יואל, פרק ב׳, פסוק ג׳

A massive, destructive force sweeps through a blooming region, bringing absolute ruin. The transition is sharp and tragic: a lush, thriving landscape full of life is suddenly turned into a barren wasteland, with absolutely nothing escaping the devastation. The primary approach among commentators is that this serves as a powerful metaphor for a plague of locusts [אבן עזרא, רש״י]. The destruction brought by the swarm is so immense and unusual that it feels as though actual fire accompanies it, consuming the crops of the land [מצודת דוד, שטיינזלץ]. The locusts ruin everything in their path, acting as a fire burning ahead and a blazing flame trailing behind [רש״י, מצודת ציון]. When the swarm lands, the earth is entirely covered, and as it moves on, the landscape looks as if a fire has scorched it from every direction [רד״ק]. This destruction unfolds in stages. The first wave acts like a fire eating away the trees and plants. Whatever is left is then wiped out by the flame that follows, which destroys even the roots and the soil itself [מלבי״ם].

Before this destructive force arrives, the land is filled with crops and abundance, resembling the Garden of Eden. Yet the moment it passes, it leaves behind an entirely desolate desert [רש״י, מצודת דוד, רד״ק]. The annihilation is absolute. Not a single plant is left uneaten [רד״ק, אבן עזרא, שטיינזלץ]. In fact, this ruin is considered even worse than a literal fire. While a normal fire usually leaves behind some surviving remnants, in this case, absolutely nothing survives [מלבי״ם].

In contrast to the locust metaphor, another approach views the events as a historical account of the destruction of Judah and Jerusalem by the Babylonian army [אברבנאל]. According to this perspective, the fire symbolizes the vanguard of the Babylonian military scorching the land. Unusually, even the rearguard of the camp—which typically consists of weaker, non-combatant individuals—acted as a consuming flame, turning the land from an Eden into a wasteland. The complete lack of any survivors is understood as a specific historical reference to the fate of Gedaliah the son of Ahikam and his followers. They were the very last remnant left in the land by the king of Babylon. However, even this final group did not survive. Gedaliah was soon murdered by Ishmael the son of Nethaniah and his men, leading to the complete destruction of the remaining people [אברבנאל].