Joel 3:20 Study Bible: But Judah will be inhabited forever, and Jerusalem from generation to generation.

◄ Joel 3:20 ►

But Judah will be inhabited forever, and Jerusalem from generation to generation.

But Judah will be inhabited forever,

This phrase emphasizes the enduring nature of Judah's existence. Historically, Judah was the southern kingdom of Israel, known for its capital, Jerusalem. The promise of perpetual habitation suggests divine protection and blessing. This can be seen as a fulfillment of God's covenant with David, where his lineage would have an everlasting kingdom (2 Samuel 7:16). Theologically, it points to the eternal nature of God's promises to His people. The idea of "forever" can also be seen as eschatological, pointing to the ultimate restoration and peace in the Messianic age, where Christ, the descendant of David, reigns eternally.

Amo 9:15 I will firmly plant them in their own land…
Ezk 37:25 They will live in the land that I gave to My servant Jacob,…
Jer 31:40 The whole valley of the dead bodies and ashes,…

and Jerusalem from generation to generation.

Jerusalem holds a central place in biblical history as the city of David and the location of the Temple, symbolizing God's presence among His people. The phrase "from generation to generation" underscores the continuity of God's faithfulness and the city's significance throughout time. This promise can be linked to prophecies in Isaiah (Isaiah 2:2-4) and Zechariah (Zechariah 8:3), which speak of Jerusalem's future glory and peace. In a New Testament context, Jerusalem is also seen as a type of the heavenly city, the New Jerusalem, described in Revelation 21, where God's people will dwell eternally with Him.

Isa 60:15 Whereas you have been forsaken and despised…
Psa 48:8 As we have heard, so we have seen in the city of the LORD of Hosts…
Isa 65:18-19 But be glad and rejoice forever in what I create;…

Persons / Places / Events

1. Judah
One of the twelve tribes of Israel, representing the southern kingdom after the division of Israel. It holds significant historical and spiritual importance as the lineage of King David and ultimately Jesus Christ.

2. Jerusalem
The capital city of Judah and a central place of worship for the Israelites. It is often seen as a symbol of God's presence and His covenant with His people.

3. Prophet Joel
The author of the Book of Joel, who prophesied during a time of national calamity, calling the people to repentance and foretelling God's future restoration and judgment.

4. The Day of the Lord
A recurring theme in Joel, referring to a time of divine intervention, judgment, and ultimate restoration for God's people.

5. Restoration
The event prophesied by Joel where God promises to restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, ensuring their perpetual habitation.

Teaching Points

God's Faithfulness to His Promises
Joel 3:20 assures us of God's unwavering commitment to His covenant with His people. Despite current circumstances, believers can trust in God's promises for the future.

The Eternal Nature of God's Kingdom
The prophecy of Judah and Jerusalem's perpetual habitation points to the eternal nature of God's kingdom, encouraging believers to focus on eternal values rather than temporal concerns.

Hope in Restoration
Just as God promised restoration for Judah and Jerusalem, He offers restoration and hope to all who turn to Him. This encourages believers to seek God's renewal in their lives.

The Importance of Repentance and Obedience
Joel's message underscores the need for repentance and obedience to experience God's blessings. Believers are called to examine their lives and align with God's will.

Living with an Eternal Perspective
Understanding the eternal promises of God helps believers live with an eternal perspective, influencing their daily decisions and interactions with others.

Bible Study Questions

1. How does the promise of Judah and Jerusalem's perpetual habitation in Joel 3:20 reflect God's faithfulness to His covenant people?

2. In what ways can the prophecy of restoration in Joel encourage believers facing difficult circumstances today?

3. How do the themes of judgment and restoration in Joel relate to the broader biblical account of redemption?

4. What practical steps can believers take to live with an eternal perspective, as encouraged by the promise of God's eternal kingdom?

5. How can the assurance of God's future restoration motivate believers to pursue repentance and obedience in their daily lives?

Connections to Other Scriptures

Isaiah 2:2-4
This passage speaks of the future exaltation of Jerusalem and the peace that will come to the nations, aligning with Joel's vision of a restored and enduring Jerusalem.

Zechariah 8:3-8
Zechariah also prophesies about the future prosperity and divine favor upon Jerusalem, echoing Joel's promise of perpetual habitation.

Revelation 21:1-4
The vision of the New Jerusalem in Revelation connects to Joel's prophecy by depicting the ultimate fulfillment of God's promise to dwell with His people eternally.

Sermons

A Happy Church		Joel 3:18-21
God and the Church	Caleb Morris.	Joel 3:18-21
Purified	James Wells.	Joel 3:18-21
The Golden Age	J. S. Exell, M. A.	Joel 3:18-21
The Millennium Era	D. Thomas	Joel 3:18-21

People

Grecians, Javan, Jehoshaphat, Joel, Zidon

Places

Edom, Egypt, Jerusalem, Philistia, Sidon, Tyre, Valley of Jehoshaphat, Valley of Shittim, Zion

Topics

Abide, Age, Dwell, Forever, Generation, Generations, Inhabited, Jerusalem, Judah, Peopled

Dictionary of Bible Themes

Joel 3:18

     4236   fountain
     4260   rivers and streams
     4435   drinking
     4480   milk
     4544   wine
     5478   property, houses

Joel 3:16-18

9145 Messianic age

Joel 3:17-18

4245 hills

Library

The Gospel Day Seen in Prophecy.
Upon reading the account of man's creation in the first chapters of Genesis we conclude that he enjoyed perfect peace and happiness. From the beautiful description given there of the garden of Eden--man's abode--we understand that God was interested in his felicity. In the nature of created things he could retain this happiness only by obedience to the Creator's laws. By a subtle foe he was induced to transgress those laws and thus became acquainted with sin and sorrow. After the transgression he …
Charles Ebert Orr—The Gospel Day

Whether the Judgment Will Take Place in the Valley of Josaphat?
Objection 1: It would seem that the judgment will not take place in the valley of Josaphat or in the surrounding locality. For at least it will be necessary for those to be judged to stand on the ground, and those alone to be raised aloft whose business it will be to judge. But the whole land of promise would not be able to contain the multitude of those who are to be judged. Therefore it is impossible for the judgment to take place in the neighborhood of that valley. Objection 2: Further, to Christ …
Saint Thomas Aquinas—Summa Theologica

Post-Millennialism Refuted.
The post-millennial position rests largely upon a mis-translation. In Matt. 13:39 we read "The harvest is the end of the world," and again in Matt. 24:3--"And as He sat upon the Mount of Olives, the disciples came unto Him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of Thy coming, and of the end of the world?" Now the Greek word which is used in the above passages is entirely different from the one found in John 3:16--"God so loved the Kosmos." In the verses …
Arthur W. Pink—The Redeemer's Return

The Battle of Armageddon.
The Battle of Armageddon! What extravagant speculations have been indulged concerning it! What unscriptural theories have been entertained respecting it! To begin with; this appears from the term employed. Nowhere in the Bible do we read of "The Battle of Armageddon." The Scriptural expression is "The Battle of that great day of God Almighty" (Rev. 16:14). This Battle of the great day of God Almighty will bring the Tribulation period to a close and will witness the return of Christ to the earth to …
Arthur W. Pink—The Redeemer's Return

The Twelve Minor Prophets.
1. By the Jewish arrangement, which places together the twelve minor prophets in a single volume, the chronological order of the prophets as a whole is broken up. The three greater prophets, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel, stand in the true order of time. Daniel began to prophesy before Ezekiel, but continued, many years after him. The Jewish arrangement of the twelve minor prophets is in a sense chronological; that is, they put the earlier prophets at the beginning, and the later at the end of the …
E. P. Barrows—Companion to the Bible

The Valley of Hinnom.
A great part of the valley of Kedron was called also the 'Valley of Hinnom.' Jeremiah, going forth into the valley of Hinnom, went out by the gate "Hacharsith, the Sun-gate," Jeremiah 19:2; that is, the Rabbins and others being interpreters, 'by the East-gate.' For thence was the beginning of the valley of Hinnom, which, after some space, bending itself westward, ran out along the south side of the city. There is no need to repeat those very many things, which are related of this place in the Old …
John Lightfoot—From the Talmud and Hebraica

The Prophecy of Obadiah.
We need not enter into details regarding the question as to the time when the prophet wrote. By a thorough argumentation, Caspari has proved, that he occupies his right position in the Canon, and hence belongs to the earliest age of written prophecy, i.e., to the time of Jeroboam II. and Uzziah. As bearing conclusively against those who would assign to him a far later date, viz., the time of the exile, there is not only the indirect testimony borne by the place which this prophecy occupies in …
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament

Exposition of Chap. Iii. (ii. 28-32. )
Ver. 1. "And it shall come to pass, afterwards, I will pour out My Spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy; your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions." The communication of the Spirit of God was the constant prerogative of the Covenant-people. Indeed, the very idea of such a people necessarily requires it. For the Spirit of God is the only inward bond betwixt Him and that which is created; a Covenant-people, therefore, without such an inward …
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament

The Great Assize
[i.e., The Last Judgment -- GL] [21] "We shall all stand before the judgement-seat of Christ." Rom. 14:10. 1. How many circumstances concur to raise the awfulness of the present solemnity! -- The general concourse of people of every age, sex, rank, and condition of life, willingly or unwillingly gathered together, not only from the neighboring, but from distant, parts; criminals, speedily to be brought forth and having no way to escape; officers, waiting in their various posts, to execute the orders …
John Wesley—Sermons on Several Occasions

The Figurative Language of Scripture.
1. When the psalmist says: "The Lord God is a sun and shield" (Psa. 84:11), he means that God is to all his creatures the source of life and blessedness, and their almighty protector; but this meaning he conveys under the figure of a sun and a shield. When, again, the apostle James says that Moses is read in the synagogues every Sabbath-day (Acts 15:21), he signifies the writings of Moses under the figure of his name. In these examples the figure lies in particular words. But it may be embodied …
E. P. Barrows—Companion to the Bible

On the Various Names and Titles
Man is the total human or the mind; in Genesis: God made man after His own image and likeness. And in a bad part of the psalm: arise, o Lord, let not man prevail, here is flesh or the devil. [Gen. 1:27; Ps. 9:20(19)] The man is the spirit, that is, the mind; in the apostle: man is the head of woman. Man is the same in a bad part of Genesis: the virgin was fair of face and not known to any man, that is, the devil, who corrupts the mind greatly with imagining. [I Cor. 11:3; Gen. 24:16-18] The woman …
St. Eucherius of Lyons—The Formulae of St. Eucherius of Lyons

Of the True Church. Duty of Cultivating Unity with Her, as the Mother of all the Godly.
1. The church now to be considered. With her God has deposited whatever is necessary to faith and good order. A summary of what is contained in this Book. Why it begins with the Church. 2. In what sense the article of the Creed concerning the Church is to be understood. Why we should say, "I believe the Church," not "I believe in the Church." The purport of this article. Why the Church is called Catholic or Universal. 3. What meant by the Communion of Saints. Whether it is inconsistent with various …
John Calvin—The Institutes of the Christian Religion

The Gospel Feast
"When Jesus then lifted up His eyes, and saw a great company come unto Him, He saith unto Philip, Whence shall we buy bread that these may eat?"--John vi. 5. After these words the Evangelist adds, "And this He said to prove him, for He Himself knew what He would do." Thus, you see, our Lord had secret meanings when He spoke, and did not bring forth openly all His divine sense at once. He knew what He was about to do from the first, but He wished to lead forward His disciples, and to arrest and …
John Henry Newman—Parochial and Plain Sermons, Vol. VII

Discourse on Spiritual Food and True Discipleship. Peter's Confession.
(at the Synagogue in Capernaum.) ^D John VI. 22-71. ^d 22 On the morrow [the morrow after Jesus fed the five thousand] the multitude that stood on the other side of the sea [on the east side, opposite Capernaum] saw that there was no other boat there, save one, and that Jesus went not with his disciples into the boat, but that his disciples went away alone 23 (howbeit there came boats from Tiberias nigh unto the place where they ate the bread after that the Lord had given thanks): 24 when the multitude …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

On Earthly Things
The earth is man himself; in the gospel: another has fallen into the good earth. The same in a bad part about the sinner: you devour the earth all the days of your life. [Mark 4:18; Genesis 3:14] The dry lands are the flesh of a fruitless man; in Ecclesiastes, to work in a dry land with evil and sorrow. [Ecclesiastes 37:3] The dust is a sinner or the vanity of the flesh; in the psalm: like the dust, which the wind blows about. [Ps. 1:4 Vulgate] The mud is the gluttony of sinners; in the psalm: tear …
St. Eucherius of Lyons—The Formulae of St. Eucherius of Lyons

Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners Or, a Brief Relation of the Exceeding Mercy of God in Christ, to his Poor Servant, John Bunyan
In this my relation of the merciful working of God upon my soul, it will not be amiss, if in the first place, I do in a few words give you a hint of my pedigree, and manner of bringing up; that thereby the goodness and bounty of God towards me, may be the more advanced and magnified before the sons of men. 2. For my descent then, it was, as is well known by many, of a low and inconsiderable generation; my father's house being of that rank that is meanest, and most despised of all the families in …
John Bunyan—Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners

Interpretation of Prophecy.
1. The scriptural idea of prophecy is widely removed from that of human foresight and presentiment. It is that of a revelation made by the Holy Spirit respecting the future, always in the interest of God's kingdom. It is no part of the plan of prophecy to gratify vain curiosity respecting "the times or the seasons which the Father hath put in his own power." Acts 1:7. "Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God"--this is its key-note. In its form it is carefully adapted to this great end. …
E. P. Barrows—Companion to the Bible

The Work of Jesus Christ as an Advocate,
CLEARLY EXPLAINED, AND LARGELY IMPROVED, FOR THE BENEFIT OF ALL BELIEVERS. 1 John 2:1--"And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous." By JOHN BUNYAN, Author of "The Pilgrim's Progress." London: Printed for Dorman Newman, at the King's Arms, in the Poultry, 1689. ADVERTISEMENT BY THE EDITOR. This is one of the most interesting of Bunyan's treatises, to edit which required the Bible at my right hand, and a law dictionary on my left. It was very frequently republished; …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

Memoir of John Bunyan
THE FIRST PERIOD. THIS GREAT MAN DESCENDED FROM IGNOBLE PARENTS--BORN IN POVERTY--HIS EDUCATION AND EVIL HABITS--FOLLOWS HIS FATHER'S BUSINESS AS A BRAZIER--ENLISTS FOR A SOLDIER--RETURNS FROM THE WARS AND OBTAINS AN AMIABLE, RELIGIOUS WIFE--HER DOWER. 'We have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.'--2 Cor 4:7 'For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord.'--Isaiah 55:8. 'Though ye have lien among the …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

Joel
The book of Joel admirably illustrates the intimate connection which subsisted for the prophetic mind between the sorrows and disasters of the present and the coming day of Jehovah: the one is the immediate harbinger of the other. In an unusually devastating plague of locusts, which, like an army of the Lord,[1] has stripped the land bare and brought misery alike upon city and country, man and beast--"for the beasts of the field look up sighing unto Thee," i. 20--the prophet sees the forerunner of …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

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