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Joel 1:1-2:17
New International Version
Joel 1:1-2:17
New International Version
1 The word of the Lord that came(A) to Joel(B) son of Pethuel.
An Invasion of Locusts
2 Hear this,(C) you elders;(D)
listen, all who live in the land.(E)
Has anything like this ever happened in your days
or in the days of your ancestors?(F)
3 Tell it to your children,(G)
and let your children tell it to their children,
and their children to the next generation.(H)
4 What the locust(I) swarm has left
the great locusts have eaten;
what the great locusts have left
the young locusts have eaten;
what the young locusts have left(J)
other locusts[a] have eaten.(K)
5 Wake up, you drunkards, and weep!
Wail, all you drinkers of wine;(L)
wail because of the new wine,
for it has been snatched(M) from your lips.
6 A nation has invaded my land,
a mighty army without number;(N)
it has the teeth(O) of a lion,
the fangs of a lioness.
7 It has laid waste(P) my vines
and ruined my fig trees.(Q)
It has stripped off their bark
and thrown it away,
leaving their branches white.
8 Mourn like a virgin in sackcloth(R)
grieving for the betrothed of her youth.
9 Grain offerings and drink offerings(S)
are cut off from the house of the Lord.
The priests are in mourning,(T)
those who minister before the Lord.
10 The fields are ruined,
the ground is dried up;(U)
the grain is destroyed,
the new wine(V) is dried up,
the olive oil fails.(W)
11 Despair, you farmers,(X)
wail, you vine growers;
grieve for the wheat and the barley,(Y)
because the harvest of the field is destroyed.(Z)
12 The vine is dried up
and the fig tree is withered;(AA)
the pomegranate,(AB) the palm and the apple[b] tree—
all the trees of the field—are dried up.(AC)
Surely the people’s joy
is withered away.
A Call to Lamentation
13 Put on sackcloth,(AD) you priests, and mourn;
wail, you who minister(AE) before the altar.
Come, spend the night in sackcloth,
you who minister before my God;
for the grain offerings and drink offerings(AF)
are withheld from the house of your God.
14 Declare a holy fast;(AG)
call a sacred assembly.
Summon the elders
and all who live in the land(AH)
to the house of the Lord your God,
and cry out(AI) to the Lord.(AJ)
15 Alas for that(AK) day!
For the day of the Lord(AL) is near;
it will come like destruction from the Almighty.[c](AM)
16 Has not the food been cut off(AN)
before our very eyes—
joy and gladness(AO)
from the house of our God?(AP)
17 The seeds are shriveled
beneath the clods.[d](AQ)
The storehouses are in ruins,
the granaries have been broken down,
for the grain has dried up.
18 How the cattle moan!
The herds mill about
because they have no pasture;(AR)
even the flocks of sheep are suffering.(AS)
19 To you, Lord, I call,(AT)
for fire(AU) has devoured the pastures(AV) in the wilderness
and flames have burned up all the trees of the field.
20 Even the wild animals pant for you;(AW)
the streams of water have dried up(AX)
and fire has devoured the pastures(AY) in the wilderness.
An Army of Locusts
Let all who live in the land tremble,
for the day of the Lord(BC) is coming.
It is close at hand(BD)—
2 a day of darkness(BE) and gloom,(BF)
a day of clouds(BG) and blackness.(BH)
Like dawn spreading across the mountains
a large and mighty army(BI) comes,
such as never was in ancient times(BJ)
nor ever will be in ages to come.
3 Before them fire(BK) devours,
behind them a flame blazes.
Before them the land is like the garden of Eden,(BL)
behind them, a desert waste(BM)—
nothing escapes them.
4 They have the appearance of horses;(BN)
they gallop along like cavalry.
5 With a noise like that of chariots(BO)
they leap over the mountaintops,
like a crackling fire(BP) consuming stubble,
like a mighty army drawn up for battle.
6 At the sight of them, nations are in anguish;(BQ)
every face turns pale.(BR)
7 They charge like warriors;(BS)
they scale walls like soldiers.
They all march in line,(BT)
not swerving(BU) from their course.
8 They do not jostle each other;
each marches straight ahead.
They plunge through defenses
without breaking ranks.
9 They rush upon the city;
they run along the wall.
They climb into the houses;(BV)
like thieves they enter through the windows.(BW)
10 Before them the earth shakes,(BX)
the heavens tremble,(BY)
the sun and moon are darkened,(BZ)
and the stars no longer shine.(CA)
11 The Lord(CB) thunders(CC)
at the head of his army;(CD)
his forces are beyond number,
and mighty is the army that obeys his command.
The day of the Lord is great;(CE)
it is dreadful.
Who can endure it?(CF)
Rend Your Heart
12 “Even now,” declares the Lord,
“return(CG) to me with all your heart,(CH)
with fasting and weeping and mourning.”
13 Rend your heart(CI)
and not your garments.(CJ)
Return(CK) to the Lord your God,
for he is gracious and compassionate,(CL)
slow to anger and abounding in love,(CM)
and he relents from sending calamity.(CN)
14 Who knows? He may turn(CO) and relent(CP)
and leave behind a blessing(CQ)—
grain offerings and drink offerings(CR)
for the Lord your God.
15 Blow the trumpet(CS) in Zion,(CT)
declare a holy fast,(CU)
call a sacred assembly.(CV)
16 Gather the people,
consecrate(CW) the assembly;
bring together the elders,(CX)
gather the children,
those nursing at the breast.
Let the bridegroom(CY) leave his room
and the bride her chamber.
17 Let the priests, who minister(CZ) before the Lord,
weep(DA) between the portico and the altar.(DB)
Let them say, “Spare your people, Lord.
Do not make your inheritance an object of scorn,(DC)
a byword(DD) among the nations.
Why should they say among the peoples,
‘Where is their God?(DE)’”
Joel 1:1-2:17
King James Version
Joel 1:1-2:17
King James Version
1 The word of the Lord that came to Joel the son of Pethuel.
2 Hear this, ye old men, and give ear, all ye inhabitants of the land. Hath this been in your days, or even in the days of your fathers?
3 Tell ye your children of it, and let your children tell their children, and their children another generation.
4 That which the palmerworm hath left hath the locust eaten; and that which the locust hath left hath the cankerworm eaten; and that which the cankerworm hath left hath the caterpiller eaten.
5 Awake, ye drunkards, and weep; and howl, all ye drinkers of wine, because of the new wine; for it is cut off from your mouth.
6 For a nation is come up upon my land, strong, and without number, whose teeth are the teeth of a lion, and he hath the cheek teeth of a great lion.
7 He hath laid my vine waste, and barked my fig tree: he hath made it clean bare, and cast it away; the branches thereof are made white.
8 Lament like a virgin girded with sackcloth for the husband of her youth.
9 The meat offering and the drink offering is cut off from the house of the Lord; the priests, the Lord's ministers, mourn.
10 The field is wasted, the land mourneth; for the corn is wasted: the new wine is dried up, the oil languisheth.
11 Be ye ashamed, O ye husbandmen; howl, O ye vinedressers, for the wheat and for the barley; because the harvest of the field is perished.
12 The vine is dried up, and the fig tree languisheth; the pomegranate tree, the palm tree also, and the apple tree, even all the trees of the field, are withered: because joy is withered away from the sons of men.
13 Gird yourselves, and lament, ye priests: howl, ye ministers of the altar: come, lie all night in sackcloth, ye ministers of my God: for the meat offering and the drink offering is withholden from the house of your God.
14 Sanctify ye a fast, call a solemn assembly, gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land into the house of the Lord your God, and cry unto the Lord,
15 Alas for the day! for the day of the Lord is at hand, and as a destruction from the Almighty shall it come.
16 Is not the meat cut off before our eyes, yea, joy and gladness from the house of our God?
17 The seed is rotten under their clods, the garners are laid desolate, the barns are broken down; for the corn is withered.
18 How do the beasts groan! the herds of cattle are perplexed, because they have no pasture; yea, the flocks of sheep are made desolate.
19 O Lord, to thee will I cry: for the fire hath devoured the pastures of the wilderness, and the flame hath burned all the trees of the field.
20 The beasts of the field cry also unto thee: for the rivers of waters are dried up, and the fire hath devoured the pastures of the wilderness.
2 Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand;
2 A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations.
3 A fire devoureth before them; and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them.
4 The appearance of them is as the appearance of horses; and as horsemen, so shall they run.
5 Like the noise of chariots on the tops of mountains shall they leap, like the noise of a flame of fire that devoureth the stubble, as a strong people set in battle array.
6 Before their face the people shall be much pained: all faces shall gather blackness.
7 They shall run like mighty men; they shall climb the wall like men of war; and they shall march every one on his ways, and they shall not break their ranks:
8 Neither shall one thrust another; they shall walk every one in his path: and when they fall upon the sword, they shall not be wounded.
9 They shall run to and fro in the city; they shall run upon the wall, they shall climb up upon the houses; they shall enter in at the windows like a thief.
10 The earth shall quake before them; the heavens shall tremble: the sun and the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall withdraw their shining:
11 And the Lord shall utter his voice before his army: for his camp is very great: for he is strong that executeth his word: for the day of the Lord is great and very terrible; and who can abide it?
12 Therefore also now, saith the Lord, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning:
13 And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the Lord your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil.
14 Who knoweth if he will return and repent, and leave a blessing behind him; even a meat offering and a drink offering unto the Lord your God?
15 Blow the trumpet in Zion, sanctify a fast, call a solemn assembly:
16 Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, assemble the elders, gather the children, and those that suck the breasts: let the bridegroom go forth of his chamber, and the bride out of her closet.
17 Let 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?
Joel 1:1-2:17
New King James Version
Joel 1:1-2:17
New King James Version
The Locust Plague in Judah
1 The word of the Lord that came to (A)Joel the son of Pethuel.
The Land Laid Waste(B)
2 Hear this, you elders,
And give ear, all you inhabitants of the land!
(C)Has anything like this happened in your days,
Or even in the days of your fathers?
3 (D)Tell your children about it,
Let your children tell their children,
And their children another generation.
4 (E)What the chewing [a]locust left, the (F)swarming locust has eaten;
What the swarming locust left, the crawling locust has eaten;
And what the crawling locust left, the consuming locust has eaten.
5 Awake, you (G)drunkards, and weep;
And wail, all you drinkers of wine,
Because of the new wine,
(H)For it has been cut off from your mouth.
6 For (I)a nation has come up against My land,
Strong, and without number;
(J)His teeth are the teeth of a lion,
And he has the fangs of a [b]fierce lion.
7 He has (K)laid waste My vine,
And [c]ruined My fig tree;
He has stripped it bare and thrown it away;
Its branches are made white.
8 (L)Lament like a virgin girded with sackcloth
For (M)the husband of her youth.
9 (N)The grain offering and the drink offering
Have been cut off from the house of the Lord;
The priests (O)mourn, who minister to the Lord.
10 The field is wasted,
(P)The land mourns;
For the grain is ruined,
(Q)The new wine is dried up,
The oil fails.
11 (R)Be ashamed, you farmers,
Wail, you vinedressers,
For the wheat and the barley;
Because the harvest of the field has perished.
12 (S)The vine has dried up,
And the fig tree has withered;
The pomegranate tree,
The palm tree also,
And the apple tree—
All the trees of the field are withered;
Surely (T)joy has withered away from the sons of men.
Mourning for the Land
13 (U)Gird yourselves and lament, you priests;
Wail, you who minister before the altar;
Come, lie all night in sackcloth,
You who minister to my God;
For the grain offering and the drink offering
Are withheld from the house of your God.
14 (V)Consecrate a fast,
Call (W)a sacred assembly;
Gather the elders
And (X)all the inhabitants of the land
Into the house of the Lord your God,
And cry out to the Lord.
15 (Y)Alas for the day!
For (Z)the day of the Lord is at hand;
It shall come as destruction from the Almighty.
16 Is not the food (AA)cut off before our eyes,
(AB)Joy and gladness from the house of our God?
17 The seed shrivels under the clods,
Storehouses are in shambles;
Barns are broken down,
For the grain has withered.
18 How (AC)the animals groan!
The herds of cattle are restless,
Because they have no pasture;
Even the flocks of sheep [d]suffer punishment.
19 O Lord, (AD)to You I cry out;
For (AE)fire has devoured the [e]open pastures,
And a flame has burned all the trees of the field.
20 The beasts of the field also (AF)cry out to You,
For (AG)the water brooks are dried up,
And fire has devoured the [f]open pastures.
The Day of the Lord
2 Blow (AH)the [g]trumpet in Zion,
And (AI)sound an alarm in My holy mountain!
Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble;
For (AJ)the day of the Lord is coming,
For it is at hand:
2 (AK)A day of darkness and gloominess,
A day of clouds and thick darkness,
Like the morning clouds spread over the mountains.
(AL)A people come, great and strong,
(AM)The like of whom has never been;
Nor will there ever be any such after them,
Even for many successive generations.
3 A fire devours before them,
And behind them a flame burns;
The land is like (AN)the Garden of Eden before them,
(AO)And behind them a desolate wilderness;
Surely nothing shall escape them.
4 (AP)Their appearance is like the appearance of horses;
And like [h]swift steeds, so they run.
5 (AQ)With a noise like chariots
Over mountaintops they leap,
Like the noise of a flaming fire that devours the stubble,
Like a strong people set in battle array.
6 Before them the people writhe in pain;
(AR)All faces [i]are drained of color.
7 They run like mighty men,
They climb the wall like men of war;
Every one marches in formation,
And they do not break (AS)ranks.
8 They do not push one another;
Every one marches in his own [j]column.
Though they lunge between the weapons,
They are not [k]cut down.
9 They run to and fro in the city,
They run on the wall;
They climb into the houses,
They (AT)enter at the windows (AU)like a thief.
10 (AV)The earth quakes before them,
The heavens tremble;
(AW)The sun and moon grow dark,
And the stars diminish their brightness.
11 (AX)The Lord gives voice before His army,
For His camp is very great;
(AY)For strong is the One who executes His word.
For the (AZ)day of the Lord is great and very terrible;
(BA)Who can endure it?
A Call to Repentance
12 “Now, therefore,” says the Lord,
(BB)“Turn to Me with all your heart,
With fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.”
13 So (BC)rend your heart, and not (BD)your garments;
Return to the Lord your God,
For He is (BE)gracious and merciful,
Slow to anger, and of great kindness;
And He relents from doing harm.
14 (BF)Who knows if He will turn and relent,
And leave (BG)a blessing behind Him—
(BH)A grain offering and a drink offering
For the Lord your God?
15 (BI)Blow the [l]trumpet in Zion,
(BJ)Consecrate a fast,
Call a sacred assembly;
16 Gather the people,
(BK)Sanctify the congregation,
Assemble the elders,
Gather the children and nursing babes;
(BL)Let the bridegroom go out from his chamber,
And the bride from her dressing room.
17 Let the priests, who minister to the Lord,
Weep (BM)between the porch and the altar;
Let them say, (BN)“Spare Your people, O Lord,
And do not give Your heritage to reproach,
That the nations should [m]rule over them.
(BO)Why should they say among the peoples,
‘Where is their God?’ ”
Footnotes
- Joel 1:4 Exact identity of these locusts unknown
- Joel 1:6 Or lioness
- Joel 1:7 Or splintered
- Joel 1:18 LXX, Vg. are made desolate
- Joel 1:19 Lit. pastures of the wilderness
- Joel 1:20 Lit. pastures of the wilderness
- Joel 2:1 ram’s horn
- Joel 2:4 Or horsemen
- Joel 2:6 LXX, Tg., Vg. gather blackness
- Joel 2:8 Lit. highway
- Joel 2:8 Halted by losses
- Joel 2:15 ram’s horn
- Joel 2:17 Or speak a proverb against them
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.
New King James Version (NKJV) 
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.