Creator, Father, King #151

The day of the LORD is great and very awesome; who can endure it?

CATACLYSMIC PESTILENCES DON’T ONLY happen in biblical times!

In 1874, the skies grew dark over various parts of America’s Great Plains, as trillions of locusts descended from the north. The swarm—which covered an estimated area 1,800 miles long and 110 miles wide—devastated crops and forced many wishful homesteaders to return east.

Of course, the Bible contains its fair share of stories about catastrophic events—the most famous of which were the ten plagues of Egypt in Exodus chapters 7–12. But did you know that the Old Testament book of Joel focuses on a destructive locust invasion too? This fascinating minor prophetic book—only three chapters long—describes this unique natural phenomenon as a way to warn God’s people, Israel, about the coming “day of the LORD” (see today’s verse).

Was the locust invasion that Joel referred to in chapter 1 an actual historical event or a metaphorical device the prophet was using to illustrate coming destruction if his readers didn’t repent? Biblical scholars have been debating that for centuries.

What’s clear is the message he wanted to convey.

What’s It Mean?

Depending on the context, Joel’s—and the rest of Scripture’s—references to “the day of the LORD” can mean a coming day of judgment for God’s wicked enemies, a time of divine blessing, or future salvation for God’s redeemed people.

God’s message through Joel was an exhortation to his wayward people. “Turn to me now, while there is time. Give me your hearts,” he told them (Joel 2:12). Later, God promised one day to “pour out [his] Spirit upon all people” (Joel 2:28). God’s heart is clearly to bless, love, and forgive. “He is eager to relent and not punish” (Joel 2:13).

Israel had turned away from the Lord. If they didn’t repent, judgment would overwhelm them like a swarm of devouring locusts. But God’s forgiveness was available.

That message is true for us today, too. The day of the Lord is coming. For those who reject Christ, that day will be one of terrible judgment. For the righteous, it will begin a time of eternal blessings in God’s presence.

Turn to the Lord while there is still time!

Now What?

Look up the other references to the “day of the Lord” outside Joel: Isaiah 13:6, 9; Jeremiah 46:10; Ezekiel 13:5 and 30:3; Amos 5:18-20; Obadiah 15; Zephaniah 1:7, 14; and Malachi 4:5.

Did You Know?

Laura Ingalls Wilder, author of the famous Little House on the Prairie series, describes the 1870s Rocky Mountain locust invasion in her book, On the Banks of Plum Creek.