A fire, &c. Compare Joel 1:19 , Joel 1:20 . them. The northern army (Joel 2:11 ) symbolized by the locusts of Joel 1:4 . the garden of Eden. Reference to Pentateuch (Genesis 2:8 ; Genesis 2:13 , Genesis 2:10 ). App-92 . Compare Isaiah 51:3 .Ezekiel 36:35 . a desolate wilderness. Compare Joel 3:19 . Psalms 107:34 . read more
"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 none hath escaped them."None hath escaped them ..." This is the key that unlocks the extended meaning of the locusts in this passage. The locusts never hurt people; and clearly the disaster threatened here is against the population itself. The probability of this view being correct is greatly enhanced by the dual presentation of the... read more
3. before . . . behind—that is, on every side ( :-). fire . . . flame—destruction . . . desolation (Isaiah 10:17). as . . . Eden . . . wilderness—conversely (Isaiah 51:3; Ezekiel 36:35). read more
A. The invading army 2:1-11The Lord revealed that an army of human beings rather than locusts would soon assail Jerusalem. He described this army at length to stress the danger that His people faced and to motivate them to repent. read more
III. A NEAR FUTURE DAY OF THE LORD: A HUMAN INVASION 2:1-27Joel had spoken briefly of a coming day of the Lord in Joel 1:15, but now he said more about it.The term "the day of the Lord" seems to have arisen from the popular concept, in the ancient Near East, that a really great warrior king could consummate an entire military campaign in one single day. [Note: See Douglas Stuart, "The Sovereign’s Day of Conquest," Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research 220/21 (December 1975,... read more
This huge army advanced like a forest fire, consuming everything in its path (cf. Joel 1:19). Before the devastation conditions were idyllic, but after it there was nothing but a scorched-earth wilderness. Nothing escaped the advancing judgment (cf. Exodus 10:5; Exodus 10:15). read more
2. The destructive power of the army 2:3-5 read more
Repentance followed by RestorationJoel 2:1-17 are another description of the locust plague. An alarm is sounded as though the Day of Jehovah had come (Joel 2:1-3). The advance of the locusts into the city is described under the figure of an invading army (Joel 2:4-11). A message to the penitent is given from Jehovah (Joel 2:12-14), and a call is issued for a fast of supplication (Joel 2:15-17). Then follow the announcements that Jehovah has had pity on His people, and that He will remove the... read more
(3) Before them . . . behind them.—As with the locusts, so with the invading hosts of enemies: the country is found a paradise, and left a desert. read more
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Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Joel 2:1-11
An army of locusts (2:1-11)Joel now pictures the approaching swarms of locusts as a person in Jerusalem sees them. He compares them to an enemy army and commands the watchman on the city wall to blow the trumpet to warn the city’s inhabitants of the attack. The swarms are so thick that they look like black clouds as they sweep down over the mountains (2:1-2). They spread over the countryside like an uncontrollable bushfire, turning healthy farmlands into barren wastes (3). People are terrified.... read more