INTRODUCTION
full text: Joel
(NKJV)
Note: Joel
was a prophet of Judah and possibly a contemporary of Elisha.
(400 BC) (Joel's prophesies)
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Joel Chapter 1 - Devastation of a locust plague
Joel 1:1-5 (NKJV)
1 The word of the LORD that came to Joel the son of Pethuel.
2 Hear this, you elders,
And give ear, all you inhabitants of the land!
Has anything like this happened in your days,
Or even in the days of your fathers?
3Tell your children about it,
Let your children tell their children,
And their children another generation.
4What the chewing locust left, the swarming locust has eaten;
What the swarming locust left, the crawling locust has eaten;
And what the crawling locust left, the consuming locust has eaten.
5Awake, you drunkards, and weep;
And wail, all you drinkers of wine,
Because of the new wine,
For it has been cut off from your mouth.
(AMP)
| (NIV)
| (NLT)
| (KJV)
| (NASB)
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Joel Chapter 2 - Locusts compared to an invading army
Joel 2:1-2 (NKJV)
1 Blow the trumpet in Zion,
And sound an alarm in My holy mountain!
Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble;
For the day of the LORD is coming,
For it is at hand:
2A day of darkness and gloominess,
A day of clouds and thick darkness,
Like the morning clouds spread over the mountains.
A people come, great and strong,
The like of whom has never been;
Nor will there ever be any such after them,
Even for many successive generations.
(AMP)
| (NIV)
| (NLT)
| (KJV)
| (NASB)
Joel
2:25a (NKJV): "So I will restore the years that the swarming locusts
has eaten...."
Not actually the years, but the fruit of those years.
"I will make up for lost time."
I. Restoration of the effects of sin
Joel 1:1-4 (NKJV)
1 The word of the LORD that came to Joel the son of Pethuel.
2 Hear this, you elders,
And give ear, all you inhabitants of the land!
Has anything like this happened in your days,
Or even in the days of your fathers?
3Tell your children about it,
Let your children tell their children,
And their children another generation.
4What the chewing locust left, the swarming locust has eaten;
What the swarming locust left, the crawling locust has eaten;
And what the crawling locust left, the consuming locust has eaten.
(AMP)
| (NIV)
| (NLT)
| (KJV)
| (NASB)
Sin slowly eats away at your life until nothing is left - gradual destruction
(verse 4)
 The years spent
in sin are wasted years
Drugs,
alcohol (verse 5), lust, etc.
How beautiful to see God's work of restoration in lives!
To see the clearness
and brightness return to the eyes
To
see the spring return to the step
To
see purpose and direction instead of aimless wandering
II. Restoration of the effects of backsliding
Joel 2:1-2 (NKJV)
1 Blow the trumpet in Zion,
And sound an alarm in My holy mountain!
Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble;
For the day of the LORD is coming,
For it is at hand:
2A day of darkness and gloominess,
A day of clouds and thick darkness,
Like the morning clouds spread over the mountains.
A people come, great and strong,
The like of whom has never been;
Nor will there ever be any such after them,
Even for many successive generations.
(AMP)
| (NIV)
| (NLT)
| (KJV)
| (NASB)
Relationship with the Lord has grown cold
Known sin
The cares of life
Serving the Lord becomes a matter of going through the motions (church,
etc.)
God gets the leftovers - not priority
No reading of
Scripture;
No
prayer;
No
ministry;
No
growth;
No
fruitfulness.
The Bible says repent - return to your first love:
Joel
2:12 (NKJV): "Now, therefore," says the LORD, "Turn to Me with all
your heart, With fasting, with weeping, and with mourning."
The promise is that He will help you make up for the time you lost.
III. Restoration of the effects of failure
Joel
2:25a (NKJV): "So I will restore to you the years that the swarming
locust has eaten,"
You've had the best of intentions but it just hasn't worked out:
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Bad decisions
-
Lack of discipline
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Maybe you're discouraged - "I've blown it - again!"
Take this frustration to the Lord.
Repent where necessary.
He
will restore the years for you! |