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1In the twelfth year, in the twelfth month, in the first day of the month, “Yahweh’s word came to me, saying, 2‘Son of man, take up a lamentation over Pharaoh king of Egypt, and tell him,

“You were likened to a young lion of the nations;

yet you are as a monster in the seas.

You broke out with your rivers,

and troubled the waters with your feet,

and fouled their rivers.”

3The Lord Yahweh says:

“I will spread out my net on you with a company of many peoples.

They will bring you up in my net.

4I will leave you on the land.

I will cast you out on the open field,

and will cause all the birds of the sky to settle on you.

I will satisfy the animals of the whole earth with you.

5I will lay your flesh on the mountains,

and fill the valleys with your height.

6I will also water the land in which you swim with your blood,

even to the mountains.

The watercourses will be full of you.

7When I extinguish you, I will cover the heavens

and make its stars dark.

I will cover the sun with a cloud,

and the moon won’t give its light.

8I will make all the bright lights of the sky dark over you,

and set darkness on your land,” says the Lord Yahweh.

9“I will also trouble the hearts of many peoples,

when I bring your destruction among the nations,

into the countries which you have not known.

10Yes, I will make many peoples amazed at you,

and their kings will be horribly afraid for you,

when I brandish my sword before them.

They will tremble at every moment,

every man for his own life,

in the day of your fall.”

11For the Lord Yahweh says:

“The sword of the king of Babylon will come on you.

12I will cause your multitude to fall by the swords of the mighty.

They are all the ruthless of the nations.

They will bring the pride of Egypt to nothing,

and all its multitude will be destroyed.

13I will destroy also all its animals from beside many waters.

The foot of man won’t trouble them any more,

nor will the hoofs of animals trouble them.

14Then I will make their waters clear,

and cause their rivers to run like oil,”

says the Lord Yahweh.

15“When I make the land of Egypt desolate and waste,

a land destitute of that of which it was full,

when I strike all those who dwell therein,

then they will know that I am Yahweh.

16“‘“This is the lamentation with which they will lament. The daughters of the nations will lament with this. They will lament with it over Egypt, and over all her multitude,” says the Lord Yahweh.’”

17Also in the twelfth year, in the fifteenth day of the month, Yahweh’s word came to me, saying, 18“Son of man, wail for the multitude of Egypt, and cast them down, even her and the daughters of the famous nations, to the lower parts of the earth, with those who go down into the pit. 19Whom do you pass in beauty? Go down, and be laid with the uncircumcised. 20They will fall among those who are slain by the sword. She is delivered to the sword. Draw her away with all her multitudes. 21The strong among the mighty will speak to him out of the middle of Sheol with those who help him. They have gone down. The uncircumcised lie still, slain by the sword.

22“Asshur is there with all her company. Her graves are all around her. All of them are slain, fallen by the sword, 23whose graves are set in the uttermost parts of the pit, and her company is around her grave, all of them slain, fallen by the sword, who caused terror in the land of the living.

24“There is Elam and all her multitude around her grave; all of them slain, fallen by the sword, who have gone down uncircumcised into the lower parts of the earth, who caused their terror in the land of the living, and have borne their shame with those who go down to the pit. 25They have made Elam a bed among the slain with all her multitude. Her graves are around her, all of them uncircumcised, slain by the sword; for their terror was caused in the land of the living, and they have borne their shame with those who go down to the pit. He is put among those who are slain.

26“There is Meshech, Tubal, and all their multitude. Their graves are around them, all of them uncircumcised, slain by the sword; for they caused their terror in the land of the living. 27They will not lie with the mighty who are fallen of the uncircumcised, who have gone down to Sheol with their weapons of war and have laid their swords under their heads. Their iniquities are on their bones; for they were the terror of the mighty in the land of the living.

28“But you will be broken among the uncircumcised, and will lie with those who are slain by the sword.

29“There is Edom, her kings, and all her princes, who in their might are laid with those who are slain by the sword. They will lie with the uncircumcised, and with those who go down to the pit.

30“There are the princes of the north, all of them, and all the Sidonians, who have gone down with the slain. They are put to shame in the terror which they caused by their might. They lie uncircumcised with those who are slain by the sword, and bear their shame with those who go down to the pit.

31“Pharaoh will see them and will be comforted over all his multitude, even Pharaoh and all his army, slain by the sword,” says the Lord Yahweh. 32“For I have put his terror in the land of the living. He will be laid among the uncircumcised, with those who are slain by the sword, even Pharaoh and all his multitude,” says the Lord Yahweh.

Day of Yahweh

Day of Yahweh

Topical Study | Joel 2:11 | David Chung

To the minds of the Hebrew, the day of the Lord was the future day when God would intervene in human history to vindicate Himself and the people of Israel. This concept seems to have appeared during the Conquest when God judged the Canaanites on behalf of His people Israel. 

When Amos incorporated the concept of the day of the Lord in his preaching, however, his view was shocking to his people because Amos' understanding of this day was in total contrast to the popular notion of the 8th century B.C. Amos proclaimed that Israel would lament rather than rejoice on that day (Amos 5:16-17) for God was to judge Israel (5:18-20) and the world. On that day, God was going to reject Israel's meaningless religious rituals (5:21-27) and it was to be a day of darkness and woe (6:1-6). The moral corruption of Israel would ultimately usher in Israel's destruction on the day. 

Expressing the concept in variant forms such as "by that day" and "on that day," the prophets frequently used this concept in their proclamation of judgment and hope. Zephaniah used it seven times, Isaiah six times, and Joel five times. These are the characteristics of the day of the Lord: 1) It will be a day of judgment (Joel 3:19-21; Amos 5:18) on the enemies of God including Israel and a day of vindication for the faithful; 2) The day of the Lord will be experienced everywhere (Isa 2:12; Zeph 1, 2; Amos 5:18-20); 3) The day of the Lord is near--not far out in the future (Isa 13:6); 4) There will be transformation in nature (Joel 3:18; Amos 9:13), in human relationships (Mic 4:3), and in the relationship between human beings and animals (Isa 11:6-8) which will result in the emergence of a better world; 5) On that day, Jerusalem will be exalted (Zech 14:16); 6) It will be accompanied by cosmic phenomena (Joel 2:28-32; Isa 13:10; 34:4; Ezek 32:7-8); 7) There will be a Davidic ruler (Isa 11:10); 8) There will be a re-gathering of God’s people (Isa 11:11). The New Testament equivalent for this is the second coming of Jesus Christ (2 Thess 2:1) and the day of the Lord Paul mentions in 2:2.