Joel 1:15-2:11
Christian Standard Bible Anglicised
The Day of the Lord
15 Woe because of that day!(A)
For the day of the Lord is near
and will come as devastation from the Almighty.(B)
16 Hasn’t the food been cut off
before our eyes,(C)
joy and gladness(D)
from the house of our God?
17 The seeds lie shrivelled in their casings.[a](E)
The storehouses are in ruin,
and the granaries are broken down,
because the corn has withered away.
18 How the animals groan!(F)
The herds of cattle wander in confusion
since they have no pasture.
Even the flocks of sheep and goats suffer punishment.
19 I call to you, Lord,(G)
for fire has consumed
the pastures of the wilderness,(H)
and flames have devoured
all the trees of the orchard.
20 Even the wild animals cry out to[b] you,(I)
for the river beds are dried up,(J)
and fire has consumed
the pastures of the wilderness.
2 Blow the ram’s horn in Zion;(K)
sound the alarm on my holy mountain!
Let all the residents of the land tremble,
for the day of the Lord is coming;(L)
in fact, it is near –
2 a day of darkness and gloom,(M)
a day of clouds and total darkness,(N)
like the dawn spreading over the mountains;
a great and strong people(O) appears,
such as never existed in ages past(P)
and never will again
in all the generations to come.(Q)
3 A fire devours in front of them,(R)
and behind them a flame blazes.
The land in front of them
is like the garden of Eden,(S)
but behind them,
it is like a desert wasteland;(T)
there is no escape from them.
4 Their appearance is like that of horses,(U)
and they gallop like war horses.
5 They bound on the tops of the mountains.
Their sound is like the sound of chariots,(V)
like the sound of fiery flames consuming stubble,(W)
like a mighty army deployed for war.
6 Nations writhe in horror before them;(X)
all faces turn pale.
7 They attack as warriors attack;
they scale walls as men of war do.
Each goes on his own path,(Y)
and they do not change their course.
8 They do not push each other;
each proceeds on his own path.
They dodge the arrows, never stopping.
9 They storm the city;
they run on the wall;
they climb into the houses;(Z)
they enter through the windows like thieves.(AA)
10 The earth quakes before them;(AB)
the sky shakes.
The sun and moon grow dark,(AC)
and the stars cease their shining.(AD)
11 The Lord makes his voice heard(AE)
in the presence of his army.(AF)
His camp is very large;
those who carry out his command are powerful.(AG)
Indeed, the day of the Lord is terrible and dreadful(AH) –
who can endure it?(AI)
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