Saturday Prophets Series-- Joel: “Now Is the Time to Return”
- Feb 14
- 4 min read
I love the way the Book of Joel begins: "Hear this ye old men." as I approach 80;
He tells us more:"Your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions."
Peter cites this and more when the Holy Ghost falls on the Day of Pentecost 955 years later.
These wonderful promises were given to the Church on its birthday.
But I rejoice too in the promise given to me:“I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten.” (Joel 2:25)
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Last week, we listened to Hosea, the prophet of wounded love — a man whose life revealed the steadfast faithfulness of God toward an unfaithful people. Hosea showed us a God who pursues, redeems, and restores.
This week, we turn to Joel.
If Hosea speaks with the voice of covenant love, Joel sounds a trumpet of urgency.
Hosea says, “You have wandered, and God still loves you.”Joel says, “Then return — now.”
A Crisis That Demands Attention
Joel opens not with a vision, but with a disaster.
A devastating locust plague has swept through the land of Judah. Crops are destroyed. Vineyards are stripped bare. Grain, wine, and oil — the essentials of daily life and temple worship — are gone.
This is not distant theology. It is lived catastrophe.
“That which the palmerworm hath left hath the locust eaten…” (Joel 1:4)
The loss is so complete that worship itself is disrupted. The offerings cease because there is nothing left to bring.
Joel insists this devastation is not random. It is a warning.
The Day of the LORD
Joel interprets the present disaster as a sign of something greater:
“For the day of the LORD is at hand.” (Joel 1:15)
The Day of the LORD is not merely a future event. It is God breaking into history — sometimes in judgment, sometimes in deliverance, always with purpose.
Joel describes it in terrifying imagery: darkness, fire, trembling nations, an army advancing at God’s command.
The language is meant to shake complacent hearts.
Yet Joel’s purpose is not despair. It is repentance.
“Rend Your Heart, Not Your Garments”
At the center of the book comes one of the clearest calls to repentance in all of Scripture:
“Turn ye even to me with all your heart…And rend your heart, and not your garments.” (Joel 2:12–13)
Joel strips away outward religion.
Not ritual.
Not performance.
Not public displays of sorrow.
God is calling for inward return — a broken and honest heart.
And then Joel reveals the character of the God who calls:
“For he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness.”
Judgment is real. But mercy is nearer still.
Restoration After Repentance
Joel does not leave God’s people in ruin.
The same God who allowed devastation promises restoration:
“I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten.” (Joel 2:25)
This is not simply agricultural recovery. It is covenant renewal.
God promises to dwell again among His people, to remove shame, and to renew joy and worship.
Repentance does not end in loss. It ends in restoration.
A Promise That Reaches Beyond Joel
Joel’s prophecy then reaches far beyond his own generation:
“And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh.” (Joel 2:28)
Sons and daughters.
Young and old.
Servants and handmaids.
God’s Spirit will no longer rest on a few, but will be poured out on many.
Centuries later, on the day of Pentecost, the apostle Peter will stand before the crowd and declare:
“This is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel.” (Acts 2:16)
Joel’s words find their fulfillment in Jesus Christ and the birth of the Church.
Joel therefore stands at a remarkable crossroads — looking back to judgment, calling for repentance in the present, and pointing forward to gospel hope.
Why Joel Matters Now
Joel speaks powerfully to any generation tempted to delay repentance.
His message is simple and searching:
God is speaking through events, not only words
The time to return is always now
Judgment is never God’s final desire
Restoration follows repentance
Joel does not call us to fear alone, but to urgency shaped by hope.
If Hosea teaches us who God is when we wander, Joel teaches us what time it is when God calls us home.
Next week, we will continue with the Minor Prophets, listening as the call sharpens and the promises grow clearer — moving steadily toward the coming of Christ and the outpouring of His Spirit.
PENTECOSTAL POWER
Lord, as of old, at Pentecost,
Thou didst Thy power display,
With cleansing, purifying flame,
Descend on us today.
Refrain
Lord, send the old-time power,
the Pentecostal power!
Thy floodgates of blessing,
on us throw open wide!
Lord, send the old-time power,
the Pentecostal power!
That sinners be converted
and Thy Name glorified!
Words & Music: Charles H. Gab¬ri¬el, 1912
But YE SHALL RECEIVE POWER, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. The Lord Jesus Christ said this in Acts 1:8
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