Introduction:

A locust invasion had devastated the land of Judah.  As Joel, the son of Pethuel, reflected on this calamity, the Word of the Lord came to him.  He became a great prophet proclaiming to his people the divine implications of this catastrophe.  The book which bears his name records Joel’s sermon upon this occasion.

The prophet describes the plague in terms of a human army which, moving on, leaves behind it a scorched earth (1:4 – 12; 2:2-10).  In this attack of insects, Joel knows God is at work.  Indeed, this is God’s army (2:11), and the day of its invasion is the Day of the Lord – the day of God’s judgement upon a sinful people (1:15; 2:1, 11).  The prophet urges the people to repent, and extends the hope theat God will relent and withdraw the judgement (1:14; 2:12 – 17). 

Author:  

Joel, the son of Pethuel.  Nothing is definitely known about him.  Joel means “the LORD is God” or “Yahweh is God.”  This was a common Hebrew name in Old Testament times.  Joel’s many references to Jerusalem seem to indicate that the city was his home. 

Date:

We cannot date the plague of the locusts which forms the background of this book.  Authorities differ widely in their opinions as to the date of composition, some arguing for an early date (perhaps the reign of Joash, toward the end of the ninth century B.C.); others, a post Exilic one.  The fact that the locust plague is called “the day of the Lord” (a phrase used in later years to designate the final judgment day) and the location of the book near the beginning of the Minor Prophets seem to indicate the early date as the more likely.  The message of the book is not dependent upon its date, and it remains relevant for all people today.  Conservative scholars date Joel circa 835 to 800 B.C. 

Joel was, however, the earlier of the prophets, a contemporary of Homer.  Joel wrote about his day and the future as well.  Amos, Zephaniah, Ezekial, Malachai, and Isaiah all refer to things mentioned by Joel. Compare: Joel 3:18 to Amos 9:13 / Joel 1:4 to Amos 4:9 / Joel 2:11 to Zeph. 1:14,15 and Mal. 3:2 / Joel 2:3 to Ezek. 36:35 and Is. 51:3 / Joel 3:10  to Is. 2:4  His style is also similar to Amos and Micah. While there may be some elements in Joel 3 that support a post-Exilic period, there is nothing there that would contradict a pre-Exilic time either. 

History:

Assyria

Assyria was a country located east of the Tigris River; the capital was Ashur (Assur, Asshur, Ashshur), from which the entire country derived its name. The Assyrian Empire encompassed a large mass of land. The Assyrians were an ethnic blending of Hurrians, Sumerians, and Semites. And the Assyrian culture fused elements of the Babylonians, the Hittites, and the Hurrians.

From approximately 1950 BC to 1850 BC Assyria was ruled by the Babylonians. Then in circa 1800 BC, the area came under Amorite rule, then successively under the hegemony of the Hittites, the Egyptians, and the Hurrians. However, Assyria proper began to assert and consolidate itself in 1380 BC, and in 1280 BC Shalmaneser I established his capital at Calah (Kalhu), a few miles south of Nineveh. Shortly thereafter a period of weakness took place, but Assyria eventually regained military and political pre-eminence under Ashur-dan I, circa 1150 BC. And during the reign of Tiglath-pileser I, circa 1110 BC, Assyria attained greatness through foreign conquests and internal reforms; and under Tiglath-pileser I the capital city was once more Ashur.

For the next two centuries, from 1100 to 900 BC, the nation of Assyria faded almost to extinction; and it was during this decline that David and Solomon ascended. Around 900 BC Assyria again began to revive itself. Tulkulti-Ninurta II, then Ashur-nasir-pal (who was cruel beyond imagining), then Shalmaneser III, each in succession made Assyrian larger and stronger. The latter king, Shalmaneser III, was the first Assyrian to come in contact with Israel as a nation. Shalmaneser III forcefully impacted history: he invaded Urartu (Armenia), captured Carchemish and in 853 BC fought the battle of Karkar, where he encountered the axis of Ben-hadad of Damascus, his allies, and Ahab, king of Samaria. Ten years later Shalmaneser

III received tribute payments from both Tyre and Sidon and king Jehu of Samaria. Shalmaneser's son, Shamshi-adad V married Semiramis, who ruled so successfully as regent for her son Adad-nirari III. Finally, in 782 BC, Assyria once more suffered reversals.

Then, in 746 BC, after the ministry of Jonah, Pul or Tiglath-pileser III came to the throne and the period of the Second Empire began. Pul was followed by Shalmaneser V, Sargon II, Sennacherib, Esar-haddon and Ashurbanipal. The last ruler of Assyria was Shin-shar-ishkun; he died when Nabopolassar, king of Babylonia, and Cyaxeres, king of the Medes, destroyed Nineveh in 612 BC. And after 605 BC, the Assyrians ceased to exist.