Joel (; he, יוֹאֵל – ''Yōʾēl''; gr, Ἰωήλ – ''Iōḗl''; syr, ܝܘܐܝܠ – ''Yu'il'') was a prophet of

ancient Israel The history of ancient Israel and Judah begins in the Southern Levant during the Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age. "Israel" as a people or tribal confederation (see Israelites) appears for the first time in the Merneptah Stele, an inscri ...

, the second of the twelve

minor prophets The Minor Prophets or Twelve Prophets ( he, שנים עשר, ''Shneim Asar''; arc, תרי עשר, ''Trei Asar'', "Twelve") ( grc, δωδεκαπρόφητον, "the Twelve Prophets"), occasionally Book of the Twelve, is a collection of propheti ...

and according to the book itself the author of the

Book of Joel The Book of Joel is collected as one of the twelve minor prophets of the Nevi'im ("Prophets") in the Hebrew Bible, and as a book in its own right in the Christian Old Testament. Content After a superscription ascribing the prophecy to Joel (s ...

. He is mentioned by name only once in the

Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. Hebrew: ''Tān ...

, in the introduction to that book, as the son of Pethuel ( Joel 1:1). The name Joel combines the covenant name of God,

YHWH The Tetragrammaton (; ), or Tetragram, is the four-letter Hebrew theonym (transliterated as YHWH), the name of God in the Hebrew Bible. The four letters, written and read from right to left (in Hebrew), are ''yodh'', '' he'', ''waw'', and '' ...

(or Yahweh), and

El (god) (also Il, uga, 𐎛𐎍 ''ʾīlu''; phn, 𐤀𐤋 ''ʾīl''; he, אֵל ''ʾēl''; syr, ܐܺܝܠ ''ʾīyl''; ar, إيل or ; cognate to akk, 𒀭, ilu) is a Northwest Semitic word meaning "god" or "deity", or referring (as a prope ...

, and has been translated as "

is God" or "one to whom

is God," that is, a worshiper of YHWH.

Life

Some commentators suggest that Joel lived in the 9th century BCE, whereas others assign him to the 5th or 4th century BCE.Anderson, B.W. (1988), ''The living world of the Old Testament'', 4th edition. Harlow, UK: Longman. p.524 The dating of his book is similarly debated; there are no mentions of kings that might help locate it in time. The book's mention of

Greeks The Greeks or Hellenes (; el, Έλληνες, ''Éllines'' ) are an ethnic group and nation indigenous to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea regions, namely Greece, Cyprus, Albania, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, and, to a lesser extent, oth ...

has not given scholars any help in dating the text since the Greeks were known to have had access to Judah from Mycenaean times (c. 1600–1100 BC). However, the book's mention of Judah's suffering and to the standing temple have led some scholars to place the date of the book in the post-exilic period, after the construction of the

Second Temple The Second Temple (, , ), later known as Herod's Temple, was the reconstructed Temple in Jerusalem between and 70 CE. It replaced Solomon's Temple, which had been built at the same location in the United Kingdom of Israel before being inherited ...

. Joel was originally from Judah/

Judea Judea or Judaea ( or ; from he, יהודה, Hebrew language#Modern Hebrew, Standard ''Yəhūda'', Tiberian vocalization, Tiberian ''Yehūḏā''; el, Ἰουδαία, ; la, Iūdaea) is an ancient, historic, Biblical Hebrew, contemporaneous L ...

, and, judging from its prominence in his prophecy, was quite possibly a prophet associated with the ritual of either Solomon's or the Second temple, depending on the date when he lived. According to a long-standing tradition, Joel was buried in

Gush Halav Jish ( ar, الجش; he, גִ'שׁ, גּוּשׁ חָלָב, Jish, Gush Halav) is a local council in Upper Galilee, located on the northeastern slopes of Mount Meron, north of Safed, in Israel's Northern District. In it had a population of , w ...

In Christianity

On the

Eastern Orthodox liturgical calendar The Eastern Orthodox liturgical calendar describes and dictates the rhythm of the life of the Eastern Orthodox Church. Passages of Holy Scripture, saints and events for commemoration are associated with each date, as are many times special rul ...

, his feast day is

October 19 Events Pre-1600 * 202 BC – Second Punic War: At the Battle of Zama, Roman legions under Scipio Africanus defeat Hannibal Barca, leader of the army defending Carthage. * 439 – The Vandals, led by King Gaiseric, take Carthage in ...

. In the Roman Martyrology, the prophet is commemorated on

July 13 Events Pre-1600 * 1174 – William I of Scotland, a key rebel in the Revolt of 1173–74, is captured at Alnwick by forces loyal to Henry II of England. * 1249 – Coronation of Alexander III as King of Scots. *1260 – The Livon ...

. He is commemorated with the other

minor prophet The Minor Prophets or Twelve Prophets ( he, שנים עשר, ''Shneim Asar''; arc, תרי עשר, ''Trei Asar'', "Twelve") ( grc, δωδεκαπρόφητον, "the Twelve Prophets"), occasionally Book of the Twelve, is a collection of propheti ...

s in the

Calendar of saints The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word "feast" in this context d ...

of the

Armenian Apostolic Church , native_name_lang = hy , icon = Armenian Apostolic Church logo.svg , icon_width = 100px , icon_alt = , image = Էջմիածնի_Մայր_Տաճար.jpg , imagewidth = 250px , a ...

on July 31. Joel's statement that "I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions" was applied by St Peter in his sermon at

Pentecost Pentecost (also called Whit Sunday, Whitsunday or Whitsun) is a Christianity, Christian holiday which takes place on the 50th day (the seventh Sunday) after Easter Sunday. It commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles in the Ne ...

to the events of that day. Since then, other religious figures have interpreted the words as having special significance for their own time. According to the Eastern Orthodox Christian hymns, the ancient hymnographer

Anatolius Anatolius is both a given name and a surname. Notable people with the name include: Given name * Anatolius of Laodicea (died 283), Bishop of Laodicea in Syria, also known as Anatolius of Alexandria * Anatolius, Vicarius of the Diocese of Asia in 35 ...

links Joel's prophecy to the birth of Christ. In Joel 2:30, he says that the blood refers to the

incarnation of Jesus Christ In Christian theology, the incarnation is the belief that the pre-existent divine person of Jesus Christ, God the Son, the second person of the Trinity, and the eternally begotten ''Logos'' (Koine Greek for "word"), took upon human nature and ...

, the fire to the

Divinity of Christ In Christianity, Christology (from the Greek grc, Χριστός, Khristós, label=none and grc, -λογία, -logia, label=none), translated literally from Greek as "the study of Christ", is a branch of theology that concerns Jesus. Differ ...

, and the pillars of smoke to the

Holy Spirit In Judaism, the Holy Spirit is the divine force, quality, and influence of God over the Universe or over his creatures. In Nicene Christianity, the Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost is the third person of the Trinity. In Islam, the Holy Spirit acts as ...

In the Baha'i Faith

Joel is considered a

in the

Baha'i Faith Baha (also transliterated as Bahaa, ar, بهاء) may refer to: People * Baha (name) Places *Al Bahah, a city in Saudi Arabia Trademark * Cochlear Baha, a hearing aid manufactured by Cochlear Title * Al-Muqtana Baha'uddin (979–1043), Druze ...

. In the Kitab-i-Iqan, Baha'ullah states that previous prophecies by minor prophets such as Joel have symbolic meanings and significance and therefore should not be understood literally.

References

Citations

Sources

* * * *

External links

Four Prophets
at Chabad.org {{DEFAULTSORT:Joel 1st-millennium BC births 1st-millennium BC deaths Book of Joel Christian saints from the Old Testament