Logos Bible Study

Joel 3:12–17

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3:12Let the nations be roused and let them go up

to the valley of Jehoshaphat,

for there I will sit in judgment on all the surrounding nations.

3:13Rush forth with27 the sickle, for the harvest is ripe!

Come, stomp the grapes,28 for the winepress is full!

The vats overflow.

Indeed, their evil is great!29

3:14Crowds, great crowds are in the valley of decision,

for the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision!30

3:15The sun and moon are darkened;

the stars withhold31 their brightness.

3:16The Lord roars from Zion;

from Jerusalem32 his voice bellows out.33

The heavens34 and the earth shake.

But the Lord is a refuge for his people;

he is a stronghold for the citizens35 of Israel.

The Lord’s Presence in Zion

3:17You will be convinced36 that I the Lord am your God,

dwelling on Zion, my holy mountain.

Jerusalem37 will be holy—

conquering armies38 will no longer pass through it.

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Footnotes

  1. 27 Heb “send.”
  2. 28 Heb “go down” or “tread.” The Hebrew term רְדוּ (rédu) may be from יָרַד (yarad, “to go down”) or from רָדָה (radah, “have dominion,” here in the sense of “to tread”). If it means “go down,” the reference would be to entering the vat to squash the grapes. If it means “tread,” the verb would refer specifically to the action of those who walk over the grapes to press out their juice. The phrase “the grapes” is supplied in the translation for clarity.
  3. 29 The immediacy of judgment upon wickedness is likened to the urgency required for a harvest that has reached its pinnacle of development. When the harvest is completely ripe, there can be no delay by the reapers in gathering the harvest. In a similar way, Joel envisions a time when human wickedness will reach such a heightened degree that there can be no further stay of divine judgment (cf. the “fullness of time” language in Gal 4:4).
  4. 30 The decision referred to here is not a response on the part of the crowd, but the verdict handed out by the divine judge.
  5. 31 Heb “gather in.”
  6. 32 For location see ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; .
  7. 33 Heb “he sounds forth his voice.”
  8. 34 Or “the sky.” See the note on “sky” in .
  9. 35 Heb “sons.”
  10. 36 Heb “know.”
  11. 37 For location see ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; .
  12. 38 Heb “strangers” or “foreigners.” In context, this refers to invasions by conquering armies.

The NET Bible First Edition, Copyright 1996-2005 by Biblical Studies Press

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

Let the nations stir themselves up

and come up to the Valley of Jehoshaphat;

for there I will sit to judge

all the surrounding nations.

Put in the sickle,

for the harvest is ripe.

Go in, tread,

for the winepress is full.

The vats overflow,

for their evil is great.

Multitudes, multitudes,

in the valley of decision!

For the day of the Lord is near

in the valley of decision.

The sun and the moon are darkened,

and the stars withdraw their shining.

The Lord roars from Zion,

and utters his voice from Jerusalem,

and the heavens and the earth quake.

But the Lord is a refuge to his people,

a stronghold to the people of Israel.

“So you shall know that I am the Lord your God,

who dwells in Zion, my holy mountain.

And Jerusalem shall be holy,

and strangers shall never again pass through it.

Copyright 2001 Crossway Bibles

NIVNew International Version (2011)

“Let the nations be roused;

let them advance into the Valley of Jehoshaphat,

for there I will sit

to judge all the nations on every side.

Swing the sickle,

for the harvest is ripe.

Come, trample the grapes,

for the winepress is full

and the vats overflow—

so great is their wickedness!”

Multitudes, multitudes

in the valley of decision!

For the day of the Lord is near

in the valley of decision.

The sun and moon will be darkened,

and the stars no longer shine.

The Lord will roar from Zion

and thunder from Jerusalem;

the earth and the heavens will tremble.

But the Lord will be a refuge for his people,

a stronghold for the people of Israel.

“Then you will know that I, the Lord your God,

dwell in Zion, my holy hill.

Jerusalem will be holy;

never again will foreigners invade her.

Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 Biblica, Inc.

CSBChristian Standard Bible

Let the nations be roused

and come to the Valley of Jehoshaphat,

for there I will sit down

to judge all the surrounding nations.

Swing the sickle

because the harvest is ripe.

Come and trample the grapes

because the winepress is full;

the wine vats overflow

because the wickedness of the nations is extreme.

Multitudes, multitudes

in the valley of decision!

For the day of the Lord is near

in the valley of decision.

The sun and moon will grow dark,

and the stars will cease their shining.

The Lord will roar from Zion

and make his voice heard from Jerusalem;

heaven and earth will shake.

But the Lord will be a refuge for his people,

a stronghold for the Israelites.

Then you will know

that I am the Lord your God,

who dwells in Zion, my holy mountain.

Jerusalem will be holy,

and foreigners will never overrun it again.

Copyright 2017 Holman Bible Publishers

NLTNew Living Translation

“Let the nations be called to arms.

Let them march to the valley of Jehoshaphat.

There I, the Lord, will sit

to pronounce judgment on them all.

Swing the sickle,

for the harvest is ripe.

Come, tread the grapes,

for the winepress is full.

The storage vats are overflowing

with the wickedness of these people.”

Thousands upon thousands are waiting in the valley of decision.

There the day of the Lord will soon arrive.

The sun and moon will grow dark,

and the stars will no longer shine.

The Lord’s voice will roar from Zion

and thunder from Jerusalem,

and the heavens and the earth will shake.

But the Lord will be a refuge for his people,

a strong fortress for the people of Israel.

“Then you will know that I, the Lord your God,

live in Zion, my holy mountain.

Jerusalem will be holy forever,

and foreign armies will never conquer her again.

Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers. All rights reserved.

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

Let the nations be roused and let them come up

to the valley of Jehoshaphat,

for there I will sit to judge

all the nations from all around.

Send forth the sickle,

for the harvest is ripe!

Go tread,

for the winepress is full!

The vats overflow,

because their evil is great!

Commotion, commotion

in the valley of decision!

For the day of Yahweh is near

in the valley of decision!

The sun and the moon grow dark,

and the stars have withheld their splendor.

And Yahweh roars from Zion;

from Jerusalem he utters his voice,

and the heavens and the earth shake.

But Yahweh is a refuge for his people,

and a protection for the children of Israel.

And you will know that I, Yahweh your God,

am dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain.

And Jerusalem will be a place of holiness,

and strangers will pass through it no longer.

Copyright 2012 Lexham Press

KJV 1900King James Version

Let the heathen be wakened, and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat:

For there will I sit to judge all the heathen round about.

Put ye in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe:

Come, get you down; for the press is full, the fats overflow;

For their wickedness is great.

Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision:

For the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision.

The sun and the moon shall be darkened,

And the stars shall withdraw their shining.

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 of his people,

And the strength of the children of Israel.

So shall ye know that I am the Lord your God

Dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain:

Then shall Jerusalem be holy,

And there shall no strangers pass through her any more.

Public Domain