but I don’t think so because of the end-time
markers mentioned.
2. There are two:
a. \\#Joe 2:11\\ It is called the Day of the Lord, which
really doesn’t settle anything because that term can
be used of the end-time judgment or major near-at-
hand judgments.
b. \\#Joe 2:10\\ An end-time marker is given which will
occur twice:
Joel 2:10…the sun and the moon shall be dark,
and the stars shall withdraw their shining:
(1) \\#Re 6:12\\ near the beginning of the
Tribulation.
(2) \\#Matt 24:29\\ near the ending of the
Tribulation.
B. Then some think this is the army of the anti-Christ coming
against Israel.
1. Depending on how they view the different Bible passages,
they would call it the Battle of Armageddon, or Ezekiel
38-39’s battle, or the Battle at Jerusalem.
2. It could be, but I don’t think so because of the way I
think it ends.
a. \\#Joe 2:13-17\\ Seems to be a general invitation to
Israel to repent. It could be to any time period.
b. \\#Joe 2:18-20\\ Seems to tell what happens to that
army.
Joel 2:18 Then will the LORD be jealous for his
land, and pity his people.
19 Yea, the LORD will answer and say unto his
people, Behold, I will send you corn, and wine,
and oil, and ye shall be satisfied therewith: and
I will no more make you a reproach among the
heathen:
20 But I will remove far off from you the
northern army, and will drive him into a land
barren and desolate, with his face toward the
east sea, and his hinder part toward the utmost
sea, and his stink shall come up, and his ill
savor shall come up, because he hath done great
things.
21 Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice: for
the LORD will do great things.
c. \\#Joe 2:21-27\\ Goes on to tell of future blessings.
(1) \\#Joe 2:20\\ God will remove this “northern
army.”
(a) Don’t read too much in the fact that it is
a northern army.
(b) Because of the mountains, most armies going
through or attacking Israel come either from
the north or the south.
(2) This army is NOT destroyed as God will do to the
invading army of Ezekiel 38/39 and Zechariah 14.
(3) Rather, God REMOVES it.
(a) Notice HOW God removes this army.
Joel 2:20 (paraphrasing) God will drive them into
a land barren and desolate, with his face toward
the east sea (probably the Sea of Galilee or the
Dead Sea) and his hinder part toward the utmost
sea (the Mediterranean Sea).
(b) For some reason God tells us which way their
face and their rear ends will be pointed,
but there is just one direction, EAST.
(c) There is no indication that any of Ezekiel’s
or Zechariah’s attacking armies will be
driven very far in any direction.
(d) Zechariah did tell us the army will flee,
but both of those armies end up as buzzard
bait.
C. So it doesn’t look like this battle is either Eze 38-39 or
Zechariah 14.
1. It could be, but I don’t think so.
2. It could also be a battle that is not mentioned any where
else in the Bible.
3. But today I am thinking it is likely connected to either
the battle that starts the Tribulation (Dan 9) or the
one that will take place during the middle of the
Tribulation (Dan 11-12).
4. I think that because it is around the middle of the
Tribulation that the Jews get saved and that will allow
the next part of this prophecy to take place.
III. \\#Joel 2:28-32\\ The Holy Spirit is poured out.
Joel 2:28 And it shall come to pass afterward,
that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh;
and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
your old men shall dream dreams, your young men
shall see visions:
29 And also upon the servants and upon the
handmaids in those days will I pour out my
spirit.
30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and
in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of
smoke.
31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and
the moon into blood, before the great and the
terrible day of the LORD come.
32 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever
shall call on the name of the LORD shall be
delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem
shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said,
and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call.
A. \\#Joel 2:28-29\\ This is the Holy Spirit being poured out on
"all flesh."
1. All flesh does not mean on every one.
2. It means BOTH the Gentile and the Jews.
3. I can’t image God pouring His Spirit out on the Jews until
they are saved, and they are not saved until after the
Abomination of Desolation at the middle of the
Tribulation.
B. \\#Joel 2:30-31\\ It is also end time.
C. \\#Joel 2:32\\ And this will be a time of many souls being
saved.
D. Some might recall that Peter said part of this scripture was
being fulfilled on the Day of Pentecost.
Acts 2:16 But this is that which was spoken by
the prophet Joel;
1. But it is apparent that only part of Joel was fulfilled,
mainly the pouring out of the Holy Spirit.
2. The parts relating to the signs in heaven above and the
earth beneath were NOT fulfilled; but they will be.
3. These are the signs that mark the Tribulation period.
E. Since this sign is falling ON THE JEWS, I believe this is
likely a MIDDLE of the Tribulation battle; and right now,
that makes me think Daniel 11-12.
F. Summary: So it is possible, that Joel saw:
1. An army comes INTO or at least UNTO the land of Israel.
a. An army that God had called \\#Joel 2:11\\.
b. An army that came from the north \\#Joel 2:20\\.
c. An army which is virtually unstoppable
\\#Joel 2:3-6\\.
d. An army that comes during the Tribulation
\\#Joel 2:10\\.
e. That God defeats (although by what means we do not
know) and drives the army into the east sea
\\#Joel 2:20\\.
f. And afterward, God pours out His Holy Spirit on both
the Gentile (the Gentile saved) and the Jew (the
Jewish saved) \\#Joel 2:28-29\\.
2. And I am thinking that attack and defeat may be around the
middle of the Tribulation because that is when I believe
the Jews will be saved.
IV. Joel 3 - The Battle of Armageddon and the Last Battle are
described from Joel’s point of view.
A. The armies of this world will ultimately be gathered to the
Valley of Jehoshaphat, the Kidron Valley between Jerusalem
and the Mount of Olives.
Joel 3:2 I will also gather all nations, and
will bring them down into the valley of
Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there
for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom
they have scattered among the nations, and parted
my land.
B. God draws these armies:
Joel 3:9 Proclaim ye this among the Gentiles;
Prepare war, wake up the mighty men, let all the
men of war draw near; let them come up:
10 Beat your plowshares into swords, and your
pruninghooks into spears: let the weak say, I am
strong.
11 Assemble yourselves, and come, all ye
heathen, and gather yourselves together round
about: thither cause thy mighty ones to come
down, O LORD.
C. But not for their pleasure. For His.
Joel 3:12 Let the heathen be wakened, and come
up to the valley of Jehoshaphat: for there will
I sit to judge all the heathen round about.
13 Put ye in the sickle, for the harvest is
ripe: come, get you down; for the press is full,
the fats overflow; for their wickedness is great.
D. And to make sure we understand that this is end time, God
states the end-time signature.
Joel 3:15 The sun and the moon shall be
darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their
shining.
So this is what Joel saw as the Tribulation. He was blessed, not only
in seeing so many details, but to possibility have them organized.
What I have shared is a possibility of the details all in order, with
some interruptions, but still in order. Most of the other prophets
saw bits and pieces in various order: Isaiah, Jeremiah, even Daniel,
Ezekiel, and Zechariah.
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