The call to "turn to me with all your heart" is intensely focused on the inner disposition. It’s not just about performing outward acts of repentance like fasting and weeping, but about directing your entire moral purpose and affections toward God, so that "all your affections should be fixed on God."
“Yet even now,” declares the LORD, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; and rend your hearts and not your garments.” Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and he relents over disaster.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The prophet Joel has just described a devastating locust plague and a subsequent drought, painting a picture of widespread destruction and famine. In response to this dire situation, God himself calls His people to a radical act of repentance, urging them to return to Him wholeheartedly with outward expressions of deep sorrow and grief for their sins. This plea for a sincere, heart-felt return sets the stage for God's gracious promise of restoration and blessing if they truly heed His call.
Judgment is coming, the locusts are swarming, and the land is devastated. Yet, in the midst of this crisis, God's voice rings out with an astonishing offer.
The passage begins with "Yet even now," a phrase that signals hope even in dire circumstances. This isn't a cold, distant command, but a warm, authoritative invitation from God Himself. He isn't just reacting to sin; He's actively reaching out. The scholarly context highlights that God's word here is not just ordinary speech, but a weighty, divine utterance, emphasizing its importance and authority. This invitation to "turn to me" comes as a way to avert the impending judgment, showing that even in the face of deserved punishment, God offers a path to mercy.
Fasting, weeping, mourning – these are intense actions. But what is God really after when He calls for them?
God's command to "return to me with all your heart" is the core of this passage. The scholarly insights emphasize that this is not about a superficial or partial turning. It's a complete surrender, involving the entirety of one's inner being – intellect, will, affections, and moral purpose. The commentators stress that a "heart and a heart" (a divided heart) is rejected. True repentance means a deep, inward sorrow for sin, where outward expressions like fasting, weeping, and mourning are genuine reflections of that inner contrition. These external acts are meant to signify and even cultivate the profound grief God desires.
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God asks for outward expressions, but warns against them being mere performance. What's the crucial difference?
The commands for "fasting, weeping, and mourning" are not ends in themselves, but visible signs of a deeper reality. The commentaries clarify that these actions are intended to accompany and demonstrate an inward sorrow for sin. They are tools to express and even deepen the repentance that has taken root in the heart. The danger, as noted by scholars, is performing these acts without genuine heart change – a mere outward show. God desires actions that flow from a contrite spirit, making them meaningful expressions of a transformed inner life, rather than empty rituals.
Understand the original words
shuv · Hebrew Verb
To turn back or turn around; in a spiritual sense, it denotes a radical change of mind and direction (repentance) away from sin and back toward God.
lebab · Hebrew Noun
In biblical usage, the heart is the center of the human personality, encompassing the intellect, the will, the emotions, and the moral conscience.
qara' · Hebrew Verb
The act of tearing one’s clothing as an external expression of intense grief, shame, or distress. The prophet calls for an internal equivalent—contrition of the spirit—rather than mere external display.
channun · Hebrew Adjective
Showing kindness and favor, often toward those who do not deserve it; it describes God’s disposition of grace that initiates salvation.
rachum · Hebrew Adjective
A deep, compassionate, and visceral love that God feels for His people, often compared to the tenderness of a parent or the pity shown to the suffering.
erek appayim · Hebrew Noun Phrase
A term denoting God’s patience and restraint in the exercise of His righteous judgment, allowing time for repentance.
chesed · Hebrew Noun
A foundational Hebrew term (hesed) describing God's loyal, covenant-keeping, and unfailing love; it is the basis of His enduring faithfulness to His promises.
nacham · Hebrew Verb
To change one's mind or purpose, particularly regarding a decree of judgment, usually in response to the genuine repentance of the people.
The call to repentance in Joel 2:12 is rooted in the immediate crisis of a devastating locust plague, which served as a vivid symbol of God's judgment and a divine invitation to avert further destruction through sincere heart-change.
c. 835 BC
Reign of King Joash of Judah
During this period, the kingdom of Judah faced external threats and internal spiritual decline, creating a context for prophetic warnings like Joel's.
c. 835 BC— this verse
Prophetic Ministry of Joel
Joel delivers his prophecy, likely to the Southern Kingdom of Judah, describing a devastating locust plague as a sign of God's judgment and calling for repentance.
c. 835 BC
Call to National Repentance
In response to the impending or present judgment, God, through Joel, urges the people to repent with sincere fasting, weeping, and mourning.
c. 835 BC
God's Promise of Restoration
The prophecy includes God's promise to show compassion and restore the land and people if they turn back to Him with their whole hearts.
This passage echoes Joel's call to repentance, urging Judah to 'wash the evil from your heart, that you may be saved.' It emphasizes cleansing the inner self as the true path to salvation, just as Joel calls for a return 'with all your heart.'
Luke 6:21Jesus' Beatitudes offer a profound parallel: 'Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh.' This connects Joel's call for weeping and mourning as expressions of repentance with the promise of future joy and comfort for those who grieve over their sins.
Jonah 3:8When Jonah preached to Nineveh, the people responded with an extreme show of repentance, 'let them be covered with sackcloth and cry mightily to God.' This demonstrates a similar outward expression of deep sorrow and humility in response to a divine warning, mirroring Joel's call for fasting, weeping, and mourning.
Matthew 5:4Jesus' teaching, 'Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted,' directly connects with Joel's imperative to mourn. It assures that the sorrow and grief expressed in repentance are not in vain but lead to divine comfort.
jfbJoel 2:12: "Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning:"
- With such judgments impending over the Jews, Jehovah Himself urges them to repentance.also now—Even now, what none could have hoped or believed possible, God still invites you to the hope of salvation.fasting … weeping … mourning—Their sin being most heinous needs extraordinary humiliation. The outward marks of repentance are to signify the depth of…
pulpitJoel 2:12: "Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning:"
Verses 12-14. - The judgment of the locusts was typical of the great day of judgment. The tartars of that day were designed to bring the people to repentance. Thus judgment was mingled with mercy. Verse 12. - Turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with great fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning. At this period of sore judgment God, by the p…
The call to "turn to me with all your heart" is intensely focused on the inner disposition. It’s not just about performing outward acts of repentance like fasting and weeping, but about directing your entire moral purpose and affections toward God, so that "all your affections should be fixed on God."
The prophet Joel has just described a devastating locust plague and a subsequent drought, painting a picture of widespread destruction and famine. In response to this dire situation, God himself calls His people to a radical act of repentance, urging them to return to Him wholeheartedly with outward expressions of deep sorrow and grief for their sins. This plea for a sincere, heart-felt return sets the stage for God's gracious promise of restoration and blessing if they truly heed His call.
The prophet Joel has just described a devastating locust plague and a subsequent drought, painting a picture of widespread destruction and famine. In response to this dire situation, God himself calls His people to a radical act of repentance, urging them to return to Him wholeheartedly with outward expressions of deep sorrow and grief for their sins. This plea for a sincere, heart-felt return sets the stage for God's gracious promise of restoration and blessing if they truly heed His call.
"“Yet even now,” declares the LORD, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; and rend your hearts and not your garments.” Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and m…" — The call to "turn to me with all your heart" is intensely focused on the inner disposition. It’s not just about performing outward acts of repentance like fasting and weeping, but about directing you…
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Last reviewed October 2026
