Matthew Poole and continuators on Joel 2:10

10 The earth shall quake before them , the heavens shall tremble, the sun and the moon shall be dark , and the stars shall withdraw their shining .

Literally taken, 'tis an elegant description of most unparallel'd Armies of locusts, sent of God to waste this sinful people, in the description whereof the Prophet shews his lofty stile, and in a divine hyperbole warns the people, but there is another sense of the words, we must look to; these locusts in this Prophesie are Hieroglyphicks and Emblems, and so are the Earth, Heaven, Sun, Moon and Stars. By Earth thus considered, the vulgar mean multitudes are many times set forth, [illegible: 1 letter]ere the common people among the Iewes.

Locusts first, and Armies of Forreign Enemies afterwards, and that ere long.

Grandees, Rulers and Counsellors, or the whole frame of the Kingdom and Government, shall shake and tremble, their hearts shall sink within them who should be a support to others.

Their King,

their Queen, who may as particularly be here pointed at as the Queen of Ni[illegible: 1 letter]eve is Na[illegible: 1 letter]. 2.7.

Overwhelmed with amazement from the greatness of their troubles.

The Courtiers, and men of eminency that were as Stars for glory and brightness, shall be covered with clouds, and these thick and black; all this miserable confusion threatned against them for their sins, and in this emblem of vast multitudes of Locusts presented to their thoughts.

Marginal references: [illegible: 1 paragraph]