Joel 1:15-16

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Joel 1:14-20

We have observed abundance of tears shed for the destruction of the fruits of the earth by the locusts; now here we have those tears turned into the right channel, that of repentance and humiliation before God. The judgment was very heavy, and here they are directed to own the hand of God in it, his mighty hand, and to humble themselves under it. Here is, I. A proclamation issued out for a general fast. The priests are ordered to appoint one; they must not only mourn themselves, but they must... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Joel 1:15

Alas for the day! for the day of the Lord is at hand ,.... A time of severer and heavier judgments than these of the locusts, caterpillars, &c.; which were a presage and emblem of greater ones, even of the total destruction of their city, temple, and nation, either by the Chaldeans, or by the Romans, or both: and as a destruction from the Almighty shall it come ; unawares, suddenly, and irresistibly: there is in the Hebrew text an elegant play on words, which may be rendered, as... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Joel 1:16

Is not the meat cut off before our eyes ?.... Such an interrogation most strongly affirms; it was a matter out of all question, they could not but see it with their eyes; it was a plain case, and not to be denied, that every eatable thing, or that of which food was wont to be made, was cut off by the locusts, or the drought, or by the Assyrian or Chaldean army: yea , joy and gladness from the house of our God ; the harvest being perished, there were no firstfruits brought to the... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Joel 1:15

Alas for the day! - The Syriac repeats this, the Vulgate, Septuagint, and Arabic, thrice: "Alas, alas, alas, for the day!" As a destruction from the Almighty - The destruction that is now coming is no ordinary calamity; it is as a signal judgment immediately inflicted by the Almighty. read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Joel 1:15

Verse 15 It now follows, Alas the day! for nigh is the day of Jehovah. Here the Prophet, as it was at first stated, threatens something worse in future than what they had experienced. He has hitherto been showing their torpidity; now he declares that they had not yet suffered all their punishments, but that there was something worse to be feared, except they turned seasonably to God. And he now exclaims, as though the day of Jehovah was before his eyes, and he calls it the day of Jehovah,... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Joel 1:16

Verse 16 He repeats the same thing as before, for he reproaches the Jews for being so slow to consider that the hand of God was against them. Has not the meat, he says, been cut off before our eyes? joy and exultation from the house of our God? Here he chides the madness of the Jews, that they perceived not things set before their eyes. He therefore says that they were blind in the midst of light, and that their sight was such, that seeing they saw nothing: they surely ought to have felt... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Joel 1:14-20

After urging the priests to lead the way in the matter, he proceeds to summon all classes of the people, and particularly the elders, to engage in penitence, fasting, and solemn supplications, in order to avert the calamities that were impending, or to escape from them if they had already begun. read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Joel 1:14-20

Calamity removed. I. THE DISCHARGE OF THE DUTIES ENJOINED IN A RIGHT WAY . After the prophet had summoned the ministers of religion to realize their responsibility and humble themselves under a due sense of sin—its sinfulness in God's sight—he further intimates its calamitous consequences to a country, to a community both in a temporal and spiritual sense; he then proceeds to point out the proper method of going about repentance and reform, urging the work with suitable... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Joel 1:15

Alas for the day! for the day of the Lord is at hand, and as a destruction from the Almighty shall it come . Some understand these words as suggested by the prophet to the people, that they might use them in their solemn and sorrowful appeal to the Almighty. This is favoured by the Syriac, which adds, "and say," as if the prophet prescribed to them the substance of their address. We prefer taking them as the prophet's own words, which he era-ploys to justify the urgency of the appeal... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Joel 1:15

The day of the Lord. This phrase is peculiarly Joel's, and it is apparently used by him in different senses. Of these we notice three. I. THE DAY OF THE LORD IS A DAY OF CALAMITY AND RETRIBUTION . This is plain from its further designation as a day of destruction, and from the prefatory exclamation "Alas]" with which it is introduced. Superstition, no doubt, has often misinterpreted the calamities of human life; yet it would be insensibility and spiritual... read more

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