Joel 3:15 (ASV)

Passage

The sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining.

Nearby Context

Joel 3:13 Put ye in the sickle; for the harvest is ripe: come, tread ye; for the winepress is full, the vats overflow; for their wickedness is great.

Joel 3:14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! for the day of Jehovah is near in the valley of decision.

Joel 3:15 The sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining.

Joel 3:16 And Jehovah will roar from Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but Jehovah will be a refuge unto his people, and a stronghold to the children of Israel.

Joel 3:17 So shall ye know that I am Jehovah your God, dwelling in Zion my holy mountain: then shall Jerusalem be holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her any more.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "moon", "darkened", "stars", "withdraw", and "shining". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "moon" and "darkened", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 14's "Multitudes multitudes in the valley of decision..." into verse 16's "And Jehovah will roar from Zion and...", so "moon" and "darkened" 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 "moon" and "darkened" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.