Joel 1:15 - Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible

Bible Comments

Alas for the day! for the day of the LORD is at hand, and as a destruction from the Almighty shall it come.

The day of the Lord is at hand - (Joel 2:1; Joel 2:11) i:e., the day of His anger (Isaiah 13:9; Obadiah 1:15; Zephaniah 1:7; Zephaniah 1:15). Isaiah (see the Hebrew) has copied word for word this phrase from Joel here: literally, 'Near is the Day of the Lord, like destruction from the Almighty shall it come.' In the original there is an alliteration, uwkshod (H7701) mi-Shaday (H7706), 'like a mighty destruction from the Almighty.' Herein we see the unity of the whole body of prophecy, each succeeding prophet giving inspired sanction to what preceded him. It will be a foretaste of the coming day of the Lord, as Judge of all men, whence it receives the same name. Here the transition begins from the plague of locusts to the worse calamities (Joel 2:1-32) - namely, invading armies about to come on Judea, of which the locusts were the prelude.

As a destruction from the Almighty - literally, 'as might (i:e., mighty destruction) from the Almighty' х shod (H7701), Shaday (H7706)].

Joel 1:15

15 Alas for the day! for the day of the LORD is at hand, and as a destruction from the Almighty shall it come.