Hosea 9

¹ Let us have no rejoicing, Israel, no exulting like the other peoples; for you have deserted God to play the whore, you have enjoyed the prostitute’s pay on every threshing-floor.

² Neither floor nor vat will nourish them, the new wine will disappoint them.

³ They will no longer live in the land of Yahweh, Ephraim will have to go back to Egypt, and in Assyria they will eat food that is unclean.

⁴ They will pour libations of wine to Yahweh no longer, nor offer sacrifice to him; their bread will be like mourners’ bread, all those who eat it will become unclean; for their’ bread will serve only for themselves, it must not enter the house of Yahweh.

⁵ What will you do on the day of solemn festival, the day of the feast of Yahweh?

⁶ Why, they will have gone, gone from the devastation. Egypt will receive them, Memphis bury them, nettles will inherit their treasures of silver, and brambles invade their tents.

⁷ Now the days of reckoning have come, the days of reprisals are here. ‘The prophet is mad,’ Israel protests ‘this inspired fellow is raving.’-Ah yes, but only because your iniquity is so great, your apostasy so grave.

⁸ Ephraim watches the prophet’s tent, traps are set for him on all his paths,

⁹ in the house of his God enmity awaits him. These men are as steeped in corruption as in the days of Gibeah; Yahweh will remember their iniquity, he will punish their sins.

¹⁰ It was like finding grapes in the wilderness when I found Israel, like seeing early fruit on the fig tree when I saw your fathers; but when they reached Baal-peor they devoted themselves to shame and became as hateful as the thing they loved.

¹¹ The glory of Ephraim will fly away like a bird: no giving birth, no pregnancy, no conceiving.

¹² And if they rear sons, I will take these from them before they come to manhood; trouble for them indeed when I abandon them.

¹³ Ephraim, I see, has made his sons a prey, Ephraim must lead his sons to the slaughter house.

¹⁴ Give them, Yahweh – what are you to give? – give them wombs that miscarry, and dried-up breasts.

¹⁵ Their wickedness appeared in full at Gilgal[*a], there I came to hate them. Because of their wicked deeds I will drive them out of my house; I will love them no longer, for their leaders are all rebels.

¹⁶ Ephraim is cut down, their roots are withered; they will bear no fruit. And if they bear children, I will kill the darlings of their womb.

¹⁷ Because they have not listened to him, my God will cast them off and they will be wanderers throughout the nations.