Joel 2:22 - Exposition

Be not afraid, ye beasts of the field . The dumb animals had groaned in distress for food, but now they too have cause to rejoice, and are here called on to do so; and the suitable cause in their case is also specified. It is as follows: For the pastures of the wilderness do spring, for the tree beareth her fruit, the fig tree and the vine do yield their strength . He thus specifies the ground of gladness in their case also, pointing to the fresh green of the pastures and the fruit hanging in rich abundance and variety on the trees. The fruits of vines and fig trees are net, it is true, the food of the beasts of the fields; but the revival of vegetation in trees, the higher and larger growths, the chief factor in which is moisture, comprehends the revival of the smaller growths of herbs, grasses, and plants, the proper sustenance of cattle. Kimchi's explanation is that "as the tree bears its fruit in the inhabited part of the world, so in the wilderness the places of pasture grow green." Aben Ezra, who never loses an opportunity of directing attention to contrasts wherever they exist, contrasts "Be not afraid, ye beasts of the field," in this verse with "the beasts of the field cry also unto thee" at the close of the preceding chapter; also "the pastures of the wilderness do spring" with "the fire hath devoured the pastures of the wilderness;" likewise "the tree beareth her fruit" with "all the trees of the field are withered." It has been observed that all plants, even shrubs and trees, spring up at the first as the fresh young juicy green of plants, דֶּשֶׁא ; then they develop into ירֶקֶ or חָצִיר , grass: into herb, עֵשֶׂב ; and into tree, שָׂרַי עֵץ is not the plural for שָׂדִים , but singular, after the analogy of שָׁמַי ( Psalms 96:12 ). Nasaperi , equivalent to "lift up, bear," is more poetical than asah peri , equivalent to "make fruit;" so in Latin, surgunt fruges. The expression, "yield their strength," puts the cause for the effect; the strength of the tree produces the fruit and centres in it.