The Pulpit Commentary — Joel — Section 18

111. THF. mFUJKNOIC 'OF JoEt'e woBw: it would not be e&BJ' to onr•01tlml\te. Bev11ral or the lat:Pr prophet8 were indebted to him for l!~BRtivo tho11ghtl! abd. pbrOJ1ce. Potdr quotce h1R pr~phecy about the outpouring of the Holy Spirit; and John, ln hie Boolt of t.ho ,RevolRt1on, makes u110 of his image or the locuete. It it! thue th&t God build11 the temple of truth. We see ite stat.cly ~roportionB l\nd exclalm+ ''Behold what mannrr of stones 11.nd what buildings arc here." but ho,v often we forgot the qu1nrioe from which the Btonee were dug, and the workmen who did the first rough. \Vorlt of Hha.ping them for the MRRt.cr'8 use I It is not BO with God. We often admire ,the hero who, in advoe&ey of the truth, compels the world to litlten; but the gal'Illll or his character may be traced to the nurture of a gentle mother, whoso cbo.racter e.nd teaching, with God'e blessing, made her son what be is. He is the livlng witnel!8 of the issues flowing from bor obscuro work. '· IV. 'l'HE COURAGE A:t-."D HOPEFULNESS which Jool showed ln his work. All was dark around him, and be knew things would be .darker still bofore the sunshine came. He, was living in a kingdom which, after the ·revolt of the ten tribes, .was about equal in area_ to _the county of Suffalk, 11.nd eve~ with the addition of the·district. belonging to BcnJamm was not ao--. ae Yorkshire. Yet he boldly looks forward to a time when tbi.t kmgdom wanld De the centre of light to the world. We talk of the " mate- rialism uf the old dispensation;" but here is fa.ith in spiritual force which may put us all to shame; We ought not to be unduly diecouraged by statistics which compare the numbers of Christians with the numbers of heathens. We should reflect that on the side of Christ are the leading nations of the world-not those falling into·decay, but those which are planting the future empires which will rule the fature. Yet, with all onr thankfulness for this1 our confidence must be .not.in it, but fa him who can and will.work through these peoples till all the kingdoms of the world become,the kingdoms of onr God.-A. R. . _ ,, Ver. 14.-ReZigious reformation. In this chapter the prophet gives a graphio description of the devastation of the land of Judah by swarms of locusts. After eating all the green leaves wd succulent parts of the trees, they destroyed even the .bark (ver. 7), BO that the effects of this awful visitation would mt, not for,a single season, but for years. God sent this pest, as he sends other troubles, in order ·to arouse the !!0Illluaue and carelese people to thought and to contrition. The w1tbdrawal of earthly blessings often tends to 'tm:n·men's thoughts t:o those that are heavenly. .Losses and griefs of every kind may bring a man or a nation to penitence, and this iB one of their designs. But while thie chapter primarily refers t,o a physical plague, any one w;ho reads between the lines can. see here suggestions of spiritual desolation, symbolized'by the visitation of locusts. The vine was a well-known emblem, of God's· people, and BB such was used by our Lord (John xv.); and the deeolation of it, caused by locusts; fitly sets forth that condition of the Church which iB brought about by its numberless enemies. When fruit-bearing has ceased, and life ,ie enfeebled, and· God!s .paradise becomes a wilderness, there iB need for the penitential prayer called for in our text. Ecclesiastical history revealB to us periods when the Church seemed thuil to lie under a curee; and in our own day there ii enough of spiritual barrenness to call for heart,. searching and earnest wpplication. It only needs that God should send showers ,of blessing, and then even the wildemBM ■hall rejoice and blossom like the roee. The subject suggested by 01r text is religi.ous reformation, and some of its oharacteridtics which a.re here hinted at demand coDlideration. , • ,. L THE ~CDl'OWLEDMIENT OF Goo's. ctAlllB. The prieets were to ,take the lead :in this act of national repentance. lnseneibility to the prese11ce and·the power·of, the Most High was being removed by signs and wonders which even the most' carnally minded would understand. Now they were summoned to a true turning to; him.in prayer. They were not called upon merely to "appoint" a fa.ilt, but to "Hnotify,(' a fast. In other words, they were t.o hallow their ab■tinence by an acknowledgment of Gr,d ; they were to bring forth fruits worthy of repentance. Fasting is never accept- abk in itself, but only when it is employed.as a sacrifice unto God. ·Depriving one'&11elf of food or of pleasure■ may be practised fur the good of one's health or for the sake of winning notoriety, and when it ii so there is no moral or,religious worth about it. . II. THE PRACTICE OF 8ELF-BEl:ITRAINT. "Fasting" i ■ a word which ought to have (!rr, T, 1-20,] THE BOOK OF JOEL. 15