Who will benefit when God calls for this holy war? When will this war start? How is this prophecy about the Days of Darkness connected to other prophecies?
This writing is not about a zombie apocalypse though in many ways there are some similarities. No, but this is a prophecy of God a His proclamation to call for a holy war. This proclamation is found in the writing of Joel and along with the description of the days of darkness that God foretold about.
Proclaim This!
The proclamation and prophecy are similar. A prophecy is something that’s going to happen in the future, it is a way for God to communicate what he intends to do in time as he describes aspects of the events that are yet to unfold. We understand prophecy tends to be a long way off from being fulfilled in our minds. Prophecy is a revelation given by the spirit of God. 2 Peter 1:21
Whereas a proclamation from God is an official announcement. A Proclamation is not hidden in ambiguity, but it conveys what God is going to do. It may sound colorful, but it paints a clear picture of what God is commanding. The Proclamation is a clear call for immediate action!
There are some things that we need to know about God first before we consider this prophecy and God’s proclamation.
God cares about us and what is going on here upon this earth.
God will save his people and sanctify his name. God is coming to claim his inheritance and restore the land that has been stolen from Him.
Next he intends to do something about all this wickedness. God is coming with judgment for them!
Joel 3:9-16… Proclaim this among the nations:
Prepare for a holy war; rouse the warriors; let all the men of war advance and attack! Beat your plows into swords and your pruning knives into spears. Let even the weakling say, “I am a warrior.” Come quickly, all you surrounding nations; gather yourselves.
Bring down Your warriors there, Lord. Let the nations be roused and come to the Valley of Jehoshaphat, for there I will sit down to judge all the surrounding nations.
Swing the sickle because the harvest is ripe. Come and trample the grapes because the wine press is full; the wine vats overflow because the wickedness of the nations is great. Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! For the Day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision.
The sun and moon will grow dark, and the stars will cease their shining. The Lord will roar from Zion and raise His voice from Jerusalem; heaven and earth will shake. But the Lord will be a refuge for His people, a stronghold for the Israelites.
As we look at this proclamation by God there are some very interesting key points that we need to look into.
First, what and where is this Valley of Jehoshaphat? What is the back story about the Valley of Jehoshaphat? Why is God mentioning it in His proclamation? We will cover more about this in the subheading The Valley of Jehoshaphat.
Next, God mentions the harvesting and a trampling of the grapes. For a better understanding of this follow the hyperlink to: Thrust in the Sickle
Then, God mentions the days of darkness and the restoration of his people. This may seem a little odd that the Days of Darkness are connected to the restoration of God’s people. We will need to look into this a little harder and understand what God intends to do.
Lastly, we will look into how this proclamation is connected to other prophecies. As you follow the hyperlink to: Treading the Winepress
God used the prophet Joel to utter these words found here in three chapters of the Bible, that make up the sum of what he spoke. Because of this Joel was considered a minor prophet, and he was not used by God to utter any other prophecies then this one that we know of. What proof do we have that Joel was a true prophet from God? What can we learn as we look into the words he spoke?
Joel begins his prophecy by foretelling of an invasion to the land of Israel. Then he begins to address the leaders of God’s people. We know Joel is a true prophet because this event did occur with the nation of Asyria invading the land. Also, other prophets have similar language expressed in their writings adding to the conclusion that these words are all spoken under the influence of God’s spirit. Christ Jesus even makes mention of the prophet Joel as he addresses his disciples about the coming destruction to the nation of Israel and beyond. Matthew 24:29-31
For more info written about this follow the hyperlink to: The Days of Darkness Identified
Now go ahead and review all 3 chapters of Joel before reading on.
After reading all 3 chapters of Joel’s prophecy this is what I picked up on:
A Call to Sanctity
What is the meaning behind the word sanctity? Why does God call for a time for sanctifying?
To sanctity means to set apart, God has called for his people to be set apart from all other peoples, nations and kingdoms and they were called to serve God as a nation of priests. Exodus 19:5-5
God has called for a fasting, this is an act of self-denial, and it put a person into a receptive state of mind so that God can communicate clearly with the individual.
Joel 1:14-15… Sanctify a time of fasting. Call together a solemn assembly. Gather together the older men, all the inhabitants of the land, to the house of Jehovah YOUR God, and cry to Jehovah for aid. Alas for the day; because the day of Jehovah is near, and like a despoiling from the Almighty One it will come!
Joel 2:15-16… Blow a horn in Zion, O men. Sanctify a time of fasting. Call together a solemn assembly. Gather the people together. Sanctify a congregation. Collect the old men together. Gather children and those sucking the breasts together. Let the bridegroom go forth from his interior room, and the bride from her nuptial chamber.
These two Scriptures are similar and yet are different, in this first reading Joel chapter 1 he says to sanctify a time for fasting, to call for a meeting of the congregation and call out to Yahweh (YHWH) for aid!
In the second reading of Joel chapter 2, Joel calls for the blowing of the horn then sanctify a time of fasting the calling for a solemn assembly and the Sanctify a congregation.
The differences between the two verses is this, there is a calling out to God in Joel chapter 1 but in Joel chapter 2 there is a blowing of the horn and a sanctification of the congregation. This would indicate first a chain of events or circumstances followed by a period of time to an escalation of the event or timing to a sanctification of a group or congregation (ecclesia). Joel 2:32 and Isaiah 11:11
A Time to Repent ?
This call to assemble reminds God’s people of the very specific time that occurs every year, it is the last day of the festival of booths when the nation would gather to hear the reading of the law of God, and they would realize their sins of the previous year. They would sanctify themselves this day in preparation for the next 12 months preparing their hearts and their minds to serve God fully. This was a day to repent.
God needs his nation to sanctify themselves so that He can then sanctify his name. War was coming to God’s people, and they were going to need to rely on their God for their salvation.
Joel 2:32… Then everyone who calls on the name of Yahweh will be saved, for there will be an escape for those on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, as the Lord promised, among the survivors the Lord calls.
Isaiah 11:11… On that day the Lord will extend His hand a second time to recover the remnant of His people who survive.
The Valley of Jehoshaphat
What is the meaning of Jehoshaphat’s name and where is this valley? Why has God chosen to use this event in history in his proclamation?
Jehoshaphat’s name means Jehovah has Judged and that is what this event is all about a Judgement of the nations.
We will be able to pin point this valley with the names given of the places mentioned in this passage of Scripture. With an internet search it can reveal to us where we can find them on a modern map of Israel.
Let us now read about this amazing account of King Jehoshaphat and the valley of blessing:
2 Chronicles 20:1-30… After this, the Moabites and Ammonites, together with some of the Meunites, came to fight against Jehoshaphat. People came and told Jehoshaphat, “A vast number from beyond the Dead Sea and from Edom has come to fight against you; they are already in Hazazon-tamar” (that is, En-gedi which is about 24.5 miles south east of Jerusalem as a bird fly’s, at the edge of the dead sea). Now Jehoshaphat was afraid, and he resolved to seek the Lord. Then he proclaimed a fast for all Judah, who gathered to seek the Lord. They even came from all the cities of Judah to seek Him.Then Jehoshaphat stood in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem in the Lord’s temple before the new courtyard. He said:
Jehoshaphat Public Prayer
2 Chronicles 20:6-12… Yahweh, the God of our ancestors, are You not the God who is in heaven, and do You not rule over all the kingdoms of the nations? Power and might are in Your hand, and no one can stand against You. Are You not our God who drove out the inhabitants of this land before Your people Israel and who gave it forever to the descendants of Abraham Your friend? They have lived in the land and have built You a sanctuary in it for Your name and have said, “If disaster comes on us, sword or judgment, pestilence or famine, we will stand before this temple and before You, for Your name is in this temple. We will cry out to You because of our distress, and You will hear and deliver.” Now here are the Ammonites, Moabites, and the inhabitants of Mount Seir. You did not let Israel invade them when Israel came out of the land of Egypt, but Israel turned away from them and did not destroy them. Look how they repay us by coming to drive us out of Your possession that You gave us as an inheritance. Our God, will You not judge them? For we are powerless before this vast number that comes to fight against us. We do not know what to do, but we look to You.
As we begin to analyze this account, we need to first recognize how incredibly close this vast army was to Jerusalem when the king first found out the enemy was coming. Now from Jerusalem to the enemy’s encampment was about 25 miles as a bird flies so less than two days the enemy could have be in Jerusalem if not stopped. So, for this reason king Jehoshaphat was rightly afraid, because it would have been extremely difficult to muster any kind of physical response to stop this advancing army in time.
Let us look at the actions of King Jehoshaphat and his response and ask ourselves the question: What can we learn from this?
As the Scripture mentioned the king was rightly afraid, but he didn’t seek out his military advisors, the Scriptures reveal that the King resolved in his heart so, he sought out God. He proclaimed a fast for the people and called for the assembly in Jerusalem. He publicly prayed to God for help. In the prayer he acknowledged that God was powerful and had the right to rule over them. God had an invested interest in the events that were getting ready to happen because of God’s name, His sanctuary, and the relationship he had with the people of Israel. Jehoshaphat called to remembrance that God said for Israel not to molest Edom or their territory when they had come out of Egypt. So, they had obeyed him but now these people had come to attack them. The King made it clear in his prayer that they sought God’s direction and help for this problem.
God’s Answer the Prayer
This public prayer is a perfect example for us when we too face obstacles in our life, we need to seek the help of the only true God. Such a prayer was immediately answered by God, as we pick back up on our reading and take note of the instructions that were given by God:
God Answers
2 Chronicles 20:13-17… All Judah was standing before the Lord with their infants, their wives, and their children. In the middle of the congregation, the Spirit of the Lord came on Jahaziel (son of Zechariah, son of Benaiah, son of Jeiel, son of Mattaniah, a Levite from Asaph’s descendants), and he said, “Listen carefully, all Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem, and King Jehoshaphat. This is what the Lord says: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast number, for the battle is not yours, but God’s. Tomorrow, go down against them. You will see them coming up the Ascent of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the valley facing the Wilderness of Jeruel. You do not have to fight this battle. Position yourselves, standstill, and see the salvation of the Lord. He is with you, Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid or discouraged. Tomorrow, go out to face them, for Yahweh is with you.
God encouraged the people and reassured them not to be afraid of this problem. That their salvation was in God’s hand. They still would have to go out and face the enemy. So, this event in history is a good reminder for us all, if God is for us who really is against us and what can they really do to us?
Victory is at Hand
2 Chronicles 20:18-17… Then Jehoshaphat bowed with his face to the ground, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell down before the Lord to worship Him. Then the Levites from the sons of the Kohathites and the Korahites stood up to praise the Lord God of Israel shouting with a loud voice. In the morning, they got up early and went out to the wilderness of Tekoa. As they were about to go out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Hear me, Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem. Believe in Yahweh your God, and you will be established; believe in His prophets, and you will succeed.” Then he consulted with the people and appointed some to sing for the Lord and some to praise the splendor of His holiness. When they went out in front of the armed forces, they kept singing: Give thanks to the Lord, for His faithful love endures forever. The moment they began their shouts and praises, the Lord set an ambush against the Ammonites, Moabites, and the inhabitants of Mount Seir who came to fight against Judah, and they were defeated. The Ammonites and Moabites turned against the inhabitants of Mount Seir and completely annihilated them. When they had finished with the inhabitants of Seir, they helped destroy each other. When Judah came to a place overlooking the wilderness, they looked for the large army, but there were only corpses lying on the ground; nobody had escaped. Then Jehoshaphat and his people went to gather the plunder. They found among the man abundance of goods on the bodies and valuable items. So, they stripped them until nobody could carry any more. They were gathering the plunder for three days because there was so much. They assembled in the Valley of Beracah on the fourth day, for there they praised the Lord. Therefore, that place is still called the Valley of Beracah today. Then all the men of Judah and Jerusalem turned back with Jehoshaphat their leader, returning joyfully to Jerusalem, for the Lord enabled them to rejoice over their enemies. So, they came into Jerusalem to the Lord’s temple with harps, lyres, and trumpets. The terror of God was on all the kingdoms of the lands when they heard that Yahweh had fought against the enemies of Israel. Then Jehoshaphat’s kingdom was quiet, for his God gave him rest on every side.
So, the Valley of Jehoshaphat also became a Valley of Blessing. Yes, the Valley of God’s judgment became the Valley that God blessed the nation of Israel for trusting in him for their direction and their salvation.
Now that we have a better understanding of the back story of this account, we still have an unanswered question. When will this holy war start?
Will answer that question next as you follow the hyperlink to: The Day to Sanctify – The Time for Fasting
Writingwithlogos.com