Joel 3:1-16: a reflection

1“For, behold, in those days, and in that time, when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, 2I will gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat; and I will execute judgment on them there for my people, and for my heritage, Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations. They have divided my land, 3and have cast lots for my people, and have given a boy for a prostitute, and sold a girl for wine, that they may drink. 4“Yes, and what are you to me, Tyre and Sidon, and all the regions of Philistia? Will you repay me? And if you repay me, I will swiftly and speedily return your repayment on your own head. 5Because you have taken my silver and my gold, and have carried my finest treasures into your temples, 6and have sold the children of Judah and the children of Jerusalem to the sons of the Greeks, that you may remove them far from their border. 7Behold, I will stir them up out of the place where you have sold them, and will return your repayment on your own head; 8and I will sell your sons and your daughters into the hands of the children of Judah, and they will sell them to the men of Sheba, to a faraway nation, for the LORD has spoken it.” 9Proclaim this among the nations: “Prepare for war! Stir up the mighty men. Let all the warriors draw near. Let them come up. 10Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruning hooks into spears. Let the weak say, ‘I am strong.’ 11Hurry and come, all you surrounding nations, and gather yourselves together.” Cause your mighty ones to come down there, LORD. 12“Let the nations arouse themselves, and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat; for there I will sit to judge all the surrounding nations. 13Put in the sickle; for the harvest is ripe. Come, tread, for the wine press is full, the vats overflow, for their wickedness is great.” 14Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! For the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision. 15The sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining. 16The LORD will roar from Zion, and thunder from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth will shake; but the LORD will be a refuge to his people, and a stronghold to the children of Israel.

Amid Joel's vision of the great and shaking day of the LORD, when the heavens and earth tremble, one word of refuge stands out: the LORD will be a refuge to his people, and a stronghold to the children of Israel. The LORD will roar from Zion, Joel says, and the heavens and the earth will shake; but the LORD will be a refuge to his people, and a stronghold to the children of Israel. Even in the day when everything shakes, when the heavens and earth tremble and the very foundations seem to give way, the LORD is a refuge and a stronghold to his people, a place of safety amid the shaking. When all else is shaken, God himself is the refuge of his people. This shows that when the heavens and earth shake, the LORD is a refuge and stronghold to his people. When everything shakes, the LORD is a refuge to his people. God is a stronghold when the very foundations seem to give way. Amid the shaking of all things, take refuge in God. God himself is the safe place when all else trembles.

Notice where refuge is found when everything shakes. Joel's vision is of the great day of the LORD, a day of shaking, when the LORD roars from Zion and the heavens and the earth tremble, when the sun and moon are darkened and the foundations seem to give way. It is a picture of everything being shaken. And in the midst of this shaking, one thing stands firm and offers refuge: the LORD himself is a refuge to his people, a stronghold to them. When all else shakes, God does not; and he is the safe place for his people amid the shaking. This holds a comfort for times when everything seems to shake. There are times when the things we relied on give way, when the ground beneath us seems to tremble, when what seemed solid is shaken, and we feel that the very foundations are giving way. In such times, where is refuge? Not in the shaking things around us, which cannot hold, but in the LORD himself, who is a refuge and stronghold to his people even when the heavens and earth shake. God does not shake when all else does; he is the safe place, the stronghold, when the foundations tremble. We do well, when everything seems to shake, to take refuge not in the shaking things but in the LORD himself, who is a refuge and stronghold to his people amid the shaking of all things. When everything shakes, take refuge in the LORD, who does not shake. God is a stronghold to his people when the foundations tremble. Do not seek refuge in the shaking things; seek it in God, who stands firm. God himself is the safe place amid the shaking of all things.

That is worth resting in, for when the heavens and earth shake, the LORD is a refuge and stronghold to his people, and we can take refuge in him amid the shaking of all things, as Joel promised. When the things we relied on give way and the foundations seem to tremble, we can feel there is no safe place; but the LORD is a refuge to his people even when the heavens and earth shake. Take refuge in him. When everything around you seems to shake, do not seek refuge in the shaking things; take refuge in the LORD, who does not shake and is a stronghold to his people. Take refuge in the LORD, who is a refuge and stronghold to his people even when the heavens and earth shake, as amid Joel's vision of the great and shaking day of the LORD one word of refuge stands out, that the LORD will be a refuge to his people and a stronghold to the children of Israel, for the LORD will roar from Zion and the heavens and earth will shake, but he will be a refuge to his people; for even in the day when everything shakes, when the heavens and earth tremble and the very foundations seem to give way, the LORD is a refuge and stronghold to his people, a place of safety amid the shaking, so that when all else is shaken God himself is the refuge of his people, which is a comfort for times when everything seems to shake, since there are times when the things we relied on give way, when the ground beneath us seems to tremble, when what seemed solid is shaken and we feel the foundations giving way, and in such times refuge is found not in the shaking things around us, which cannot hold, but in the LORD himself, who is a refuge and stronghold to his people even when the heavens and earth shake, since God does not shake when all else does but is the safe place when the foundations tremble, so that we do well, when everything seems to shake, to take refuge not in the shaking things but in the LORD himself.

Lord, amid Joel's vision of the great and shaking day of the LORD, when the heavens and earth tremble, one word of refuge stands out: the LORD will be a refuge to his people, and a stronghold to the children of Israel. The LORD will roar from Zion, Joel says, and the heavens and the earth will shake; but the LORD will be a refuge to his people, and a stronghold to the children of Israel. Even in the day when everything shakes, when the heavens and earth tremble and the very foundations seem to give way, you are a refuge and a stronghold to your people, a place of safety amid the shaking. When all else is shaken, you yourself are the refuge of your people. Show me where refuge is found when everything shakes. Joel's vision is of the great day of the LORD, a day of shaking, when you roar from Zion and the heavens and earth tremble, when the foundations seem to give way. It is a picture of everything being shaken. And in the midst of this shaking, one thing stands firm and offers refuge: you yourself are a refuge to your people, a stronghold to them. When all else shakes, you do not; and you are the safe place for your people amid the shaking. This holds a comfort for times when everything seems to shake. There are times when the things I relied on give way, when the ground beneath me seems to tremble, when what seemed solid is shaken, and I feel that the very foundations are giving way. In such times, where is refuge? Not in the shaking things around me, which cannot hold, but in you, who are a refuge and stronghold to your people even when the heavens and earth shake. You do not shake when all else does; you are the safe place, the stronghold, when the foundations tremble. Take that to my heart. When everything around me seems to shake, keep me from seeking refuge in the shaking things; help me take refuge in you, Lord, who do not shake and are a refuge and stronghold to your people amid the shaking of all things.