xxiv. 6: "Therefore curse devoureth the land, and they that dwell in it

become guilty;" and [Pg 314] Hos. xiv. 1.) The word נאנחה, which is never used of beasts, likewise leads us to think of men. "How do the beasts groan," is explained by "All the merry-hearted do groan," in Is. xxiv. 7. The words תערג אליך, in which there is an evident allusion to Ps. xlii. 2, must likewise appear strange, if the description be understood literally. But what is decisive in favour of the figurative interpretation is ii. 22: "Be not afraid, ye beasts of the field, for the pastures of the wilderness are green with grass, for the tree beareth her fruit, the fig-tree and vine do yield their strength." The object of joy is here described, first, figuratively, and then, literally. The pastures of the wilderness are green with grass, _i.e._, the tree, etc. It is only thus that the כי can be accounted for; it states the reason, only when the pastures of the wilderness are not understood literally. _The fruits of the trees are mentioned here as the ordinary food of the beasts of the field._ _Hitzig_, it is true, remarks on this: "That many beasts of the field feed upon fruits of trees which they gather up, and that, _e.g._, foxes eat grapes also." But the point at issue here is the ordinary food; and Gen. i. 29, 30, where the trees are given to man, and the grass to the beasts, is decisive as to the literal or figurative interpretation. Under the image of unclean beasts--especially wild beasts--the Gentiles appear also in Acts xi. 6.--Nor can "the rivers of water" (ver. 20) be understood literally. The water of rivers, brooks, and fountains, is, in Scripture, the ordinary figure for the sources of sustenance, of thriving, wealth, and prosperity; compare remarks on Rev. viii. 10.

Chap. ii. 2 is to be considered as indicating the reason which induced Joel to choose this figurative representation. The words, "There hath not been anything the like from eternity, neither may there be any more after it, even to the years of all generations," are borrowed, almost verbally, from Exod. x. 14. The prophet thereby indicates that he transfers the past, in its individual definiteness, to the future, which bears a substantial resemblance to it. What was then said of the plague of locusts especially, is here applied to the calamity thereby prefigured. From among all the judgments upon the Covenant-people (for these alone are spoken of), this judgment is the highest and the last; and such the prophet could say, only if the whole sum of divine judgments, up to their consummation, represented [Pg 315] itself to his inner vision under the image of the devastation by locusts. The absurdities into which men are led by the hypothesis of a later origin of the Pentateuch, are here seen in a remarkable instance--viz., in the assertion of _Credner_, that the passage in Exodus is an imitation of that of Joel. The verse immediately following, "As the garden of Eden (_i.e._, Paradise) the land is before him," has an obvious reference to Genesis, not only to Gen. ii. 8, but also to xiii. 10, where the vale of Siddim, before the divine judgment, is compared to the garden of Jehovah--to Paradise.

In chap. ii. 6 it is said, "Before him nations tremble." That the mention of the _nations_ here is but ill adapted to the literal interpretation, appears from the circumstance, that while _Credner_ understands by the עמים, Judah and Benjamin, _Hitzig_ attempts to explain it by people. But if, by the locusts, the heathen conquerors are designated, the עמים is quite in its place. When the powerful heathen empires overflowed the land, Israel always formed only a part of a large whole of nations; compare i. 19, ii. 22. Amos describes how the fire of war and of the desire of conquest raged, not only in Israel, but among all the nations round about, and consumed them. In addition to Amos chap. i. compare especially Amos vii. 4, 5, where, as objects of hostile visitation, are pointed out, first, the sea, _i.e._, the world, and then, the heritage of the Lord. According to Is. x. 6, the mission of Asshur was a very comprehensive one. In Habakkuk and Jer. chap. xxv. the judgments which the Chaldeans inflicted upon Judah, appear only as a part of a universal judgment upon all nations.

According to chap. ii. 7-9, the locusts take the city by storm. They cannot be warded off by force of arms. They climb the wall. They fill the streets, and enter by force into the houses. Peal locusts are not dangerous to towns, but only to the fields.

In chap. ii. 11, every feature is against the literal explanation. "And the Lord giveth His voice before His army; for His camp is very numerous, for he is strong that executeth His word; for the day of the Lord is great and very terrible, who can comprehend it?" There is not the remotest analogy in favour of the supposition which would represent an army of locusts as the host and camp of God, at the head of which He [Pg 316] Himself marches as a general, and before which He causes His thunders to resound like trumpets. It is true that, in some Arabic writer, this is mentioned as a Mosaic command: "You shall not kill locusts, for they are the host of God, the Most High;" see _Bochart_ ii. p. 482, ed. _Rosenmüller_ iii. p. 318. But who does not see that this sentence owes its origin to the passage under consideration? Is.