Joel 2 · Verse 10

Joel 2:10

The earth shall quake before them; the heavens shall tremble: the sun and the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall withdraw their shining:
Joel 2:10, King James Version

Joel 2:10 in other translations

BSBBefore them the earth quakes; the heavens tremble. The sun and moon grow dark, and the stars lose their brightness.
WEBThe earth quakes before them. The heavens tremble. The sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining.
ASVThe earth quaketh before them; the heavens tremble; the sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining.
YLTAt their face trembled hath the earth, Shaken have the heavens, Sun and moon have been black, And stars have gathered up their shining.
DARBYThe earth quaketh before them; the heavens tremble; the sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining.
BBEThe earth is troubled before them and the heavens are shaking: the sun and the moon have become dark, and the stars keep back their shining:
WebsterThe earth shall quake before them; the heavens shall tremble: the sun and the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall withdraw their shining:

What does Joel 2:10 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
10. earth ... quake before them--that is, the inhabitants of the earth quake with fear of them. heavens ... tremble--that is, the powers of heaven (Mt 24:29); its illumining powers are disturbed by the locusts which intercept the sunlight with their dense flying swarms. These, however, are but the images of revolutions of states caused by such foes as were to invade Judea.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 10 The earth shall quake - the heavens shall tremble - Poetical expressions, to point out universal consternation and distress. The earth quaked to see itself deprived of its verdure; the heavens trembled to find themselves deprived of their light. The sun and the moon shall be dark - Bochart relates that "their multitude is sometimes so immense as to obscure the heavens for the space of twelve miles!" - Ibid. p. 479.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Joel 2:1-14

God's judgments. (Joel 2:1-14) Exhortations to fasting and prayer; blessings promised. (Joel 2:15-27) A promise of the Holy Spirit, and of future mercies. (Joel 2:28-32) Verses 1-14 The priests were to alarm the people with the near approach of the Divine judgments. It is the work of ministers to warn of the fatal consequences of sin, and to reveal the wrath from heaven against the ungodliness and unrighteousness of…

Read the full comment on Joel 2:1-14 →

Joel 2:10 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

לְפָנָיו֙le.fa.Nav<to> before itH6440
רָ֣גְזָהRa.ge.zahit tremblesH7264
אֶ֔רֶץ'E.retz[the] earthH776
רָעֲשׁ֖וּra.'a.Shuthey shakeH7493
שָׁמָ֑יִםsha.Ma.yim[the] heavensH8064
שֶׁ֤מֶשׁShe.meshsunH8121
וְיָרֵ֙חַ֙ve.ya.Re.achand moonH3394
קָדָ֔רוּka.Da.ruthey become darkH6937
וְכוֹכָבִ֖יםve.kho.kha.Vimand [the] starsH3556
אָסְפ֥וּ'a.se.Futhey withdrawH622
נָגְהָֽם\׃na.ge.Hambrightness theirH5051

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Joel 2:10

  • Matthew 24:29

    Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:

  • Isaiah 13:10

    For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give their light: the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine.

  • Joel 3:15-16

    The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining. The Lord also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the Lord will be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel.

  • Psalms 18:7

    Then the earth shook and trembled; the foundations also of the hills moved and were shaken, because he was wroth.

  • Acts 2:20

    The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come:

  • Ezekiel 32:7-8

    And when I shall put thee out, I will cover the heaven, and make the stars thereof dark; I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon shall not give her light. All the bright lights of heaven will I make dark over thee, and set darkness upon thy land, saith the Lord God.

  • Mark 13:24-25

    But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, And the stars of heaven shall fall, and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken.

  • Jeremiah 4:23

    I beheld the earth, and, lo, it was without form, and void; and the heavens, and they had no light.

  • Revelation 6:12

    And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood;

  • Revelation 8:12

    And the fourth angel sounded, and the third part of the sun was smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars; so as the third part of them was darkened, and the day shone not for a third part of it, and the night likewise.

  • Nahum 1:5

    The mountains quake at him, and the hills melt, and the earth is burned at his presence, yea, the world, and all that dwell therein.

  • Joel 2:31

    The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the Lord come.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
earth.
Ps 18:7; 114:7; Na 1:5; Mt 27:51; Re 6:12; 20:11
the sun.
2,31; 3:15; Isa 13:10; 34:4; Jer 4:23; Eze 32:7; Am 5:8; Mt 24:29
Mr 13:24,25; Lu 21:25,26; Ac 2:20; Re 8:12

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Joel 2:9

    They shall run to and fro in the city; they shall run upon the wall, they shall climb up upon the houses; they shall enter in at the windows like a thief.

  • Joel 2:10

    The earth shall quake before them; the heavens shall tremble: the sun and the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall withdraw their shining:

  • Joel 2:11

    And the Lord shall utter his voice before his army: for his camp is very great: for he is strong that executeth his word: for the day of the Lord is great and very terrible; and who can abide it?

Read all of Joel 2

Joel 2:10 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909
Delante de él temblará la tierra, se estremecerán los cielos: el sol y la luna se oscurecerán, y las estrellas retraerán su resplandor.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885
Devant eux la terre tremble, les cieux sont ébranlés, le soleil et la lune sont obscurcis, et les étoiles retirent leur splendeur.
German
Elberfelder 1871
Vor ihnen erbebt die Erde, erzittert der Himmel; Sonne und Mond verfinstern sich, und die Sterne verhalten ihren Glanz.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate
A facie ejus contremuit terra, moti sunt cæli, sol et luna obtenebrati sunt, et stellæ retraxerunt splendorem suum.