And the LORD roars from Zion, and utters his voice from Jerusalem: These two lines are an exact quotation from Amos 1.2. This quotation is one of many examples in Joel of the prophet maintaining a relationship with the earlier prophets through direct and indirect allusions. These two lines are parallel, with the second line repeating the meaning of the first, but using different terms.
The Hebrew verb rendered roars commonly refers to the majestic sound that lions make. It normally implies a threat or warning, and inspires fear in those who hear it. In some languages the image of the roaring can be expressed if this metaphor is changed to a simile; for example, the first line may be rendered “The LORD roars [majestically] from Zion like a lion.” Utters his voice (see the comments at 2.11) is parallel to roars. It is a much milder expression, but the force of the Hebrew poetry lends to it the power of the verb in the first line. Good News Translation makes this explicit with “his voice thunders.” An alternative model for the second line is “the sound of his voice from Jerusalem is like that of the thunder.”
Zion is translated “Mount Zion” in Good News Translation. It was the hill on which God’s Temple stood, and was therefore the normal place from which God’s voice would be heard (see the comments at 2.1). Jerusalem is parallel to Zion.
And the heavens and the earth shake: As in 2.10; Jer 30.8; Amos 8.9, 13; compare Joel 3.1). “At that time” in Good News Translation retains the function of the expression but loses the word day, which would relate it to the day of Yahweh. However, many languages cannot use “day” for a series of events that last for many days, so “time” may be preferred. Revised English Bible and New Jerusalem Bible have “When that day comes.” Bible en français courant says “A time is coming,” and De Nieuwe Bijbelvertaling has “Then, at that time.”
The mountains shall drip sweet wine, and the hills shall flow with milk: These two lines are parallel but only similar in meaning. Mountains corresponds to hills, and drip sweet wine corresponds to flow with milk.
The mountains shall drip sweet wine is a figurative expression. It means that there will be many grapevines on the mountains, from which wine will be made. The expression seems to have been borrowed by the prophet from Amos 9.13. Good News Translation translates “the mountains will be covered with vineyards,” and Bible en français courant says “the slopes will produce grapes in abundance.” For sweet wine, see 1.5.
The hills shall flow with milk is another figurative expression. It means that there will be many cattle and goats on the hills, producing a lot of milk. Good News Translation translates “cattle will be found on every hill,” and Bible en français courant has “the herds on the hills will produce milk profusely.”
And all the stream beds of Judah shall flow with water: These two lines and the next two lines are parallel with the previous two lines, but without the use of figurative language. Normally most of the stream beds of Judah flow with water only for brief periods in the winter. In English such a stream bed is referred to as a “wadi,” a word derived from Arabic. All … shall flow with water implies a constant and abundant supply of water. Good News Translation makes this information explicit by rendering these lines as “there will be plenty of water for all of Judah.” De Nieuwe Bijbelvertaling uses figurative language, saying “all the streams of Judah will be foaming.” It may be helpful to add the idea of “throughout the year.”
And a fountain shall come forth from the house of the LORD and water the valley of Shittim: Other prophets used this picture of a stream of water flowing from the Temple in Jerusalem, watering the dry land (Ezek 47.1-12; Zech 14.8). The figure shows God as the source of fertile crops. A fountain is a spring of water. Here it becomes a “stream” (Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version). Good News Translation translates the house of the LORD as “the Temple of the LORD” (see the comments at 1.9).
The valley of Shittim can also be translated “Acacia Valley” (Good News Translation) or “the valley of acacia trees.” Acacia wood was used in constructing the furniture of the Tabernacle in the wilderness. The acacia tree is a member of the mimosa family, with yellow flowers producing seeds in pods. Shittim, or Acacia, was the last camping place of the Israelites before they crossed the Jordan River (Josh 3.1). The water from the Temple will probably flow in that direction, toward the Jordan. Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch does not name the valley in its rendering of these two lines: “At my Temple a spring will rise up, which will water even the driest valley” (similarly De Nieuwe Bijbelvertaling). This is an acceptable model since Joel is saying that even the driest places will be watered. The Hebrew term for valley is more accurately translated “wadi” (Revised English Bible, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh), a dry river bed that can become a torrent of water. While valley may give the picture of a large area becoming fertile, “wadi” is more accurate since it conveys the essential idea of a dry area receiving moisture. Although the word “wadi” is not known to most English speakers, it probably has much more common equivalents in languages spoken by people who live in hot, dry areas.
Quoted with permission from de Blois, Kees & Dorn, Louis. A Handbook on Joel. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2020. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .