Rend Your Heart, and Not Your Garment

Scriptures: Joel 2:13 NKJ …rend your heart , and not your garment; return to the Lord your God. For He is gracious and merciful. Slow to anger, and of great kindness; and He relents from doing harm.

The people of the land of Judah are spoken to by prophet Joel regarding  their need to repent. The sins of the people had brought urgency to Prophet Joel to appeal to them the Word of the Lord and called for them to repent, in order to experience restoration. They had been described as a rebellious people against God and were under judgement. Joel attempted to motivate to repentance by proclaiming the coming of the “day of the Lord’ (Joel 1:15). Their behavior needed to undergo a change. Wrongs needed to be made right, and they needed not to focus on the devastation of the locusts -- but  instead on what was to happen next. The locusts were bad enough, yet something worst was coming The locusts were a prelude to the “day of the Lord”- a time of God’s judgement on the sin. The terrible plague of the locusts symbolized the coming of an army from the north to invade the nation.

The land was left void of precious crops placing the nation in economic despair. All of the crops had dried up, seedlings failed due to a severe drought. The soil could not produce food for humans or livestock. The people mourned and lamented over the sad condition of the land (Joel 1:15-18) and Joel, the prophet prayed (v 19-20), call to sound the trumpet (to assemble), announced a fast, and cried out to the Lord. The people were warned not to run from the Lord but run to Him.  For, the Lord was to be  viewed as faithful and could stop the disaster and result with blessings. (V -2:13).

(Joel 2:13), The rending (tearing) of ones’ clothes usually was done in times of distress. It was described as an external display of grief and sorrow (Gen. 37:34),  (Esther 4:1). Apostles used it (Acts 14:14). Sometimes it was considered done hypocritically; rather the person would show contrition of heart, a brokenness of spirit under a sense of sin, acts which flowed from faith in Christ were more appropriate than an outward expression of grief, (Ps. 51:17) a broken spirit pleases God. (Isaiah 57:15) revive the heart of the oppressed.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, You never abandon Your children. You favor a contrite heart and a broken spirit, for then restoration is brought near. In Jesus’ name,  Amen.
(by Novella D. Carpenter)