DAILY TEXT, Today's Sunday, January 2, 2022, The locusts were not allowed to kill people, but to torment them for five months (Rev. 9: 5).

DAILY TEXT, Today's Sunday, January 2, 2022

Let's Examine the Scriptures Every Day 2022

Sunday, January 2, 2022

The locusts were not allowed to kill people, but to torment them for five months (Rev. 9: 5).

This prophecy speaks of a swarm of locusts that have human faces and "on their heads a kind of golden crown" (Rev. 9: 7). They torment “those who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads” —that is, Jehovah's enemies— for five months, which is how a locust usually lives (Rev. 9: 4). This does seem to be a description of Jehovah's anointed servants, for they boldly proclaim God's judgments against this wicked world, greatly making those who support him uncomfortable. In other words, the locusts of Joel 2: 7-9 are not the same as those of the book of Revelation. This should not surprise us, since the Bible sometimes uses the same symbol to represent different things in different contexts. For example, in Revelation 5: 5 Jesus is said to be “the Lion of the tribe of Judah,” while in 1 Peter 5:8 The Devil is said to be like "a roaring lion." w20.04 3 par. 8; 5 par. 10

When was Joel 2:28, 29 fulfilled?

Next, Joel declares good news: the land will again bear fruit (Joel 2: 23-26). Then, at some future time, abundant spiritual food will be made available. Jehovah promises: “I will pour out my spirit on all kinds of people. His sons and his daughters will prophesy [...]. Even on my male and female slaves I will pour out my spirit ”(Joel 2:28, 29). When were these words fulfilled? It was not when the Israelites returned from Babylon to their land, but centuries later, at Pentecost in the year 33. How do we know?

As we read in Acts 2:16, 17, what change did Peter make in quoting from Joel 2:28, and what does this indicate?

By divine inspiration, the apostle Peter related Joel 2:28, 29 to something surprising that occurred on Pentecost of the year 33. About nine in the morning, God poured out his holy spirit, and those who received it began to speak “of the magnificent things of God ”in different languages ​​(Acts 2:11). But have we noticed that Peter used slightly different words when quoting from Joel's prophecy? (Read Acts 2:16, 17.) Instead of beginning the quotation with the word “after,” Jehovah caused Peter to say that “in the last days” —in this context, the last days of Jerusalem and its temple — God would pour out his spirit “on all kinds of people. ”. This indicates that it was a long time before Joel's prophecy was fulfilled.

(a) What effect did God's spirit have on preaching in the first century? b) What effect has it had in our days?

After God poured out his spirit on Christians in the first century, preaching began to make remarkable progress. By the time the apostle Paul wrote his letter to the Colossians, around AD 61, he was able to say that the good news had been preached "in all creation that is under heaven" (Col. 1:23). By saying “all creation,” Paul was referring to the parts of the world that were known at that time. In our day, thanks to Jehovah's powerful holy spirit, the preaching work has spread much further, reaching “even the farthest parts of the earth” (Acts 13:47; see the box “I will pour out my spirit”).

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