Joel 1:17-20

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 1:17

The seed is rotten under their clods ,.... Or "grains" F26 פרדות "grana", Pagninus, Montanus, Mercerus, Tarnovius, Cocceius, Bochartus. So Ben Melech, who observes they are so called, because they are separated and scattered under the earth. of wheat or barley, which had been sown, and, for want of rain, putrefied and wasted away under the clods of earth, through the great drought; so that what with locusts, which cropped that that did bud forth, and with the drought, by reason of... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Joel 1:18

How do the beasts groan ?.... For want of fodder, all green grass and herbs being eaten up by the locusts; or devoured, or trampled upon, and destroyed, by the Chaldeans; and also for want of water to quench their thirst: the herds of cattle are perplexed, because they have no pasture ; the larger cattle, as oxen; these were in the utmost perplexity, not knowing where to go for food or drink: yea, the flocks of sheep are made desolate ; which have shepherds to lead and direct them to... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Joel 1:19

O Lord, to thee will I cry ,.... Or pray, as the Targum; with great vehemency and earnestness, commiserating the case of man and beast: these are the words of the prophet, resolving to use his interest at the through of grace in this time of distress, whatever others did: for the fire hath devoured the pastures of the wilderness ; or, "of the plain" F3 מדבר "non tantum desertum significat sed et campum sativum", Oecolampadius. "A place of pasture for cattle", Ben Melech. though... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Joel 1:20

The beasts of the field cry also unto thee ,.... As well as the prophet, in their way; which may be mentioned, both as a rebuke to such who had no sense of the judgments upon them, and called not on the Lord; and to express the greatness of the calamity, of which the brute creatures were sensible, and made piteous moans, as for food, so for drink; panting thorough excessive heat and vehement thirst, as the hart, after the water brooks, of which this word is only used, Psalm 42:1 ; but in... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Joel 1:17

The seed is rotten under their clods - When the sprout was cut off as low as possible by the locusts, there was no farther germination. The seed rotted away. read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Joel 1:18

How do the beasts groan! - I really think that the neighing of horses, or braying of asses, is wonderfully expressed by the sound of the original: בהמה נאנחה מה mah Neenchah behemah , how do the horses neigh! how do the asses bray! בהמה behemah is a collective name for all domestic cattle, and those used in husbandry. Cattle are perplexed - They are looking everywhere, and wandering about to find some grass, and know not which way to run. read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Joel 1:19

O Lord, to thee will I cry - Let this calamity come as it may, we have sinned, and should humble ourselves before God; and it is such a calamity as God alone can remove, therefore unto him must we cry. The fire hath devoured the pastures - This may either refer to a drought, or to the effects of the locusts; as the ground, after they have passed over it, everywhere appears as if a sheet of flame had not only scorched, but consumed every thing. read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Joel 1:20

The beasts of the field cry also unto thee - Even the cattle, wild and tame, are represented as supplicating God to have mercy upon them, and send them provender! There is a similar affecting description of the effects of a drought in Jeremiah, Jeremiah 14:6 . The rivers of waters are dried up - There must have been a drought as well as a host of locusts; as some of these expressions seem to apply to the effects of intense heat. For המדבר hammidbar , "the wilderness," one of my... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Joel 1:17

Verse 17 He shows the cause of the evil, Rotted have the grains in the very furrows. For they call seeds פרדות peredut from the act of scattering. He then calls grains by this name, because they are scattered; and he says that they rotted in the fields when they ought to have germinated. He then adds, The granaries halve become desolated and the barns have been pulled down; for there was no use for them. Hence we conclude, that sterility had become most grievousand perpetual; for if the people... read more

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