Joel 2:21

21 Do not be afraid, land of Judah; be glad and rejoice. Surely the LORD has done great things!

Joel 2:21 in Other Translations

KJV
21 Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice: for the LORD will do great things.
ESV
21 "Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice, for the LORD has done great things!
NLT
21 Don’t be afraid, O land. Be glad now and rejoice, for the LORD has done great things.
MSG
21 Fear not, earth! Be glad and celebrate! God has done great things.
CSB
21 Don't be afraid, land; rejoice and be glad, for the Lord has done great things.

Joel 2:21 Meaning and Commentary

Joel 2:21

Fear not, O land
O land of Israel, as the Targum, and the inhabitants of it; neither of the locusts, who had so terrified them, and had done so much mischief, and threatened more; nor of their enemies, the Assyrians or Chaldeans, and their powerful armies, or any other; but, on the contrary, be glad, and rejoice;
at the removal of the locusts, and at the destruction of their enemies: for the Lord will do great things;
good things, in opposition to the evil things done by the locusts, as Aben Ezra, Kimchi, and Ben Melech observe; or by the destroying army of the king of Assyria, by delivering the Jews out of the Babylonish captivity; and in the times of the Maccabees, and especially in the times of Christ, which are quickly prophesied of in this chapter; and which prophecies some interpreters begin here, it not being unusual for the prophets to pass directly from things temporal to things spiritual, and especially to the great deliverance and salvation by Christ, and also by temporal blessings to design spiritual ones.

Joel 2:21 In-Context

19 The LORD replied to them: “I am sending you grain, new wine and olive oil, enough to satisfy you fully; never again will I make you an object of scorn to the nations.
20 “I will drive the northern horde far from you, pushing it into a parched and barren land; its eastern ranks will drown in the Dead Sea and its western ranks in the Mediterranean Sea. And its stench will go up; its smell will rise.” Surely he has done great things!
21 Do not be afraid, land of Judah; be glad and rejoice. Surely the LORD has done great things!
22 Do not be afraid, you wild animals, for the pastures in the wilderness are becoming green. The trees are bearing their fruit; the fig tree and the vine yield their riches.
23 Be glad, people of Zion, rejoice in the LORD your God, for he has given you the autumn rains because he is faithful. He sends you abundant showers, both autumn and spring rains, as before.

Cross References 3

  • 1. S Isaiah 29:22; S Isaiah 54:4; Zephaniah 3:16-17
  • 2. S Psalms 9:2
  • 3. S Psalms 126:3; S Isaiah 25:1
Scripture quoted by permission.  Quotations designated (NIV) are from THE HOLY BIBLE: NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®.  NIV®.  Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica.  All rights reserved worldwide.