Has any generation witnessed a plague as devastating as what we have seen? COVID was not an accident—it was a warning, a judgment permitted by the sovereign hand of God. He is not absent from disaster. He brings it to awaken the hearts of the proud and shake the foundations of false security. Unless we repent, the West will fall. We cannot be saved by our knowledge, nor preserved by our pleasures. Our science, our entertainment, and our materialism cannot shield us from divine wrath. As the prophet Joel thundered in ancient Judah, so now his words echo for us.
Theologian John Calvin, reflecting on Joel, wrote, “Though no one should think of vineyards or of wine cellars or of cups, yet they shall be forced, willing or unwilling, to feel the judgment of God in their mouth and in their lips.” (Commentary on the Twelve Minor Prophets, Vol. 2, p. 16). God can strip us of every comfort until we taste judgment in the very place we once indulged ourselves.
Even nature seems to rise up against us. Droughts, floods, fires, and storms sweep across the earth as if creation itself groans under the weight of our rebellion. The idols we constructed—technology, wealth, celebrity, even self—are powerless before the Holy One. Our pleasures have betrayed us. Our joy has withered. The house of God is neglected, and sin has made us numb. Joy dries up as the land mourns.
But there is a way back. Repentance is not merely an option; it is a divine invitation. The prophet Joel called the people of his day to a sacred return: “Consecrate a fast, proclaim a solemn assembly; gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land to the house of the LORD your God, and cry out to the LORD.” (Joel 1:14 NASU). This is the urgent call of our moment as well. We must humble ourselves and come weeping before God.
There is a day coming—the Day of the Lord—a day of darkness, trembling, and reckoning. Satan will wage war against the people of God. Evil will swell to its fullest expression. Everything that can be shaken will be shaken. But take heart: the Messiah will not be defeated. He will arise in victory, crush the enemy, and gather His people to Himself.
In view of this, let your repentance be real. Let it go beyond mere appearances. Joel pleaded, “Rend your heart and not your garments. Now return to the LORD your God, for He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in lovingkindness and relenting of evil.” (Joel 2:13 NASU). There is hope. There is mercy. Who knows? Perhaps God will bless us again.
If we turn to Him, He can heal the land. It is God—not ourselves—who gives rain for the grain, wine for joy, and peace for our borders. The time will come when He will restore all things. The tribes of Israel will be gathered, and war shall cease. But the invitation begins now. Return to the Lord.
In the face of judgment, we are not left without hope. Joel's message is both a warning and a promise—divine justice is real, but so is divine mercy. The devastation we see around us is not the end; it is a summons to return. God is not distant or indifferent. He waits for hearts that will break before Him in humility and trust. The same God who allows plague and hardship is the One who restores, revives, and blesses. Now is the time to turn from our idols, to lift our eyes from the failing systems of man, and to seek the face of the Lord. If we return to Him with all our hearts, we will find that He was waiting for us all along—with compassion, with forgiveness, and with the power to renew not only our land, but our souls.
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