Joel 3:3 (YLT)

Passage

And for My people they do cast a lot, And they give the young man for an harlot, And the young woman have sold for wine, That they may drink.

Nearby Context

Joel 3:1 For lo, in those days, and in that time, When I turn back <FI>to<Fi> the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem,

Joel 3:2 Then I have gathered all the nations, And caused them to go down unto the valley of Jehoshaphat, And I have been judged with them there, Concerning My people and Mine inheritance--Israel, Whom they scattered among nations, And My land they have apportioned.

Joel 3:3 And for My people they do cast a lot, And they give the young man for an harlot, And the young woman have sold for wine, That they may drink.

Joel 3:4 And also, what <FI>are<Fi> ye to Me, O Tyre and Zidon, And all circuits of Philistia? Recompence are ye rendering unto Me? And if ye are giving recompence to Me, Swiftly, hastily, I turn back your recompence on your head.

Joel 3:5 In that My silver and My gold ye took, And My desirable things that are good, Ye have brought in to your temples.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "people", "cast", "give", "young", "harlot", "woman", and "sold". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "people" and "cast", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 2's "Then I have gathered all the nations..." into verse 4's "And also what FI are Fi ye...", so "people" and "cast" 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 "people" and "cast" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.