Joel says “the day of the LORD is near” and describes it as “destruction from the Almighty.” In context it is tied to the severe calamity falling on the land. See Joel 1:15.
Joel laments a terrifying turning point: “the day of Yahweh” is near, and what the people are already experiencing feels like a direct blow of ruin. He points to visible evidence—food supplies failing, worship celebrations ending, seed and grain wasting away, and livestock suffering without pasture. This unit sits inside Joel’s opening description of an unprecedented agricultural catastrophe. Earlier lines call different groups (elders, drunkards, farmers, priests) to notice, grieve, and respond to what has happened (Joel 1:1–14).
Joel 1:15–18 frames a visible ecological and economic collapse as more than “a bad season.” The prophet names it “the day of Yahweh” and says it is near (explicit: the day is “at hand”). He describes it as “destruction from the Almighty” (explicit: ruin is attributed to God’s overwhelming power).
A careful answer keeps the immediate passage, the book's argument, and the whole-Bible storyline together, so the question is answered in context instead of as a detached idea.
Start with Joel 1:15, then read the surrounding section so the answer stays connected to the passage's flow.
15Alas for the day! For the day of Yahweh is at hand, And it will come as destruction from the Almighty.