Joel 2:1
in Joel 2Blow 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—
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain; let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of Jehovah cometh, for it is nigh at hand;
KJV
Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand;
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This verse in Joel 2
Commentary
12 notes on this verseBlow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain,.... This is spoken to the priests, whose business it was to blow the trumpets for calling solemn assemblies to meet in Zion, the temple built there, called from thence the holy mountain of God.
This site's exposition
Blow the ram’s horn in Zion
on Joel 2:1-2
The alarm "Blow the ram’s horn in Zion" sounds as a battle signal on the holy mountain, for "the Day of the LORD is coming". Verse 2 stacks four words for darkness, "darkness and gloom" and "clouds and blackness", and calls the army one "such as never was of old".
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
(Chapter 2 — Verses 1 onwards) Blow the trumpet in Zion; sound the alarm on my holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the Lord is coming; it is near, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness! Like the dawn spreading over the mountains, a large and strong people appears, such as has never been before and will never be again in generations to come. Before them, a devouring fire; behind them, a blazing flame.
The Medieval Church1 voice
A commentator
Gregory the DialogistMorals on the Book of Job, Book XVII, 54 · Written before 604.
proposed
The terror then of the Strict Inquest, which Zephaniah calls 'the Trumpet,' blessed Job designates 'thundering.' Which Joel also viewing saith, "Let all the inhabitants of the land be troubled; for the Day of the Lord cometh; for it is nigh at hand, a day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of cloud and whirlwind. For the Day of the Lord is great, and very terrible, and who shall sustain it?" But how incomprehensible and unimaginable that Greatness wherewith He shall come in His Second Manifesting, in some degree we estimate aright, if we consider with heedful reflection the weighty particulars of His first Advent. Surely that He might redeem us from death, the Lord came to die, and the impoverishment and punishments of our flesh He underwent in His own Body; Who before He came to the stock of the Cross, suffered Himself to be bound, to be spit on, to be mocked and to be beaten with blows on His cheek. Observe to what disgraceful treatment He for our sakes consented to come, and yet, before He permitted Himself to be laid hold of, He questioned His persecutors, saying, "Whom seek ye?" To Whom they thereupon gave answer, "Jesus of Nazareth." And when He said to them directly, "I am He," He only uttered a voice of the mildest answer, and at once prostrated His armed persecutors to the earth. What then shall He do when He cometh to judge the world, who by one utterance of His voice smote His enemies, even when He came to be judged? What is that Judgment which He exercises as immortal, Who in a single utterance could not be endured when He was about to die? Who may sustain His wrath, Whose very mildness even could not be sustained? So then let the holy man consider it and say, "And whilst we scarcely hear a little drop of His words, who shall be able to look on the thundering of His Majesty?"
The Reformation1 voice
Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand;
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — verbatim-scripture
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
By the law many annual feasts were appointed, but only one day in the year was to be observed as a fast, the day of atonement, a day to afflict the soul; and, if they had kept close to God and their duty, there would have been no occasion to observe any more; but now that they had by sin brought the judgments of God upon them they are often called to fasting.
An earnest call to repentance, ver. 12-17. A promise of all good things to the penitent, ver. 18-27. A prophecy of the Messiah's kingdom, ver. 28-32.
quarantine:anchor (2026-07-29) — cites-ver-18/28-anchored-1-11
5 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble; they shall be made to tremble by the judgment itself; let them therefore tremble at the alarm of it. Here is a general idea given of the day of battle, which cometh, which is nigh at hand, and there is no avoiding it. It is the day of the Lord, the day of his judgment, in which he will both manifest and magnify himself.
What we are here called to, which will teach us what it is to repent, for it is the same that the Lord our God still requires of us, we having all made work for repentance. (1.) We must be truly humbled for our sins, must be sorry we have by sin offended God, and ashamed we have by sin wronged ourselves, both wronged our judgments and wronged our interests.
A serious call to the people, when they are under this sore judgment, to return and repent, to fast and pray, and to seek unto God for mercy, with directions how to do this aright,
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
Blow ye the trumpet - The trumpet was accustomed to sound in Zion, only for religious uses; to call together the congregations for holy meetings, to usher in the beginnings of their months and their solemn days with festival gladness. Now in Zion itself, the stronghold of the kingdom, the Holy City, the place which God chose to put His Name there, which He had promised to establish, the trumpet was to be used, only for sounds of alarm and fear. Alarm could not penetrate there, without having pervaded the whole land.
Blow ye the trumpet in Zion - This verse also shows that the temple was still standing. All assemblies of the people were collected by the sound of the trumpet. The day of the Lord cometh - This phrase generally means a day of judgment or punishment.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
Sound a shophar —to announce to them that they should repent before the evil befalls them.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 4 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
16 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| תִּקְע֨וּ | tiku | give a blast on | H8628 → | |
| שׁוֹפָ֜ר | shofar | a ram's horn | H7782 → | |
| בְּצִיּ֗וֹן | betziyon | in Zion | H6726 → | 154 times |
| וְהָרִ֙יעוּ֙ | vehariu | and sound a battle signal | H7321 → | |
| בְּהַ֣ר | behar | on [the] mountain of | H2022 → | 546 times |
| קָדְשִׁ֔י | kodshi | holiness my | H6944 → | 469 times |
| יִרְגְּז֕וּ | yirgezu | let them tremble | H7264 → | |
| כֹּ֖ל | kol | all | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| יֹשְׁבֵ֣י | yoshevei | [the] inhabitants of | H3427 → | 1079 times |
| הָאָ֑רֶץ | haaretz | the land | H776 → | 2504 times |
| כִּֽי־ | ki- | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| בָ֥א | va' | [is] about to come | H935 → | 2568 times |
| יוֹם־ | yom- | [the] day of | H3117 → | 2304 times |
| יְהוָ֖ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| כִּ֥י | ki | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| קָרֽוֹב׃ | karov | [it is] near | H7138 → | 77 times |
תִּקְע֨וּgive a blast on
tikuH8628 →
שׁוֹפָ֜רa ram's horn
shofarH7782 →
בְּצִיּ֗וֹןin Zion
betziyonH6726 →154 times
וְהָרִ֙יעוּ֙and sound a battle signal
vehariuH7321 →
בְּהַ֣רon [the] mountain of
beharH2022 →546 times
קָדְשִׁ֔יholiness my
kodshiH6944 →469 times
יִרְגְּז֕וּlet them tremble
yirgezuH7264 →
כֹּ֖לall
kolH3605 →5413 times
יֹשְׁבֵ֣י[the] inhabitants of
yosheveiH3427 →1079 times
הָאָ֑רֶץthe land
haaretzH776 →2504 times
כִּֽי־for
ki-H3588 →4482 times
בָ֥א[is] about to come
va'H935 →2568 times
יוֹם־[the] day of
yom-H3117 →2304 times
יְהוָ֖הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
כִּ֥יfor
kiH3588 →4482 times
קָרֽוֹב׃[it is] near
karovH7138 →77 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
1 Peter 4:7The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear-minded and sober, so that you can pray.
it leads to
- James 5:8–9
You, too, be patient and strengthen your hearts, because the Lord’s coming is near.
- 1 Peter 1:13
Therefore prepare your minds for action. Be sober-minded. Set your hope fully on the grace to be given you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
- Luke 21:34
But watch yourselves, or your hearts will be weighed down by dissipation, drunkenness, and the worries of life—and that day will spring upon you suddenly like a snare.
- 2 Timothy 4:5
But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.
- 1 Peter 5:8
Be sober-minded and alert. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.
- James 5:8–9
Through
Malachi 4:1“For behold, the day is coming, burning like a furnace, when all the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble; the day is coming when I will set them ablaze,” says the LORD of…
it leads to
- 2 Thessalonians 1:8
in blazing fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.
- 2 Peter 3:7
And by that same word, the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.
- Malachi 3:2
But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He will be like a refiner’s fire, like a launderer’s soap.
- 2 Thessalonians 1:8
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies23
On this verse
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About Joel
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on 10 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Carl Friedrich Keil, The Twelve Minor Prophets; Edward Bouverie Pusey, The Minor Prophets: A Commentary; Gregory the Dialogist, Morals on the Book of Job, Book XVII, 54; Jerome, Commentary on Joel; John Calvin, Commentaries; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.