Swarm

Do not fear, O soil;
    be glad and rejoice,
    for the Lord has done great things!

 I will repay you for the years
    that the swarming locust has eaten,
the hopper, the destroyer, and the cutter,
    my great army, which I sent against you.

Joel 2:21,25

When we hear about locusts, flying insects which eat plants, in the bible it is hardly ever a good thing. John the Baptist may have enjoyed them as a snack, but he was eccentric, to say the least. Usually they are considered to be a plague -- in Egypt, then Revelation -- as a punishment of, well, biblical proportions.



In the past few days we have heard about massive swarms of locusts, millions and even billions, which are moving in great, destructive clouds across the countries Eastern Africa. In Kenya there are more locusts than in the past 70 years and they are eating everything in their path. I listened to an interview with an agricultural expert who said that not only do they create an infernal din with their wings, the sound of their munching on crops is loud as well. This is the stuff of nightmares.

I don't want to entertain the notion that this is God's wrath directed at people who are already amongst the poorest on the planet. There is talk about this as a sign of significant climate change in Africa which has led to drought in some regions and torrential rain in others. The predictable cyclical patterns of weather are now affected by shifts in the bigger picture of climate. 

Sadly, is the consumption of wealthier nations which it driving the climate crisis, but it is have-not countries which pay the price. In the book of the prophet Joel there is hope that Creation will be restored when God's people repent and see the light. I pray that we do so in time for humanity and all living things.