Joel יוֹאֵל

Joel (Yoel) son of Pethuel opens upon a land stripped bare: what the palmer-worm left, the locust has eaten — a nation strong and without number, with the teeth of a lion, has laid the vine waste and barked the fig-tree. The prophet summons priests and people to fasting and assembly, for the day of Hashem is at hand; and at the turning-point of the book stands the call that echoes through the liturgy of repentance: 'Rend your heart, and not your garments.' Then Hashem answers with grain, wine, and oil, repays the years the locust ate, and promises more — the outpouring of the spirit upon all flesh, sons and daughters prophesying, and judgment on all nations in the valley of Jehoshaphat, where multitudes wait in the valley of decision. This volume presents the complete Hebrew text with English translation, a word-by-word interlinear layer with transliteration, roots, and gematria, and the classic commentaries of Rashi, Ibn Ezra, Radak, Metzudat David, Metzudat Zion, Malbim, and Abarbanel, newly translated into English.