The questions asked in
biblical literature deserve careful attention. Without them, the answers – if they
follow - make no sense at all. The three post-disaster questions of Joel 2:11-17,
all of which find an answer in 2:18-20, are:
(1) The day of the Lord is great: who can endure it?
(2) Who knows if he will turn and relent?
(3) Where is their God?
In the immediate
aftermath of a disaster, these questions, in some shape or form, are on the
minds of victims and bystanders. Questions (1) and (2) are typical of anyone
who witnesses and survives a tragedy whose end has not yet certainly arrived. Question
(3) is typical of bystanders to the event. I remember the questions well from
the days of my pastorate in Friuli, Italy. A decade after the 1976 earthquake
which claimed more than one thousand lives, the memory of those questions
continued to shape the psyche of the quake’s survivors. (For a simulation of
the famous collapse of the Venzone cathedral, and the story of its
reconstruction, go here.)
In the immediate aftermath of an earthquake, it is common for people to refuse to live indoors for months, for fear of another. That, combined with grief for lives lost, prompts questions (1) and (2) in some shape or form. In the wake of locusts ravaging the fields, combined with an ongoing drought, questions (1) and (2) were naturally posed. The prophet Joel voices them. Question (1) is lamentation, intercession, and a heart-felt question, all at the same time. Question (2) expresses hope untainted by optimism.
Joel 2:11-14 is the
conclusion of a 28-line unit which begins with 2:1. 2:1-14 is capped by the 8
lines contained in 2:15-17. The macrounit consists of 36 lines. Below the fold,
2:11-17 is presented, along with a new translation.
21 11 וַיהוָה נָתַן קוֹלוֹ
לִפְנֵי חֵילוֹ
22 כִּי
רַב מְאֹד מַחֲנֵהוּ
כִּי עָצוּם עֹשֵׂה דְבָרוֹ
23 כִּי־גָדוֹל
יוֹם־יְהוָה
וְנוֹרָא מְאֹד
וּמִי יְכִילֶנּוּ
11 And the Lord
let out a shout
at the
head of his army.
Vast
indeed is his camp,
powerful
they who do his bidding.
Great is
the day of the Lord,
terrible
indeed,
who
can endure it?
24 12 וְגַם־עַתָּה נְאֻם־יְהוָה
שֻׁבוּ עָדַי בְּכָל־לְבַבְכֶם
וּבְצוֹם וּבְבְכִי וּבְמִסְפֵּד
25 13 וְקִרְעוּ לְבַבְכֶם
וְאַל בִּגְדֵיכֶם
וְשׁוּבוּ אֶל־יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵיכֶם
26 כִּי־חַנּוּן
וְרַחוּם הוּא
אֶרֶךְ אַפַּיִם וְרַב־חֶסֶד
וְנִחָם עַל־הָרָעָה
27 14 מִי יוֹדֵעַ יָשׁוּב וְנִחָם
וְהִשְׁאִיר אַחֲרָיו בְּרָכָה
28 מִנְחָה
וָנֶסֶךְ
לַיהוָה אֱלֹהֵיכֶם
12 Yet even now
– oracle of the Lord –
return to me with your whole heart,
with fasting, weeping, and mourning!
13 Rend your hearts –
not your garments –
and return to the Lord your God!
For he is gracious and compassionate,
slow to anger, abounding in kindness,
and relenting about doing harm.
14 Who knows if he will turn and relent,
and leave a blessing in his wake,
meal offering and libation
for the Lord your God?
29 15 תִּקְעוּ שׁוֹפָר בְּצִיּוֹן
קַדְּשׁוּ צוֹם
קִרְאוּ עֲצָרָה
30 16 אִסְפוּ עָם
קַדְּשׁוּ קָהָל
31 קִבְצוּ
זְקֵנִים
אִסְפוּ עוֹלָלִים
וְיֹנְקֵי שָׁדָיִם
15 Blow a ram’s
horn in Zion
proclaim a pure fast,
call an assembly!
16 Gather the people,
bid the congregation keep pure
Assemble the old,
gather the babes,
those who feed at the breast!
32 יֵצֵא חָתָן
מֵחֶדְרוֹ
וְכַלָּה מֵחֻפָּתָהּ
33 17 בֵּין הָאוּלָם וְלַמִּזְבֵּחַ
יִבְכּוּ הַכֹּהֲנִים
מְשָׁרְתֵי יְהוָה
34 וְיֹאמְרוּ
חוּסָה יְהוָה עַל־עַמֶּךָ
Let the groom
quit his chamber,
and the bride her bower.
17 Between the portico and the altar
let the priests weep,
the ministers of the Lord.
Let them say,
show mercy, Lord, on your people!
35 וְאַל־תִּתֵּן
נַחֲלָתְךָ לְחֶרְפָּה
לִמְשָׁל בָּם גּוֹיִם
36 לָמָּה
יֹאמְרוּ בָעַמִּים
אַיֵּה אֱלֹהֵיהֶם
Do not make your possession a mockery,
the theme of song of nations.
Why
should they say among the peoples,
Where is your God?
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