The prophet Joel appears in Jerusalem during a time of great affliction, when a plague of locusts is devastating the land. He warns the people that the scourge is upon them as a sign of God’s wrath:
Sanctify ye a fast, call a solemn assembly, gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land into the house of the Lord your God, and cry unto the Lord.1:14
That which the palmerworm hath left hath the locust eaten. . . . Awake, ye drunkards, and weep; and howl, all ye drinkers of wine, because . . . it is cut off from your mouth.1:4–5
The field is wasted, the land mourneth. . . .1:10
Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand.2:1
The Lord will forgive, says Joel; and He will restore the land:
I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten. . . . And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the Lord your God. . . .2:25–26
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.2:28
Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision.3:14
Egypt shall be a desolation, and Edom shall be a desolate wilderness. . . . But Judah shall dwell for ever, and Jerusalem from generation to generation.3:19–20