Immerse: Prophets - Flipbook - Page 445
1:19–2:9
J oel
Lord, help us!
The fire has consumed the wilderness pastures,
and flames have burned up all the trees.
Even the wild animals cry out to you
because the streams have dried up,
and fire has consumed the wilderness pastures.
Sound the trumpet in Jerusalem!
Raise the alarm on my holy mountain!
Let everyone tremble in fear
because the day of the Lord is upon us.
It is a day of darkness and gloom,
a day of thick clouds and deep blackness.
Suddenly, like dawn spreading across the mountains,
a great and mighty army appears.
Nothing like it has been seen before
or will ever be seen again.
Fire burns in front of them,
and flames follow after them.
Ahead of them the land lies
as beautiful as the Garden of Eden.
Behind them is nothing but desolation;
not one thing escapes.
They look like horses;
they charge forward like warhorses.
Look at them as they leap along the mountaintops.
Listen to the noise they make—like the rumbling of chariots,
like the roar of fire sweeping across a field of stubble,
or like a mighty army moving into battle.
Fear grips all the people;
every face grows pale with terror.
The attackers march like warriors
and scale city walls like soldiers.
Straight forward they march,
never breaking rank.
They never jostle each other;
each moves in exactly the right position.
They break through defenses
without missing a step.
They swarm over the city
and run along its walls.
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