Jehovah’s March Among the Locusts (Joel 1:4)

Introduction

It all began with an invasion of locusts. David Allen Hubbard in his commentary observes so widespread and death dealing was their assault that every aspect of human life was put in jeopardy. Especially the daily offerings in the Jerusalem temple, which were ordered to maintain communion between God and his people. The severity of the plague, spoken of both literally and then figuratively, proved to the prophet that the pesky critters of destruction were actually God’s agents of judgment upon a disobedient people.

If you check the verse that I associated with the title in our brief advertising before the Lord’s day, you would have noticed a verse in the book of Joel. Joel. The name means the Lord is God, or Jehovah is God.

Well, I’m preaching a series. I’ve done that before, but as you know, I don’t do series commonly, but I am going to be preaching three Sunday nights in December, and Joel has three chapters. I have no idea what lesson two and three are going to look like. But I have time on the 16th and the 23rd to get ready for those sermons, and we’re going to know more about the prophet Joel. At least I am. I’m hoping you will be, knowing more about the prophet Joel than we knew before. And so I just mentioned that minor prophet, and by the way, Daniel has said he’s wanting me to preach on the minor prophets. So here we go. Three Sunday nights in December. Not next Sunday night.

I won’t be here. But what about the times of the prophet Joel? Interesting. Somewhat unsatisfying to us, I’m sure. There are no historical notes about his ministry. We’re introduced to him as a person, but what was his time period as a prophet to Israel? There is no mention of a monarch. A king, either in Israel or Judah during his reign, as we have with some of the prophets. It might help if he was mentioned as a contemporary of another prophet, and yet he’s not mentioned by any of the other prophets. Homer Haley observes the date of the book is as conjectural as the life of the man himself. Internal evidence may suggest that he was a priest or that he was a son of a priest, but we can’t even know that with any kind of certainty.

But there are similarities with other prophets’ messages, as we’ll see in a moment. But if we’re going to think that one borrowed from the other, I mean, which one came first, and perhaps it’s just because the prophets pretty much lived in the same declining era of spirituality of the nation of Israel. The only helpful thing in regard to any of this about the time of his writing might be its place in the canon. As the minor prophets go, they seem to be arranged somewhat historically and chronologically, and thus Joel comes toward the beginning of those twelve minor prophets, and there doesn’t seem to be any association with, say, Zachariah or Malachi toward the end of the Old Testament. And so this has led some to conclude that perhaps a legitimate guess could even have been during the reign of wicked Queen Atheliah.

Remember when the young Joash was hidden by Jehoida and Jehoshaphat? And perhaps it was an occasion like this where the true king is not even reigning, and Atheliah, a wicked woman, has assumed control. And perhaps it was during this period that Jehovah marched among the Old Testament might suggest, say, an earlier time than that of Isaiah, or particularly Jeremiah or Ezekiel. There is an emphasis in Joel as we go along. We’ll not notice this as much tonight as in the two later studies. An emphasis on Zion. And you’ve heard some sermons here about Zion, what some of the other prophets have to say about the spiritual city of God, the temple, and the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem. The message of the book, according to Haley, is the doom of the nations, and the ultimate glory of Jehovah’s cause.

I like that summation. The ultimate glory and triumph of Jehovah’s Caes is really the theme of all the prophets. In the midst of the doom, as we saw with Jeremiah, there are words of hope in regard to what God is doing. So tonight we’re going to look briefly at the first chapter of Joel, probably the one I knew the least about, as it talks about this locust plague that has come upon the nation. There are two sections in the book of Joel. The first section runs from the first verse of chapter 1 to about the middle of chapter 2, verse 17. And the second section runs from about 218 to the end of chapter 3. So three lessons on two sections. What we have going on with the story of the locusts is a day of visitation of the Lord.

1. A Day of Visitation of the Lord

We’re going to read verses 1 through 6. The word of the Lord that came to Joel, the son of Pethual. Again, we don’t even know any more about his father. Hear this, O elders, and listen, all inhabitants of the land. Has anything like this happened in your days? Or in your father’s day? A unique occurrence. Tell your sons about it. And let your sons tell their sons. And their sons the next generation. This is a significant event. One that because God is involved needs to be shared with future generations. What the gnawing locust has left, the swarming locust has eaten. It would be very common in southern Indiana when I was a kid out on a summer night, that we would hear the locusts doing their thing.

But I’ve never seen this kind of devastation. I’ve never seen swarms of locusts carrying out this kind of destruction and devastation. And he says, What the swarming locust has left, the creeping locusts has eaten. And what the creeping locust has left, the stripping locust has eaten. Well, they seem to have different ranks of destruction among the locusts. One begins it and another finishes it off. Sort of like Paul planning Apollos watering and God giving the increase, but this is going a different direction in terms of destruction. Awake, drunkards, and weep and wail, all you wine drinkers, on account of the sweet wine that is cut off from your mouth. You see, the sweet wine that would be the product of the grape, which would be a sign of God’s blessing, that is being removed by these gnawing locusts.

He says, For a nation has invaded my land, mighty and without number. Okay, this is like the frog plague of Egypt. So many of these locusts. Its teeth are the teeth of a lion, and it has the fangs of a lioness. It has made my vine a waste and my fig tree splinters. And so the devastation has come. Why? Why use locusts? Wait a minute. Could that be something in the section? In the law about the blessings and the curses. Well, yes. In fact, it could be. And this is why Joel makes the connection. In Deuteronomy chapter 28 and verse 38, it says, You shall bring out much seed to the field, but you shall gather in little, for the locust shall consume it. In the section of their disobedience to the covenant and the consequences that would come upon them as a result, one of the things that God would do would be to send locusts to wake the people up.

A day of visitation. And so I bring up that point, and I think of some passages, even in the New Testament, in an era past the day of Pentecost. In 1 Peter chapter 2, we have interesting language that really hearkens back to the prophets when it speaks to believers about being a chosen race, a royal priesthood and a holy nation, and being an example to others. It says, Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles in verse 12. So that in the thing in which they slander you as evildoers, they may, on account of your good deeds as they observe them. Glorify God in the day of visitation. I’m not sure we’re really familiar with that last phrase. Glorify God in the day of visitation. Is that just speaking of the end?

Where the ultimate judgment occurs? Or is it like this occasion, this event that takes place where God is judging the wicked and taking account of the righteous? Look over in 1 Peter 4 in verse 17. This doesn’t sound like something way off in the distance that hasn’t occurred yet, like something beyond even our time. When it says in 1 Peter chapter 4 and verse 7, the end of all things is at hand, and then he says in verse 17, for it is time for judgment to begin, and to begin with the household of God. And if it begins with us first, this accounting of people and their standing with God, he says, What will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?

And this leads me to our second point in a moment, verse 18. And if it is with difficulty that the righteous is saved, what will become of the godless man and the sinner? Don’t find yourself in these moments where judgment takes place to be opposite of God’s will for your life. The outcome of that will be tragic and horrible. But some difficulty may still come to those who are on God’s side. It is with difficulty that the righteous are saved. And so the admonishing words of verse 19 apply, even in the midst of difficulty, let those who suffer according to the will of God entrust their souls to a faithful creator in doing what is right. And so Joel sees this as a day of Jehovah, but a worse day is coming.

And that’s what I mentioned in regard to Zephaniah. Zephaniah mentions a day of the Lord. He said, near is the great day of the Lord, near and coming very quickly. But this is going to be far worse than the locusts. As Zephaniah talks about the invading Babylonian army that would come to judge God’s people. And so this day of visitation is a wake-up call to a spiritually sluggish and misdirected people. Now that’s sort of the summary of what’s going on in Joel chapter 1. What kind of application can we make of that? You know those folks at Decker Prairie, they need to shape up. They’re a little spiritually sluggish. After all, we looked at their attendance records this morning. Some of them need to do better.

2. Our Response to Adversity in Our Lives

Remember, these curses were related to the nation as a whole, being God’s covenant people. And yet, God is the God of the storm. Certainly, it is a possibility that events happen in our world that serve as a wake-up call to what extent God is involved in those things may be well beyond our knowing. And guess what we don’t have? We don’t have a Joel. We don’t have a Joel to say, you know, that Harvey thing, that was really bad. In fact, I don’t know about you, but even when it starts raining, I sort of get this little uncomfortable feeling. It’s not going to rain 50 inches, is it, over the next several days? You know, it’s but it’s almost, you know, we sort of need rain.

It’s a little dry out there. And yet when it starts raining, we’re going, oh, but please, not 30 or 40 or 50 inches. Not again. So there’s some trauma left over from all of that. But did Harvey mean something in regard to the activity of God? Again, we don’t have a prophet to sort all that out for us. But I think we can say something about adversity from the story that Joel can face. Because is everybody in the nation responsible for the locusts that have come? Is Joel himself responsible? You know, I’ve been misbehaving, and you know, there are righteous people in Joel’s times. Joel himself is one. And so he gets to deal with the adversity just like those who are disobedient and the cause of Jehovah’s March among the locusts.

And so I want to look at a familiar passage briefly and talk about our response to adversity in our lives. Consider it all joy, my brethren. When you encounter various trials. Knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result. That you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. Boy, I have a big question for James. What does all of those various trials involve or include? Crisis among the Lord’s people, perhaps. That could be a trial. Something that unfolds in the local church that somebody’s acting less than they should, and it creates some kind of disturbance and people choosing up sides. It could be some kind of crisis in the local church. It could be some crisis in your home.

It can be some crisis in your job or your financial picture or health picture. And that’s why James says, here, let me list all the ways the trials could come. I think somebody’s out there inventing new ways all the time. That trials can come in our lives. Peter says, various trials can be. What do those look like? Who are the agents involved? We don’t always know that. The agent may be the devil.

He took Peter. And what did Jesus say about Peter? He demanded permission to sift you like wheat. Adversity. When the devil targets you, expect some adversity to be dropped on your doorstep. It could be the specific target of the devil himself. Adversity is coming. And you know what? He’s not going to just let you slide into glory without any opposition, without any calamity, without any trouble or anxiety. Wait a minute. Wait a minute. Why are all those passages of the New Testament say, cast all your cares upon him, because he cares for you? Be anxious for nothing, but in everything with prayer and supplication with thanksgiving. Always take an accounting of what is good in your life. With prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your request be made known unto God.

Look, there are going to be times that perplex us. Paul even uses the word perplexed in 2 Corinthians chapter 4. He was not knowing what all of his circumstances were all about. Various trials come our way. How are we going to respond to adversity? Joel is having to respond to the adversity in his time that would not have been sent if everybody had been like him. I like what one said about adversity. Adversity introduces a man to himself. C.S. Lewis said, hardships often prepare ordinary people for an extraordinary destiny. What are you going to do the next time adversity comes? Well, the Lord could conclude all this at any time. And you better be ready for that piece of adversity for the wicked. But let’s say it doesn’t conclude this over the next ten years.

3. Look Within at the Condition of Our Hearts

What is that next adversity going to look like in your life? I have no way of knowing. You have no way of knowing. And when it happens, you’ll probably say, I didn’t see that coming. What are you going to do? What should you do in a moment of adversity? May I suggest that what the prophets as a whole, including Joel, are telling us to do in times of adversity are just as relevant today. When you meet trouble, in whatever form it comes, the first thing we probably need to do is look within at the condition of our hearts.

And not your garments. I don’t want you to respond in an outward act of grief and mourning. He says, I want you to grieve on the inside in regard to the condition of your hearts that has caused this march among the locusts. Rend your heart and not your garments. Joel’s call, the call of all the prophets, the call of the New Testament is to heart examination. That’s what we were doing this morning. What is really in your heart toward the world? What is really in your heart toward God, and how is that reflected in our behavior and the choices that we make. And if it weren’t for adversity, we might truly need to be concerned about where we are spiritually. Remember what we saw in 1 Peter chapter 4 is with difficulty that the righteous are saved.

There is a refining process according to 1 Peter chapter 1 and verse 7 in regard to our faith by the trials that come our way. And so when difficulty faces us, let our first response not be what is typical and the most natural thing to do. You know what that interrupts. Woe is me. Woe is me. The universe is picking on me. I have it worse than everybody else. No one suffers like I do. And we have a huge petty party for ourselves. And perhaps you’ve ended up done in a significant way. Perhaps it is very greatly unfair, and other people don’t know that kind of inequity in their lives, but I’m guessing they might. But instead of having instead of having a big pity party for yourself, first we might need to assess where am I spiritually?

4. Four Things We Should Seek from God

And even my response might suggest something about that. And number two, what we should do, instead of simply crying in our misery and pain, is there are four things that we should seek from God. His guidance, his vision. Where do I need to go from here? How do I need to respond to this crisis? His guidance, his vision, his help, plead to the one who can help like no one else, and the strength that he can supply. And assess. And this really goes along with point number one assess your trust and confidence in him and in his word. Do I really believe this has the answers for my circumstances that are causing me so much pain. Go on reading with me in James chapter 1 and verse 12.

5. Salvation, Sobriety, and Sanctification

I hope you’re still there. It’s still in the same context. Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial. For once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love him. Those who persevere in the midst of adversity, with their faith intact, they receive the crown of life. I like this quote from Helen Steiner Rice about adversity. Adversity can either distress us or bless us. The way we use adversity is strictly our own choice. And adversity may well be opportunity in disguise. At least in regard to our faith. One final point lesson is yours tonight in regard to the message of Joel chapter 1. And it’s this salvation, sobriety, and sanctification result from heavenward Christ. Whether it is our soul in sin, or our circumstances less than what we desire them to be, as they bring us pain and difficulty.

Salvation. Sobriety, a clearness of mind in regard to my life’s purpose and where I need to go. Salvation, sobriety, and then my sanctification being set apart for God’s will and his purposes as his vessel, all of those will result from an appeal to the right place. Joel 1 and verse 14. This is Joel’s message. Consecrate a fast, proclaim a solemn assembly, gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land to the house of the Lord your God, and cry out to the Lord. Alas for the day, for the day of the Lord is near, and it will come as destruction from the Almighty. In verse 19, to thee, O Lord I cry. For fire has devoured the pastures of the wilderness, and the flame has burned up all the trees of the field.

Conclusion

And so, in regard to the day of the Lord, ultimately there is no getting around God’s day of reckoning. There is no circumventing of the day of the Lord. And in regard to your cries, what is baptism? It’s a cry to God, to plea to God for salvation and for a clean conscience through the resurrection of Jesus Christ according to 1 Peter chapter 3 and verse 21. I want to leave you with one thought, and we’ll be done tonight. Our adversary is tenaciously opposed to your embrace of the will of God. He will do whatever he can to undermine your confidence in God’s will for your life. He tries to convince that a great happiness is available to you in something other than this. Whatever thrill he can offer, rest assured.

It is temporary and inferior to what God promises to give us and to reward us with.

Take that thought with you. If you need to respond to the invitation, come now as we stand and sing.