One Year Bible.

The Invasion of Locusts

¹This is the word of the LORD that came to Joel son of Pethuel:

²Hear this, O elders;

and give ear, all who dwell in the land.

Has anything like this ever happened in your days

or in the days of your fathers?

³Tell it to your children;

let your children tell it to their children,

and their children to the next generation.

⁴What the devouring locust has left,

the swarming locust has eaten;

what the swarming locust has left,

the young locust has eaten;

and what the young locust has left,

the destroying locust has eaten.

⁵Wake up, you drunkards, and weep;

wail, all you drinkers of wine,

because of the sweet wine,

for it has been cut off from your mouth.

⁶For a nation has invaded My land,

powerful and without number;

its teeth are the teeth of a lion,

and its fangs are the fangs of a lioness.

⁷It has laid waste My grapevine

and splintered My fig tree.

It has stripped off the bark and thrown it away;

the branches have turned white.

A Call to Mourning

⁸Wail like a virgin dressed in sackcloth,

grieving for the husband of her youth.

⁹Grain and drink offerings have been cut off

from the house of the LORD;

the priests are in mourning,

those who minister before the LORD.

¹⁰The field is ruined;

the land mourns.

For the grain is destroyed,

the new wine is dried up, and the oil fails.

¹¹Be dismayed, O farmers,

wail, O vinedressers,

over the wheat and barley,

because the harvest of the field has perished.

¹²The grapevine is dried up,

and the fig tree is withered;

the pomegranate, palm, and apple—

all the trees of the orchard— are withered.

Surely the joy of mankind has dried up.

A Call to Repentance

¹³Put on sackcloth and lament, O priests;

wail, O ministers of the altar.

Come, spend the night in sackcloth,

O ministers of my God,

because the grain and drink offerings

are withheld from the house of your God.

¹⁴Consecrate a fast;

proclaim a solemn assembly!

Gather the elders

and all the residents of the land

to the house of the LORD your God,

and cry out to the LORD.

¹⁵Alas for the day!

For the Day of the LORD is near,

and it will come

as destruction from the Almighty.

¹⁶Has not the food been cut off

before our very eyes —

joy and gladness

from the house of our God?

¹⁷The seeds lie shriveled beneath the clods;

the storehouses are in ruins;

the granaries are broken down,

for the grain has withered away.

¹⁸How the cattle groan!

The herds wander in confusion

because they have no pasture.

Even the flocks of sheep are suffering.

¹⁹To You, O LORD, I call,

for fire has consumed the open pastures

and flames have scorched all the trees of the field.

²⁰Even the beasts of the field pant for You,

for the streams of water have dried up,

and fire has consumed the open pastures.

The Army of Locusts

¹Blow the ram’s horn in Zion;

sound the alarm on My holy mountain!

Let all who dwell in the land tremble,

for the Day of the LORD is coming;

indeed, it is near—

²a day of darkness and gloom,

a day of clouds and blackness.

Like the dawn overspreading the mountains

a great and strong army appears,

such as never was of old,

nor will ever be in ages to come.

³Before them a fire devours,

and behind them a flame scorches.

The land before them is like the Garden of Eden,

but behind them, it is like a desert wasteland —

surely nothing will escape them.

⁴Their appearance is like that of horses,

and they gallop like swift steeds.

⁵With a sound like that of chariots

they bound over the mountaintops,

like the crackling of fire consuming stubble,

like a mighty army deployed for battle.

⁶Nations writhe in horror before them;

every face turns pale.

⁷They charge like mighty men;

they scale the walls like men of war.

Each one marches in formation,

not swerving from the course.

⁸They do not jostle one another;

each proceeds in his path.

They burst through the defenses,

never breaking ranks.

⁹They storm the city;

they run along the wall;

they climb into houses,

entering through windows like thieves.

¹⁰Before them the earth quakes;

the heavens tremble.

The sun and moon grow dark,

and the stars lose their brightness.

¹¹The LORD raises His voice

in the presence of His army.

Indeed, His camp is very large,

for mighty are those who obey His command.

For the Day of the LORD is great and very dreadful.

Who can endure it?

Return with All Your Heart

¹²“Yet even now,”

declares the LORD,

“return to Me with all your heart,

with fasting, weeping, and mourning.”

¹³So rend your hearts and not your garments,

and return to the LORD your God.

For He is gracious and compassionate,

slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion.

And He relents from sending disaster.

¹⁴Who knows? He may turn and relent

and leave a blessing behind Him —

grain and drink offerings

for the LORD your God.

¹⁵Blow the ram’s horn in Zion,

consecrate a fast,

proclaim a sacred assembly.

¹⁶Gather the people, sanctify the congregation,

assemble the aged, gather the children,

even those nursing at the breast.

Let the bridegroom leave his room,

and the bride her chamber.

¹⁷Let the priests who minister before the LORD

weep between the portico and the altar,

saying, “Spare Your people, O LORD,

and do not make Your heritage a reproach,

an object of scorn among the nations.

Why should they say among the peoples,

‘Where is their God?’”

Restoration Promised

¹⁸Then the LORD became jealous for His land,

and He spared His people.

¹⁹And the LORD answered His people:

“Behold, I will send you

grain, new wine, and oil,

and by them you will be satisfied.

I will never again make you

a reproach among the nations.

²⁰The northern army I will drive away from you,

banishing it to a barren and desolate land,

its front ranks into the Eastern Sea,

and its rear guard into the Western Sea.

And its stench will rise;

its foul odor will ascend.

For He has done great things.

²¹Do not be afraid, O land;

rejoice and be glad,

for the LORD has done great things.

²²Do not be afraid, O beasts of the field,

for the open pastures have turned green,

the trees bear their fruit,

and the fig tree and vine yield their best.

²³Be glad, O children of Zion,

and rejoice in the LORD your God,

for He has given you the autumn rains

for your vindication.

He sends you showers,

both autumn and spring rains, as before.

²⁴The threshing floors will be full of grain,

and the vats will overflow with new wine and oil.

²⁵I will repay you for the years eaten by locusts —

the swarming locust, the young locust,

the destroying locust, and the devouring locust—

My great army that I sent against you.

²⁶You will have plenty to eat,

until you are satisfied.

You will praise the name of the LORD your God,

who has worked wonders for you.

My people will never again

be put to shame.

²⁷Then you will know that I am present in Israel

and that I am the LORD your God,

and there is no other.

My people will never again

be put to shame.

I Will Pour Out My Spirit

²⁸And afterward, I will pour out My Spirit on all people.

Your sons and daughters will prophesy,

your old men will dream dreams,

your young men will see visions.

²⁹Even on My menservants and maidservants,

I will pour out My Spirit in those days.

³⁰I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth,

blood and fire and columns of smoke.

³¹The sun will be turned to darkness

and the moon to blood

before the coming of the great and awesome Day of the LORD.

³²And everyone who calls on the name of the LORD

will be saved;

for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem

there will be deliverance, as the LORD has promised,

among the remnant called by the LORD.[’’]

Jehoahaz Reigns in Israel

¹In the twenty-third year of the reign of Joash son of Ahaziah over Judah, Jehoahaz son of Jehu became king of Israel, and he reigned in Samaria seventeen years. ²And he did evil in the sight of the LORD and followed the sins that Jeroboam son of Nebat had caused Israel to commit; he did not turn away from them. ³So the anger of the LORD burned against Israel, and He delivered them continually into the hands of Hazael king of Aram and his son Ben-hadad.

⁴Then Jehoahaz sought the favor of the LORD, and the LORD listened to him because He saw the oppression that the king of Aram had inflicted on Israel. ⁵So the LORD gave Israel a deliverer, and they escaped the power of the Arameans. Then the people of Israel lived in their own homes as they had before.

⁶Nevertheless, they did not turn away from the sins that the house of Jeroboam had caused Israel to commit, but they continued to walk in them. The Asherah pole even remained standing in Samaria.

⁷Jehoahaz had no army left, except fifty horsemen, ten chariots, and ten thousand foot soldiers, because the king of Aram had destroyed them and made them like the dust at threshing.

⁸As for the rest of the acts of Jehoahaz, along with all his accomplishments and his might, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?

⁹And Jehoahaz rested with his fathers and was buried in Samaria. And his son Jehoash reigned in his place.

Jehoash Reigns in Israel

¹⁰In the thirty-seventh year of the reign of Joash over Judah, Jehoash son of Jehoahaz became king of Israel in Samaria, and he reigned sixteen years. ¹¹And he did evil in the sight of the LORD and did not turn away from all the sins that Jeroboam son of Nebat had caused Israel to commit, but he walked in them.

¹²As for the rest of the acts of Jehoash, along with all his accomplishments and his might, including his war against Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?

¹³And Jehoash rested with his fathers, and Jeroboam succeeded him on the throne. Jehoash was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel.

Elisha’s Final Prophecy

¹⁴When Elisha had fallen sick with the illness from which he would die, Jehoash king of Israel came down to him and wept over him, saying, “My father, my father, the chariots and horsemen of Israel!”

¹⁵Elisha told him, “Take a bow and some arrows.”

So Jehoash took a bow and some arrows.

¹⁶Then Elisha said to the king of Israel, “Put your hand on the bow.”

So the king put his hand on the bow, and Elisha put his hands on the king’s hands.

¹⁷“Open the east window,” said Elisha.

So he opened it and Elisha said, “Shoot!” So he shot.

And Elisha declared:

“This is the LORD’s arrow of victory,

the arrow of victory over Aram,

for you shall strike the Arameans in Aphek

until you have put an end to them.”

¹⁸Then Elisha said, “Take the arrows!”

So he took them, and Elisha said to the king of Israel, “Strike the ground!”

So he struck the ground three times and stopped.

¹⁹But the man of God was angry with him and said, “You should have struck the ground five or six times. Then you would have struck down Aram until you had put an end to it. But now you will strike down Aram only three times.”

²⁰And Elisha died and was buried.

Now the Moabite raiders used to come into the land every spring. ²¹Once, as the Israelites were burying a man, suddenly they saw a band of raiders, so they threw the man’s body into Elisha’s tomb. And as soon as his body touched the bones of Elisha, the man was revived and stood up on his feet.

²²And Hazael king of Aram oppressed Israel throughout the reign of Jehoahaz. ²³But the LORD was gracious to Israel and had compassion on them, and He turned toward them because of His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And to this day, the LORD has been unwilling to destroy them or cast them from His presence.

²⁴When Hazael king of Aram died, his son Ben-hadad reigned in his place. ²⁵Then Jehoash son of Jehoahaz took back from Ben-hadad son of Hazael the cities that Hazael had taken in battle from his father Jehoahaz. Jehoash defeated Ben-hadad three times, and so recovered the cities of Israel.

The First Seal: The White Horse

¹Then I watched as the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures say in a voice like thunder, “Come!”

²So I looked and saw a white horse, and its rider held a bow. And he was given a crown, and he rode out to overcome and conquer.

The Second Seal: War

³And when the Lamb opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say, “Come!”

⁴Then another horse went forth. It was bright red, and its rider was granted permission to take away peace from the earth and to make men slay one another. And he was given a great sword.

The Third Seal: Famine

⁵And when the Lamb opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come!”

Then I looked and saw a black horse, and its rider held in his hand a pair of scales. ⁶And I heard what sounded like a voice from among the four living creatures, saying, “A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius, and do not harm the oil and wine.”

The Fourth Seal: Death

⁷And when the Lamb opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say, “Come!”

⁸Then I looked and saw a pale green horse. Its rider’s name was Death, and Hades followed close behind. And they were given authority over a fourth of the earth, to kill by sword, by famine, by plague, and by the beasts of the earth.

The Fifth Seal: The Martyrs

⁹And when the Lamb opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the testimony they had upheld. ¹⁰And they cried out in a loud voice, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge those who dwell upon the earth and avenge our blood?”

¹¹Then each of them was given a white robe and told to rest a little while longer until the full number of their fellow servants, their brothers, were killed, just as they had been killed.

The Sixth Seal: Terror

¹²And I watched as the Lamb opened the sixth seal, and there was a great earthquake, and the sun became black like sackcloth of goat hair, and the whole moon turned blood red, ¹³and the stars of the sky fell to the earth like unripe figs dropping from a tree shaken by a great wind. ¹⁴The sky receded like a scroll being rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved from its place.

¹⁵Then the kings of the earth, the nobles, the commanders, the rich, the mighty, and every slave and free man hid in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains. ¹⁶And they said to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of the One seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb. ¹⁷For the great day of Their wrath has come, and who is able to withstand it?”