Gioele 1:4 Commento

This chapter is the description of a lamentable devastation made of the country of Judah by locusts and caterpillars. Some think that the prophet speaks of it as a thing to come and gives warning of it beforehand, as usually the prophets did of judgments coming. Others think that it was now present, and that his business was to affect the people with it and awaken them by it to repentance. I. It is spoken of as a judgment which there was no precedent of in former ages (Joe 1:1-7). II. All sorts of people sharing in the calamity are called upon to lament it (Joe 1:8-13). III. They are directed to look up to God in their lamentations, and to humble themselves before him (Joe 1:14-20).

This chapter describes a dreadful calamity upon the people of the Jews, by locusts and, caterpillars, and drought. After the title of the book, Joe 1:1; old men are called upon to observe this sore judgment to their children, that it might be transmitted to the latest posterity, as that the like to which had not been seen and heard of, Joe 1:2; and drunkards to awake and weep, because the vines were destroyed, and no wine could be made for them, Joe 1:5; and not only husbandmen and vinedressers, but the priests of the Lord, are called to mourn, because such destruction, was made in the fields and vineyards, that there were no meat nor drink offering brought into the house of the Lord, Joe 1:8; wherefore a general and solemn fast is required throughout the land, because of the distress of man and beast, Joe 1:14; and the chapter is concluded with the resolution of the prophet to cry unto the Lord, on account of this calamity, Joe 1:19.

That which the palmer worm hath left hath the locust eaten,.... These, with the two following, are four kinds of, locusts as Jarchi observes; though it is difficult to fix the particular species designed; they seem to have their names from some peculiar properties belonging to them; as the first of these from their sheering or cropping off the fruits and leaves of trees; and the second from the vast increase of them, the multitude they bring forth and the large numbers they appear in: and that which the locust hath left hath the canker worm eaten; which in the Hebrew language is called from its licking up the fruits of the earth, by which it becomes barren: and that which the canker worm hath left hath the caterpillar eaten; which has its name from wasting and consuming all that comes in its way: now these came not together, but followed one another; not one one year, and another the second, and so on throughout four years, as Kimchi thinks; for though the calamity lasted some years as is manifest from Joe 2:25; yet it is not reasonable, that, for instance what the palmer worm left the first year should remain in the fields and vineyards, on the fig trees and vines till the next year for the locust to consume and is on:, but rather these all appeared in succession in one and the same year; and so what the palmer worm left having eaten up what was most agreeable to them, the locust came and devoured what they had left; and then what they left was destroyed by the canker worm, which fed on that which was most grateful to them; and last of all came the caterpillar, and consumed all the others had left; and this might be continued for years successively: when this calamity was, we have no account in sacred history; whether it was in the seven years' famine in the days of Elisha, or the same with what Amos speaks of, Amo 4:6; is not easy to say: and though it seems to be literally understood, as the drought later mentioned, yet might be typical of the enemies of the Jews succeeding one another in the destruction of them. Not of the four monarchies, the Babylonians, Persians, Grecians, and Romans, as Lyra and Abarbinel; since the Persians particularly never entered into the land of Judea and wasted it; though this is the sense of the ancient Jews, as Jerom relates; for he says the Hebrews interpret the "palmer worm" of the Assyrians, Babylonians, and Chaldeans, who, coming from one climate of the world, destroyed both the ten and the two tribes, that is, all the people of Israel: the locust they interpret of the Medes and Persians, who, having overturned the Chaldean empire, carried the Jews captive: the "canker worm" is the Macedonians, and all the successors of Alexander; especially King Antiochus, surnamed Epiphanes, who like a canker worm sat in Judea, and devoured all the remains of the former kings, under whom were the wars of the Maccabees: the "caterpillar" they refer to the Roman empire, the fourth and last that oppressed the Jews, and drove them out of their borders. Nor of the several kings of Assyria and Babylon, who followed one another, and wasted first the ten tribes, and then the other two, as Tiglathpileser, Shalmaneser, Sennacherib, and Nebuchadnezzar, so Theodoret; since this prophecy only relates to the two tribes. Rather therefore this may point at the several invasions and incursions of the Chaldean army into Judea, under Nebuchadnezzar and his generals; first, when he came up against Jerusalem, and made Jehoiakim tributary to him; a second time, when he carried Jehoiachin and his family into Babylon, with a multitude of the Jews, and their wealth; a third time, when he besieged Jerusalem, and took it, and Zedekiah the king, and carried him captive; and a fourth time, when Nebuzaradan came and burnt the temple, and the houses of Jerusalem, and broke down the walls of it, and cleared the land of its inhabitants and riches; see Kg2 24:1.

The twelve prophets whose writings are compressed within the narrow limits of a single volume have symbolic, typical meanings far beyond their literal ones. Hosea speaks many times of Ephraim, of Samaria, of Joseph of Jezreel, of a wife of whoredoms and of children of whoredoms, of an adulterous woman shut up within the chamber of her husband, sitting for a long time in widowhood and in the garb of mourning awaiting the time when her husband will return to her. Joel the son of Pethuel describes the land of the twelve tribes as spoiled and devastated by the palmerworm, the cankerworm, the locust and the blight, and he predicts that after the overthrow of the former people the Holy Spirit shall be poured out upon God’s servants and handmaids. This is the same spirit that was to be poured out in the upper chamber at Zion upon the 120 believers.

(Verse 4) The residue of a caterpillar is eaten by a locust, and the residue of a locust is eaten by a beetle, and the residue of the beetle is eaten by rust. In the same way seventy times. The beginning is followed by a narrative: there, to make the listener pay attention, he promised that he would say great and incredible things, which neither the ancient history nor the present age would know. Here he placed the caterpillar, and the locust, and the beetle, and the rust, so that what each one rarely experiences, all may be remembered as happening at the same time, and therefore be marvelous. The caterpillar, which is called 'gezem' in Hebrew and 'kampē' in Greek, is interpreted by the Assyrians, Babylonians, and Chaldeans, who, coming from one climate of the world, devastated all the ten tribes and two, namely, the Israelite people. The locust, however, is interpreted by the Medes and Persians, who held the Jews captive after the overthrow of the Chaldean empire. The worm, on the other hand, refers to the Macedonians and all the successors of Alexander, especially the king Antiochus, who was known as Epiphanes, and who sat like a worm in Judaea and devoured all the remnants of the previous kings, under whom the wars of the Maccabees are narrated. They refer to the Roman Empire that completely oppressed the Jews during the fourth and final reign, to the extent of driving them out of their own territory. Josephus writes about this extensively in seven volumes, recounting the triumphs of Vespasian and Titus. We also read about the expedition of Elius Hadrian against the Jews, who so completely destroyed Jerusalem and its walls that he established a city named after himself, Eliam, from the remnants and ashes of the city. Zacharias writes that he saw in a vision four kingdoms that would overthrow Judah, represented by four horns, with an angel saying to him: 'These are the horns that scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.' (Zechariah 1:19). And again: I lifted up my eyes and saw, and behold, four chariots coming out from between two mountains, and the mountains were mountains of brass. In the first chariot were red horses, and in the second chariot black horses, and in the third chariot white horses, and in the fourth chariot dappled strong horses (Zach. VI, 1). And when the prophet had said to the angel who spoke in me, What are these, my Lord? the angel answered: These are the four winds of heaven, who come out to stand before the Lord of all the earth. And the meaning is: These are the ones who come forth from the face of the Lord, to fulfill his will. When we hear with our ears what the caterpillar, locust, weevil, rust signify to the inhabitants of the earth: now let us hear with the old men what has been said. All schools of philosophers proclaim that there are four disturbances, by which the health of souls is subverted. Two are present and contrary to each other, two are future and mutually dissenting. The present ones are sorrow and joy. We speak of sorrow of the soul, otherwise it is not sorrow of the body, but it is called illness. Therefore, we are sad and consumed by grief, and our state of mind is overturned. Hence, the Apostle warns that the brother should not be swallowed up by excessive sadness (I Cor. II). On the contrary, we rejoice and are filled with joy, and we cannot bear our blessings in moderation. It is the mark of a just and strong man not to be broken by adversities or lifted up by prosperity, but to be moderate in both. We have spoken about the disturbance of present things; let us also speak about things to come, in which there is either fear or hope. We fear adversity, we await prosperity; and what causes sorrow and joy to operate in the present, fear and hope do regarding the future, while either we fear adversity more than it is appropriate for it to be coming, or prosperity which we hope for makes us rejoice to such an extent that we cannot keep a measure, especially in those things which are uncertain, because the future is expected rather than held. The illustrious poet captures these disturbances in one incomplete verse (Aeneid, Book VI): They fear and desire (this about the future), they grieve and rejoice (this about the present), nor do they look at the breezes, he says, enclosed in darkness and a blind prison. For those who are enveloped in the darkness of disturbances are unable to behold the bright light of wisdom. Therefore, we must beware lest sorrow, like a caterpillar, consumes us; lest joy, like a locust, flying here and there and exulting in gladness, ravages us; lest fear and anxiety about the future, like a worm, devour the roots of wisdom; lest rust and longing for things to come desire useless things and lead us to ruin. Rather, in all things, let us govern the four-horse chariot with the four reins and the four red, various, white, and black horses, that is, navigate through both adverse and prosperous circumstances, guided by the reins of wisdom. I believe that anger is a passion that is slow and cannot be controlled, and delay itself and persistence weaken and exhaust all strength: if we do not kill it, it grows in us and flies away, and now it devours whatever it touches, now departing, it moves on to other things: and returning to its former seat, it becomes a pest, so that not only does it devour the crops, leaves, and bark, but even the very marrow with its slowness. But if it should happen, which, however, is rare, that even after the spirit of life has departed from us, rust destroys everything, so that it turns straw and worthless hay into blackness, so that they are not only useless for eating, but also for manure. Concerning these four disturbances, we will also discuss in the beginning Amos, if life is a companion, where it is written: On account of three transgressions of Damascus, and of four, I will not convert them, says the Lord (Amos 1:3). The disturbances that we have interpreted, the Greeks call them πάθη, which if we translate κακοζήλως into passions, we will have expressed the word rather than the meaning of the word.

In a figurative manner he wants to convey to them the impending troubles; as always, the earlier ones are surpassed by those coming later. Tiglath-pileser, king of the Assyrians, came like a cutting locust, he is saying, and laid waste no small proportion of your possessions. After him Shalmaneser [came] like some kind of locust further ravaging your goods. After them Sennacherib [came] like a young locust wreaking general destruction on the twelve tribes of Israel. Like some kind of blight in addition to these came the attack of the Babylonian, who took the people of Judah as well and inflicted the evil of captivity on all in common.

For although the Lord has granted strong cattle, bodily health, a successful outcome to every activity and prosperous deeds, prayer must still be offered lest, as it is written, there be “a heaven of brass and an earth of iron” and lest “the swarming locust eat what the cutting locust has left, and the caterpillar devour what the swarming locust has left, and the blight consume what the caterpillar has left.” Not in this alone does the effort of the toiling farmer stand in need of divine assistance. [His effort] must also fend off unexpected accidents by which, even if a field is loaded with the desired fruitful yield, he will not only be frustrated by waiting in vain for what he has hoped for but will even be deprived of the abundant crop that has already been harvested and that is stored on the threshing floor or in the barn.

We certainly know that in clouds of smoke, when some are fading away above, others rise up from below. So too in carnal thoughts, though some evil desires pass away, yet others succeed. But frequently the wretched mind beholds what has already passed but does not behold where it is still detained. It rejoices in being no longer subject to some sins but neglects to be careful and to lament because others have succeeded in their place, to which perhaps it yields more sinfully. And so it is that while some sins pass away and others succeed, the heart of the reprobate is possessed without intermission by this serpent. Therefore it is well said by the prophet Joel: “That which the palmer-worm has left, the locust has eaten; and that which the locust has left, the canker-worm has eaten; and that which the canker-worm has left, the mildew has eaten.”

The mashota (“cutting locust”) is similar to a larva. It is black and longer than a larva; when it falls to the ground, it does not destroy completely the plant but devours just the leaves and does not touch the rest. Through it the prophet signifies Tiglath-pileser, because the troubles that he caused to the people of Israel were mild. He calls Shalmaneser the flying locust, because the destruction that he caused was more serious than that by Tiglath-pileser. He calls zahla the crawling locust, which does not fly and feeds on everything. He signifies through it Sennacherib, because he surpasses his predecessor in the ruin caused and brings about the annihilation of ten tribes. The sarsoura creeps on the ground and is only equipped with a sting; when it strikes the roots of a tree, any tree it finds, it immediately withers. And he signifies through it Nebuchadnezzar, the cause of total destruction. He calls vines the common people, fig trees the important persons, whom the Assyrians and Babylonians deported in captivity. Hanana says “the vines” represent the ten tribes; “the fig trees” the house of Judah. When the Assyrians were about to come, Ezekiah sent some of the Levites to the ten tribes, before they could be destroyed. They blew the trumpet throughout the land and gathered men and women into the temple of Jerusalem, so that all prayers might be said in the temple; and a prayer more fervent than any other was said. And the prophet relating what they said through their prayer says: “Alas, alas, for the fateful day. The heifers have been roasted,” that is, they have been burned by an atrocious hunger as by a fire. “The fire has devoured, that is, a fierce heat, the pastures of the wilderness.” He uses [this name] for those places suitable for sowing, which many call “farms.” Others say, “fertile land or places which face the south,” that is, estates which are turned to the sun.

THE DESOLATE ASPECT OF THE COUNTRY THROUGH THE PLAGUE OF LOCUSTS; THE PEOPLE ADMONISHED TO OFFER SOLEMN PRAYERS IN THE TEMPLE; FOR THIS CALAMITY IS THE EARNEST OF A STILL HEAVIER ONE. (Joel 1:1-20) Joel--meaning, "Jehovah is God." son of Pethuel--to distinguish Joel the prophet from others of the name. Persons of eminence also were noted by adding the father's name.

This verse states the subject on which he afterwards expands. Four species or stages of locusts, rather than four different insects, are meant (compare Lev 11:22). Literally, (1) the gnawing locust; (2) the swarming locust; (3) the licking locust; (4) the consuming locust; forming a climax to the most destructive kind. The last is often three inches long, and the two antennÃ&brvbr, each an inch long. The two hinder of its six feet are larger than the rest, adapting it for leaping. The first "kind" is that of the locust, having just emerged from the egg in spring, and without wings. The second is when at the end of spring, still in their first skin, the locusts put forth little ones without legs or wings. The third, when after their third casting of the old skin, they get small wings, which enable them to leap the better, but not to fly. Being unable to go away till their wings are matured, they devour all before them, grass, shrubs, and bark of trees: translated "rough caterpillars" (Jer 51:27). The fourth kind, the matured winged locusts (see on Nah 3:16). In Joe 2:25 they are enumerated in the reverse order, where the restoration of the devastations caused by them is promised. The Hebrews make the first species refer to Assyria and Babylon; the second species, to Medo-Persia; the third, to Greco-Macedonia and Antiochus Epiphanes; the fourth, to the Romans. Though the primary reference be to literal locusts, the Holy Spirit doubtless had in view the successive empires which assailed Judea, each worse than its predecessor, Rome being the climax.

I. The Judgment of God, and the Prophet's Call to Repentance - Joel 1:2-2:17 An unparalleled devastation of the land of Judah by several successive swarms of locusts, which destroyed all the seedlings, all field and garden fruits, all plants and trees, and which was accompanied by scorching heat, induced the prophet to utter a loud lamentation at this unparalleled judgment of God, and an earnest call to all classes of the nation to offer prayer to the Lord in the temple, together with fasting, mourning, and weeping, that He might avert the judgment. In the first chapter, the lamentation has reference chiefly to the ruin of the land (Joel 1:2-20); in the second, the judgment is depicted as a foretype and harbinger of the approaching day of the Lord, which the congregation is to anticipate by a day of public fasting, repentance, and prayer (Joel 2:1-17); so that ch. 1 describes rather the magnitude of the judgment, and ch. 2:1-17 its significance in relation to the covenant nation. Lamentation over the Devastation of Judah by Locusts and Drought - Joel 1 After an appeal to lay to heart the devastation by swarms of locusts, which has fallen upon the land (Joe 1:2-4), the prophet summons the following to utter lamentation over this calamity: first the drunkards, who are to awake (Joe 1:5-7); then the congregation generally, which is to mourn with penitence (Joe 1:8-12); and then the priests, who are to appoint a service of repentance (Joe 1:13-18). For each of these appeals he gives, as a reason, a further description of the horrible calamity, corresponding to the particular appeal; and finally, he sums up his lamentation in a prayer for the deliverance of the land from destruction (Joe 1:19, Joe 1:20).