Therefore also now, said the LORD, turn you even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning:
turn.
Deuteronomy 4:29,30 But if from thence thou shalt seek the LORD thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul…
1 Samuel 7:3 And Samuel spake unto all the house of Israel, saying, If ye do return unto the LORD with all your hearts, then put away the strange gods and Ashtaroth from among you, and prepare your hearts unto the LORD, and serve him only: and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.
1 Kings 8:47-49 Yet if they shall bethink themselves in the land whither they were carried captives, and repent, and make supplication unto thee in the land of them that carried them captives, saying, We have sinned, and have done perversely, we have committed wickedness; …
with fasting.
Judges 20:26 Then all the children of Israel, and all the people, went up, and came unto the house of God, and wept, and sat there before the LORD, and fasted that day until even, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the LORD.
1 Samuel 7:6 And they gathered together to Mizpeh, and drew water, and poured it out before the LORD, and fasted on that day, and said there, We have sinned against the LORD. And Samuel judged the children of Israel in Mizpeh.
2 Chronicles 20:3,4 And Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the LORD, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah…
“return to Me with all your heart”
The call to "return" signifies repentance, a central theme in the prophetic books. It involves a complete turning away from sin and a wholehearted commitment to God. The phrase "with all your heart" indicates that this is not merely an external or ritualistic act but a deep, sincere transformation. This echoes the Shema in Deuteronomy 6:5, which commands love for God with all one's heart, soul, and strength, highlighting the comprehensive nature of true repentance.
with fasting, weeping, and mourning.”
These actions are traditional expressions of repentance and humility in the ancient Near Eastern context. Fasting is a physical demonstration of penitence and dependence on God, seen in other biblical instances like Esther 4:3 and Jonah 3:5. Weeping and mourning reflect genuine sorrow for sin, aligning with the biblical principle that godly sorrow leads to repentance (2 Corinthians 7:10). These practices are not merely ceremonial but are meant to reflect an inward change, as emphasized in Joel 2:13, which calls for a rending of the heart rather than garments.
“Yet even now” (Joel 2:12) signals that God’s window of mercy remains open despite Judah’s long-standing rebellion.
• The phrase points to the immediacy of grace—no one has drifted too far for God to welcome back (Isaiah 1:18; 2 Peter 3:9).
• It removes excuses based on timing: repentance is urgent and possible right this moment (Hebrews 3:15).
By stating “declares the LORD,” the prophet anchors this call in God’s own authority rather than human opinion.
• The covenant-keeping God who judged with locusts (Joel 1) now speaks restoration, showing His consistent character (Malachi 3:6).
• Because the command comes from the LORD, disobedience is not merely unfortunate; it is defiance against the Sovereign (Isaiah 45:22-23).
“Return” is relational, not merely ritual. The Almighty wants His people Himself.
• The invitation echoes God’s repeated plea throughout Scripture: “Return, O Israel” (Hosea 14:1; Zechariah 1:3).
• Repentance involves turning from sin to God, reversing direction and allegiance (Acts 3:19).
Wholehearted repentance excludes partial compliance.
• God rejects divided affection (Deuteronomy 6:5; Matthew 22:37).
• Surface change without inner surrender leaves sin unaddressed (Psalm 51:6,17).
• A fully engaged heart leads to lasting transformation, not temporary remorse (2 Corinthians 7:10-11).
Fasting embodies humility and seriousness about sin.
• It physically underscores spiritual desperation (Ezra 8:21-23).
• True fasting aligns the heart with God’s purposes, not mere self-denial (Isaiah 58:6-9).
• The people demonstrate that nothing—even food—matters more than restoring fellowship with the LORD.
Tears reflect genuine sorrow over offending God.
• Weeping shows that sin wounds relationship, not just breaks rules (Luke 22:62).
• God sees contrite tears and responds with compassion (Psalm 56:8; Jeremiah 31:18-20).
Mourning deepens repentance by acknowledging the gravity of sin’s consequences.
• It parallels the beatitude: “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted” (Matthew 5:4).
• Grief over sin opens the way for joy in God’s forgiving grace (Psalm 30:5,11).
• Community-wide mourning invites corporate renewal (Nehemiah 8:9-12).
Joel 2:12 calls every sinner—then and now—to seize God’s present offer of grace. The LORD Himself invites us to return, not halfway but wholeheartedly, evidenced by humble practices (fasting) and heartfelt emotions (weeping, mourning). Genuine repentance restores fellowship, averts judgment, and readies God’s people for the outpouring of blessing promised in the verses that follow.
(12) Saith the Lord.--The word saith is here no common word in the Hebrew. It implies an authoritative and most weighty utterance, as in Psalm 110:1, "The Lord said unto my Lord." "The word is used in almost every instance of the immediate utterance of God Himself; more rarely of that of the prophet or inspired organ of the Divine revelations" (Perowne, Commentary on the Psalms, vol. ii., p. 300).Turn ye even to me.--The question, "Who can abide it?" is left unanswered. But the only possible reply is inferred in the touching appeal which the prophet is inspired by Jehovah to make, that His righteous anger may be averted.
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 prophet, calls upon the people to return and repent, to fast and to weep, to grieve inwardly and mourn outwardly for sin. He also instructs them how to engage in the duty of humiliation aright and acceptably. The humiliation was to be that of the heart - sorrow of heart for the sins by which they had offended God, inward shame on account of those iniquities by which they had wronged their own souls and marred their own best interests. But while there behoved to be this inward contrition, outward expressions of it were also required. Genuine sorrow and shame for sin were to be accompanied by fasting, tears of penitence, and other indications of mourning. With all your heart. Kimchi comments thus: "That your repentance be not with a heart and a heart."