Daily Devotions
Joel
"Lament like a virgin girded with sackcloth"
Text: Joel 1:8
THE HORROR OF WAR
If locusts can cause devastation to the land, war can create even worse problems!
“Lament like a virgin girded with sackcloth
For the husband of her youth.
The grain offering and the drink offering
Have been cut off from the house of the LORD;
The priests mourn, who minister to the LORD.”
Joel 1:8-9
1. “Lament like a virgin girded with sackcloth”
a) A young lady looks forward to her marriage.
b) She keeps her virginity carefully.
c) She finally gets married happily.
2. “For the husband of her youth”
a) War has destroyed her dreams.
b) Her marriage is over.
c) Her husband is dead.
d) War has claimed another victim.
3. “The grain offering and the drink offering”
a) These were to be offered to the LORD.
b) The people offered these to God:
i) In acknowledgment.
ii) In gratitude and thanksgiving.
4. “Have been cut off from the house of the LORD”
a) The plague of locusts had taken a severe toll on all in Israel.
b) War had made life even worse.
c) People were not going to the House of the LORD.
i) Many did not assemble for worship.
ii) They did not bring their offerings.
5. “The priests mourn, who minister to the LORD”
a) They had no ministry because of war.
b) The support from the people were not forthcoming.
c) Like the young widows, the priests mourned their fate in the aftermath of war.