Joel 3:10 — Word Study
WLCכֹּ֤תּוּ אִתֵּיכֶם֙ לַֽחֲרָב֔וֹת וּמַזְמְרֹֽתֵיכֶ֖ם לִרְמָחִ֑ים הַֽחַלָּ֔שׁ יֹאמַ֖ר גִּבּ֥וֹר אָֽנִי׃
BSAbeatKo.tu plowshares your'i.tei.Khem into swordsla.cha.ra.Vot and pruning knives youru.maz.me.ro.tei.Khem into spearslir.ma.Chim the weak [man]ha.cha.Lash△ let him sayyo.Mar▸ [am] a warriorgi.Bor I'A.ni
| Greek | English | Parsing |
|---|---|---|
| כֹּ֤תּוּ | beat | Verb, Qal, imperative second person masculine plural |
| אִתֵּיכֶם֙ | plowshares your | Noun common masculine plural construct, suffix |
| לַֽחֲרָב֔וֹת | into swords | Preposition, noun common feminine plural absolute |
| וּמַזְמְרֹֽתֵיכֶ֖ם | and pruning knives your | Conjunction, noun common feminine plural construct, suffix |
| לִרְמָחִ֑ים | into spears | Preposition, noun common masculine plural absolute |
| הַֽחַלָּ֔שׁ | the weak [man] | Particle, noun common masculine singular absolute |
| יֹאמַ֖ר | let him say | Verb, Qal, imperfect third person masculine singular |
| גִּבּ֥וֹר | [am] a warrior | Noun common, masculine singular absolute |
| אָֽנִי׃ | I | Pronoun |
Every word in the verse. Click a row to open it in the panel on the left.
| BSB | Beat your plowshares into swords and your pruning hooks into spears. Let the weak say, ‘I am strong!’ |
| KJV | Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruninghooks into spears: let the weak say, I am strong. |
| ASV | Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruning-hooks into spears: let the weak say, I am strong. |
| YLT | Beat your ploughshares to swords, And your pruning-hooks to javelins, Let the weak say, 'I [am] mighty. |
| WEB | Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruning hooks into spears. Let the weak say, ‘I am strong.’ |
| BBE | Get your plough-blades hammered into swords, and your vine-knives into spears: let the feeble say, I am strong. |
The translations agree on the imperative call to transform tools of agriculture into weapons of war.
The verse consists of three main clauses, with a clear progression from action to declaration.
8 commentators on this verse
Gill, Jamieson, Poole, Trapp & more — read them ›
clause
subjectH589
verbH3807
The sentence as the grammar sees it Open the tree ›
1 of 9 occurs nowhere else in the Old Testament — a word chosen on purpose.
Bars are logarithmic — אֵת, the commonest word in the Hebrew Bible, stands about 11,000 times, so a linear scale would leave everything else invisible. Click a row to open that word.
Deep Study — Joel 3:10
Sections marked generated are written from the data on this page rather than by a named author. Everything else — the lexicon entries, the cross references, the manuscript readings, the counts — is quoted from its source unchanged.
Context — The Prophecy of Joelgenerated
Joel 3:10 presents a stark image where agricultural tools are repurposed for battle, reflecting a time of upheaval and conflict. The call for the weak to declare strength indicates a reversal of expectations, suggesting that even those who are typically powerless can find empowerment in dire circumstances. This theme resonates throughout the prophetic literature, where God’s strength is often revealed through human weakness.
Cross References
| Reference | Text (BSB) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Isaiah 2:4 | Then He will judge between the nations and arbitrate for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will no longer take up the sword against nation, nor train anymore for war. |
| 2 | Micah 4:3 | Then He will judge between many peoples and arbitrate for strong nations far and wide. Then they will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will no longer take up the sword against nation, nor will they train anymore for war. |
| 3 | Luke 22:36 | “Now, however,” He told them, “the one with a purse should take it, and likewise a bag; and the one without a sword should sell his cloak and buy one. |
| 4 | 2 Chronicles 25:8 | Even if you go and fight bravely in battle, God will make you stumble before the enemy, for God has power to help and power to overthrow.” |
| 5 | Zechariah 12:8 | On that day the LORD will defend the people of Jerusalem, so that the weakest among them will be like David, and the house of David will be like God, like the angel of the LORD going before them. |
The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge — 5 references, hung on the phrase they belong to
The Key Word — כֹּ֤תּוּ, Ko.tugenerated
The verb כָּתַת (kathath) means to beat or crush, often with a violent connotation. It implies a forceful action, transforming peaceful tools into weapons, which underscores the urgency and severity of the situation.
As an imperative in the Qal form, it commands the audience to take decisive action, highlighting the intensity of the moment as they prepare for war.
How Translations Differ — measured against the Berean Standard Biblegenerated
All translations agree on the imperative call to transform tools of agriculture into weapons of war.
Sentence Structuregenerated
The main verb כֹּ֤תּוּ governs the command to change tools, followed by a series of noun phrases detailing what is to be transformed. The structure emphasizes the action and its objects, creating a vivid image of conversion.
The second part of the verse introduces a new clause with יֹאמַ֖ר, let him say, which shifts the focus to the declaration of strength by the weak, further developing the theme of empowerment.
Septuagint Backgroundgenerated
The Septuagint uses σπάθας for חֶ֫רֶב (chereb), translating the concept of swords as weapons of war. This choice aligns with the broader Greek context of warfare and conflict.
The LXX's rendering of the Hebrew terms demonstrates a consistent understanding of the transformation of tools into instruments of violence, emphasizing the gravity of the prophetic message.
In plain words — the whole versegenerated
Joel 3:10 urges people to turn their farming tools into weapons and encourages the weak to declare their strength. This reflects a time of conflict where even those who feel powerless can find strength in their circumstances.
Frequently Asked Questionsgenerated
This phrase symbolizes a drastic change from peaceful activities to preparations for war, indicating a time of conflict and upheaval.
This encourages a reversal of expectations, showing that even those who feel powerless can find strength and empowerment in challenging situations.
Similar themes of transformation and empowerment appear in other prophetic books, such as Isaiah and Micah, which also speak of turning weapons into tools of peace.
The imagery highlights the urgency of the situation and the call for action, demonstrating the seriousness of the impending conflict.
Reflection Questionsgenerated
- In what areas of my life do I feel weak, and how can I declare strength in those situations?
- How can I transform my tools for peace into instruments for action in times of conflict?
- What does this passage teach about the nature of strength and weakness?
- How can I apply the message of empowerment from this verse in my daily life?
The early church on this verse — how the Fathers read it
Early commentators like John Cassian and Ishodad of Merv reference this verse to discuss the transformation of tools into weapons and the empowerment of the weak.
Whoever is protected by these weapons is always defended from the enemy’s spears and devastation and will not be led as a captive and a slave, bound in the chains of the ravagers, to the territory of hostile thoughts.Early Church Fathers on Joel 3 →
“Beat your plowshares,” that is, change your farm implements into weapons. In fact, after coming back from captivity, they would have been poor, but then they would have acquired wealth at the expense of the house of Gog.Early Church Fathers on Joel 3 →
Commentators on this verse — 8 expositors, verse by verse
Each of these wrote on Joel 3:10 itself, not merely on the chapter around it.
John Gill1697–1771Gill's Exposition of the Entire BibleBeat your ploughshares into swords, and your pruning hooks into spears,.... Let not only soldiers, and such as have been trained up in military discipline, appear in the field on this occasion; but
Read John Gill on Joel 3 →Robert Jamieson1802–1880Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's CommentaryBeat your plowshares into swords, and your pruninghooks into spears: let the weak say, I am strong. Beat your plowshares into swords.
Read Robert Jamieson on Joel 3 →Matthew Poole1624–1679Matthew Poole's Commentary on the Holy BibleBeat your ploughshares into swords: here is a prediction of war, and such as should continue, with some intermissions, through many years; as, on the contrary, when swords were to be beaten into ploughshares, and spears into pruning-hooks, it was a prediction of peace, : lay aside your husbandry in ploughing and sowing. And your pruning-hooks into spears; and let gardeners, vinedressers, and planters think of getting spears instead of pruning-hooks. Let the weak, either of body, through sickness or natural weakness, or else weak of mind, fearful and cowardly, say, I am strong: put on strength and valour greater than he hath, let none be absent from this war.
Read Matthew Poole on Joel 3 →John Trapp1601–1669Trapp's Complete Commentary on the Old and New TestamentsJoe 3:10 Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruninghooks into spears: let the weak say, I [am] strong.Ver. 10. Beat your ploughshares into swords] Come with the best preparation you can make, that ye may seem (as they say of a travelling Turk) to be so many walking armouries. Let the weak say, I am strong] Come forth full and whole, young and old, weak and strong, all that are able to bear arms, without excuse. It is an ancient custom in Scotland, in cases of importance, to command the fire cross to be carried, that is, two firebrands set in fashion of a cross, and pitched upon the point of a spear, and proclamation is thereupon made that all men over sixteen years of age and under…
Read John Trapp on Joel 3 →Charles John Ellicott1819–1905Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers(10) Beat your plowshares . . .—When the contest was over, and the victory of the Lord achieved, Micah foresaw the reversal of this order: the weapons of offence were once more to resume their peaceful character. “They “—i.e., the nations—“shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more” (Micah 4:3).
Read Charles John Ellicott on Joel 3 →CambridgeThe Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges10. The nations are to put forth all their strength: the implements of peace are to be transformed into weapons of war; even the weak is to take courage, and feel himself a warrior, “as is wont to happen when martial enthusiasm seizes a whole people” (Hitz.). Beat, &c.] comp. Isaiah 2:4 (= Micah 4:3), where the opposite process to that which is here commanded is instanced as a feature of the future ideal reign of peace. spears] lances (1 Kings 18:28), not the word (ḥ ?ǎ ?nîth) used in Isaiah 2:4, Micah 4:3 (which is the ordinary one for spear), but one with Aramaic affinities, and otherwise found chiefly either in North-Israelitish writings (Judges 5:8; 1 Kings 18:28), or in late authors (1…
Read Cambridge on Joel 3 →Albert Barnes1798–1870Barnes' Notes on the BibleBeat your plowshares into swords - Peace had been already promised, as a blessing of the gospel. “In His days,” foretold Solomon, “shall the righteous flourish, and abundance of peace, so long as the moon endureth” Psalms 72:7.
Read Albert Barnes on Joel 3 →Daniel Denison Whedon1808–1885Whedon's Commentary on the Bible9-16. After this condemnation of the bitterest enemies of the chosen people the prophet returns to the announcement broken off in Joe 3:3.
Read Daniel Denison Whedon on Joel 3 →The verse in English, compared — 8 translations, and where they part company
Every translation on this page is a decision someone had to make and commit to. Read down a column and you see one translator's judgement; read across a row and you see the range the Greek actually allows. The BSB is the wording the rest of this page is measured against, so it is listed first.
Modern formal
Beat your plowshares into swords and your pruning hooks into spears. Let the weak say, ‘I am strong!’
Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruning hooks into spears. Let the weak say, ‘I am strong.’
Tyndale line
Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruninghooks into spears: let the weak say, I am strong.
Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruning-hooks into spears: let the weak say, I am strong.
Breake your plowshares into swords, and your sithes into speares: let the weake say, I am strong.
Simplified
Get your plough-blades hammered into swords, and your vine-knives into spears: let the feeble say, I am strong.
Hammer your plow blades and turn them into swords. Turn your pruning hooks into spears. Even the weak should say ‘I am a strong fighter!’
Strictly literal
Beat your ploughshares to swords, And your pruning-hooks to javelins, Let the weak say, 'I [am] mighty.
T4T (Translation for Translators) is not shown above. It restates the passage rather than the verse, so there is no line of English to set beside the others — which is a fact about that translation, not a fault in it.
Counted from the translations carried on this site, not from a survey of every English Bible. A rendering shared by many versions is usually inherited rather than independently arrived at — the Tyndale line in particular runs through most of them.
The sentence as the grammar sees it — from the MACULA Hebrew treebank
This is not our own analysis: it is the scholarly syntax tree for the verse, showing how the clause actually holds together.
Boxes are the grammarian's groupings — clause, noun phrase, prepositional phrase.
The four witnesses to this verse — Masoretic, Septuagint, Samaritan, Qumran
The Masoretic Text is supported by the other witnesses, including the Septuagint, which aligns with the Hebrew text in meaning. There are no significant variations in the translation of this verse among the witnesses.
כֹּ֤תּוּ אִתֵּיכֶם֙ לַֽחֲרָב֔וֹת וּמַזְמְרֹֽתֵיכֶ֖ם לִרְמָחִ֑ים הַֽחַלָּ֔שׁ יֹאמַ֖ר גִּבּ֥וֹר אָֽנִי׃
Four traditions, not one. “On the leather” means the letters physically survive on the scroll, as against letters an editor has supplied to fill a hole in it — a restoration is a scholar’s reading, not a reading of the manuscript. Words in [square brackets] are supplied; the notes count them apart from what survives.
The map of this verse — what each word keeps company with
This is a map of two things, both counted rather than judged. Company kept: which words stand within three words of each of these, anywhere in the Hebrew Bible — the thicker the line, the more often the pair meet compared with chance. Built from: the words a word is made out of, taken from its own Strong’s entry. It is not a map of meaning: nothing here claims two words mean the same thing. Click any circle to see the numbers behind it.
Lexicons — every word in Joel 3:10
One dossier per word, with every reference work grouped by kind — Hebrew lexicons, morphology, Bible dictionaries, topical chains and the English of the translators themselves. The verse sits at the head of each block with the word under study lit, so you never lose your place. The panel above gives the short answer; this is the long one, and it is the part of the page worth indexing.
Every entry below is the lexicographer's own text. On the Hebrew: Brown-Driver-Briggs entire and its gloss set, Strong's Hebrew Dictionary, and Tyndale House's Translators Brief lexicon. Where a cell says a work has no entry, that work genuinely has none for this word.
כָּתַת (kathath) is a Hebrew verb meaning to beat or crush, often with a violent connotation. It encompasses actions like crushing fine, breaking into pieces, and shattering. The entries indicate various forms of the verb, including Qal, Piel, Pual, Hiphil, and Hophal, which express different nuances of beating or being beaten.
[כָּתַת] vb. beat, crush by beating
Qal
beat or crush fine
beat, hammer (ploughshares into swords)
Pi. Pf.;—as Qal 1. beat or crush fine
Pu. and they were beaten in pieces, one nation against another.
Hiph. beat in pieces an enemy
Hoph. and to ruins is the gate crushed
base
H3807 [כָּתַת] beat, crush by beating .. beat or crush fine
. beat, hammer (ploughshares into swords)
. Pf.;—as Qal 1. beat or crush fine
. and they were beaten in pieces, one nation against another.
. beat in pieces an enemy
. and to ruins is the gate crushed
3807 kathath kaw-thath'
a primitive root; to bruise or violently strike:--beat (down,
to pieces), break in pieces, crushed, destroy, discomfit,
smite, stamp.
כָּתַת (ka.tat) — to crush.
1) to beat, crush by beating, crush to pieces, crush fine
1a) (Qal)
1a1) to beat or crush fine
1a2) to beat, hammer
1b) (Piel)
1b1) to beat or crush fine
1b2) to beat, hammer
1c) (Pual) to be beaten
1d) (Hiphil) to beat in pieces, shatter
1e) (Hophal) to be beaten, be crushed
HVqv2mp — Verb · Qal · imperative second person masculine pluralHVqv2mp
אֵת (eth) refers to a cutting instrument made of iron, commonly translated as 'ploughshare' or 'hoe.' The entries suggest it is used for agricultural purposes, specifically in digging or plowing. There is no significant disagreement among the lexicons regarding its meaning.
[אֵת] n.[m.] a cutting instrument of iron, usually transl. ploughshare
base
H855 אֵת a cutting instrument of iron, usually transl. ploughshare
855 'eth ayth
of uncertain derivation; a hoe or other digging
implement:--coulter, plowshare.
אֵת (et) — plowshare.
ploughshare
HNcmpc/Sp2mp — Noun common masculine plural construct · suffixHNcmpc/Sp2mp
חֶ֫רֶב (chereb) means 'sword' and can also refer to other cutting instruments like knives and tools. It is derived from a root meaning 'drought,' highlighting its destructive nature. The term is used in various contexts in the Old Testament, primarily to denote weapons.
חֶ֫רֶב 411 n.f. sword (as weapon)
base
H2719 חֶ֫רֶב sword (as weapon)
2719 chereb kheh'-reb
from 2717; drought; also a cutting instrument (from its
destructive effect), as a knife, sword, or other sharp
implement:--axe, dagger, knife, mattock, sword, tool.
see HEBREW for 02717
חֶ֫רֶב (che.rev) — sword.
1) sword, knife
1a) sword
1b) knife
1c) tools for cutting stone
HR/Ncfpa — Preposition · noun common feminine plural absoluteHR/Ncfpa
The Hebrew word מַזְמֵרָה (*mazmerah*) refers to a pruning-knife or pruning-hook, indicating a tool used for cutting or trimming plants. It is derived from the root associated with cutting, specifically from H2168. The entries consistently define it as a tool for pruning.
[מַזְמֵרָה] n.f. pruning-knife
base
H4211 מַזְמֵרָה pruning-knife
4211 mazmerah maz-may-raw'
from 2168; a pruning-knife:--pruning-hook.
see HEBREW for 02168
מַזְמֵרָה (maz.me.rah) — pruner.
pruning knife
HC/Ncfpc/Sp2mp — Conjunction · noun common feminine plural construct · suffixHC/Ncfpc/Sp2mp
רֹ֫מַח (romach) refers to a spear or lance, derived from a root meaning to hurl. The entries consistently describe it as a weapon, particularly highlighting its iron point. There are no significant disagreements among the lexicons regarding its meaning.
רֹ֫מַח n.[m.] spear, lance
base
H7420 רֹ֫מַח
7420 romach ro'-makh
from an unused root meaning to hurl; a lance (as thrown);
especially the iron point:--buckler, javelin, lancet, spear.
רֹ֫מַח (ro.mach) — spear.
spear, lance
HR/Ncmpa — Preposition · noun common masculine plural absoluteHR/Ncmpa
חַלָּשׁ adj. weak, only c. art. as subst., Jo 4:10
ref
H2523 חַלָּשׁ
2523 challash khal-lawsh'
from 2522; frail:--weak.
see HEBREW for 02522
חַלָּשׁ (chal.lash) — weak.
weak
HTd/Ncmsa — Particle · noun common masculine singular absoluteHTd/Ncmsa
See ANTHROPOLOGY.
Man
(1.) Heb. ‘Adam, used as the proper name of the first man. The name is derived from a word meaning “to be red,” and thus the first man was called Adam because he was formed from the red earth. It is also the generic name of the human race (Gen. 1:26, 27; 5:2; 8:21; Deut. 8:3). Its equivalents are the Latin homo and the Greek anthropos (Matt. 5:13, 16). It denotes also man in opposition to woman (Gen. 3:12; Matt. 19:10).
(2.) Heb. ‘ish, like the Latin vir and Greek aner, denotes properly a man in opposition to a woman (1 Sam. 17:33;
Four Hebrew terms are rendered "man" in the Authorized Version: Adam, the name of the man created in the image of God. It appears to be derived from adam , "he or it was red or ruddy," like Edom. This was the generic term for the human race. Ish , "man," as distinguished from woman, husband. Geber , "a man," from gabar , "to be strong," generally with reference to his strength. Methim , "men," always masculine. Perhaps it may be derived from the root muth , "he died."
אָמַר (amar) is a Hebrew verb meaning 'to say' or 'to utter,' with a broad range of uses including to promise, command, or even boast. It appears in various forms, such as in the Qal (to say), Niphal (to be told), and Hiphil (to avow). The entries highlight its versatility in both spoken and internal contexts, though no specific verse is noted.
אָמַר 5287 vb. utter, say
Qal
Say
Say in the heart (= think)
Promise
Command (esp. late)
Niph. be said, told
Hiph. avow, avouch (lit. cause to declare)
Hithp. act proudly, boast
base
H559 אָמַר utter, say .. Say
. Say in the heart (= think)
. Promise
. Command (esp. late)
. be said, told
. avow, avouch (lit. cause to declare)
. act proudly, boast
559 'amar aw-mar'
a primitive root; to say (used with great
latitude):--answer, appoint, avouch, bid, boast self, call,
certify, challenge, charge, + (at the, give) command(-ment),
commune, consider, declare, demand, X desire, determine, X
expressly, X indeed, X intend, name, X plainly, promise,
publish, report, require, say, speak (against, of), X still, X
suppose, talk, tell, term, X that is, X think, use (speech),
utter, X verily, X yet.
אָמַר (a.mar) — to say.
1) to say, speak, utter
1a) (Qal) to say, to answer, to say in one's heart, to think, to command, to promise, to intend
1b) (Niphal) to be told, to be said, to be called
1c) (Hithpael) to boast, to act proudly
1d) (Hiphil) to avow, to avouch
Aramaic equivalent: a.mar (אֲמַר "to say" H0560)
HVqi3ms — Verb · Qal · imperfect third person masculine singularHVqi3ms
גִּבּוֹר (gibbor) means strong or mighty, and can refer to a powerful person, such as a warrior or chief. It is built from a root that implies strength and valor, covering meanings related to strength and bravery. The entries consistently emphasize its use to describe a strong man or mighty figure.
גִּבּוֹר 159 adj. strong, mighty
base
H1368 גִּבּוֹר strong, mighty
1368 gibbowr ghib-bore'
or (shortened) gibbor {ghib-bore'}; intensive from the same
as 1397; powerful; by implication, warrior, tyrant:--
champion, chief, X excel, giant, man, mighty (man, one),
strong (man), valiant man.
see HEBREW for 01397
גִּבּוֹר (gib.bor) — mighty man.
adj
1) strong, mighty
n m
2) strong man, brave man, mighty man
HNcmsa — Noun common · masculine singular absoluteHNcmsa
אֲנִי, transliterated as aniy, is a first-person singular pronoun meaning 'I' or 'me.' It is often used for emphasis and can also imply possession, as in 'mine' or 'myself.' The word is derived from a form that indicates self-reference, and it appears in various contexts throughout the Old Testament.
אֲנִי, אָ֑נִי pron. 1s. comm. I
base
H589 אֲנִי, אָ֑נִי I
589 'aniy an-ee'
contracted from 595; I:--I, (as for) me, mine, myself, we, X
which, X who.
see HEBREW for 0595
אֲנִי (a.ni) — I.
I (first pers. sing. -usually used for emphasis)
HPp1bs — PronounHPp1bs