restore : make good. locust, &c. See note on Joel 1:4 . My great army. Here the symbol, and what is symbolized, are joined together, and the army of men (verses: Joel 2:11 , Joel 2:20 ) is implied by the Figure of speech Hypocatastasis ( App-6 ). read more
"And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the canker-worm, and the caterpillar, and the palmer-worm, my great army which I sent among you. And ye shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, and shall praise the name of Jehovah your God, that hath dwelt wondrously with you; and my people shall never be put to shame.It is of interest that the four names of locusts appearing here are the reverse order of their use in Joel 1:4. God promised the complete recovery of all the losses... read more
Joel 2:25. And I will restore to you the years, &c.— Concerning these years, it said in chap. Joe 1:4 that the locusts shall eat what the palmer-worm hath left, &c. Chandler renders it, I will recompense to you the years, &c. God, says Houbigant, restored fertility to the land, when he drove from Judaea the northern people, or the army of Sennacherib, who came after the locusts had destroyed Judaea, as the prophet had foretold in the 6th verse of the former chapter. read more
25. locust . . . cankerworm . . . caterpiller . . . palmer worm—the reverse order from :-, where (see on Joel 1:4) God will restore not only what has been lost by the full-grown consuming locust, but also what has been lost by the less destructive licking locust, and swarming locust, and gnawing locust. 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
C. The possibility of forgiveness and restoration 2:18-27Joel next revealed the Lord’s response and comforting words in view of the people’s private and public repentance. It is unclear whether he meant that the Lord had responded or would respond. The problem is the Hebrew perfect verbs, which can be rendered in English with either past or future verbs. Several English translations (NASB, NIV, AV) interpreted the Lord’s response as being conditioned on the people’s repentance and translated... read more
2. The Lord’s promise of blessing 2:19-27Having given His essential response to the people’s repentance, the Lord now explained what He would do in more detail. This section is chiastic with the focus of emphasis on Joel 2:21-24. Joel 2:19; Joel 2:26-27 promise a restoration of crops and a cessation of shame. Joel 2:20; Joel 2:25 promise the elimination of enemies, and Joel 2:21-24 urge courage and encourage rejoicing. read more
The Lord further promised that He would make up to His people what they had suffered because of the locust invasion (cf. Joel 1:4; Exodus 22:1; 2 Kings 4:7). The "years that the locusts had eaten" refers to the yield or produce of those years. Sin had resulted in covenant curses, but repentance would result in covenant blessings (cf. Deuteronomy 28-29). 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
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Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Joel 2:12-27
2:12-32 GOD’S MERCY ON THE REPENTANTRepentance and restoration (2:12-27)Although God is the one who has sent this judgment, it is not too late for the people to ask for his mercy. However, this must be accompanied by genuine inward repentance, not just by the outward show of torn clothing, sackcloth and ashes. God may then restore their fields and vineyards, and they will be able to worship him with their cereal and wine offerings again (12-14).Once more a trumpet is blown, but this time to... read more