©John Yerkes
Chapter 2:12-17 (ESV) - “Yet even now,” declares the LORD,
“return to me with all your heart,
with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning;
and rend your hearts and not your garments.”
Return to the LORD your God,
for he is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love;
and he relents over disaster.
Who knows whether he will not turn and relent,
and leave a blessing behind him,
a grain offering and a drink offering
for the LORD your God?
Blow the trumpet in Zion;
consecrate a fast;
call a solemn assembly;
gather the people.
Consecrate the congregation;
assemble the elders;
gather the children,
even nursing infants.
Let the bridegroom leave his room,
and the bride her chamber.
Between the vestibule and the altar
let the priests, the ministers of the LORD, weep
and say, “Spare your people, O LORD,
and make not your heritage a reproach,
a byword among the nations.
Why should they say among the peoples,
‘Where is their God?’”
Question to consider: Why does Joel call for trumpets in Zion at the beginning of the chapter, and why does he call for them here?
While the prophets may have given warnings of pending judgment or a future assurance of blessing to the penitent, much of their content is rooted in the promises given to Moses in the Torah. Joel could describe the LORD as gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love because those are the very words the LORD gave to Moses in Exodus 34.
Joel could declare that the LORD would relent over disaster if the people return to Him because the LORD promised Moses He would do so in Leviticus 26. Like Joel, we can tell the people of our day to rend their hearts and not their garments and return to the LORD. Even if someone has cursed the name of Christ or done some unspeakable sin or gone their own way, there is forgiveness at the cross of Christ and hope in His resurrection.
The devil wants us to think that we are beyond redemption. While this may be true in light of our own attempts at righteousness, the devil leaves out the more powerful truth that Jesus fulfilled the dictates of the Law and offers us His righteousness which more than covers our sin. Christ is the very grain offering and drink offering left behind as a blessing to those who would return to Him.
So Joel once again calls for a trumpet blast in Zion, but instead of pronouncing judgment, he calls for the repentance of all the people, from the elders all the way down to nursing babies. The grain and drink offering left behind by the LORD is more than enough for the priests to use to intercede for the people between the vestibule and the altar. Not only is Christ the grain and drink offering, but He is the high priest who intercedes for us in the heavenly temple. “For it was indeed fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, innocent, unstained, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens.” (Hebrews 7:26)
Dear heavenly Father, thank You for Your willingness to endure our sin and ignorance while we are daily being conformed to the image of Christ. Help us to find rest in the finished work of Jesus on the cross and create in us a joy to do the things that please You. Amen.