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Joel 3:6

Old Testament Minor Prophet ASV (1901)

What does Joel 3:6 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “and have sold the children of Judah and the children of Jerusalem unto the sons of the Grecians, that ye may remove them far from their border;” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

and have sold the children of Judah and the children of Jerusalem unto the sons of the Grecians, that ye may remove them far from their border;
Joel 3:6 — American Standard Version

Context — Joel 3

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
3and have cast lots for my people, and have given a boy for a harlot, and sold a girl for wine, that they may drink.
4Yea, and what are ye to me, O Tyre, and Sidon, and all the regions of Philistia? will ye render me a recompense? and if ye recompense me, swiftly and speedily will I return your recompense upon your own head.
5Forasmuch as ye have taken my silver and my gold, and have carried into your temples my goodly precious things,
6and have sold the children of Judah and the children of Jerusalem unto the sons of the Grecians, that ye may remove them far from their border;
7behold, I will stir them up out of the place whither ye have sold them, and will return your recompense upon your own head;
8and I will sell your sons and your daughters into the hand of the children of Judah, and they shall sell them to the men of Sheba, to a nation far off: for Jehovah hath spoken it.
9Proclaim ye this among the nations; prepare war; stir up the mighty men; let all the men of war draw near, let them come up.
← Joel 3:5Joel 3:7 →
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What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“The children also of Judah and the children of Jerusalem, etc.] Not children in age literally, as Kimchi, kidnapped or bought by the Tyrians; but the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem: have ye sold unto the Grecians; or sons of Javan; it was one part of the merchandise of Tyre to trade in the persons of men; and Javan, or the Greeks, with others, were their merchants for them, (<262713>Ezekiel 27:13); and the souls of men are a part of the trade of the merchants of Rome, typified by the Tyrians, (<661813>Revelation 18:13); that ye might remove them far from their border; from their own land, or place of dwelling, that so they might not be easily redeemed, and return to it any more. Rome,…”
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Jamieson, Fausset & Brown
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“Grecians--literally, "Javanites," that is, the Ionians, a Greek colony on the coast of Asia Minor who were the first Greeks known to the Jews. The Greeks themselves, however, in their original descent came from Javan (Gen 10:2, Gen 10:4). Probably the germ of Greek civilization in part came through the Jewish slaves imported into Greece from PhÅ“nicia by traffickers. Eze 27:13 mentions Javan and Tyre as trading in the persons of men. far from their border--far from Judea; so that the captive Jews were cut off from all hope of return.”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“The children also - Literally, “And the sons of Judah and the sons of Jerusalem have ye sold to the sons of the Greeks.” This sin of the Tyrians was probably old and inveterate. The Tyrians, as they were the great carriers of the world’s traffic, so they were slave-dealers, and, in the earliest times, men-stealers. The Greek ante-historic tradition exhibits them, as trading and selling women, from both Greece and Egypt . As their trade became more fixed, they themselves stole no more, but, like Christian nations, sold those whom others stole or made captive. Ezekiel speaks of their trade in “the souls of men” Ezekiel 27:13 with “Greece” on the one side, and “Tubal and Mesech” near the Black…”
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Wesley's Explanatory Notes
John Wesley (1703–1791) · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament and Old Testament notes · 18th-century historical commentary
“Remove them - That there might be no hope of their return to their country. Joel 3:7”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“have ye: Joe 3:3, Joe 3:8; Deu 28:32, Deu 28:68; Eze 27:13 Grecians: Heb. sons of the Grecians Joel 3:7”
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Related study paths

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Sources and verification