1. I am Joel the son of Pethuel.And this is the messagethe Lord gave to me.
2. Listen, you leadersand everyone elsein the land.Has anything like thisever happened before?
3. Tell our children!Let it be toldto our grandchildrenand their children too.
4. Swarm after swarm of locustshas attacked our crops,eating everything in sight.
5. Sober up, you drunkards!Cry long and loud;your wine supply is gone.
6. A powerful nationwith countless troopshas invaded our land.They have the teeth and jawsof powerful lions.
7. Our grapevines and fig treesare stripped bare;only naked branches remain.
8. Grieve like a young womanmourning for the manshe was to marry.
9. Offerings of grain and wineare no longer broughtto the Lord's temple.His servants, the priests,are deep in sorrow.
10. Barren fields mourn;grain, grapes, and olivesare scorched and shrivelled.
11. Mourn for our farmsand our vineyards!There's no wheat or barleygrowing in our fields.
12. Grapevines have dried upand so has every tree—figs and pomegranates,date palms and apples.All happiness has faded away.
13. Mourn, you priests who serveat the altar of my God.Spend your days and nightswearing sackcloth.Offerings of grain and wineare no longer broughtto the Lord's temple.
14. Tell the leaders and peopleto come togetherat the temple.Order them to go without eatingand to pray sincerely.
15. We are in for trouble!Soon the Lord All-Powerfulwill bring disaster.
16. Our food is already gone;there's no more celebratingat the temple of our God.
17. Seeds dry up in the ground;no harvest is possible.Our barns are in bad shape,with no grainto store in them.
18. Our cattle wander aimlessly,moaning for lack of pasture,and sheep are suffering.
19. I cry out to you, Lord.Grasslands and forests are eatenby the scorching heat.
20. Wild animals have no waterbecause of you;rivers and streams are dry,and pastures are parched.