Hosea 9

1 Have no joy, O Israel, and do not be glad like the nations; for you have been untrue to your God; your desire has been for the loose woman's reward on every grain-floor.

Rejoice not, O Israel, Exult not, like the nations! For thou committest fornication, forsaking thy God! Thou lovest hire on every corn-floor.

2 The grain-floor and the place where the grapes are crushed will not give them food; there will be no new wine for them.

The floor and the vat shall not feed them, And the new wine shall deceive them.

3 They will have no resting-place in the Lord's land, but Ephraim will go back to Egypt, and they will take unclean food in Assyria.

They shall not dwell in the land of Jehovah; To Egypt shall Ephraim go back, And eat unclean things in Assyria.

4 They will give no wine offering to the Lord, they will not make offerings ready for him; their bread will be like the bread of those in sorrow; all who take it will be unclean, because their bread will be only for their desire, it will not come into the house of the Lord.

They shall pour out no offerings of wine to Jehovah, Nor shall their sacrifices please him; They shall be to them as the bread of mourners; All that eat thereof shall be polluted. Their bread shall be for their own hunger; It shall not come into the house of Jehovah.

5 What will you do on the day of worship, and on the day of the feast of the Lord?

What will ye do in the festal day, In the day of the feast of Jehovah?

6 For see, they are going away into Assyria; Egypt will get them together, Memphis will be their last resting-place; their fair silver vessels will be covered over with field plants, and thorns will come up in their tents.

For, behold, they go forth from a wasted land; Egypt shall gather them; Memphis shall bury them; The precious places of their silver, Nettles shall possess them; Thorns shall spring up in their habitations.

7 The days of punishment, the days of reward are come; Israel will be put to shame; the prophet is foolish, the man who has the spirit is off his head, because of your great sin.

The days of visitation are come; The days of retribution are come— Israel shall know that the prophet was foolish, That the man of the spirit was mad— For the greatness of` thy iniquity, and thy great hatred.

8 There is great hate against the watchman of Ephraim, the people of my God; as for the prophet, there is a net in all his ways, and hate in the house of his God.

If Ephraim seek an answer from my God, The prophet is as the snare of the fowler in all his ways, A net in the house of his God.

9 They have gone deep in evil as in the days of Gibeah; he will keep in mind their wrongdoing, he will give them punishment for their sins.

They have deeply corrupted themselves, as in the days of Gibeah; He will remember their iniquity; He will requite their sins.

10 I made discovery of Israel as of grapes in the waste land; I saw your fathers as the first-fruits of the fig-tree in her early fruit time; but they came to Baal-peor, and made themselves holy to the thing of shame, and became disgusting like that to which they gave their love.

I found Israel as grapes in the wilderness; As the early fruit on the fig-tree, at its first time of bearing, I saw your fathers. But they went to Baal Peor, And separated themselves to shame, And had abominable idols according to their love.

11 As for Ephraim, their glory will go in flight like a bird: there will be no birth and no one with child and no giving of life.

The glory of Ephraim shall fly away as a bird; They shall not bring forth, nor bear in the womb, nor conceive;

12 Even though their children have come to growth I will take them away, so that not a man will be there; for their evil-doing will be complete and they will be put to shame because of it.

Yea, if they bring up children, I will utterly bereave them; Yea, woe to them when I depart from them!

13 As I have seen a beast whose young have been taken from her, so Ephraim will give birth to children only for them to be put to death.

I have seen Ephraim planted, like Tyre, in a rich pasture, Yet shall Ephraim bring out his children to the murderer.

14 O Lord, what will you give them? Give them bodies which may not give birth and breasts without milk.

Give them, O Jehovah! What wilt thou give them? Give them a miscarrying womb, And dry breasts!

15 All their evil-doing is in Gilgal; there I had hate for them; because of their evil-doing I will send them out of my house; they will no longer be dear to me; all their rulers are uncontrolled.

All their wickedness is in Gilgal; Yea, there have I hated them for the wickedness of their doings; I will drive them from my house; I will love them no more; All their princes are revolters.

16 The rod has come on Ephraim, their root is dry, let them have no fruit; even though they give birth, I will put to death the dearest fruit of their bodies.

Ephraim is smitten; Their root is dried up; they shall bear no fruit; Yea, though they should beget children, I will destroy the beloved fruit of the womb.

17 My God will give them up because they did not give ear to him; they will be wandering among the nations.

My God shall cast them away, Because they have not hearkened to him, And they shall be wanderers among the nations.