18 Then Yahweh was jealous for his land,
And had pity on his people. 19 Yahweh answered his people,
“Behold, I will send you grain, new wine, and oil,
and you will be satisfied with them;
and I will no more make you a reproach among the nations. 20 But I will remove the northern army far away from you,
and will drive it into a barren and desolate land,
its front into the eastern sea,
and its back into the western sea;
and its stench will come up,
and its bad smell will rise.”
Surely he has done great things. 21 Land, don’t be afraid.
Be glad and rejoice, for Yahweh has done great things. 22 Don’t be afraid, you animals of the field;
for the pastures of the wilderness spring up,
for the tree bears its fruit.
The fig tree and the vine yield their strength. 23 “Be glad then, you children of Zion,
and rejoice in Yahweh, your God;
for he gives you the former rain in just measure,
and he causes the rain to come down for you,
the former rain and the latter rain,
as before. 24 The threshing floors will be full of wheat,
and the vats will overflow with new wine and oil. 25 I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten,
the great locust, the grasshopper, and the caterpillar,
my great army, which I sent among you. 26 You will have plenty to eat, and be satisfied,
and will praise the name of Yahweh, your God,
who has dealt wondrously with you;
and my people will never again be disappointed. 27 You will know that I am in the midst of Israel,
and that I am Yahweh, your God, and there is no one else;
and my people will never again be disappointed.
28 “It will happen afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh;
and your sons and your daughters will prophesy.
Your old men will dream dreams.
Your young men will see visions. 29 And also on the servants and on the handmaids in those days,
I will pour out my Spirit. 30 I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth:
blood, fire, and pillars of smoke. 31 The sun will be turned into darkness,
and the moon into blood,
before the great and terrible day of Yahweh comes. 32 It will happen that whoever will call on the name of Yahweh shall be saved;
for in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will be those who escape,
as Yahweh has said,
and among the remnant, those whom Yahweh calls.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Joel 2:18-32
Commentary on Joel 2:15-27
(Read Joel 2:15-27)
The priests and rulers are to appoint a solemn fast. The sinner's supplication is, Spare us, good Lord. God is ready to succour his people; and he waits to be gracious. They prayed that God would spare them, and he answered them. His promises are real answers to the prayers of faith; with him saying and doing are not two things. Some understand these promises figuratively, as pointing to gospel grace, and as fulfilled in the abundant comforts treasured up for believers in the covenant of grace.
Commentary on Joel 2:28-32
(Read Joel 2:28-32)
The promise began to be fulfilled on the day of Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit was poured out, and it was continued in the converting grace and miraculous gifts conferred on both Jews and Gentiles. The judgments of God upon a sinful world, only go before the judgment of the world in the last day. Calling on God supposes knowledge of him, faith in him, desire toward him, dependence on him, and, as evidence of the sincerity of all this, conscientious obedience to him. Those only shall be delivered in the great day, who are now effectually called from sin to God, from self to Christ, from things below to things above.