King James Version
Joel
Joel in the King James Version (1769), public domain in the United States.
Background and History
The chapters above are the King James text. This essay is the setting of Joel: who is said to have written it, when and where, what happens in it, and how the text has been copied.
At a Glance
| Author | Joel son of Pethuel. Nothing else is known about him. |
|---|---|
| Date | Disputed. One survey gives either 835–796 BC or 500–450 BC. The book names no king. |
| Place written | Judah, probably Jerusalem, by its references to Zion and the temple. |
| Genre | Prophecy about a locust plague and the day of the Lord. |
| Chapters | 3 |
| Verses | 73 in the King James Version |
| Key verse | Joel 2:28Joel 2:28 · King James VersionAnd it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions:Joel 2:28 · King James VersionOpen the Source |
Who Wrote It
Joel 1:1Joel 1:1 · King James VersionThe word of the LORD that came to Joel the son of Pethuel.
Joel 1:1 · King James VersionOpen the Source (1) names Joel son of Pethuel. The Talmud assigns the Twelve to the men of the Great Assembly as compilers. (2) No other biblical book names him.
Who It Is Not
The many other men named Joel in the Old Testament are not this prophet.
When and Where
Bible Gateway calls the date disputed, likely either 835–796 BC or 500–450 BC, and calls Joel the most notoriously difficult of the prophets to date. (5) The early date rests on the book’s place among early prophets and on the absence of a king. The late date rests on references to the temple and the Greeks in Joel 3:6Joel 3:6 · King James VersionThe children also of Judah and the children of Jerusalem have ye sold unto the Grecians, that ye might remove them far from their border.
Joel 3:6 · King James VersionOpen the Source.
Audience and Setting
Judah after a devastating locust plague. The purpose is to call for repentance and announce the day of the Lord.
Rulers at the Time
The book names no king. This page adds none.
| When | What |
|---|---|
| Locust plague | Joel 1 |
| Call to repent | Joel 2 |
| Spirit poured out | Joel 2:28–32Joel 2:28–32 · King James Version2:28 And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions:2:29 And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit.2:30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.2:31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.2:32 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call.Joel 2:28–32 · King James VersionOpen the Source |
| Judgment of nations | Joel 3 |
| Composition | Disputed. (5) |
Places in This Book
| Ancient name | Modern-day location | References |
|---|---|---|
| Zion | Jerusalem. | Joel 2:1Joel 2:1 · King James VersionBlow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand;Joel 2:1 · King James VersionOpen the Source |
| Valley of Jehoshaphat | Unknown, perhaps symbolic. Later tradition placed it at the Kidron valley in Jerusalem. | Joel 3:2Joel 3:2 · King James VersionI will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land.Joel 3:2 · King James VersionOpen the Source |
What Is Happening
Joel 1 describes the plague. Joel 2 calls for repentance and promises restoration and the Spirit. Joel 3 judges the nations and restores Judah.
Key Themes
The day of the Lord in Joel 2:1Joel 2:1 · King James VersionBlow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand;
Joel 2:1 · King James VersionOpen the Source. Repentance in Joel 2:13Joel 2:13 · King James VersionAnd rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the LORD your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil.
Joel 2:13 · King James VersionOpen the Source. The Spirit for all flesh in Joel 2:28Joel 2:28 · King James VersionAnd it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions:
Joel 2:28 · King James VersionOpen the Source.
Apologetics Questions
The date is the main question. The book’s message does not depend on it.
How the Book Points to Christ
Peter quotes Joel 2:28–32Joel 2:28–32 · King James Version2:28 And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions:
2:29 And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit.
2:30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.
2:31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.
2:32 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call.
Joel 2:28–32 · King James VersionOpen the Source at Pentecost in Acts 2:16–21Acts 2:16–21 · King James Version2:16 But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel;
2:17 And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:
2:18 And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:
2:19 And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke:
2:20 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come:
2:21 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.
Acts 2:16–21 · King James VersionOpen the Source. Whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be delivered, Joel 2:32Joel 2:32 · King James VersionAnd it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call.
Joel 2:32 · King James VersionOpen the Source, is applied to Jesus in Romans 10:13Romans 10:13 · King James VersionFor whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
Romans 10:13 · King James VersionOpen the Source. Jesus is God.
Text and Manuscripts
The Twelve are among the books found at Qumran. (6)
Canon Reception
Received with the Twelve. (4) (3)
Further Reading
References
- Book of Joel, 1:1Joel 1:1 · King James Version
The word of the LORD that came to Joel the son of Pethuel.
Joel 1:1 · King James VersionOpen the Source. King James Version - Babylonian Talmud, Bava Batra 15a, 15a (The William Davidson English on Sefaria is copyrighted. This page paraphrases it and does not reprint it. The page continues the list of writers and the debate about it.)
- Against Apion, 1.8Josephus, Against Apion 1.8 · William Whiston
For we have not an innumerable multitude of books among us, disagreeing from, and contradicting one another: [as the Greeks have:] but only twenty two books: which contain the records of all the past times: which are justly believed to be divine. And of them five belong to Moses: which contain his laws, and the traditions of the origin of mankind, till his death.
Josephus, Against Apion 1.8 · William WhistonOpen the Source (Flavius Josephus, Against Apion 1.8, translated by William Whiston. Josephus counts twenty-two books: five of Moses, thirteen of the prophets from Moses to Artaxerxes, and four of hymns and precepts.) - Festal Letter 39, 39.4–5 (Athanasius of Alexandria, AD 367, Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, second series, vol. 4, on New Advent. The letter lists twenty-two Old Testament books and the twenty-seven books of the New Testament, and places Esther among books to be read rather than in the canon.)
- When Was Each Book of the Bible Written?, Joel (Jacob Edson, Bible Gateway, 16 September 2024. The survey gives Joel as disputed, likely either 835–796 BC or 500–450 BC. It is one editor’s approximation, not a manuscript date.)
- Dead Sea Scrolls, introduction, Biblical manuscriptsDead Sea Scrolls, biblical manuscripts · Israel Antiquities Authority
Among the Scrolls are partial or complete copies of every book in the Hebrew Bible (except the book of Esther).
Dead Sea Scrolls, biblical manuscripts · Israel Antiquities AuthorityOpen the Source (Israel Antiquities Authority. Biblical manuscripts from the Qumran caves date from the third century BC into the first century AD, and every book of the Hebrew Bible except Esther is represented.)
The King James Version (1769) is in the public domain in the United States.