Joel 2:23-32

This weeks Old Testament lection appears at the end of an extended series from the book of Jeremiah. Congregants may find the words of this week’s reading familiar, even if they have not opened this mere three chapter minor prophet previously. Peter quotes this portion of Joel (2:28b-32a) at Pentecost (Acts 2), as he interprets the pouring out of the Spirit and the events of that day in light of this prophecy.

The preacher who prioritizes the teaching aspect of a sermon may want to include some introductory remarks about the book as a whole—at least providing some sense of arc of the three chapters. Where I would normally suggest grounding a prophetic sermon text in the story of Israel by describing the current experience of the Israelites (i.e. pre-exilic/exilic/post-exilic), dating Joel is a guessing game. In this case, we cling to what we do know. The prophet Joel refers to a story that Israel should retell for generations (1:3).[1] A crisis of great magnitude has come upon the Israelites, the judgment of God (2:1). They must return to the Lord with fasting and weeping and mourning (2:12). They must cry out to God that they might be spared (2:17). In spite of this, the Israelites have experienced deliverance so profound and undeserved, they should retell the story and pass it to their children (2:18ff).[2]

For those serving on the Atlantic Coast of the Western Hemisphere, a pressing pastoral consideration rises quickly to the surface in the days following Hurricane Matthew. The children of Zion are to “rejoice” because the Lord has given “rain for your vindication.” It is none other than “The LORD…who poured down abundant rain.” Address these words delicately and thoughtfully. Imagine those who are now homeless or still without power due to heavy rain or who’s loved ones have been washed away by the rain. Why should those currently suffering from abundant rain rejoice at all? Further, verse 23 raises a kind of theodicy question since Joel attributes the rain to God. Does this mean that God also brought this rain? Did God do this to us?

In my reading, the homiletical door into this text opens at the line, “I will pour out my spirit on all flesh” (2:28b). As if all isn’t clear enough, Joel clarifies this all, in the remainder of 28-29. “Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions. Even on the male and female slaves, in those days, I will pour out my spirit.” A sermon using this line as the starting point could describe the ways in which we fail to act as though God’s spirit has been poured out on all flesh. A sermon that calls for confession and repentance fits both the prophetic nature and content of the book of Joel.

Two approaches for how a sermon might lean into this prophetic Word:

1. The sermon might engage the pouring out of the Spirit as an opportunity to make a case for the ordination of women. Joel makes no distinction between those who prophesy. They are both men and women. A case for women in ministry coming from a minor prophet like Joel also invites congregants to let go of some of the problematic views prevalent in many churches regarding the Old Testament. For some, Old Testament means the lesser, inapplicable, rigid, or narrow of the two testaments. Additionally, if you are a male pastor and haven’t preached on the Biblical support of women’s ordination and supported the hiring of female pastors in the last year, by God’s grace, the lectionary has selected Joel 2 for you.

2. A sermon on the pouring out of the spirit on all flesh could also press the congregation to examine, confess, and repent about the bodies (flesh) we value over other bodies. God’s spirit doesn’t make a distinction—all flesh receives the spirit. All includes slaves, Joel emphasizes (2:29). This is especially important for those who preach in U.S. contexts, since our country’s history of slavery considered slaves to be only three-fifths of a person.

God’s spirit is poured out on all flesh—and yet, we in the church make distinctions about whose bodies’ matter, without thinking twice. Are black and brown bodies equal to white bodies? Are Afghani bodies equal to American bodies? Are incarcerated bodies equal to free bodies? Are bodies without healthcare as deserving of treatment as bodies with healthcare? It’s one thing to say we believe God’s spirit is poured out on all flesh and a totally different thing to live into it. Which of our practices do we need to examine? What of our sins do we need to confess? How might this sermon breakdown some of the ways things have always been to make room for this day of the Lord? [1]  James Limburg.  Interpretation: Hosea-Micah.  (Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1988), 55. [2] Ibid.