Daily Devotional • November 24
A Reading from Joel 3:1-2, 9-17
1 For then, in those days and at that time, when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, 2 I will gather all the nations and bring them down to the valley of Jehoshaphat, and I will enter into judgement with them there, on account of my people and my heritage Israel, because they have scattered them among the nations. They have divided my land,
9 Proclaim this among the nations:
Prepare war,
stir up the warriors.
Let all the soldiers draw near,
let them come up.
10 Beat your ploughshares into swords,
and your pruning-hooks into spears;
let the weakling say, ‘I am a warrior.’
11 Come quickly,*
all you nations all around,
gather yourselves there.
Bring down your warriors, O Lord.
12 Let the nations rouse themselves,
and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat;
for there I will sit to judge
all the neighbouring nations.
13 Put in the sickle,
for the harvest is ripe.
Go in, tread,
for the wine press is full.
The vats overflow,
for their wickedness is great.
14 Multitudes, multitudes,
in the valley of decision!
For the day of the Lord is near
in the valley of decision.
15 The sun and the moon are darkened,
and the stars withdraw their shining.
16 The Lord roars from Zion,
and utters his voice from Jerusalem,
and the heavens and the earth shake.
But the Lord is a refuge for his people,
a stronghold for the people of Israel.
17 So you shall know that I, the Lord your God,
dwell in Zion, my holy mountain.
And Jerusalem shall be holy,
and strangers shall never again pass through it.
Meditation
What are we to make of this reading from the prophet Joel if we place it alongside Isaiah 2:4 and Micah 4:3? Which is correct? The passages agree that God will come to judge the nations, but will it be a time of peace (Isaiah and Micah), or of war (Joel)? Perhaps these passages are describing two different events within God’s judgment. Joel is prophesying about a future time in Israel on this side of the eschaton, while Isaiah and Micah are prophesying about God’s ultimate judgment in the world that is yet to come. But another interpretation is possible as well, which is that all three prophets are describing the same event, without any contradiction.
When Jesus was handed over to the authorities on the Mount of Olives, scripture tells us that his followers had come armed with swords (Matthew 26:51; Mark 14:47; Luke 22:49-50; John 18:10). Jesus even verifies that his disciples are armed, saying their two swords are enough (Luke 22:38). But what does Jesus tell them to do with those swords at the time of his arrest? He says to put them away. Jesus submits so that his Father’s will—his judgment—may be carried out.
The Lord has united his beloved, but it is he who will fight the battle, not us. So why have us show up armed and ready in the first place? The answer may be that God has pulled the ultimate switcheroo; we came to fight in the Great War, but God intended all along to send out on the Great Commission. The battle is already won, but there is still much work to do. There is but a short time to spread the message of salvation and it will take all of our courage and strength to do it. In short, we must be warriors, working tirelessly with our ploughshares in the hope that at the end of all things, no man who passes through the gate of the new Jerusalem may be a stranger to the grace of God.
Sarah Cornwell lives in Wheaton, IL with her husband, James, and their seven children.
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Daily Devotional Cycle of Prayer
Today we pray for:
St. Joseph of Arimathea, Hendersonville, Tennessee
The Diocese of Riverina – The Anglican Church of Australia
This ministry of The Living Church Foundation is made possible in part by a special bequest from the Anglican Fellowship of Prayer.
