Hosea 9

1 Rejoice not, O Israel: rejoice not as the nations do: for thou hast committed fornication against thy God, thou hast loved a reward upon every cornfloor.

'Rejoice not, O Israel, be not joyful like the peoples, For thou hast gone a-whoring from thy God, Thou hast loved a gift near all floors of corn.

2 The floor and the winepress shall not feed them, and the wine shall deceive them.

Floor and wine-press do not delight them, And new wine doth fail in her,

3 They shall not dwell in the Lord’s land: Ephraim is returned to Egypt, and hath eaten unclean things among the Assyrians.

They do not abide in the land of Jehovah, And turned back hath Ephraim [to] Egypt, And in Asshur an unclean thing they eat.

4 They shall not offer wine to the Lord, neither shall they please him: their sacrifices shall be like the bread of mourners: all that shall eat it shall be defiled: for their bread is life for their soul, it shall not enter into the house of the Lord.

They pour not out wine to Jehovah, Nor are they sweet to Him, Their sacrifices [are] as bread of mourners to them, All eating it are unclean: For their bread [is] for themselves, It doth not come into the house of Jehovah.

5 What will you do in the solemn day, in the day of the feast of the Lord?

What do ye at the day appointed? And at the day of Jehovah's festival?

6 For behold they are gone because of destruction: Egypt shall gather them together, Memphis shall bury them: nettles shall inherit their beloved silver, the bur shall be in their tabernacles.

For, lo, they have gone because of destruction, Egypt gathereth them, Moph burieth them, The desirable things of their silver, Nettles possess them — a thorn [is] in their tents.

7 The days of visitation are come, the days of repaying are come: know ye, O Israel, that the prophet was foolish, the spiritual man was mad, for the multitude of thy iniquity, and the multitude of thy madness.

Come in have the days of inspection, Come in have the days of recompence, Israel doth know! a fool [is] the prophet, Mad [is] the man of the Spirit, Because of the abundance of thine iniquity, And great [is] the hatred.

8 The watchman of Ephraim was with my God: the prophet is become a snare of ruin upon all his ways, madness is in the house of his God.

Ephraim is looking [away] from My God, The prophet! a snare of a fowler [is] over all his ways, Hatred [is] in the house of his God.

9 They have sinned deeply, as in the days of Gabaa: he will remember their iniquity, and will visit their sin.

They have gone deep — have done corruptly, As [in] the days of Gibeah, He doth remember their iniquity, He doth inspect their sins.

10 I found Israel like grapes in the desert, I saw their fathers like the firstfruits of the fig tree in the top thereof: but they went in to Beelphegor, and alienated themselves to that confusion, and became abominable, as those things were, which they loved.

As grapes in a wilderness I found Israel, As the first-fruit in a fig-tree, at its beginning, I have seen your fathers, They — they have gone in [to] Baal-Peor, And are separated to a shameful thing, And are become abominable like their love.

11 As for Ephraim, their glory hath flown away like a bird from the birth, and from the womb, and from the conception.

Ephraim [is] as a fowl, Fly away doth their honour, without birth, And without womb, and without conception.

12 And though they should bring up their children, I will make them without children among men: yea, and woe to them, when I shall depart from them.

For though they nourish their sons, I have made them childless — without man, Surely also, woe to them, when I turn aside from them.

13 Ephraim, as I saw, was a Tyre founded in beauty: and Ephraim shall bring out his children to the murderer.

Ephraim! when I have looked to the rock, Is planted in comeliness, And Ephraim [is] to bring out unto a slayer his sons.

14 Give them, O Lord. What wilt thou give them? Give them a womb without children, and dry breasts.

Give to them, Jehovah — what dost Thou give? Give to them miscarrying womb, and dry breasts.

15 All their wickedness is in Galgal, for there I hated them: for the wickedness of their devices I will cast them forth out of my house: I will love them no more, all their princes are revolters.

All their evil [is] in Gilgal, Surely there I have hated them, Because of the evil of their doings, Out of My house I do drive them, I add not to love them, all their heads [are] apostates.

16 Ephraim is struck, their root is dried up, they shall yield no fruit. And if they should have issue, I will slay the best beloved fruit of their womb.

Ephraim hath been smitten, Their root hath dried up, fruit they yield not, Yea, though they bring forth, I have put to death the desired of their womb.

17 My God will cast them away, because they hearkened not to him: and they shall be wanderers among the nations.

Reject them doth my God, Because they have not hearkened to Him, And they are wanderers among nations!