Yoel 2:10

2:10 The earth quakes ¹  before them; ² 

the sky reverberates. ³ 

The sun and the moon grow dark;

the stars refuse to shine. ⁴ 

Yoel 3:16

3:16 The Lord roars from Zion;

from Jerusalem ⁵  his voice bellows out. ⁶ 

The heavens ⁷  and the earth shake.

But the Lord is a refuge for his people;

he is a stronghold for the citizens ⁸  of Israel.

[2:10]  ¹ sn Witnesses of locust invasions have described the visual effect of large numbers of these creatures crawling over one another on the ground. At such times the ground is said to appear to be in motion, creating a dizzying effect on some observers. The reference in v. 10 to the darkening of the sun and moon probably has to do with the obscuring of visibility due to large numbers of locusts swarming in the sky.

[2:10]  ² tn Heb “before it.”

[2:10]  ³ tn Heb “trembles.”

[2:10]  ⁴ tn Heb “gather their brightness.”

[3:16]  ⁵ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[3:16]  ⁶ tn Heb “he sounds forth his voice.”

[3:16]  ⁷ tn Or “the sky.” See the note on “sky” in 2:30.

[3:16]  ⁸ tn Heb “sons.”