| Berean Study Bible | Holman Christian Standard Bible |
| 1This is the word of the LORD that came to Joel son of Pethuel: | 1The word of the LORD that came to Joel son of Pethuel: |
| 2Hear this, O elders; and give ear, all who dwell in the land. Has anything like this ever happened in your days or in the days of your fathers? | 2Hear this, you elders; listen, all you inhabitants of the land. Has anything like this ever happened in your days or in the days of your ancestors? |
| 3Tell it to your children; let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. | 3Tell your children about it, and let your children tell their children, and their children the next generation. |
| 4What the devouring locust has left, the swarming locust has eaten; what the swarming locust has left, the young locust has eaten; and what the young locust has left, the destroying locust has eaten. | 4What the devouring locust has left, the swarming locust has eaten; what the swarming locust has left, the young locust has eaten; and what the young locust has left, the destroying locust has eaten. |
| 5Wake up, you drunkards, and weep; wail, all you drinkers of wine, because of the sweet wine, for it has been cut off from your mouth. | 5Wake up, you drunkards, and weep; wail, all you wine drinkers, because of the sweet wine, for it has been taken from your mouth. |
| 6For a nation has invaded My land, powerful and without number; its teeth are the teeth of a lion, and its fangs are the fangs of a lioness. | 6For a nation has invaded My land, powerful and without number; its teeth are the teeth of a lion, and it has the fangs of a lioness. |
| 7It has laid waste My grapevine and splintered My fig tree. It has stripped off the bark and thrown it away; the branches have turned white. | 7It has devastated My grapevine and splintered My fig tree. It has stripped off its bark and thrown it away; its branches have turned white. |
| 8Wail like a virgin dressed in sackcloth, grieving for the husband of her youth. | 8Grieve like a young woman dressed in sackcloth, mourning for the husband of her youth. |
| 9Grain and drink offerings have been cut off from the house of the LORD; the priests are in mourning, those who minister before the LORD. | 9Grain and drink offerings have been cut off from the house of the LORD; the priests, who are ministers of the LORD, mourn. |
| 10The field is ruined; the land mourns. For the grain is destroyed, the new wine is dried up, and the oil fails. | 10The fields are destroyed; the land grieves; indeed, the grain is destroyed; the new wine is dried up; and the olive oil fails. |
| 11Be dismayed, O farmers, wail, O vinedressers, over the wheat and barley, because the harvest of the field has perished. | 11Be ashamed, you farmers, wail, you vinedressers, over the wheat and the barley, because the harvest of the field has perished. |
| 12The grapevine is dried up, and the fig tree is withered; the pomegranate, palm, and apple—all the trees of the orchard—are withered. Surely the joy of mankind has dried up. | 12The grapevine is dried up, and the fig tree is withered; the pomegranate, the date palm, and the apple-- all the trees of the orchard--have withered. Indeed, human joy has dried up. |
| 13Put on sackcloth and lament, O priests; wail, O ministers of the altar. Come, spend the night in sackcloth, O ministers of my God, because the grain and drink offerings are withheld from the house of your God. | 13Dress in sackcloth and lament, you priests; wail, you ministers of the altar. Come and spend the night in sackcloth, you ministers of my God, because grain and drink offerings are withheld from the house of your God. |
| 14Consecrate a fast; proclaim a solemn assembly! Gather the elders and all the residents of the land to the house of the LORD your God, and cry out to the LORD. | 14Announce a sacred fast; proclaim an assembly! Gather the elders and all the residents of the land at the house of the LORD your God, and cry out to the LORD. |
| 15Alas for the day! For the Day of the LORD is near, and it will come as destruction from the Almighty. | 15Woe because of that day! For the Day of the LORD is near and will come as devastation from the Almighty. |
| 16Has not the food been cut off before our very eyes—joy and gladness from the house of our God? | 16Hasn't the food been cut off before our eyes, joy and gladness from the house of our God? |
| 17The seeds lie shriveled beneath the clods; the storehouses are in ruins; the granaries are broken down, for the grain has withered away. | 17The seeds lie shriveled in their casings. The storehouses are in ruin, and the granaries are broken down, because the grain has withered away. |
| 18How the cattle groan! The herds wander in confusion because they have no pasture. Even the flocks of sheep are suffering. | 18How the animals groan! The herds of cattle wander in confusion since they have no pasture. Even the flocks of sheep suffer punishment. |
| 19To You, O LORD, I call, for fire has consumed the open pastures and flames have scorched all the trees of the field. | 19I call to You, LORD, for fire has consumed the pastures of the wilderness, and flames have devoured all the trees of the countryside. |
| 20Even the beasts of the field pant for You, for the streams of water have dried up, and fire has consumed the open pastures. | 20Even the wild animals cry out to You, for the river beds are dried up, and fire has consumed the pastures of the wilderness. |
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