Joel 2 · Verse 13

Joel 2:13

And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the Lord your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil.
Joel 2:13, King James Version

Joel 2:13 in other translations

BSBSo rend your hearts and not your garments, and return to the LORD your God. For He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion. And He relents from sending disaster.
WEBTear your heart and not your garments, and turn to the LORD, your God; for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abundant in loving kindness, and relents from sending calamity.
ASVand rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto Jehovah your God; for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abundant in lovingkindness, and repenteth him of the evil.
YLTAnd rend your heart, and not your garments, And turn back unto Jehovah your God, For gracious and merciful is He, Slow to anger, and abundant in kindness, And He hath repented concerning the evil.
DARBYand rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto Jehovah your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great loving-kindness, and repenteth him of the evil.
BBELet your hearts be broken, and not your clothing, and come back to the Lord your God: for he is full of grace and pity, slow to be angry and great in mercy, ready to be turned from his purpose of punishment.
WebsterAnd rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn to the LORD your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth of the evil.

What does Joel 2:13 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
13. Let there be the inward sorrow of heart, and not the mere outward manifestation of it by "rending the garment" (Jos 7:6). the evil--the calamity which He had threatened against the impenitent.

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

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 13 Rend your heart - Let it not be merely a rending of your garments, but let your hearts be truly contrite. Merely external worship and hypocritical pretensions will only increase the evil, and cause God to meet you with heavier judgments. For he is gracious - Good and benevolent in his own nature. Merciful - Pitying and forgiving, as the effect of goodness and benevolence. Slow to anger - He is not easily provoked to punish, because he is gracious and merciful. Of great kindness - Exuberant goodness to all them that return to him. And repenteth him of the evil - Is ever ready to change his purpose to destroy, when he finds the culprit willing to be saved. See the notes on Exo 34:6, Exo 34:7.

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 2:13 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.

וְקִרְע֤וּve.kir.'Uand tearH7167
לְבַבְכֶם֙le.vav.Khemheart yourH3824
וְאַל\־ve.'al-and may not [it be]H408
בִּגְדֵיכֶ֔םbig.dei.Khemgarments yourH899
וְשׁ֖וּבוּve.Shu.vuand returnH7725
אֶל\־'el-toH413
יְהוָ֣הYah.wehYahwehH3068
אֱלֹֽהֵיכֶ֑ם'e.lo.hei.KhemGod yourH430
כִּֽי\־ki-forH3588
חַנּ֤וּןcha.Nun[is] graciousH2587
וְרַחוּם֙ve.ra.Chumand compassionateH7349
ה֔וּאHu'heH1931
אֶ֤רֶךְ'E.rekhlong ofH750
אַפַּ֙יִם֙'a.Pa.yimanger<s>H639
וְרַב\־ve.rav-and great ofH7227
חֶ֔סֶדChe.sedcovenant loyaltyH2617
וְנִחָ֖םve.ni.Chamand relentingH5162
עַל\־'al-onH5921
הָרָעָֽה\׃ha.ra.'Ah<the> harmH7451

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

Cross references for Joel 2:13

  • Psalms 86:15

    But thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, and gracious, longsuffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth.

  • Psalms 34:18

    The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.

  • Isaiah 57:15

    For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.

  • Exodus 34:6-7

    And the Lord passed by before him, and proclaimed, The Lord, The Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children’s children, unto the third and to the fourth generation.

  • Matthew 5:3-4

    Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.

  • Micah 7:18

    Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy.

  • Psalms 86:5

    For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.

  • James 1:19-20

    Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.

  • Jeremiah 18:7-8

    At what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, and to pull down, and to destroy it; If that nation, against whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them.

  • Psalms 103:8

    The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.

  • Isaiah 66:2

    For all those things hath mine hand made, and all those things have been, saith the Lord: but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word.

  • Jonah 4:2

    And he prayed unto the Lord, and said, I pray thee, O Lord, was not this my saying, when I was yet in my country? Therefore I fled before unto Tarshish: for I knew that thou art a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repentest thee of the evil.

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

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
rend.Here the word "rend" is used only once, but with two significations; in the former sentence it is used figuratively; in the latter literally--the heart not being rent in the same sense in which garments are rent.
2Ki 22:19; Ps 34:18; 51:17; Isa 57:15; 66:2; Eze 9:4; Mt 5:3,4
your garments.
Ge 37:29,34; 2Sa 1:11; 1Ki 21:27; 2Ki 5:7; 6:30; 22:11; Job 1:20
Isa 58:5; Mt 6:16-18; 1Ti 4:8
for.
Ex 34:6,7; Nu 14:18; Ps 86:5,15; 145:7-9; Jon 4:2; Mic 7:18; Ro 2:4
Ro 5:20,21; Eph 2:4
slow.
Ne 9:17; Ps 103:8; Na 1:3; Jas 1:19,20
and repenteth.
Ps 106:45; Jer 18:7,8; Am 7:2-6; Jon 4:2

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

Context

  • Joel 2:12

    Therefore also now, saith the Lord, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning:

  • Joel 2:13

    And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the Lord your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil.

  • Joel 2:14

    Who knoweth if he will return and repent, and leave a blessing behind him; even a meat offering and a drink offering unto the Lord your God?

Read all of Joel 2

Joel 2:13 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909
Y lacerad vuestro corazón, y no vuestros vestidos; y convertíos á Jehová vuestro Dios; porque misericordioso es y clemente, tardo para la ira, y grande en misericordia, y que se arrepiente del castigo.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885
et déchirez vos cœurs et non vos vêtements, et revenez à l’ Éternel, votre Dieu; car il est plein de grâce et miséricordieux, lent à la colère et grand en bonté, et il se repent du mal dont il a menacé.
German
Elberfelder 1871
Und zerreißet euer Herz und nicht eure Kleider, und kehret um zu Jehova, eurem Gott; denn er ist gnädig und barmherzig, langsam zum Zorn und groß an Güte, und läßt sich des Übels gereuen.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate
Et scindite corda vestra, et non vestimenta vestra; et convertimini ad Dominum Deum vestrum, quia benignus et misericors est, patiens et multæ misericordiæ, et præstabilis super malitia.