Joel Chapter 4

King James Version (KJV)

39 And they went to the entrance of Gedor, even unto the east side

40 And they found fat pasture and good, and the land was wide, and

41 And these written by name came in the days of Hezekiah king of

42 And some of them, even of the sons of Simeon, five hundred men,

43 And they smote the rest of the Amalekites that were escaped, and

Other Translations

lxxbrent (lxxbrent) - Septuagint (Brenton 1851) eBible USFM

1 For, behold, in those days and at that time, when I shall have turned the captivity of Juda and Jerusalem,

2 I will also gather all the Gentiles, and bring them down to the valley of Josaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and my heritage Israel, who have been dispersed among the Gentiles; and [these Gentiles] have divided my land,

3 and cast lots over my people, and have given [their] boys to harlots, and sold [their] girls for wine, and have drunk.

4 And what have ye to do with me, O Tyre, and Sidon, and all Galilee of the Gentiles? do ye render me a recompense? or do ye bear malice against me? quickly and speedily will I return your recompense on your own heads:

5 because ye have taken my silver and my gold, and ye have brought my choice ornaments into your temples;

6 and ye have sold the children of Juda and the children of Jerusalem to the children of the Greeks, that ye might expel them from their coasts.

7 Therefore, behold, I [will] raise them up out of the place whither ye have sold them, and I will return your recompense on your own heads.

8 And I will sell your sons and your daughters into the hands of the children of Juda, and they shall sell them into captivity to a far distant nation: for the Lord has spoken [it].

9 Proclaim these things among the Gentiles; declare war, arouse the warriors, draw near and go up, all ye men of war.

10 Beat your ploughshares into swords, and your sickles into spears: let the weak say, I am strong.

11 Gather yourselves together, and go in, all ye nations round about, and gather yourselves there: let the timid become a warrior.

12 Let them be aroused, let all the nations go up to the valley of Josaphat: for there will I sit to judge all the Gentiles round about.

13 Bring forth the sickles, for the vintage is come: go in, tread [the grapes], for the press is full: cause the vats to overflow; for their wickedness is multiplied.

14 Noises have resounded in the valley of judgment: for the day of the Lord is near in the valley of judgment.

15 The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their light.

16 And the Lord shall cry out of Sion, and shall utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heaven and the earth shall be shaken, but the Lord shall spare his people, and shall strengthen the children of Israel.

17 And ye shall know that I am the Lord your God, who dwell in Sion my holy mountain: and Jerusalem shall be holy, and strangers shall not pass through her any more.

18 And it shall come to pass in that day [that] the mountains shall drop sweet wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the fountains of Juda shall flow with water, and a fountain shall go forth of the house of the Lord, and water the valley of flags.

19 Egypt shall be a desolation, and Idumea shall be a desolate plain, because of the wrongs of the children of Juda, because they have shed righteous blood in their land.

20 But Judea shall be inhabited for ever, and Jerusalem to all generations.

21 And I will make inquisition for their blood, and will by no means leave it unavenged: and the Lord shall dwell in Sion.

Explanations by Age Level

Explain Like I'm 5

A long, long time ago, there was nothing at all - no earth, no sky, no animals, no people. It was all dark and empty. But God was there! God is so powerful that He can make anything just by speaking. So God said "Let there be light!" and BOOM! There was light everywhere! God saw that the light was beautiful and good. He called the light "day" and the darkness "night." This was the very first day when God started making our wonderful world!

Explain Like I'm 10

Before anything existed - no planets, stars, or life - God decided to create the universe. The earth started out as a dark, empty place covered with water. But God's Spirit was there, ready to bring order and beauty to everything. When God spoke and said "Let there be light," light immediately appeared because God's words have incredible power. God looked at the light and was pleased with what He had made. He organized time by separating light (day) from darkness (night), creating the first 24-hour period. This shows us that God is organized and purposeful in everything He does.

Explain Like I'm 15

Genesis 1:1-5 establishes fundamental theological truths about God and creation. The Hebrew word "bara" (created) indicates creation from nothing (ex nihilo), demonstrating God's absolute sovereignty and power. The phrase "without form and void" (tohu wa-bohu) describes a state of chaos that God transforms into order. The Spirit of God "hovering" or "brooding" over the waters suggests active, caring involvement in creation. The creation of light before the sun (created on day 4) indicates that God Himself is the ultimate source of light and energy. The establishment of day and night creates the framework of time, showing that God operates within orderly patterns while transcending them. This passage refutes both atheistic materialism and pantheism, establishing that God is both transcendent (separate from creation) and immanent (actively involved in it).