Joel Chapter 3
3/11/25 11:08 AM
Solitary Man
solitaryman.substack.com
20250222
Joe 3:1 For, behold (see), in those days, and in that time, when I shall bring again (shoob) the captivity (sheb-ooth – exile, prisoners) of Judah and Jerusalem,
Joel ties in this 3rd chapter with what he has spoken up until now. In those days refers to the days when the events already spoken of have occurred. It refers to the days of the outpouring of the spirit, the days of the former and latter rain, and the day of the Lord itself. Specifically, the word ‘again’ is key. God would bring back Judah from exile after the Babylonian captivity, which was centuries in the future. That return is not what is in mind, as none of the events to be described occurred after that return. This refers to the second return of the Jews to the land, of which was formally begun in 1948.
What causes us to err is that when something begins, that does not mean that the prophecy is now complete. The events of 1948, 1967, and 1973 were all signs heralding God’s renewed interest in his land, which is Zion. Unless we study all the references to the day of the Lord, we will continually make mistakes as to its timing and order of events.
Critics say that the restoration has been mainly political, with no real repentance or spiritual transformation of the Jewish people. They certainly have not turned to their Messiah in any appreciable amount. And all that is true. But instead of using that as an excuse to reject the scriptures that teach of this ‘returning again’, we should recognize it as harbingers of more things to come. In effect, even as John the Baptist heralded the coming of the Lord, so Israel being restored politically is a harbinger of their great and final restoration as the true people of the covenants of Yehovah.
Has not the Jew suffered enough for you obstinate Gentiles? Does not a 2000 year exile suffice to satiate your unreasoning hatred of all things Jewish? The Jew unwittingly cursed himself at the trial of Jesus, saying that they accepted the blood of Jesus’ death on their self and their children. God took them at their word, and behold, 2000 years of exile was the result.
Now God’s wrath has been appeased towards them, in great measure. Now he is about the business of the restoration of all things. And the cornerstone of God’s plan is the salvation of the Jew, and the retribution of all the Gentiles who have been filling their cup of judgment in the meantime. There are several verses that speak of iniquity having to be built up to a certain level, which then triggers the judgment of God.
Gen_15:16 But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full.
Isa_26:21 For, behold, the LORD cometh out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain.
Rom_11:25 For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.
So we have seen that the full fulfillment of the day of the Lord is the tribulation period. The tribulation period is simply a commonly accepted name for this final day of the Lord. During that time, there is a definite focus on the land of Israel, and God’s original covenant people. God is saying that he will once more free the Hebrew captive. I take this as not only a physical deliverance, but a spiritual one as well. As Paul states, there is coming a day when all Israel shall be saved.
Rom 11:26 And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:
Rom 11:27 For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.
Joe 3:2 I will also gather (kaw-bats – grasp, collect, assemble) all nations (goy), and will bring them down (descend) into the valley of Jehoshaphat (yeh-ho-shaw-far – Jehovah judged), and will plead (shaw-fat – judge, pronounce sentence) with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations (goy), and parted (khaw-lak – divided, separated, dealt, distributed) my land.
This is the place where Ammon and Moab and Edom came against Judah. Jehoshaphat’s prayer was very instructive:
2Ch 20:10 And now, behold, the children of Ammon and Moab and mount Seir, whom thou wouldest not let Israel invade, when they came out of the land of Egypt, but they turned from them, and destroyed them not;
2Ch 20:11 Behold, I say, how they reward us, to come to cast us out of thy possession, which thou hast given us to inherit.
2Ch 20:12 O our God, wilt thou not judge them? for we have no might against this great company that cometh against us; neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon thee.
The king pleads for God to judge his enemies. Jehoshaphat means Jehovah judged, another example of an apt name for the individual in question. Jehoshaphat’s greatest victory was when he fully trusted in the Lord to fight on his behalf. It led to Judah’s three most persistent enemies turning on one another and destroying each other. How we need to pray for that judgment to come to pass in our own day! It seems that the only way we can ever recover from our captivity is if the cabal itself turns on one another, and devours each other.
This chapter is going to describe some very specific events during this last and final day of the Lord. We know that these verses apply to that specific time period, because they have never been fulfilled in any period of judgment. The language itself points to the end of time, and the final destiny of Israel and Judah itself.
As God moves upon the hearts of his own, so he also inspires his enemies to act in a certain manner that furthers his plan. Here he is going to grasp, collect and assemble all the Gentiles to come to this famous valley. Here he calls it the valley of Jehoshaphat. After the great victory there, it was renamed as the valley of Berachah, or the valley of blessing.
2Ch 20:26 And on the fourth day they assembled themselves in the valley of Berachah; for there they blessed the LORD: therefore the name of the same place was called, The valley of Berachah, unto this day.
From the heathen point of view, God calls this place the valley of judgment. From God’s people’s point of view, it is to be known as the valley of blessing. It all depends on whose side you are on. Are you on Israel’s side, or the heathen’s? Will you be judged to damnation, or blessed unto all eternity? And if you try to hyper spiritualize passages such as these, you have to allegorize off references to the physical land itself. In effect, you have to claim that the physical land of Zion contains no greater significance in Yahweh’s eyes than any other land on the planet. Once you go down this road of hyper allegorization, where do you stop? You may as well throw your bible away for all that you refuse to believe. I still cannot get over watching a recent video of two women, whom up to that point I had respected for their knowledge of the deadliness of the jabs and other related things. But this time they decided to reveal their true natures, and boy, I must admit I had no idea what their souls really contained. Out of their own mouths, they stated that the bible is a useful book, if you know how to pick and choose the parts that are relevant, and discard the rest. The other readily agreed. I had to go and pick up my jaw, after it had dropped on the floor.
And isn’t this what many believers do? Picking and choosing their favorite scripture, ignoring the others, pretending certain books and passages do not exist. Why do they even bother trying to convince themselves that they are saved, and are going to heaven when they die? How can anyone in control of their faculties think that they can execute judgment on the word of God like that? Do you really think God will accept anyone into his kingdom who consciously rejects parts of his holy word, just because it doesn’t fit with his personal belief system? Was that not the sin of Jeroboam’s golden calves? Trying to imitate the worship of Yahweh, the northern kingdom set up their own version of Yahweh worship. God referred to the golden calf religion as the primary reason why he cast them out of his sight. While the individuals who repented may be grafted back in to the family of God at any time, the northern kingdom itself will never be reconstituted. That does not mean the land itself will not be restored to the Hebrews. But it has always belonged to the line of David, and not to the line of Jeroboam. Jeroboam’s political kingdom was always temporary, as a punishment for Solomon’s gross idolatry. It will take almost 3000 years before it is restored back under its rightful rule once again.
The word ‘plead’ is an unfortunate translation. God will shaw-fat – pronounce sentence on the goyim. God does not plead with the wicked. He judges them. Note that God judges them because of how they have treated Israel. Not Judah, but all of the tribes. Israel is God’s heritage. It belongs to no one else. Certainly not to the Palestinians, a fictional designation over a mixed multitude of usurpers.
Judgment falls on the Gentiles because they have driven the Jew off his land, and then divided it. First, the Assyrians did this. Then the Babylonians. Finally, the Romans finished them off once and for all. It has taken the sovereign hand of God to begin the process of reclaiming what belongs to him. If the Israelites really belong to God, how does anyone think that they can thwart the plan of God? The only reason the heathen have had success against the Jew is that the judgment of God has been heavy upon them. Once that judgment cycle has run its course (and it is very near its end this day), then these arrogant nations shall see the tables turned.
Two state solutions are an idea from the pit of hell. Shall man override the shaw-fat, or mish-pat, of Yehovah? God is beginning to pronounce sentence on all those who have done everything possible to separate Israel from their land. I predict that groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah will be wiped off the face of the earth, once God is done with them.
Joe 3:3 And they have cast lots for my people; and have given a boy (yeh-led) for an harlot (zaw-naw – fornication, rape), and sold a girl (yal-daw) for wine, that they might drink.
A verse such as this may not have had as much impact until now when we have discovered all the child sex trafficking that is taking place all across the world. The traditional meaning of this verse is that at the time when Judah was at its lowest, such as after their destruction by Babylon, Jewish boys were sold for a night with a harlot, the conquerors being so callous that a night of sex with a whore was worth giving a young Jewish boy slave as payment. However I think the Hebrew allows for the translation to say that these heathen would traffic a young Jewish boy for sex. They would traffic a young Jewish girl for alcohol. In other words, they were sex trafficking the Jewish children. The conquering soldiers would gamble as to who would get each child to do with as they pleased.
This is one of those verses which make us ponder how God is able to put up with mankind’s wickedness. I will not go into graphic detail of the stories that I have heard about what is being done to little children today by the sexually vile. But I do wonder how God is able to restrain himself for many thousands of years since the flood, and not wipe us all out again.
Well guess what? That extreme moment of patience has almost run out. Jesus is indeed coming back, but he is not returning simply to pick us up and give us a ride to heaven. No, he coming back to reclaim a kingdom. And reclaiming a kingdom first and foremost involves getting rid of everything that has defiled it. That means all the wicked are slated for destruction. Not arrest, not imprisonment, but death. God has given us the pattern of how to handle the wicked. If we refuse to walk in that pattern, we will not succeed.
After the initial euphoria of the inauguration of Trump and his flurry of executive orders, one month in and we are beginning to realize that things are not what we think. It is one thing to sign a new law. It is quite another to be able to execute it. Millions upon millions of people have literally ‘sold themselves to do evil’ in the last four years. In other words, many were willing to follow evil orders, in order to collect a paycheque. Just because they have been given some new orders does not mean that they are willing to obey them. Not if they have become used to hating and destroying America. While many I am sure over time will begin to comply, there are many thousands of key leaders in every position of authority that have to be eliminated if there is to be any hope of lasting change and reversal. For example, the extremely lucrative business of child sex trafficking is not going to evaporate overnight, just because someone has signed an executive order. It will take violence to eradicate this kind of evil. Are the American people up for it? Are the new leaders really up for it? Is God going to continue to bless their efforts? Only time will tell.
Joe 3:4 Yea, and what have ye to do with me, O Tyre, and Zidon, and all the coasts of Palestine? will ye render me a recompence (ghem-ool – service, benefit, treatment, an act of good or ill)? and if ye recompense (gaw-mal – requite, reward) me, swiftly and speedily will I return (shoob) your recompence (ghem-ool) upon your own head;
Type and Sidon were the traditional enemies of Israel during the time of the Judges. Palestine was the last stronghold of the Nephilim in the promised land. David and his warriors eliminated the last 5 known giants that were there. But even as we witness today, that place has always been an enemy stronghold. The atrocities of Hamas, I have no doubt, are strongly influenced by the demonic forces that reside in Gaza. While the death cult of Islam is certainly at the center of their motivations, the unholy spirits that have resided in Gaza for several thousands of years I am sure have driven these evil people to heights of demonic madness that is rarely seen on the earth today. Hamas is proving to be one of the most wicked groups on the planet today. And yet, every university in the west is taking their side! The majority of our youth are being brainwashed into supporting these most vile of creatures. The mind boggles at such behavior. This is why it is so foolish to underestimate the power of our enemy. If he can convince our university students to support people who microwave babies, choke babies, burn people alive, and have the entire Gazan population celebrate as they see videos of these atrocities, then we would be remiss to keep mocking satan, and dismiss his power, just because Jesus won such a great victory at the cross. Somehow we think that made satan powerless. I do not know how such an absurd idea came into being.
God is asking these traditional enemies of Israel if they think that they can recompence God for his judgments. Do you really believe that, you heathen? If you try to do so, watch out. My recompence will be sure and swift, far beyond what you can imagine.
Joe 3:5 Because ye have taken my silver and my gold, and have carried into your temples (palaces) my goodly pleasant things (makh-mawd – delightful, affectionate):
I cannot but help to interject something fascinating here. Makh-mawd is a word used 12 times, including here in the Song of Solomon:
Son_5:16 His mouth is most sweet: yea, he is altogether lovely (makh-mawd). This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem.
According to Islamic scholar Jay Smith, the idea for the imaginary figure of Mohammad most likely is derived from this verse. He is the delightful or the praised one. This showed up in early coins, and the conquering Arabic tribes of the 7th century AD eventually plagiarized and bastardized an entire new persona and subsequent religion based on this one word. What they really did was to take one of the names of Jesus at that time and converted it to be the name of this new imaginary prophet of a completely new religion, in order to unite these thieving bandits under one common cause. That is the real story of the creation of Islam. Please check out some of his videos on youtube (one of the few critical truths that has not been censored by that platform) if you would like to know more.
Some commentators think this is referring to the silver and gold of the temple. Others do not agree, as the temple had not yet been plundered at this point in Judah’s history. Whether or not it’s temple gold, or Judah’s material wealth in general, is not the main issue. The main thing is that God sees all sin. He sees every theft. Every nation would dedicate part of their stolen booty to their own gods, and their own temples. God is saying that he has seen all this, and has remembered it.
Joe 3:6 The children (bane – sons) also of Judah and the children (bane) of Jerusalem have ye sold (maw-kar – into slavery) unto the Grecians (bane yev-aw-nee – sons of Javan, or Greeks), that ye might remove them far from their border.
Because Tyre was a seafaring nation, with an impregnable fortress off the coast, they were heavily involved in the slave trade. They sold Judean youth to the Greeks, as well as to many other nations, as spoken of in the judgment of Tyre by Ezekiel.
Eze 27:13 Javan, Tubal, and Meshech, they were thy merchants: they traded the persons of men and vessels of brass in thy market.
Sisera’s army came from Zidon. We all know of the Philistines. Not only in David’s time, but during the Judges they were prominent as an enemy of Israel. One of those tribes that Joshua failed to completely annihilate, they then became the implacable enemies of Israel forever. There is no hope of ever making peace with such as these.
The purpose of selling slaves was not only to make money, but to alter the demographics of a land. That is the strategy that the globalists have chosen to take out the west. While flooding our lands with illegal aliens, they coerce us to inject ourselves with deadly poisons, while teaching our children to stop reproducing by converting them to sodomy and genital mutilation.
It is only a matter of time before our nations will cease to be, even as they have brought Ukraine to the brink of total extinction.
Joe 3:7 Behold, I will raise them out of the place whither ye have sold them, and will return (shoob) your recompence (ghem-ool) upon your own head:
When it comes to Israel, again and again God promises ultimate restoration. The problem from our human point of view is that the timing of the Lord seems to be of such exceeding slowness. True, we cannot ever properly explain why God chooses to delay his plans for so long, but we do get partial explanations here and there in scripture, such as this verse:
2Pe 3:8 But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.
2Pe 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
2Pe 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.
Here Peter is giving us a hint of how to begin to think as God thinks. Think not of one year as one year, but think in thousand year periods. In other words, stretch your sense of timing towards God’s sense. God is not lazy, or unreliable. Rather, he is always taking the larger view of things. While we see the sufferings of individual souls that can drive us to doubt, God sees the fact that many souls are yet capable of receiving the light of the truth. If he destroyed us at the first sign of evil, then many souls would be lost that could have been saved. But yet while we wonder at the Lord’s interminable delay, God promises to suddenly reveal the day of the Lord. It will fall upon the earth, as a thief falls upon a home when everyone is asleep. Peter emphasizes the total destructive aspect of this great and terrible day, so that we know exactly which time period he is speaking of. This is not referring to some intermediate time of judgment. This is the last great judgment. It does not necessarily mean that the day will fall suddenly, in an instant. It does mean that most will be unaware that the day of the Lord has come. They will be spiritually asleep, and not recognize the hand of the Lord.
Is that not where most of the church is? Do we not see that hardly anyone is preaching the imminent judgment of God? Why is it so hard to take God at his word, especially when it comes to the bad things that come our way? Should not the church be the world’s experts at explaining the concept of sin and all its’ consequences? We seem to be able to preach about the natural consequences of sin, but we shy away from speaking about the divine consequences of disobedience. Yes, if you screw around, you may get a disease, a divorce, and a depression. But you are also attracting divine displeasure, a denouncement of your defiling dealings and deportment, resulting in damnation and destruction.
God is not mocked. Judgment is sure. Ultimately, all those enslaved shall be restored. What you have sown, that you will reap, you who sell souls. As far as restoration goes, this is one of those general promises that may be overridden by the particular path that God has for each individual, just as some believers will not experience physical deliverance but rather martyrdom, for his glory.
Joe 3:8 And I will sell your sons (bane) and your daughters into the hand of the children (bane) of Judah, and they shall sell them to the Sabeans (sheb-aw-ee – descendant of Sheba, only time in OT), to a people (goy) far off: for the LORD hath spoken it.
I am sure we have all missed our old friend Albert Barnes, who has accomplished so much of the legwork in teasing out historical truths of various places and people in the bible. Let’s us include his erudite scholarship regarding the Sabeans for our mutual edification.
The Sabaeans were like the Phoenicians, a wealthy merchant people, and, of old, united with them in the trade of the world, the Sabaeans sending forth their fleets across the Indian Ocean, as the Tyrians along the Mediterranean. Three fathers of distinct races bore the name Sheba; one, a descendant of Ham, the other two, descended from Shem. The Hamite Sheba was the son of Raamah, the son of Cush Gen_10:7, and doubtless dwelt of old in the country on the Persian gulf called by the name Raamah. Traces of the name Sheba occur there, and some even after our era. The Shemite Sabaeans, were, some descendants of Sheba, the tenth son of Joktan Gen_10:28; the others from Sheba, the son of Abraham and Keturah Gen_25:3. The Sabaeans, descended from Joktan, dwelt in the southwest extremity of Arabia, extending from the Red Sea to the Sea of Babel-mandeb. The country is still called “ard-es-Seba”, “land of Saba;” and Saba is often mentioned by Arabic writers.
The idea of mentioning the Sabeans is to indicate the country most remote from Israel that was known at that time, with which trade was done. God always has the punishment fit the crime. No one repays in kind as Yahweh repays. Retribution is assured, and will always fall in line with God’s perfect mishpat.
Joe 3:9 Proclaim ye this among the Gentiles (goy); Prepare (kaw-dash – dedicate) war, wake up the mighty men (ghib-bore – warrior, champoin, valiant), let all the men of war draw near; let them come up:
Here begins a strange passage. Is not God’s will always an end to war, and that men always pursue peace? Apparently not. Not when it comes time to pay for your sins. God is going to wake up the aggressive men, the warrior class within these evil heathen nations. God wants all the men of war to gather.
Joe 3:10 Beat your plowshares (hoe) into swords, and your pruninghooks into spears: let the weak (khal-lawsh – frail, only time in OT) say, I am strong (ghib-bore).
We love to quote one of these two verses:
Isa_2:4 And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.
Mic_4:3 And he shall judge among many people, and rebuke strong nations afar off; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.
But here in Joel, God decrees the exact opposite. If this verse teaches us nothing else, it is the crucial importance of context. This is why you just can’t randomly let your bible fall open, throw a dart at a random verse, and if you like the verse, claim that is what the word says and that this will happen.
God has a time and a place for everything:
Ecc_3:8 A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.
During the day of the Lord, it is a time of war.
The last part of this verse is saying that God will inspire even the weak and cowardly, who never would think of wanting to fight in a war, to suddenly desire to do so. In other words, the physically and mentally weak will be given a spirit that makes them think that they too can fight. The whole world will be led in a certain direction of the Lord’s choosing. It will go against the natural instinct of self preservation of man.
Joe 3:11 Assemble (oosh – hasten, only time in OT) yourselves, and come, all ye heathen (goy), and gather yourselves together round about (assemble on every side): thither (there) cause thy mighty ones (ghib-bore) to come down (descend), O LORD (Yehovah).
As this last final act of rebellion unfolds, God has first called his enemies to gather, whether strong or weak. He wants them all in one place at the end of all things, so that he can deal with them once and for all. Once they are all in place, at that place, God will descend his own gibborim, or mighty ones. Most would assume that these are his mighty angels, as spoken by Jesus:
Mat 13:41 The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity;
Mat 13:42 And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.
We know that the saints will also come riding back with Jesus at the end as well:
Rev 19:11 And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.
Rev 19:12 His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself.
Rev 19:13 And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.
Rev 19:14 And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.
Rev 19:15 And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.
These are things that should strike holy terror in any rational human being. These are not fun times. Blood shall be spilled such as never has been seen in all the ages, and that is saying a lot right there.
Joe 3:12 Let the heathen (goy) be wakened, and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat: for there will I sit to judge (shaw-fat – pronounce sentence, punish, avenge, condemn) all the heathen (goy) round about.
God will inspire this last, great rebellion. In other words, in one sense the cabal is God’s doing. The treason in each of our nations also has the hand of God behind it. He has seen the wickedness of the world for such a long time, that he is giving the entire planet over to our sins. Once he sees that there is no more hope in persuading mankind to repent and return, then he will put thoughts in their hearts that they will think are coming from themselves. They will make this global alliance to come together to create a new world order.
Now what we need to keep in mind is that God may allow many intermediate steps to be taken by this cabal before the last great war of Armageddon takes place. In other words, there may be several years of oppressions and calamities that must take place before God manoeuvres all the chess pieces into place where he has them united to launch this one final battle against the armies of heaven.
The war in Ukraine is a small example of many nations banding together for no rational reason. Certainly there is nothing to gain for any nation to throw their resources into this futile conflict, but throwing away resources they continue to do. This is how it will be at the end.
Something that I have just seen may be a hint of why the devil has convinced so many obscenely rich and wicked rulers that they actually can defeat God. Apparently, Microsoft claims to have invented a chip that will eventually run faster than a million cubits. Maybe they think they can build a machine that can mimic the abilities of God himself. Perhaps they think they can build an AI of such power that it will seem omniscient, omnipresent, and omnipotent. Maybe the devil really thinks that strong enough technology can match God’s ability. Since all these wicked men know of the existence of these extra dimensional beings that we know to be fallen angels and demons, then they know of the divine punishment that awaits. And rather than humbling themselves and repenting, they are on a quest to destroy God with better tech!
Such is the wisdom of this world. God has something to say about that:
1Co_3:19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, He taketh the wise in their own craftiness.
God is gathering all the wicked into one place. Not to save, but to destroy. Not to deliver, but to condemn. He is the one inspiring them to want to fight in this last act of defiance against the creator.
Joe 3:13 Put ye in the sickle (reap), for the harvest is ripe: come, get you down; for the press (wine press) is full, the fats (yeh-keb – wine vat, presses) overflow; for their wickedness (rah – evil, wretchedness) is great (rab – abundant).
Let us continue the passage from above:
Rev 19:16 And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.
Rev 19:17 And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God;
Rev 19:18 That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great.
Rev 19:19 And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army.
Rev 19:20 And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.
Rev 19:21 And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth: and all the fowls were filled with their flesh.
This passage of Revelation is the glorious return of our Lord Jesus Christ. The saints return with him right at the end of the day of the Lord. Strictly speaking, this verse in Joel does not refer to this event, but rather to the passage that I now present.
If we back up a little and revisit the passage just before the last 7 bowls of wrath are poured out upon the earth, we see the passage that most closely aligns with what Joel is preaching:
Rev 14:14 And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle.
Rev 14:15 And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe.
Rev 14:16 And he that sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth; and the earth was reaped.
Rev 14:17 And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle.
Rev 14:18 And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe.
Rev 14:19 And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God.
Rev 14:20 And the winepress was trodden without the city, and blood came out of the winepress, even unto the horse bridles, by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs.
I believe that the rapture occurs right here in verse 16, just before the final wrath of God upon the entire earth, via the 7 bowls of wrath, which in this case is exclusively punitive, with no redemptive quality whatsoever.
Once the wine vats of wickedness have overflowed, the reaping sickle of wrath shall be unleashed.
Joe 3:14 Multitudes (haw-mone – tumultuous crowds), multitudes (haw-mone) in the valley of decision (khaw-roots – threshing sledge, pointed things, incision, cutting off): for the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision (khaw-roots).
Preachers love to use this phrase as a sort of an altar call. And truly, each day there is a multitude that are potentially facing their own valley of decision. Each day we are asked to choose this day whom we will serve. But that is certainly not the meaning of this verse. The idea is that there are countless people assembled here in the valley of Jehoshaphat for the final battle of Armageddon. They are not here to make a decision. They are here to be threshed, to be excised, to be cut off from the land of the living. Once they gather, the culmination of the dreadful day of the Lord is about to be ignited.
The sad truth of this verse is that it sounds as if the vast majority of mankind shall be drawn up in battle array to fight against Yahweh. Despite sending so much blessing. Despite sending his only son to die on the cross for each of their sins, they chose not to receive the free gift of eternal life. Instead, they chose death.
Joe 3:15 The sun and the moon shall be darkened (kaw-far – ashy, black, mourn), and the stars shall withdraw their shining (no-gah – brilliancy, brightness).
Here is an echo of Joel 2:31. While we rejoice in the promise of the outpouring of the Spirit, part and parcel of that great promise is this judgment side. This seems to confirm that the celestial portion of the outpouring occurs at the very end of this final day of the Lord. Even the heavens themselves cannot bear to look at the imminent utter annihilation of billions of souls, as the Lord Jesus returns in flaming fire, bringing vengeance to the land.
Joe 3:16 The LORD also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the LORD will be the hope (makh-as-eh – shelter, refuge) of his people, and the strength (maw-oze – fortified place, defence, rock, stronghold) of the children (bane) of Israel.
To the wicked, Jesus is the end of hope. To the righteous, Jesus is the totality of all our hope. We could once more peruse the relevant passage in Revelation to obtain more detail about this end time event, but I leave it up to you to meditate on those awful events listed there (Rev 14:8-20, 18:1-8, 19:11-21).
We shall need to lean on Jesus as never before. He alone will be our fortified place, not the bug out shelter that we have created. Whether a child of Israel or a child of the King, God alone is our true refuge, and God alone.
Joe 3:17 So shall ye know that I am the LORD your God dwelling in Zion, my holy (ko-desh) mountain: then shall Jerusalem be holy (ko-desh), and there shall no strangers (zoor – foreigner, profane) pass through her any more.
How will all of creation know that God is God? By the execution of his fierce judgments on all sin. Yes, the cross exhibited his love and mercy in a way previously unknown. But without total judgment, how could there be a heaven? If there was no appropriate and permanent consequence for the wicked, then how could those who were cruelly tormented ever enter into a permanent and everlasting rest? Remember what the martyrs of old are doing in heaven, even today:
Rev 6:9 And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held:
Rev 6:10 And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?
Rev 6:11 And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.
They do not sound as if they are fully at rest yet, does it? Even though they are already in heaven, yet they cannot forget the injustice that was done upon them. Kind of messes with some of our theology, doesn’t it?
God says we will know that God is Yehovah when he destroys all the wicked once and for all. He says this will also forever make it clear that he dwells in Zion. It is his holy mountain. It is forever his will that Jerusalem shall be eternally holy. No more strangers are to be found.
What does that mean? Well, isn’t our church full of strangers? Jesus makes that very clear:
Mat 7:21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
Mat 7:22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
Mat 7:23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
Jesus is saying that his house is full of strangers. Many strangers. Many claim to know him, but they do not. They all believe that they know him, but Jesus said otherwise. In the Millenium, no such deception will be possible anymore.
Joe 3:18 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the mountains shall drop down (naw-taf – ooze, distill, prophesy) new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters, and a fountain shall come forth of the house of the LORD, and shall water the valley of Shittim (acacia trees).
The Millenium is a time that we really know very little about, if we are completely honest. There are fragments scattered throughout the bible, giving us glimpses into certain characteristics of the coming age, but never actually revealing a clear picture. The one thing we do know is that Jerusalem and Israel become the absolute center of all things that God will be doing. Jesus will rule from there. The tribes will be reconstituted in some fashion. There will be nations, but they will be required to come up and worship regularly (Zech 14:16-21). God loves to keep a secret. Things of future ages is one of the best kept secrets of heaven. We need to content ourselves with the here and now, and do all that he is asking of us today, and leave the future in his hands where they belong.
This verse also can be seen as a general statement of the blessings of God that he has communicated to the earth via his church. The wells of salvation have been unleashed at Calvary. New wine and milk are freely available to whosoever will. Let us continue to exhort all that we can to partake of this bounty before the judgments of God completely envelop the land.
Joe 3:19 Egypt shall be a desolation (shem-aw-maw – devastation, astonishment, waste), and Edom shall be a desolate (shem-aw-maw) wilderness, for the violence (khaw-mawce – unjust gain, cruelty, injustice, damage) against the children (bane) of Judah, because they have shed innocent blood in their land.
As we are now into 2025, we see Egypt suddenly breaking the Camp David accords, afraid that Hamas will be sent into their land as the idea of resettling Gaza begins to take shape. This may inevitably lead to Egypt’s destruction. Whether this fulfills this portion of scripture or not remains to be seen.
We understand that this seems to be Egypt’s destiny at the end of the tribulation, so what happens now, before the tribulation has even begun, may be simply another one of countless moves that God is making in rearranging all the pieces on the chessboard for the final act in this cosmic drama.
It will be interesting to see if utter ruin is Egypt’s fate, or that this strange portion of scripture in Isaiah somehow can be harmonized at the same time.
Isa 19:19 In that day shall there be an altar to the LORD in the midst of the land of Egypt, and a pillar at the border thereof to the LORD.
Isa 19:20 And it shall be for a sign and for a witness unto the LORD of hosts in the land of Egypt: for they shall cry unto the LORD because of the oppressors, and he shall send them a saviour, and a great one, and he shall deliver them.
Isa 19:21 And the LORD shall be known to Egypt, and the Egyptians shall know the LORD in that day, and shall do sacrifice and oblation; yea, they shall vow a vow unto the LORD, and perform it.
Isa 19:22 And the LORD shall smite Egypt: he shall smite and heal it: and they shall return even to the LORD, and he shall be intreated of them, and shall heal them.
Isa 19:23 In that day shall there be a highway out of Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrian shall come into Egypt, and the Egyptian into Assyria, and the Egyptians shall serve with the Assyrians.
Isa 19:24 In that day shall Israel be the third with Egypt and with Assyria, even a blessing in the midst of the land:
Isa 19:25 Whom the LORD of hosts shall bless, saying, Blessed be Egypt my people, and Assyria the work of my hands, and Israel mine inheritance.
How and why God says Egypt are his people is a mystery. What day Isaiah is speaking about is not clear.
Like almost all future prophecies, they only become clear after the fact. So many try to say that such and such a verse is about to be fulfilled, based on the latest newspaper headlines. And in a few months, what they predicted does not come to pass. Never do I see those non Spirit filled armchair end time prognosticators ever admit their countless errors. They simply make no mention of their past blunders and blithely go about trying to make the next headline ‘fit’ the biblical narrative.
What is so shocking is not the fact that there are so many of these false teachers in these last days. What shocks me is the number of followers that eagerly swallow each and every prediction, never once considering that most of what they have already claimed has been demonstrably proven false.
Why is there such a market for false teaching? Why is there almost no market for the true?
Edom has always been an eternal enemy of God’s people. They are also known for the deception and the lies that they project, as Herod, who was an Edomite, tried to say that he was a Jew, but was not. And who does that remind us of? The cabal. Everything they say they are, in reality they are the opposite. They say they are here to save the planet, but rather are destroying it. They say they are here to save lives by vaxxing, but instead are wiping humanity off the face of the earth. They have done nothing but damage, violence, and unjust gain against God’s people via unimaginable cruelties. We can take comfort that God promises they will be utterly wasted, as their main sin is all the innocent blood that they have shed. No one has more blood on their hands than this cabal, the enemy of all humanity, who have declared war on all of God’s people.
Joe 3:20 But Judah shall dwell for ever, and Jerusalem from generation (dore – age) to generation (dore).
Funny no Jew hater ever seems to have heard of this verse. While all anti Semites are destined for the eternal flame, Judah and Jerusalem will be here for all time. To further prove how central Jerusalem is in God’s mind, even the eternal state has the city of Jerusalem somehow the central part of it all:
Rev 21:1 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.
Rev 21:2 And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
Rev 21:3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.
Rev 21:4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.
Rev 21:5 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.
What can one say? God and his people are forever. Let us not stress over striving to understand every single nuance of the eternal state of man. But rather let us take comfort and rejoice in the fact that God’s plans for us are for our good, and are of an eternal nature.
Joe 3:21 For I will cleanse (naw-kaw – erase, expunge) their blood that I have not cleansed (naw-kaw): for the LORD dwelleth (shaw-kan – resides permanently) in Zion.
Maybe here is a hint that those who endure to the end will also have their physical blood cleansed from all the contaminants and toxins that the wicked have tried to poison all humanity with.
For all those who cannot help but condemn all Zionists, do you realize that you are condemning Yehovah as well? Zion is his permanent residence, while here on earth. This is his pad, his hangout.
It never ceases to amaze me as to how many supposedly good people hate all things Jewish. Oh sure, they try to state that they only hate the ‘Zionists’ and are not racist. What utter rubbish. That is like saying that I hate all Americans, but sure love the people of the United States. Zion and Israel are one and the same, you cannot separate them. Zion is technically Jerusalem. It is home to God’s temple, his people, his land. It is home to Yahweh himself. Please stop listening to anyone who tries to convince you of all those evil Zionists. Every one of these demonic disciples universally condemn the actions of the Israeli government in whatever they do, but never do they condemn Hamas, or any other barbaric muslim horde that commits genocidal atrocities on a daily basis. They are on the side of Islam. They are on the side of the worst that humanity has to offer. Why they think it’s so important to slander and stir up even greater hatred against the Jewish people is beyond me. While many of them are engaged in wonderful works in other areas of their life, the fact that their Jew hatred just cannot be denied says all that you need to know of them. They remind me of this scripture in John:
1Jn 2:18 Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time.
1Jn 2:19 They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us.
If John believed he was in the last time, how much more are we. Many are the forerunners of the antichrist. Many looked like they were on the side of truth and righteousness, and many even claimed some sort of allegiance to Christ. However, sooner or later, their true nature manifested. If you hate the tribe that God has specifically chosen out of all the peoples of the earth, the one tribe that the Savior of all mankind sprung up from, then you are proving that you never belonged to Christ in the first place.
Stay away from such, lest their error rubs off on you!
So we have come to the end of Joel. I hope that I have provided some insight and food for thought that all may profit from. Please keep in mind that in everything I write, the Lord may not witness each and every thought in your heart. But when he does speak to you through these writings, be zealous to embrace whatever he has for you. If there are some thoughts you do not understand or do not agree with at this time, do not concern yourself with such things. Let God take you where he wants you to go. Especially when we are dealing with scripture that points to events that have not yet come to pass, we all see through a glass very dimly. Approach all scripture study in a spirit of humility and true teachability, and there is no limit as to what He is able to do for you!
May the Lord richly bless you as we continue to try and navigate our way through these perilous times. May we recommit to an embrace of acquiring the true knowledge of God, by learning sound doctrine, as the Holy Spirit leads.
God bless you all.
Solitary Man
