Friday 09 October 2009

Background

The book of Joel was written in Judah, probably in the 4thcentury BC. In these verses, the prophet Joel proclaims God'sjudgement on Judah in the context of a famine in the land(see Joel1:16-20) and calls them to show signs of repentance before theday of the Lord comes.

The repentance Joel calls for seems similar to that preached by Jonah to the Ninevites, but there is no sign thatJoel's prophecy leads to the repentance that Jonah's did.

Joel, in common with many Old Testament prophets, is confident thatevents in the world can be interpreted as signs of God's activity.The famine Judah is experiencing is not merely a natural event, butis a sign that the day of the Lord is near. Christians continued inthis belief, often seeing God's punishment in events that threatenpeople.

Some recent examples of the tendency to think natural events arepunishments from God are clearly mistaken and misguided. Forexample, a small number of people have unwisely stated thatHIV-AIDS was God's judgement on gay men, which is false both as anaccount of its origin and its overwhelming global impact onheterosexual persons and children.

To wholly dismiss the idea that God can work through naturalevents, however, would be to set aside many great works Christianswish to give God thanks for, such as the warmth of the sun or theblessings of food to eat and water to drink. Like Joel, we may needto continue to be open to the ways in which God's hand is at workin the events of our world.

To Ponder

What might Joel call the modern Church to repentof?

Joel called the priests of Judah to put onsackcloth. How might the Church show signs of repentance today?

How do you think God is involved in good and badevents in the world?