Joel 3:1-8
I Will Enter Into Judgment
Read the passage
1“Yes, in those days and at that time, when I restore Judah and Jerusalem from captivity,
2I will gather all the nations and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat. There I will enter into judgment against them concerning My people, My inheritance, Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations as they divided up My land.
3They cast lots for My people; they bartered a boy for a prostitute and sold a girl for wine to drink.
4Now what do you have against Me, O Tyre, Sidon, and all the regions of Philistia? Are you rendering against Me a recompense? If you retaliate against Me, I will swiftly and speedily return your recompense upon your heads.
5For you took My silver and gold and carried off My finest treasures to your temples.
6You sold the people of Judah and Jerusalem to the Greeks, to send them far from their homeland.
7Behold, I will rouse them from the places to which you sold them; I will return your recompense upon your heads.
8I will sell your sons and daughters into the hands of the people of Judah, and they will sell them to the Sabeans—to a distant nation.” Indeed, the LORD has spoken.
Berean Standard Bible
Read aloud
When the LORD restores Judah and Jerusalem from captivity, He will gather the nations to the Valley of Jehoshaphat and judge them concerning His people. They scattered Israel, divided His land, and treated people as merchandise. A boy was bartered for a prostitute; a girl was sold for wine.
The LORD addresses Tyre, Sidon, and the regions of Philistia. They took His silver, gold, and finest treasures into their temples. They sold the people of Judah and Jerusalem to the Greeks, sending them far from home. God describes these acts against His people and possessions as acts concerning Himself.
He will rouse His people from the places where they were sold and return the wrong upon those responsible. The judgment is severe: the nations’ sons and daughters will be sold to Judah, who will sell them to the distant Sabeans. The passage announces the LORD’s judgment; it does not give readers permission to enslave people or punish an offender’s children.
The victims’ suffering has not been forgotten because it happened far away or because someone profited from the sale. The LORD names what was done and calls those responsible to account.
Questions
1 What does God say He will judge?
AnswerHe will judge the nations concerning His people, whom they scattered and whose land they divided.
2 How were children treated?
AnswerA boy was bartered for a prostitute, and a girl was sold for wine. Human beings were treated as merchandise.
3 What treasures had been taken?
AnswerGod's silver and gold and His finest treasures had been carried off to temples. The accusation includes the seizure of what belonged to God, alongside the human beings the nations had sold.
4 What does the LORD say He will do for those who were sold?
AnswerHe will rouse them from the places to which they were sold and return recompense upon those who sold them.
What This Means for Us
The LORD names the children who were sold and the people carried far from home. What the traders treated as a transaction, He treats as an offense against His people.
Take a person’s safety seriously when they tell you someone is using or threatening them. Listen, seek trustworthy help, and refuse to treat their distress as an inconvenience. People matter more than the profit or comfort others can get from them.
Prayer
God of justice, protect people who are exploited and far from home. Help us listen to those in danger and seek the help they need. Keep us from gaining at another person’s expense. Amen.