1 A word of Jehovah that hath been unto Joel, son of Pethuel:

The word of the Lord that came to Joel, the son of Pethuel:

2 H ear this, ye aged ones, And give ear, all ye inhabitants of the land, Hath this been in your days? Or in the days of your fathers?

Hear this, O elders, And listen, all inhabitants of the land. Has anything like this happened in your days Or in your fathers’ days?

3 C oncerning it to your sons talk ye, And your sons to their sons, And their sons to another generation.

Tell your sons about it, And let your sons tell their sons, And their sons the next generation.

4 W hat is left of the palmer-worm, eaten hath the locust, And what is left of the locust, Eaten hath the cankerworm, And what is left of the cankerworm, Eaten hath the caterpillar.

What the gnawing locust has left, the swarming locust has eaten; And what the swarming locust has left, the creeping locust has eaten; And what the creeping locust has left, the stripping locust has eaten.

5 A wake, ye drunkards, and weep, And howl all drinking wine, because of the juice, For it hath been cut off from your mouth.

Awake, drunkards, and weep; And wail, all you wine drinkers, On account of the sweet wine That is cut off from your mouth.

6 F or a nation hath come up on my land, Strong, and there is no number, Its teeth the teeth of a lion, And it hath the jaw-teeth of a lioness.

For a nation has invaded my land, Mighty and without number; Its teeth are the teeth of a lion, And it has the fangs of a lioness.

7 I t hath made my vine become a desolation, And my fig-tree become a chip, It hath made it thoroughly bare, and hath cast down, Made white have been its branches.

It has made my vine a waste And my fig tree splinters. It has stripped them bare and cast them away; Their branches have become white.

8 W ail, as a virgin girdeth with sackcloth, For the husband of her youth.

Wail like a virgin girded with sackcloth For the bridegroom of her youth.

9 C ut off hath been present and libation from the house of Jehovah, Mourned have the priests, ministrants of Jehovah.

The grain offering and the drink offering are cut off From the house of the Lord. The priests mourn, The ministers of the Lord.

10 S poiled is the field, mourned hath the ground, For spoiled is the corn, Dried up hath been new wine, languish doth oil.

The field is ruined, The land mourns; For the grain is ruined, The new wine dries up, Fresh oil fails.

11 B e ashamed, ye husbandmen, Howl, vine-dressers, for wheat and for barley, For perished hath the harvest of the field.

Be ashamed, O farmers, Wail, O vinedressers, For the wheat and the barley; Because the harvest of the field is destroyed.

12 T he vine hath been dried up, And the fig-tree doth languish, Pomegranate, also palm, and apple-tree, All trees of the field have withered, For dried up hath been joy from the sons of men.

The vine dries up And the fig tree fails; The pomegranate, the palm also, and the apple tree, All the trees of the field dry up. Indeed, rejoicing dries up From the sons of men.

13 G ird, and lament, ye priests, Howl, ye ministrants of the altar, Come in, lodge in sackcloth, ministrants of my God, For withheld from the house of your God hath been present and libation.

Gird yourselves with sackcloth And lament, O priests; Wail, O ministers of the altar! Come, spend the night in sackcloth O ministers of my God, For the grain offering and the drink offering Are withheld from the house of your God. Starvation and Drought

14 S anctify a fast, proclaim a restraint, Gather the elders -- all the inhabitants of the land, the house of Jehovah your God,

Consecrate a fast, Proclaim a solemn assembly; Gather the elders And all the inhabitants of the land To the house of the Lord your God, And cry out to the Lord.

15 A nd cry unto Jehovah, `Alas for the day! For near a day of Jehovah, And as destruction from the mighty it cometh.

Alas for the day! For the day of the Lord is near, And it will come as destruction from the Almighty.

16 I s not before our eyes food cut off? From the house of our God joy and rejoicing?

Has not food been cut off before our eyes, Gladness and joy from the house of our God?

17 R otted have scattered things under their clods, Desolated have been storehouses, Broken down have been granaries, For withered hath the corn.

The seeds shrivel under their clods; The storehouses are desolate, The barns are torn down, For the grain is dried up.

18 H ow have cattle sighed! Perplexed have been droves of oxen, For there is no pasture for them, Also droves of sheep have been desolated.

How the beasts groan! The herds of cattle wander aimlessly Because there is no pasture for them; Even the flocks of sheep suffer.

19 U nto Thee, O Jehovah, I do call, For fire hath consumed comely places of a wilderness, And a flame hath set on fire all trees of the field.

To You, O Lord, I cry; For fire has devoured the pastures of the wilderness And the flame has burned up all the trees of the field.

20 A lso the cattle of the field long for Thee, For dried up have been streams of water, And fire hath consumed comely places of a wilderness!'

Even the beasts of the field pant for You; For the water brooks are dried up And fire has devoured the pastures of the wilderness.