Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Joel 2:14
Who knoweth if He will return - God has promised forgiveness of sins and of eternal punishment to those who turn to Him with their whole heart. Of this, then, there could be no doubt. But He has not promised either to individuals or to Churches, that He will remit the temporal punishment which He had threatened. He forgave David the sin. Nathan says, “The Lord also hath put away thy sin.” But he said at the same time, “the sword shall never depart from thy house 2 Samuel 12:13, 2 Samuel 12:10;... read more
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Joel 2:13
And rend your hearts and not your garments - that is, “not your garments only” (see the note at Hosea 6:6). The rending of the clothes was an expression of extraordinary uncontrollable emotion, chiefly of grief, of terror, or of horror. At least, in Holy Scripture it is not mentioned as a part of ordinary mourning, but only upon some sudden overpowering grief, whether public or private . It was not used on occasion of death, unless there were something very grievous about its circumstances. At... read more