Let the priests, the ministers of Jehovah, weep between the porch and the altar, and let them say, Spare thy people, O Jehovah, and give not thy heritage to reproach, that the nations should rule over them: wherefore should they say among the peoples, Where is their God?
Joel 2:15 Blow the trumpet in Zion, sanctify a fast, call a solemn assembly;
Joel 2:16 gather the people, sanctify the assembly, assemble the old men, gather the children, and those that suck the breasts; let the bridegroom go forth from his chamber, and the bride out of her closet.
Joel 2:17 Let the priests, the ministers of Jehovah, weep between the porch and the altar, and let them say, Spare thy people, O Jehovah, and give not thy heritage to reproach, that the nations should rule over them: wherefore should they say among the peoples, Where is their God?
Joel 2:18 Then was Jehovah jealous for his land, and had pity on his people.
Joel 2:19 And Jehovah answered and said unto his people, Behold, I will send you grain, and new wine, and oil, and ye shall be satisfied therewith; and I will no more make you a reproach among the nations;
The verse centers on "priests", "ministers", "jehovah", "weep", "between", "porch", "altar", and "spare". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "priests" and "ministers", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.
The nearby context moves from verse 16's "gather the people sanctify the assembly assemble..." into verse 18's "Then was Jehovah jealous for his land...", so "priests" and "ministers" belong inside that flow. In Joel context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.
A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "priests" and "ministers" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.