The Day of the Lord

“The day of the LORD is coming, For it is at hand: a day of darkness and gloominess, A day of clouds and thick darkness, Like the morning clouds spread over the mountains. A people come, great and strong, the like of whom has never been; Nor will there ever be any such after them, Even for many successive generations.” Joel 2:1,2

The next age or “day” after the tribulation and after Jesus coming in the clouds (Matthew 24:29-31) will be called the “Day of the Lord”, as referred to by the old testament prophets.
In the Book of Joel, you will observe a definite order of events before the Day of the Lord, and telling us what the Day of the Lord will be like. Joel 1:15 announces “Alas for the day! For the Day of the Lord is at hand; it shall come as destruction from the Almighty.” But why does the Lord want to destroy? You will find the answer clearly in Isaiah 13, right after the announcement of the “darkening of the sun”, and after the announcement of a large army coming. We read in Isaiah 13:11, “I will punish the world for it’s evil, and the wicked for their iniquity.”

In Joel chapter 1, we have a picture of what the tribulation will be like before the coming of Jesus in the clouds. It’s a vivid picture of how the animals and the land will be suffering from lack of food and lack of water, due to some economic crisis. Will not people suffer from hunger too? The people are told to call a fast for the "Day of the Lord" is near. (vs.15). The Day of the Lord will be a day of destruction from the Almighty. (vs. 16) But before the Day of the Lord, when Christ comes in the clouds, there will be a famine - food will be cut off (vs. 16). The storehouses will be desolate, the beasts will groan, the cattle will wander aimlessly. (vs. 17-18). Fire will devour the pastures and the water brooks will be dried up. (vs. 19-20).

Then in Joel 2:1 we read, “Blow the trumpet in Zion and sound an alarm in my holy mountain!” We are to warn the church! Here, he is saying “Warn the believers so they won't have to go through the day of the Lord!” This is what we must do now! It seems to me that the Lord has already given us 3 world-wide warnings recently with the towers in New York, the tsunami in Indonesia, and the hurricane and flooding in New Orleans.

Following Joel’s warning that the Day of the Lord is near, he then gives us some signs of what it will look like as it approaches. It’s the verses that I wrote at the top of this page. (Joel 2:2a) In verse 2 we read that there will be dark and thick clouds everywhere over the mountains. It seems to me that it will be a literal time of physical cloudiness and gloominess worldwide, but it could also mean an overall gloominess in the economic and moral condition of the world. You can read the rest of it yourself. It seems that Joel is saying, ‘When you see this happen, get ready, the day of the Lord in all it’s terribleness is coming very soon. The ominous dark clouds will be one clue, but there is also another. The next verse says, “A people come great and strong, the like of whom has never been.”(Joel 2:2b). Isaiah 13, Joel 2, and Revelation 9 all talk about this army. Revelation 9:16 numbers them as 200 million. We must take the numbers to be literal, but not exact to the man. Woe to those that are in their path. Read the terrifying description of this army. “Like a noise of chariots over the mountains they leap, etc.” It seems they will be airborne. They also have a massive land army. It’s terrifying. “They climb into the houses. They enter at the windows like a thief.” (2:9) So the 2nd warning to us from God, of the Day of the Lord, will be when we hear of the rumblings of this army, as the dark clouds are gathering.

After Joel mentions the “ominous clouds” and the “horrendous army” he talks about the earthquakes, very possibly causing tsunamis worldwide. (2:10) I’m afraid that people who don’t desire to understand scriptural prophesy, and don’t heed the signs, will not be able to escape the terrible floods and tsunamis that will engulf the coastlands worldwide. There may be Christians on this earth who are left behind after the rapture. I'm afraid that they may become very discouraged. But God is warning them to recognize the signs, repent and fast and be ready.

In Zechariah 14, the Lord is speaking of the same time. In verse 2 we read, “For I will gather all the nations to battle against Jerusalem.” By using our logic, we can gather that this is the same army, as in Joel and in Revelation chapter 9. In Revelation 9:18, we read that 1/3 of mankind are killed at this time. I believe that it is the same army in Revelation as in Joel 2, Isaiah 13, and Zechariah 14.

Zechariah 14 tells us that when the heavens are shaken, we will see that Jerusalem will be taken and the houses will be rifled and the women will be ravished. Half the city will then go into captivity. (vs. 2) Then the Lord will go and fight for Jerusalem against all those nations. Woe to those unbelievers in Jerusalem! However, verse 2b says that there will be a remnant in the city, who are not cut off. It seems that the remnant are the true believers, both Jews and Gentiles, who are still in the city at that time, and that they will be protected by God.

However, the Lord is now sounding the alarm, to repent so we won't miss out on Christ's coming in the clouds and so we won't be destroyed on the "Day of the Lord". but we may still have to go through this tribulation of Joel chapter 1 and 2. It is a warning from God to get ready. It' s a warning to the church. After the ominous clouds, when the sun and moon darken, and the heavens shake, the nations will probably lose all electricity, all telephones, and all internet and cell phone communication. Airports could be closed. The supermarkets and banks will likely be closed in many areas. There will possibly be robbing and looting, due to lack of food. (I am just imagining what could and probably will happen, and even worse.) Moreover, it seems that radar-guided missiles may not be operational. Oil wells could be on fire. Most transportation could come to an end. The Day of the Lord is coming! The Tribulation will come to th echurch as a warning! The Sword from Heaven will judge! Are you ready church?

“Get Ready! Sound the Trumpet! Warn the Saints! The Day of the Lord is Coming!”

What does the Lord want us to do? Read what Joel says that we should do to help alleviate this great disaster in Joel 2:15-19. That’s very important for pastors, elders, and ministers to heed. That’s what we need to do now! (fasting and weeping). This can bring repentance to the church but cannot stop God’s judgments on all the abominations on this earth.

I wish that the church could really repent, and come together for a great revival! Will it take a great tribulation to bring that about? If we really understood the signs of Jesus Coming, perhaps we could prepare now. In Joel 2:17, we read what we need to do. “17 Let the priests, who minister to the LORD, weep between the porch and the altar; Let them say, "Spare Your people, O LORD, And do not give Your heritage to reproach, That the nations should rule over them. Why should they say among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?’18 Then the LORD will be zealous for His land, and pity His people. 19 The LORD will answer and say to His people, "Behold, I will send you grain and new wine and oil, and you will be satisfied by them; I will no longer make you a reproach among the nations.20 But I will remove far from you the northern army, and will drive him away into a barren and desolate land, with his face toward the eastern sea and his back toward the western sea."

In verse 17, God is calling the priests or pastors to weep and pray, so that the nations wouldn’t rule over us. If we do this, the Lord will send us grain and new wine and oil. Perhaps it will come as a miracle as it did to the widow at Zarephath through Elijah.

Verse 20 says the northern army will be removed as a result of penitent prayer. But what if the church is not warned and does not repent? May we be found ready and in prayer as a church and as individuals. The Lord is giving us warning as never before to get us ready for the "Day of the Lord". He is giving dreams and visions just as He said he would in the book of Joel.