I listened yesterday to a radio broadcast from NPR in which the eminent John Hagee outlined his views about what he called the "biblical mandate" for Christians to support Israel, basing his point of view on the prophecies of Joel from the Old Testament.

Well, I felt that it was important for me to actually look at the book of Joel and see what it actually says (especially since the only thing I could remember was Joel 2, which is quoted in Acts 2).

Let's begin with Joel 1:

1The (A)word of the LORD that came to (B)Joel, the son of Pethuel:
2(C)Hear this, O (D)elders,
And listen, all inhabitants of the land
(E)Has anything like this happened in your days
Or in your fathers' days?
3(F)Tell your sons about it,
And let your sons tell their sons,
And their sons the next generation.
4What the (G)gnawing locust has left, the swarming locust has eaten;
And what the (H)swarming locust has left, the creeping locust has eaten;
And what the creeping locust has left, the (I)stripping locust has eaten.
5Awake, (J)drunkards, and weep;
And wail, all you wine drinkers,
On account of the sweet wine
That is (K)cut off from your mouth.
6For a (L)nation has invaded my land,
Mighty and without number;
(M)Its teeth are the teeth of a lion,
And it has the fangs of a lioness.
7It has (N)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(O)Wail like a virgin (P)girded with sackcloth
For the bridegroom of her youth.
9The (Q)grain offering and the drink offering are cut off
From the house of the LORD
The (R)priests mourn,
The ministers of the LORD.
10The field is (S)ruined,
(T)The land mourns;
For the grain is ruined,
The new wine dries up,
Fresh oil fails.
11(U)Be ashamed, O farmers,
Wail, O vinedressers,
For the wheat and the barley;
Because the (V)harvest of the field is destroyed.
12The (W)vine dries up
And the fig tree fails;
The (X)pomegranate, the (Y)palm also, and the (Z)apple tree,
All the trees of the field dry up
Indeed, (AA)rejoicing dries up
From the sons of men.
13(AB)Gird yourselves with sackcloth
And lament, O priests;
(AC)Wail, O ministers of the altar!
Come, (AD)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.

While my evangelical friends would no doubt relate this passage to the section of Revelation 8-9 that describes a horde of locusts descending on the world of men in the last days, it is pretty clear to me that Joel is instead lamenting (along with God) the destruction of ancient Israel at the hands of Assyria and Babylon. (This passage reads very much like Jeremiah's lament in . . . (drum roll please) Lamentations.)

Let's continue to the end of the chapter:

14(AE)Consecrate a fast,
Proclaim a (AF)solemn assembly;
Gather the elders
And all the inhabitants of the land
To the house of the LORD your God,
And (AG)cry out to the LORD.
15(AH)Alas for the day!
For the (AI)day of the LORD is near,
And it will come as (AJ)destruction from the Almighty.
16Has not (AK)food been cut off before our eyes,
Gladness and (AL)joy from the house of our God?
17The (AM)seeds shrivel under their clods;
The storehouses are desolate,
The barns are torn down,
For the grain is dried up.
18How (AN)the beasts groan!
The herds of cattle wander aimlessly
Because there is no pasture for them;
Even the flocks of sheep suffer.
19(AO)To You, O LORD, I cry;
For (AP)fire has devoured the pastures of the wilderness
And the flame has burned up all the trees of the field.
20Even the beasts of the field (AQ)pant for You;
For the (AR)water brooks are dried up
And fire has devoured the pastures of the wilderness.

Here Joel is merely inviting the elders and the people of Israel to join with him in lamenting the destruction of a once mighty kingdom of God.

Continuing on to Joel 2, we find the following passage:

1(A)Blow a trumpet in Zion,
And sound an alarm on My holy mountain!
Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble,
For the (B)day of the LORD is coming;
Surely it is near,
2A day of (C)darkness and gloom,
A day of clouds and thick darkness
As the dawn is spread over the mountains,
So there is a (D)great and mighty people;
There has (E)never been anything like it,
Nor will there be again after it
To the years of many generations.
3A (F)fire consumes before them
And behind them a flame burns
The land is (G)like the garden of Eden before them
But a (H)desolate wilderness behind them,
And nothing at all escapes them.
4Their (I)appearance is like the appearance of horses;
And like war horses, so they run.
5With a (J)noise as of chariots
They leap on the tops of the mountains,
Like the crackling of a (K)flame of fire consuming the stubble,
Like a mighty people arranged for battle.
6Before them the people are in (L)anguish;
All (M)faces turn pale.
7They run like mighty men,
They climb the wall like soldiers;
And they each (N)march in line,
Nor do they deviate from their paths.
8They do not crowd each other,
They march everyone in his path;
When they burst through the defenses,
They do not break ranks.
9They rush on the city,
They run on the wall;
They climb into the (O)houses,
They (P)enter through the windows like a thief.
10Before them the earth (Q)quakes,
The heavens tremble,
The (R)sun and the moon grow dark
And the stars lose their brightness.
11The LORD (S)utters His voice before (T)His army;
Surely His camp is very great,
For (U)strong is he who carries out His word
The (V)day of the LORD is indeed great and very awesome,
And (W)who can endure it?
12"Yet even now," declares the LORD,
"(X)Return to Me with all your heart,
And with (Y)fasting, weeping and mourning;
13And (Z)rend your heart and not (AA)your garments "
Now return to the LORD your God,
For He is (AB)gracious and compassionate,
Slow to anger, abounding in lovingkindness
And (AC)relenting of evil.
14Who knows (AD)whether He will not turn and relent
And leave a (AE)blessing behind Him,
Even (AF)a grain offering and a drink offering
For the LORD your God?
15(AG)Blow a trumpet in Zion,
(AH)Consecrate a fast, proclaim a solemn assembly,
16Gather the people, (AI)sanctify the congregation,
Assemble the elders,
Gather the children and the nursing infants
Let the (AJ)bridegroom come out of his room
And the bride out of her bridal chamber.
17Let the priests, the LORD'S ministers,
Weep (AK)between the porch and the altar,
And let them say, "(AL)Spare Your people, O LORD,
And do not make Your inheritance a (AM)reproach,
A byword among the nations
Why should they among the peoples say,
'(AN)Where is their God?'"

While this passage is often linked (because of its imagery of darkness and a great day of judgment in which God blots out the sun, moon, and stars) to descriptions elsewhere of the Day of Judgment, it is also, I believe, a lament for ancient Israel's destruction. (Ladies and gentlemen, I assure you that if the United States were to suffer the same fate as the ancient kingdom of Israel, we would describe it as a day of darkness, fire, and gloom as well.) Here, Joel is saying that, as horrible as everything appears to the people he is exhorting, there may still be a chance that God will hear his people's cries, and that God will at least preserve a remant of Israel for future generations.

The following portion of Joel 2 constitutes God's answer to Israel's attempt to mend her ways:

18Then the LORD will be (AO)zealous for His land
And will have (AP)pity on His people.
19The LORD will answer and say to His people,
"Behold, I am going to (AQ)send you grain, new wine and oil,
And you will be satisfied in full with them;
And I will (AR)never again make you a reproach among the nations.
20"But I will remove the (AS)northern army far from you,
And I will drive it into a parched and desolate land,
And its vanguard into the (AT)eastern sea,
And its rear guard into the (AU)western sea
And its (AV)stench will arise and its foul smell will come up,
For it has done great things."
21(AW)Do not fear, O land, rejoice and be glad,
For the LORD has done (AX)great things.
22Do not fear, beasts of the field,
For the (AY)pastures of the wilderness have turned green,
For the tree has borne its fruit,
The fig tree and the vine have yielded in full.
23So rejoice, O (AZ)sons of Zion,
And (BA)be glad in the LORD your God;
For He has (BB)given you [a]the early rain for your vindication
And He has poured down for you the rain,
The [b]early and [c](BC)latter rain as before.
24The threshing floors will be full of grain,
And the vats will (BD)overflow with the new wine and oil.
25"Then I will make up to you for the years
That the swarming (BE)locust has eaten,
The creeping locust, the stripping locust and the gnawing locust,
My great army which I sent among you.
26"You will have plenty to (BF)eat and be satisfied
And (BG)praise the name of the LORD your God,
Who has (BH)dealt wondrously with you;
Then My people will (BI)never be put to shame.
27"Thus you will (BJ)know that I am in the midst of Israel,
And that I am the LORD your God,
And there is (BK)no other;
And My people will never be (BL)put to shame.

It is important to note this point because the following sections are often not fully appreciated for their value, to the ancient Israelis, to the first century Judaeans to whom Peter recited these words, and (potentially) to us today. There was a reason Peter recited the latter third of Joel 2, and a reason that God enacted the speaking of tongues in Acts 2 which prompted Peter's recital.

It is because what follows is a potential result of coming before God, admitting one's sins, and walking away from the darkness that has consumed one's own heart:

28"(BM)It will come about after this
That I will (BN)pour out My Spirit on all (BO)mankind;
And your sons and daughters will prophesy,
Your old men will dream dreams,
Your young men will see visions.
29"Even on the (BP)male and female servants
I will pour out My Spirit in those days.
30"I will (BQ)display wonders in the sky and on the earth,
Blood, fire and columns of smoke.
31"The (BR)sun will be turned into darkness
And the moon into blood
Before the (BS)great and awesome day of the LORD comes.
32"And it will come about that (BT)whoever calls on the name of the LORD
Will be delivered;
For (BU)on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem
There will be those who (BV)escape,
As the LORD has said,
Even among the (BW)survivors whom the LORD calls.

Here Joel is speaking of full union with God--a union as beautiful and sacred and powerful as any union between man and woman, between parent and child, between brother and sister--and a union of far greater significance. The union of Creator/created is the most blessed union of all, because as Joel explains, God will show the created great wonders, that he will save whoever calls on him, and that those who repent before God will not be humiliated, but instead will be blessed with the witnessing of God's plans as they unfold over human history.

Now we proceed to Joel 3, which Mr. Hagee cites as his prompt in supporting Israel:

1"For behold, (A)in those days and at that time,
When I (B)restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem,
2I will (C)gather all the nations
And bring them down to the (D)valley of Jehoshaphat
Then I will (E)enter into judgment with them there
On behalf of My people and My inheritance, Israel,
Whom they have (F)scattered among the nations;
And they have (G)divided up My land.
3"They have also (H)cast lots for My people,
(I)Traded a boy for a harlot
And sold a girl for wine that they may drink.
4"Moreover, what are you to Me, O (J)Tyre, Sidon and all the regions of (K)Philistia? Are you rendering Me a recompense? But if you do recompense Me, swiftly and speedily I will (L)return your recompense on your head.

5"Since you have (M)taken My silver and My gold, brought My precious treasures to your temples,

6and sold the (N)sons of Judah and Jerusalem to the Greeks in order to remove them far from their territory,

7behold, I am going to (O)arouse them from the place where you have sold them, and return your recompense on your head.

8"Also I will (P)sell your sons and your daughters into the hand of the sons of Judah, and they will sell them to the (Q)Sabeans, to a distant nation," for the LORD has spoken.
9(R)Proclaim this among the nations:
(S)Prepare a war; (T)rouse the mighty men!
Let all the soldiers draw near, let them come up!
10(U)Beat your plowshares into swords
And your pruning hooks into spears;
(V)Let the weak say, "I am a mighty man."
11(W)Hasten and come, all you surrounding nations,
And gather yourselves there
Bring down, O LORD, Your (X)mighty ones.
12Let the nations be aroused
And come up to the (Y)valley of Jehoshaphat,
For there I will sit to (Z)judge
All the surrounding nations.
13(AA)Put in the sickle, for the (AB)harvest is ripe
Come, (AC)tread, for the (AD)wine press is full;
The vats overflow, for their (AE)wickedness is great.
14(AF)Multitudes, multitudes in the (AG)valley of decision!
For the (AH)day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision.
15The (AI)sun and moon grow dark
And the stars lose their brightness.
16The LORD (AJ)roars from Zion
And (AK)utters His voice from Jerusalem,
And the (AL)heavens and the earth tremble
But the LORD is a (AM)refuge for His people
And a (AN)stronghold to the sons of Israel.
17Then you will (AO)know that I am the LORD your God,
Dwelling in Zion, My (AP)holy mountain
So Jerusalem will be (AQ)holy,
And (AR)strangers will pass through it no more.

Having read this chapter, I do not see the correlation Mr. Hagee is making. This passage was written with the people of Judah in mind, a people who either were in the process of seeing their beloved land overrun by the Babylonians or who had already been scattered by their invaders. It is, I believe, a promise to those people that their fortunes will one day be restored, and that God will mete out punishment on all the nations which had (past tense) divided the lands of Israel among themselves. (These nations, by the way, comprise the present-day Arab nations of the Middle East, and if one wants to read this passage as future prophecy, then I think it is safe to say that it has been coming to pass for the past 50 years or so.)



What men like John Hagee, Rod Parsley, and a few others (there's a reason I mentioned those names--I'll write more on that tomorrow) fail to understand is that the Bible was not written as an instrument of condemnation but as a source of encouragement and healing to the suffering, the destitute, and the defeated. This is why Paul says that all scripture (by which he meant all the Old Testament) is good for edification--that it is, in effect, good for the soul. The prophet Joel did not, I think, mean to utter words of vitriol or condemnation against anyone--he was merely operating under God's authority, telling a broken nation that they still had hope.

This hope, it is clear, exists for anyone who admits his/her sins and (through reconciliation and reunion with his/her Maker) allows himself/herself to become a new person. To any of us who forsake the evil, greed, and selfishness we have exalted as cultural icons in the United States today, there is a final promise as beautiful and accessible to any struggling wayfarer in the postmodern world as it must have been for Joel's hearers 2500 years ago:

18And in that day
The (AS)mountains will drip with sweet wine,
And the hills will (AT)flow with milk,
And all the (AU)brooks of Judah will flow with water;
And a (AV)spring will go out from the house of the LORD
To water the valley of Shittim.

I wish the grace of God, rather than the hatred of God, were the mainstay of Christian sermons--it would make the beauty of books like this one so much easier to see.