יואל, פרק ד׳, פסוק י״ג

The time of divine vengeance and judgment upon the nations is vividly brought to life through the agricultural imagery of harvesting grain and treading grapes. For every act of redemption and retribution from God, there is a designated time. When the sins of the nations reach their absolute limit, the conditions are fully ripe, and the moment arrives to repay them for their actions [אברבנאל, ביאור שטיינזלץ].

The judgment begins with the imagery of a grain harvest. A call is issued to take up the sickle, the traditional harvesting tool [מצודת ציון]. This serves as a command to send out swords and messengers to strike down God's enemies [רש"י]. The time has come because the harvest is fully mature, meaning the grain has finished its growth [מצודת ציון]. Just as ripe grain stands ready to be cut, the nations that have lived in tranquility are now destined to fall by the sword [מצודת דוד, רד"ק]. Offering a different perspective, some view this imagery as a reference to a specific historical event, where the nations of Ammon and Moab destroyed the inhabitants of Mount Seir before ultimately turning on one another [אבן עזרא].

The imagery then shifts to the treading of grapes in a full winepress. The nations are likened to clusters of grapes that have filled the pressing area. A command is given to descend and press them [רש"י], which is a call to go down into the valley and trample the nations, unleashing the sword to bring about their end [רד"ק, מצודת דוד].

The final stage of this process involves the wine vats, though commentators offer different perspectives on its exact meaning. One approach explains that it refers to the loud sound of wine streaming down into the collection pits, a noise that symbolizes the completion of the task and the ultimate destruction of the enemies [רש"י, מצודת דוד, מצודת ציון]. Another view suggests that the vats are filled with liquid until the wine overflows its banks, serving as a harsh metaphor for the spilling of the nations' blood [רד"ק, מלבי"ם בביאור המילות, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. A third interpretation understands this simply as the physical act of treading the grapes [אבן עזרא].

Together, this sequence of agricultural metaphors illustrates the escalating phases of war. Initially, the enemies are compared to grain still attached to the earth, waiting to be cut down. Next, they are like harvested grapes placed in the press, awaiting the crushing weight. Finally, they become like wine separated from its seeds and drawn into the vat [מלבי"ם]. The underlying reason for this total devastation is clear. The measure of the nations' sins has become completely full [מצודת דוד], and the time has finally arrived for them to be punished for the profound evil that they and their ancestors inflicted upon Israel [רד"ק].