Joel and the Apocalypse

We come to the end of the readings from the prophets for this liturgical year with this reading from the Prophet Joel.  While there is no hard evidence telling us when Joel lived and prophesied, he makes an allusion to the fact that there is no king in Israel at this time.  This almost surely places him as a prophet of post-exilic Israel.

The book of Joel is actually composed of two speeches or oracles.  We read from the second such speech this morning.  Using agricultural imagery and references to the harvest, Joel speaks of the Day of the Lord as a day of judgment for all the nations.  The omens or portents of this time are familiar references for any who have read apocalyptic literature.  The sky will be full of signs that the Day of the Lord is approaching.  The sacred writers used these signs to recall the first days of creation.  From darkness and chaos, God had created light and order.  The end of time would see a reversal when light and order would give way once again to darkness and chaos. 

However, Joel also hastens to add that for those who have remained faithful to the Lord, they need not fear these terrifying signs and portents.  God will be with the people just as God has been with them throughout their history.  Those who hold firm will survive the time of darkness and chaos and will live forever on God’s holy mountain.

In our own time we have seen darkness and chaos attempt to overtake us – the darkness and chaos of natural disaster and human terror.  Just as the Israelites need not fear the Day of the Lord if they had been faithful, so too we have nothing to fear if we remain faithful to God’s Word in the person of Jesus Christ.  The Gospel clearly enunciates for us today that those who hear the Word of God and put it into action are the blessed of the Lord.  By God’s Word made flesh we have been saved.