Joel 2:12-23
New American Standard Bible
Chapter 2
12'Yet even now,' declares the Lord, 'Return to Me with all your heart, And with fasting, weeping, and mourning; 13And tear your heart and not merely your garments.' Now return to the Lord your God, For He is gracious and compassionate, Slow to anger, abounding in mercy And relenting of catastrophe. 14Who knows, He might turn and relent, And leave a blessing behind Him, Resulting in a grain offering and a drink offering For the Lord your God. 15Blow a trumpet in Zion, Consecrate a fast, proclaim a solemn assembly, 16Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, Assemble the elders, Gather the children and the nursing infants. Have the groom come out of his room And the bride out of her bridal chamber. 17Let the priests, the Lord’S ministers, Weep between the porch and the altar, And let them say, 'Spare Your people, Lord, And do not make Your inheritance a disgrace, With the nations jeering at them. Why should those among the peoples say, ‘Where is their God?’?' 18Then the Lord will be zealous for His land, And will have compassion for His people. 19The Lord will answer and say to His people, 'Behold, I am going to send you grain, new wine, and oil, And you will be satisfied in full with them; And I will never again make you a disgrace among the nations. 20But I will remove the northern army far from you, And I will drive it into a dry and desolate land, Its advance guard into the eastern sea, And its rear guard into the western sea. And its stench will ascend and its odor of decay will come up, Because it has done great things.' 21Do not fear, land; shout for joy and rejoice, For the Lord has done great things. 22Do not fear, animals of the field, For the pastures of the wilderness have turned green, For the tree has produced its fruit, The fig tree and the vine have yielded in full. 23So shout for joy, you sons of Zion, And rejoice in the Lord your God; For He has given you the early rain for your vindication. And He has brought down for you the rain, The early and latter rain as before.King James Version
17Let the priests, the ministers of the Lord, weep between the porch and the altar, and let them say, Spare thy people, O Lord, and give not thine heritage to reproach, that the heathen should rule over them: wherefore should they say among the people, Where is their God?
18Then will the Lord be jealous for his land, and pity his people.
Christian Standard Bible
Chapter 2
12Even now— this is the Lord’s declaration— turn to me with all your heart, with fasting, weeping, and mourning. 13Tear your hearts, not just your clothes, and return to the Lord your God. For he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in faithful love, and he relents from sending disaster.
14Who knows? He may turn and relent and leave a blessing behind him, so you can offer grain and wine to the Lord your God.
15Blow the horn in Zion! Announce a sacred fast; proclaim an assembly.
16Gather the people; sanctify the congregation; assemble the aged; gather the infants, even babies nursing at the breast. Let the groom leave his bedroom, and the bride her honeymoon chamber.
17Let the priests, the Lord’s ministers, weep between the portico and the altar. Let them say: "Have pity on your people, Lord, and do not make your inheritance a disgrace, an object of scorn among the nations. Why should it be said among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?’"
20I will drive the northerner far from you and banish him to a dry and desolate land, his front ranks into the Dead Sea, and his rear guard into the Mediterranean Sea. His stench will rise; yes, his rotten smell will rise, for he has done astonishing things.
21Don’t be afraid, land; rejoice and be glad, for the Lord has done astonishing things.
22Don’t be afraid, wild animals, for the wilderness pastures have turned green, the trees bear their fruit, and the fig tree and grapevine yield their riches.
23Children of Zion, rejoice and be glad in the Lord your God, because he gives you the autumn rain for your vindication. He sends showers for you, both autumn and spring rain as before.
New Living Translation
Chapter 2
12That is why the Lord says, 'Turn to me now, while there is time. Give me your hearts. Come with fasting, weeping, and mourning. 13Don’t tear your clothing in your grief, but tear your hearts instead.' Return to the Lord your God, for he is merciful and compassionate, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. He is eager to relent and not punish. 14Who knows? Perhaps he will give you a reprieve, sending you a blessing instead of this curse. Perhaps you will be able to offer grain and wine to the Lord your God as before.
15Blow the ram’s horn in Jerusalem! Announce a time of fasting; call the people together for a solemn meeting.
16Gather all the people — the elders, the children, and even the babies. Call the bridegroom from his quarters and the bride from her private room.
17Let the priests, who minister in the Lord’s presence, stand and weep between the entry room to the Temple and the altar. Let them pray, 'Spare your people, Lord! Don’t let your special possession become an object of mockery. Don’t let them become a joke for unbelieving foreigners who say, ‘Has the God of Israel left them?’'
18Then the Lord will pity his people and jealously guard the honor of his land.
19The Lord will reply, 'Look! I am sending you grain and new wine and olive oil, enough to satisfy your needs. You will no longer be an object of mockery among the surrounding nations.
20I will drive away these armies from the north. I will send them into the parched wastelands. Those in the front will be driven into the Dead Sea, and those at the rear into the Mediterranean. The stench of their rotting bodies will rise over the land.' Surely the Lord has done great things!
21Don’t be afraid, O land. Be glad now and rejoice, for the Lord has done great things.
22Don’t be afraid, you animals of the field, for the wilderness pastures will soon be green. The trees will again be filled with fruit; fig trees and grapevines will be loaded down once more.
23Rejoice, you people of Jerusalem! Rejoice in the Lord your God! For the rain he sends demonstrates his faithfulness. Once more the autumn rains will come, as well as the rains of spring.
English Standard Version
Chapter 2
12"Yet even now," declares the Lord, "return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; 13and rend your hearts and not your garments." Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and he relents over disaster. 14 Who knows whether he will not turn and relent, and leave a blessing behind him, a grain offering and a drink offering for the Lord your God? 15 Blow the trumpet in Zion; consecrate a fast; call a solemn assembly; 16gather the people. Consecrate the congregation; assemble the elders; gather the children, even nursing infants. Let the bridegroom leave his room, and the bride her chamber. 17 Between the vestibule and the altar let the priests, the ministers of the Lord, weep and say, "Spare your people, O Lord, and make not your heritage a reproach, a byword among the nations. Why should they say among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?’" 18 Then the Lord became jealous for his land and had pity on his people. 19The Lord answered and said to his people, "Behold, I am sending to you grain, wine, and oil, and you will be satisfied; and I will no more make you a reproach among the nations. 20"I will remove the northerner far from you, and drive him into a parched and desolate land, his vanguard into the eastern sea, and his rear guard into the western sea; the stench and foul smell of him will rise, for he has done great things. 21"Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice, for the Lord has done great things! 22Fear not, you beasts of the field, for the pastures of the wilderness are green; the tree bears its fruit; the fig tree and vine give their full yield. 23 "Be glad, O children of Zion, and rejoice in the Lord your God, for he has given the early rain for your vindication; he has poured down for you abundant rain, the early and the latter rain, as before.New International Version
Chapter 2
12"Even now," declares the Lord, "return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning." 13Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity.
14Who knows? He may turn and relent and leave behind a blessing— grain offerings and drink offerings for the Lord your God.
15Blow the trumpet in Zion, declare a holy fast, call a sacred assembly.
16Gather the people, consecrate the assembly; bring together the elders, gather the children, those nursing at the breast. Let the bridegroom leave his room and the bride her chamber.
17Let the priests, who minister before the Lord, weep between the portico and the altar. Let them say, "Spare your people, Lord. Do not make your inheritance an object of scorn, a byword among the nations. Why should they say among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?’ "
18Then the Lord was jealous for his land and took pity on his people.
20"I will drive the northern horde far from you, pushing it into a parched and barren land; its eastern ranks will drown in the Dead Sea and its western ranks in the Mediterranean Sea. And its stench will go up; its smell will rise." Surely he has done great things!
21Do not be afraid, land of Judah; be glad and rejoice. Surely the Lord has done great things!
22Do not be afraid, you wild animals, for the pastures in the wilderness are becoming green. The trees are bearing their fruit; the fig tree and the vine yield their riches.
23Be glad, people of Zion, rejoice in the Lord your God, for he has given you the autumn rains because he is faithful. He sends you abundant showers, both autumn and spring rains, as before.
New King James Version
