Rend Your Hearts: A study through the Book of Joel

What does true repentance look like? In the Bible, true repentance can be marked by many things—prayer, fasting, tearing one’s garments, wearing sackcloth. There are two major things at the heart of the Book of Joel, The Locust Plague and The Coming of God. That’s why we will use as our major icon for this study a broken heart. This section will be an overview to the Book of Joel where Joel says to his people and us, “Rend your hearts!"

The Apostle Paul said that creation groans (Romans 8). Sin not only fractured God’s relationship with Adam and Eve; it also fractured Adam’s relationship with Eve. Beyond that, all of the creation experienced this fracture as well. Deuteronomy also promised that if Israel would be faithful to God that God would bless them with rain, and fruitful crops. Be careful of one-to-one correspondence. It is not an unconditional promise. The prophet Joel did connect the dots between a physical plague and a fruitful creation.

In this session, we’re looking at the Minor Prophet Joel under the theme “Rend Your Hearts.” A key idea, of course, is repentance. This session also covers how God comes down when we repent.

We see in the final chapter that when we rend our hearts, the nations will notice. The main idea is, “Rending our hearts paves the way for the coming of God.” He may come in judgment, or he may come with his precious Holy Spirit. But having a repentant heart will prepare us for either.