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"Surely joy has withered away"

Text: Joel 1:12

THE WITHERING AWAY OF JOY

Many things withered away. Crops, grape vines and fig trees. Joy withered away too.

“The vine has dried up,
And the fig tree has withered;
The pomegranate tree,
The palm tree also,
And the apple tree-
All the trees of the field are withered;
Surely joy has withered away from the sons of men.”
Joel 1:12

1. Devastation was widely experienced

a) This was a national crisis.

b) Something seriously wrong had happened.

2. The Call to lament and wail

a) Lamenting and wailing should have been an automatic response.

b) The prophet had to issue a call for a nation-wide sorrowing and seeking of God.

3. The word “withered” was specially chosen

a) It was a slow process.

b) It was a painful thing to observe.

c) It brought on a sense of utter helplessness.

4. The things that were affected:

a) The vine

b) The fig tree

c) The pomegranate tree

d) The palm tree

e) The apple tree

All the trees had withered away! This was a national calamity!

5. “Surely joy has withered away from the sons of men”

a) Human joy tended to be tied to the success of life and industry.

b) When all crops and trees began to wither, so did joy.

c) The phrase “sons of men” highlights the frailty of mankind!

BLESSINGS AND CURSES

The failure on such a scale should have caused the people to return to the LORD their God.

1. He had promised blessings (Deuteronomy 28).

2. He had also warned of curses (Deuteronomy 28).