Joel 2:25 (ESV)

Bible Commentary

Joel 2:25 is a Bible verse where God is speaking through Joel to promise those who repent and follow Him a complete restoration of everything they have lost. Can you imagine receiving back everything in your life that has been lost? It almost sounds too good to be true, yet that’s exactly what God is promising in Joel 2:25. Let’s look deeper into this promise.

There are several Hebrew meanings of “restore,” some of which are: to be safe (in mind, body or estate); make amends, full, give again, (be at) peace, that is perfect, prosper, recompense, restitution, reward.

All of those words sound appealing, but let’s find out what exactly needs to be restored. Let’s look at the word “locust.” Webster’s definition of locust is: migratory grasshopper often traveling in vast swarms and stripping the areas past of all vegetation.

The word “eaten” in Hebrew means: burn up, consume, devour. Think for a moment. Is there some aspect of your life that never seems to turn out right no matter how hard you try or how careful you are? Maybe it’s your finances. No matter how many times you try to save money, something pops up that takes the extra cash you put back. No matter what you do, you can’t seem to get ahead.

Maybe it’s an aspect of your health. You can’t seem to get well and stay well. Maybe you lost a relationship that was dear to you, and you don’t know how to get it back. No matter what you do, nothing works.

That’s what the locust does; burns up, consumes and devours.

Repentance to Restoration

God has always been in control, even when there is loss in our lives. He does His best work in our trials and sufferings. Maybe that’s because we, as imperfect humans, tend to seek God more fervently when we’re struggling. We hear Him better when we seek Him with our whole heart.

He’s always had good in mind for us, even in our hardships. Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”

The times we feel most loved by God are when we finally see the beauty He brought out of a trial, because that’s when we realize He was doing something good for us, to prosper us, not to harm us (Jeremiah 29:11).

Just like the cross. It was such a brutalizing, tortuous journey for Jesus, yet God had good in mind for you, for me and the whole world, and most especially His Son.

Ugly Turns to Beautiful

With the cross, He transformed something very ugly into something extremely beautiful. He is doing that very same thing through every difficulty in our lives, yet many times we don’t believe it, so we don’t look for the beauty.

Instead, we grovel in our misery without seeing and receiving the gift. Look at the Hebrew meaning of “restore” again. In Joel 2:25, He is promising to make us safe in mind, body and estate, to prosper us, to reward us. If we don’t believe His promise, we won’t be looking for the reward. Let’s open our eyes, so we won’t miss the gifts He is offering us.

When we see the gift in the midst of the pain, an intimate bond is formed between us and God because we see His love for us, which helps us trust Him more.

Let us ask for vision. Let’s pray for faith so we can recognize God’s love in our lives. When we expect to see the gift, it helps us tackle the next difficulty with more confidence. That is safety, knowing beyond a shadow of a doubt that He deeply loves you personally, no matter what you’re going through.

Study the Bible verse of Joel 2:25, and increase your vision and faith to believe and receive the full restoration God promised you.

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