Plowshares Into Swords

"Proclaim this among the nations: Prepare war . . . Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruning hooks into spears; let the weak say, ‘I am a warrior.’"—Joel 3:9,10 (Revised Standard Version)

Michael Nekora

The words of Joel seem quite contemporary. Countries once considered weak are now the main buyers of implements of war. Consider India. More than most, India needs plowshares and pruning hooks to provide food for her countless millions. Yet she spends huge amounts of money to develop a nuclear capability, believing that defense against her enemies should be her first priority. It is the day of the Lord and his great army, and that is the message of the prophet Joel.

Locusts

The beginning of Joel’s prophecy concerns a plague of locusts. He talks about an unprecedented plague of four different kinds of locusts: the cutting, the swarming, the hopping, and the destroying (according to the RSV). In chapter two they are likened to a devouring fire, to war horses, to a powerful army. The major question presented by this description is whether Joel is describing literal locusts or if he is using them as a symbol of something else. Some commentators think there was an actual plague that came upon Israel in Joel’s time. Others think Joel is using locusts as an allegory for an enemy that would descend upon the people. Both viewpoints may be correct.

Joel starts by saying, in effect, "You’ve seen this with your own eyes. It is so significant it should be passed on from one generation to another." This supports the idea that the plague was literal, one of many punishments God permitted upon his disobedient people. But Joel appears to use this plague as a symbol of the great destruction to be visited upon the earth in the great time of trouble: "The Lord utters his voice before his army, for his host is exceedingly great; he that executes his word is powerful. For the day of the Lord is great and very terrible; who can endure it?" (Joel 2:11).

The same kind of pictorial language is used in Revelation to describe what happens when the fifth angel sounds his trumpet: "And there came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power. And the shapes of the locusts were like unto horses prepared unto battle; and on their heads were as it were crowns like gold" (Rev. 9:3, 7)

Few people believe this text refers to literal locusts. Rather they symbolize a great destructive force. Note that verse 4 says the "locusts" were not to hurt grass, trees, or green things—the very object of literal locusts. Joel too uses locusts symbolically. Consider this verse: "I will remove the northerner far from you and drive him into a parched and desolate land" (Joel 2:20). Locusts do not come from the north in middle eastern lands. They come from the south and southeast. But in many places a destructive force that comes against Israel in the great time of trouble is said to come from the "north":

"Then the Lord said unto me, Out of the north an evil shall break forth upon all the inhabitants of the land. For, lo, I will call all the families of the kingdoms of the north, saith the Lord; and they shall come, and they shall set every one his throne at the entering of the gates of Jerusalem and against all the walls thereof round about, and against all the cities of Judah" (Jer. 1:14,15).

To be certain we understand, Joel repeats his message using plain language: "For behold, in those days and at that time when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, I will gather all the nations and bring them down to the valley of Jehoshaphat and I will enter into judgment with them there on account of my people and my heritage Israel, because they have scattered them among the nations and have divided up my land" (Joel 3:1, 2)

The word "Jehoshaphat" means "Jehovah judged." There is no other reference to this valley except in the book of Joel. But there are many other references to the great "day of the Lord" and the battle of that time.

Day of the Lord

"And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon. . . . And there were voices and thunders and lightnings and there was a great earthquake such as was not since men were uponthe earth, so mighty an earthquake and so great" (Rev. 16:16, l8).

"And it shall come to pass in that day that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. . . . In that day shall there be a great mourning in Jerusalem . . . in the valley of Megiddon" (Zech. 12:9, 11).

This is where we get the expression "the battle of Armageddon." It is the great time of trouble that ends the Gospel age. Joel calls it the "day of the Lord" and uses that expression five times in the 73 verses of his book. John uses a similar expression in Revelation when he says "to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty" (16:14).

This was a common theme among the Old Testament prophets. Nearly all of them talk about this period of time.

"Let the nations bestir themselves and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat; for there I will sit to judge all the nations round about. Put in the sickle for the harvest is ripe. Go in, tread, for the wine press is full. The vats overflow, for their wickedness is great. Multitudes, multitudes, in the valley of decision" (3:12-14).

These multitudes constitute the Lord’s great army. Although Joel 2:25 says the locusts are the Lord’s great army, we believe he is using this plague as an allegory for the multitudes caught up in the battle of Armageddon. This is made clear in the second chapter: "Like blackness there is spread upon the mountains a great and powerful people; their like has never been from of old nor will be again after them through the years of all generations. The Lord utters his voice before his army, for his host is exceedingly great" (2:2, 11).

It reminds us of the words of Jesus: "For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be" (Matt. 24:21).

When these multitudes come up against Jerusalem, it is not with the idea of serving God. Yet it does accomplish his purpose.

Blessings of the Kingdom

God’s plan does not end with the destruction of that great day. In fact, it is just beginning. The united testimony of the prophets is that Israel will be restored to a condition of prosperity, and blessings will flow to all the world of mankind in the kingdom arrangement. The Battle of Armageddon humbles the world and does away with human institutions.

"I will restore the fortunes of Judah and the fortunes of Israel and rebuild them as they were at first. . . . And this city shall be to me a name of joy, a praise and a glory before all the nations of the earth who shall hear of all the good that I do for them" (Jer. 33:7, 9 [RSV]).

Joel also speaks of the blessings of the kingdom. "And in that day the mountains shall drip sweet wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the stream beds of Judah shall flow with water; and a fountain shall come forth from the house of the Lord" (3:18).

Although Joel talks about the terrible punishments from the hand of the Lord, he holds out a hope of escape: "And it shall come to pass that all who call upon the name of the Lord shall be delivered" (2:32).

Joel certainly is not suggesting a "last resort" call for help. The Pharisees were good at outward appearances although their hearts were far from God. Joel saw the same things in his time and wrote: "Yet even now, says the Lord, return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; and rend your hearts and not your garments" (2:12, 13).

In other words, examine your heart attitude and forget about making an outward show of contrition. Only one’s true heart attitude has value to God.

Peter at Pentecost

When the holy spirit came upon the assembled disciples on the day of Pentecost, the people wondered what was happening. To explain it Peter quotes five verses from Joel:

"This is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel: And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my spirit and they shall prophesy" (Acts 2:16-18).

Because God was clearly not pouring out his spirit "upon all flesh" at Pentecost, why did Peter quote this text? One suggestion is that he did so because the principle applied: what would happen in the future was starting to happen then. The people saw evidence that God’s spirit had come upon the few. Although Peterdid not say so, the complete fulfillment of this prophecy would be later, in the kingdom, when God’s spirit would come upon many.

Appendix 183 of The Companion Bible suggests a different answer. Because the context of Joel 2:26-28 shows that this pouring out of the spirit occurs after temporal blessings have returned to Israel, Peter is not saying that speaking in tongues fulfills Joel’s prophecy. He is defending the disciples against a charge of drunkenness by saying that what is happening then is like what will happen in the future. Just as one could never sustain a charge of drunkenness against those upon whom the spirit will be poured in the future, in like manner it cannot be sustained against these who have received God’s spirit. Peter then goes on to urge repentance.

"And it shall come to pass that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved. . . . For the promise is unto you and to your children and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call" (Acts 2:21, 39).

Peter here gives the first hint that the promise might not be the exclusive possession of the Jews. It will be in the Millennial age that God will pour out his spirit on all flesh. It will be the same spirit coming from the same source. Dreams and visions symbolize communication between God and all mankind in the kingdom, something the world has never had before. Then will be fulfilled the "wish" of Moses: "And Moses said unto him, Enviest thou for my sake? Would God that all the Lord’s people were prophets and that the Lord would put his spirit upon them" (Num. 11:29).

Key Verses from Joel

"The word of the Lord came to Joel" (1:1) It was Joel’s pen but it was God’s word!

"Blow the trumpet in Zion, sound the alarm on my holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble for the day of the Lord is coming, it is near" (2:1).

"Yet even now, says the Lord, return to me . . . and rend your hearts and not your garments" (2:12).

"Beat your plowshares into swords and your pruning hooks into spears; let the weak say, I am a warrior" (3:10).

"Multitudes, multitudes, in the valley of decision" (3:14)!

"And it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out my spirit on all flesh" (2:28).

The theme of the book of Joel is the Day of the Lord and his great army: first punishment, then blessing. And we see the preparations on every side for this great battle. But afterward, the prophecy of Isaiah will be fulfilled: "And he shall judge among the nations and shall rebuke many people; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation neither shall they learn war any more" (Isa 2:4).