For by Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. Colossians 1:16-17.

God has made everything beautiful in its time, and He has also put a sense of eternity in the human heart, yet no one can fully understand God’s plan from beginning to end. Ecclesiastes 3:11.

Joel 3 is the final chapter of this book. It speaks to the time when all nations will be judged. Can we truly be oblivious to Creator God – Father, Son, Spirit, when everything we see in the natural world is made by Him? Try for a moment to even take in everything…all things…how can we not wonder at the vastness? “In those days and at that time, when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, I will gather all nations and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat. There I will put them on trial for what they did to My inheritance, my people Israel, because they scattered My people among the nations and divided up My land. They cast lots for My people and traded boys for prostitutes; they sold girls for wine to drink…Let the nations be roused; let them advance into the Valley of Jehoshaphat, for there I will sit to judge all the nations on every side. Swing the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Come, trample the grapes, for the winepress is full and the vats overflow – so great is their wickedness! Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! For the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision. The sun and moon will be darkened, and the stars no longer shine. The Lord will roar from Zion and thunder from Jerusalem; the earth and the heavens will tremble. But the Lord will be a refuge for His people, a stronghold for the people of Israel. Then you will know that I, the Lord your God, dwell in Zion, My holy hill. Jerusalem will be holy; never again will foreigners invade her. In that day the mountains will drip new wine, and the hills will flow will milk; all the ravines of Judah will run with water. A fountain will flow out of the Lord’s house and will water the valley of acacias. But Egypt will be desolate, Edom a desert waste, because of violence done to the people of Judah, in whose land they shed innocent blood. Judah will be inhabited forever and Jerusalem through all generations. Shall I leave their innocent blood unavenged? No, I will not.” The Lord dwells in Zion! v. 1-3, 12-21.

Why so many warnings in Scripture? Because evil always brings suffering and hardship. This is the day so long ago that Jesus, the Son, lay in the tomb. Even thinking of their laying His body in the tomb brings me such sorrow. But Creator God cries out for the evil done to us by us. All nations because all nations have sinned. And Creator God will bring an end to evil and all of the tribulation that our sins bring. All nations will be judged and all nations will have the opportunity to repent once they realize the enormity of all that God warned them against. We will realize because we have all of us lived through the pain and suffering that turning away from Creator God brings. I think our need for God will break forth like the dawn following a turbulent storm as we behold Him. May His love break forth in your heart as you turn in trust to Him who loves you and me so much He lay in that tomb, so long ago, before the new day dawned and He was there no more. The prophets warned because it was needed. It’s needed still. And today, He is right here with us as we read and consider all of His words held together because they are life. And Creator God is the giver of Life never intended to be lived in sorrow and hardship and pain unending – that is our hope! The Life Creator God brings that we can live with Him. Can you imagine? Loving Him and loving one another.