“Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision, for the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision.”
– Joel 3:14
What a picture as Joel, this prophet, speaking on behalf of God declares that there are multitudes of people, he repeats it twice. “Multitudes, multitudes,” so many people, “In the valley of decision.” And there is an exclamation point at the end of that first part in this verse. Joel is so overwhelmed seeing so many people in a valley where what they decide determines their future for all of eternity.
Joel 3:14 Describes the Day of Judgment
And we know that’s what the stakes are because of the second part of the verse, “For the day of the Lord is near.” That’s a phrase that’s used all throughout the Bible to describe the day of judgment when every single one of us, every single person in the history of the world will stand before God to give an account for our lives. And Joel 3:14 is saying, “The day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision.”
The picture cannot be any clearer, every single person in the world including you and me, and every person we will see today and millions of people in the world today, multitudes, multitudes, every one of us will one day stand before God as judge. And what we have decided to do before that day, whether we have decided to trust in God and His salvation will determine our lives for all of eternity.
Joel 3:14 Called to Follow Jesus
So I don’t want to presume, I think most people who listen to this podcast are followers of Jesus, are ready for that day. But if you are not ready for that day, I urge you today to make the decision to put your trust in Jesus who has died on a cross to pay the price for sin, who has risen from the grave. Trust in Him as the Savior and Lord of your life. That decision will determine your future for all of eternity starting right now. And for all who have trusted in Jesus, who are ready by God’s grace, for the day of the Lord, make this news known to multitudes of people.
Today, share this gospel, God’s love, with somebody else today. They’re in the valley of decision, see them, see their eternity at stake and share it with them.
God we pray that You would give us an urgency to share the gospel today. Please help me, please help each of us to share the gospel faithfully today, with somebody, one of these multitudes if not more of these multitudes. And God we pray that You would empower us by Your Spirit and speak through us in such a way that somebody around us today might put their trust in You, might decide to follow You, Jesus, as the Lord and Savior of their life.
Praying for the Saramaccan People
God, we pray that You would give us Your perspective on the multitudes around us in the valley of decision today, and help us to live accordingly, with urgency. And we pray for this around the world. God we pray today for the Saramaccan people of Suriname, a small people group where there is a few believers. God we pray for those believers. We pray that You would give them strength and boldness to proclaim the gospel. And we pray that among the multitudes of Saramakan people, in addition to three billion others in the world who are unreached by the gospel, God we pray.
Multitudes, multitudes, they’re in the valley of decision, God. Send laborers into the harvest fields, help us to go, to pray, to work to see the gospel spread to all the peoples of the world, that the multitudes in the valley of decision might know of Your salvation and receive Your love in Christ. God we pray that you would help us all today to live in light of Joel 3:14, in Jesus name, Amen.
David Platt serves as a pastor in metro Washington, D.C. He is the founder of Radical.
David received his Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and is the author of Don’t Hold Back, Radical, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Before You Vote, as well as the multiple volumes of the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series.
Along with his wife and children, he lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area.
