Joel

Joel, book of the Bible

Joel, prophetic book of the Bible. It is a collection of the oracles of an otherwise unknown prophet, dated variously from the 9th to the 3d cent. B.C., though a date in c.400 B.C. is likely. A locust plague gives the prophet the prextext for summoning the whole nation to repentance; the people, on repentance, will be rewarded with present as well as future blessings, this being a prophecy concerning the Day of the Lord—a day on which the faithful will be vindicated while the Gentile enemies of the people of God will be overthrown. H. W. Wolff, Joel and Amos (1977); W. S. Prinsloo, The Theology of the Book of Joel (1985).

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Joel, persons in the Bible

Joel (jō`əl), in the Bible.

1 Prophet of the book of Joel.

2 Son of Samuel. He also appears under the name Vashni.

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Joel

Second of the 12 Minor Prophets in the Hebrew scriptures, author of the book of Joel. (His prophecy is part of a larger book, The Twelve, in the Jewish canon.) He lived sometime during the period of the Second Temple of Jerusalem (516 BC–AD 70), but nothing is known of his life. He opens his prophecy by describing a plague of locusts, an allegory of the disasters to come upon a faithless people. His message is simple: salvation will come to Judah only when the people truly turn to Yahweh. The end of the book looks forward to the final days, when all Israel will share in the knowledge of God.