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 2:31

2:31 The sunlight will be turned to darkness

and the moon to the color of blood, ⁵ 

before the day of the Lord comes –

that great and terrible day!

Ayub 9:7

9:7 he who commands the sun and ⁶  it does not shine ⁷ 

and seals up ⁸  the stars;

Yesaya 8:22

8:22 When one looks out over the land, he sees ⁹  distress and darkness, gloom ¹⁰  and anxiety, darkness and people forced from the land. ¹¹ 

Yesaya 13:10

13:10 Indeed the stars in the sky and their constellations

no longer give out their light; ¹² 

the sun is darkened as soon as it rises,

and the moon does not shine. ¹³ 

Amos 5:18

The Lord Demands Justice

5:18 Woe ¹⁴  to those who wish for the day of the Lord!

Why do you want the Lord’s day of judgment to come?

It will bring darkness, not light.

[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.”

[2:31]  ⁵ tn Heb “to blood,” but no doubt this is intended to indicate by metonymy the color of blood rather than the substance itself. The blood red color suggests a visual impression here – something that could be caused by fires, volcanic dust, sandstorms, or other atmospheric phenomena.

[9:7]  ⁶ tn The form could also be subordinated, “that it shine not” (see further GKC 323 §109.g).

[9:7]  ⁷ tn The verb זָרַח (zarakh) means “rise.” This is the ordinary word for the sunrise. But here it probably has the idea of “shine; glisten,” which is also attested in Hebrew and Aramaic.

[9:7]  sn There are various views on the meaning of this line in this verse. Some think it refers to some mysterious darkness like the judgment in Egypt (Exod 10:21-23), or to clouds building (3:5), often in accompaniment of earthquakes (see Joel 2:10, 3:15-16; Isa 13:10-13). It could also refer to an eclipse. All this assumes that the phenomenon here is limited to the morning or the day; but it could simply be saying that God controls light and darkness.

[9:7]  ⁸ tn The verb חָתַם (khatam) with בְּעַד (bÿ’ad) before its complement, means “to seal; to wall up; to enclose.” This is a poetic way of saying that God prevents the stars from showing their light.

[8:22]  ⁹ tn Heb “and behold” (so KJV, ASV, NASB).

[8:22]  ¹⁰ tn The precise meaning of מְעוּף (mÿ’uf) is uncertain; the word occurs only here. See BDB 734 s.v. מָעוּף.

[8:22]  ¹¹ tn Heb “ and darkness, pushed.” The word מְנֻדָּח (mÿnudakh) appears to be a Pual participle from נדח (“push”), but the Piel is unattested for this verb and the Pual occurs only here.

[13:10]  ¹² tn Heb “do not flash forth their light.”

[13:10]  ¹³ tn Heb “does not shed forth its light.”

[5:18]  ¹⁴ tn The term הוֹי (hoy, “woe”) was used when mourning the dead (see the note on the word “dead” in 5:16). The prophet here either engages in role playing and mourns the death of the nation in advance or sarcastically taunts those who hold to this misplaced belief.