EasyEnglish Bible 2018
Joel 2:3
3Fire goes in front of the army. It burns everything behind them. The land in front of them is like the Garden of Eden. Behind them it is like a desert. They leave nothing behind them.
Joel 2:3 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)A fire devoureth before them; and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them.
- New International Version (NIV)Before them fire devours, behind them a flame blazes. Before them the land is like the garden of Eden, behind them, a desert waste— nothing escapes them.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Fire devours before them, and behind them a flame burns. The land is like the garden of Eden before them, but behind them a desolate wilderness, and nothing escapes them.
- New King James Version (NKJV)A fire devours before them, And behind them a flame burns; The land is like the Garden of Eden before them, And behind them a desolate wilderness; Surely nothing shall escape them.
Context of Joel 2:3
1Blow the trumpet in Zion. Tell the people on the Lord's hill that they must watch for trouble. All the people who live in this country will be afraid. They will be afraid because the day of the Lord is coming. It is very near. 2That day will be sad and dark. There will be dark clouds. A great big army is coming. It comes across the sky like light in the morning. A great army like this has never come before. And it will never come again in future years. Fire goes in front of the army. It burns everything behind them. The land in front of them is like the Garden of Eden. Behind them it is like a desert. They leave nothing behind them. 4They look like horses. And they run fast to the war. 5Their noise is like the noise of many feet. They jump over the mountains as fast as fire burns dry grass. They are like a great army ready for a fight.
Read all of Joel 2Joel 2:3 word by word
לְפָנָיו֙ אָ֣כְלָה אֵ֔שׁ וְאַחֲרָ֖יו תְּלַהֵ֣ט לֶֽהָבָ֑ה כְּגַן־עֵ֨דֶן הָאָ֜רֶץ לְפָנָ֗יו וְאַֽחֲרָיו֙ מִדְבַּ֣ר שְׁמָמָ֔ה וְגַם־פְּלֵיטָ֖ה לֹא־הָ֥יְתָה לּֽוֹ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- A fireאֵשׁ'êsh · fireH784
- devourethאָכַל'âkal · to eatH398
- beforeפָּנֶהpânîym · face: beforeH6440
- them; and behindאַחַר'achar · afterH310
- them a flameלֶהָבָהlehâbâh lahebeth · flameH3852
- burnethלָהַטlâhaţ · to kindleH3857
- the landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
- as the gardenגַּןgan · gardenH1588
- of Edenעֵ֫דֶן‛êden · EdenH5731
- them a desolateשְׁמָמָהshemâmâh shimâmâh · devastationH8077
- wildernessמִדְבָּרmidbâr · wildernessH4057
- yea, and nothing shall escapeפְּלֵיטָהpelêyţâh pelêţâh · survivorH6413
Cross-references for Joel 2:3
- Joel 1:19I speak to you, my Lord. Fire has destroyed the grass in the wilderness, and it has burned up all the trees.
- Psalms 50:3Our God is coming, and he does not come quietly! A fire burns up everything that is in front of him. There is a great storm all round him.
- Amos 7:4After that, the Lord God showed to me a vision of a fire. He was ready to send it to punish us. I saw that it caused the deep sea to become dry. It also burnt all the land.
- Genesis 2:8The Lord God planted a garden. It was in the east, in a place called Eden. God took the man that he had made and he put him in the garden.
- Genesis 13:10Lot looked up and he saw the flat land of Jordan, as far as Zoar. He saw that it had lots of water, like the garden of the Lord. It was good land, like the land of Egypt. (This was before the Lord destroyed the cities there called Sodom and Gomorrah.)
- Isaiah 51:3Surely, the Lord will comfort Zion's people. He will take care of the buildings that enemies have destroyed. Zion's land that is now a wilderness will become like the beautiful Garden of Eden. It will be the Lord's own garden! People will be happy again in Zion. They will sing with joy to thank God.
- Ezekiel 31:8The cedar trees in God's garden were not as beautiful. The branches of the pine trees were not as strong. No other tree in God's garden was nearly as great or as beautiful.
- Joel 1:4The great locusts have eaten what the big group of locusts left. The young locusts have eaten what the great locusts left. Other locusts have eaten what the young locusts left.
- Exodus 10:5They will cover the whole country. Nobody will be able to see the ground. They will eat everything that the hail did not destroy. They will eat any crops that you still have. That will include every tree that is growing in your fields.
- Jeremiah 5:17They will eat all the crops in your fields and the food that you have stored. They will take your sons and your daughters for themselves. They will kill your sheep and your cows for food. They will eat all your grapes and your figs. They will attack your strong cities where you thought you would be safe. Their soldiers will knock down the walls.’
- Zechariah 7:14As a storm takes things away, I took my people away to strange countries. The country that they left became an empty country. Nobody lived in it. That is how they made the good country an empty country.’
Commentaries on Joel 2:3
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3A fire devoureth before them - They consume like a general conflagration. "They destroy the ground, not only for the time, but burn trees for two years after." Sir Hans Sloane, Nat. Hist. of Jamaica, vol. i., p. 29. Behind them a flame burneth - "Wherever they feed," says Ludolf, in his History of Ethiopia, "their leavings seem as if parched with fire." Nothing shall escape them - "After devouring the herbage," says Adanson, "with the fruits and leaves of…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3A fire devoureth before them - Travelers, of different nations and characters, and in different lands, some unacquainted with the Bible words, have agreed to describe under this image the ravages of locusts.: “They scorch many things with their touch.”: “Whatever of herb or leaf they gnaw, is, as it were, scorched by fire.”: “Wherever they come, the ground seems burned, as it were with fire.”: “Wherever they pass, they burn and spoil everything, and…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3The destruction caused by the invading army would be like a fire that spreads quickly and destroys everything in its path. Before the attack, the land looked like the garden of Eden. After the attack, the land would be empty and ruined. This image reverses the hope described in Isaiah 51:3 and Ezekiel 36:35.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. before ... behind--that is, on every side (1Ch 19:10). fire ... flame--destruction ... desolation (Is 10:17). as ... Eden ... wilderness--conversely (Is 51:3; Eze 36:35).Read the comment
Topics related to Joel 2:3
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Joel 2
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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