< Yoel 1 >

1 Esiae nye gbedeasi si va na Yoel, Petuel ƒe vi, tso Yehowa gbɔ.
The word of the Lord which came to Joel, the son of Pethuel.
2 Miɖo to afii, mi Israel ƒe ame tsitsiwo! Mi anyigbadzitɔwo, mise nya sia ɖa. Le miaƒe agbemeŋkekewo katã me ɖe, miese nya sia tɔgbi kpɔa?
Give ear to this, you old men, and take note, you people of the land. Has this ever been in your days, or in the days of your fathers?
3 Mitsɔe xlɔ̃ nu mia viwoe eye woawo hã nagblɔe na wo viwo ne wòazu xotunya tso dzidzime yi dzidzime.
Give the story of it to your children, and let them give it to their children, and their children to another generation.
4 Nu siwo ʋetsuviwo ƒe ha gã agblẽ ɖi la, ʋetsuviwo aɖui, nu siwo ʋetsuviwo agblẽ ɖi la, ʋetrawo aɖui, eye nu siwo ʋetrawo agblẽ ɖi la, abɔwo aɖui.
What the worm did not make a meal of, has been taken by the locust; and what the locust did not take, has been food for the plant-worm; and what the plant-worm did not take, has been food for the field-fly.
5 Minyɔ, mi ahanomunɔwo, ne miafa avi hehehe, mi waintsunolawo, mifa avi, elabena woɖe wain le miaƒe nu me, eye miagakpɔ wain yeye ano o!
Come out of your sleep, you who are overcome with wine, and give yourselves to weeping; give cries of sorrow, all you drinkers of wine, because of the sweet wine; for it has been cut off from your mouths.
6 Dukɔ gã aɖe va xɔ anyigba la katã dzi. Ŋɔdzi le wo ŋu ŋutɔ eye ame aɖeke mate ŋu axlẽ wo o, evɔ woƒe aɖuwo hã le ɖaɖam abe dzatatsu ƒe aɖuwo kple dzatanɔ ƒe tsyowo ene!
For a nation has come up over my land, strong and without number; his teeth are the teeth of a lion, and he has the back teeth of a great lion.
7 Wogblẽ nye waingble dome. Wogblẽ nye gbotiwo, wokuko tsro le atilɔwo ŋuti ƒiaƒiaƒia eye wofu ɣie.
By him my vine is made waste and my fig-tree broken: he has taken all its fruit and sent it down to the earth; its branches are made white.
8 Mifa konyi abe ale si ɖetugbi si ƒe ŋugbetɔsrɔ̃ ku la wɔnɛ ene.
Make sounds of grief like a virgin dressed in haircloth for the husband of her early years.
9 Nuɖuvɔsa kple nunovɔsa le Yehowa ƒe gbedoxɔ me nu tso; ale dɔwuame to na nunɔlaawo kple ame siwo subɔna le Yehowa ƒe aƒe me eye wole konyi fam.
The meal offering and the drink offering have been cut off from the house of the Lord; the priests, the Lord's servants, are sorrowing.
10 Agblewo ɖi gbɔlo, anyigba ƒu kplakplakpla, bliwo dome gblẽ, wain yeye megali o, eye ami hã nu tso.
The fields are wasted, the land has become dry; for the grain is wasted, the new wine is kept back, the oil is poor.
11 Azɔ mi agbledelawo, dzika netso mia ƒo, eye mialulũ, mi waingbledelawo, mifa avi sesĩe. Mifa avi ɖe lu kple ƒo hã ta elabena nuŋeŋe nu tso le agble me.
The farmers are shamed, the workers in the vine-gardens give cries of grief, for the wheat and the barley; for the produce of the fields has come to destruction.
12 Wainkawo ku, gboti yrɔ, yevuboɖatiwo ƒu, detiwo kple atɔtɔŋutiwo kple agblemetiwo katã kura hã ku. Amegbetɔ ƒe dzidzɔ ɖe sia ɖe nu tso.
The vine has become dry and the fig-tree is feeble; the pomegranate and the palm-tree and the apple-tree, even all the trees of the field, are dry: because joy has gone from the sons of men.
13 O mi nunɔlawo, mita akpanya eye mixa nu. Mifa avi, mi ame siwo subɔna le vɔsamlekpui la ŋgɔ, mitsi ŋu dɔ miafa avi zã blibo la katã, mi ame siwo subɔna le nye Mawu ŋkume. Elabena womagatsɔ nuɖuvɔsa kple nunovɔsa va miaƒe Mawu la ƒe aƒe me o.
Put haircloth round you and give yourselves to sorrow, you priests; give cries of grief, you servants of the altar: come in, and, clothed in haircloth, let the night go past, you servants of my God: for the meal offering and the drink offering have been kept back from the house of your God.
14 Miɖo nutsitsidɔ kɔkɔe eye miyɔ takpekpe tɔxɛ. Miyɔ ame tsitsiwo kple anyigbadzinɔlawo katã yi ɖe Yehowa, miaƒe Mawu la ƒe gbedoxɔ me eye miafa avi le afi ma na Yehowa.
Let a time be fixed for going without food, have a holy meeting, let the old men, even all the people of the land, come together to the house of the Lord your God, crying out to the Lord.
15 O ŋkeke ma! Elabena Yehowa ƒe ŋkeke la tu aƒe. Ava abe gbegblẽ ene tso Ŋusẽkatãtɔ la gbɔ.
Sorrow for the day! for the day of the Lord is near, and as destruction from the Ruler of all it will come.
16 Ɖe nuɖuɖuwo mevɔ le mia ŋkume eye dzidzɔ kple aseyetsotso le miaƒe Mawu la ƒe gbedoxɔ me mawu enu oa?
Is not food cut off before our eyes? joy and delight from the house of our God?
17 Nukuwo ƒaƒã ɖe woƒe gowo me, blivawo kple texɔwo tsi ƒuƒlu eye bli matsimatsiwo ku, heƒu ɖe bo dzi.
The grains have become small and dry under the spade; the store-houses are made waste, the grain-stores are broken down; for the grain is dry and dead.
18 Nyiwo le ŋeŋem, nyihawo le nu kpɔm nublanuitɔe, elabena nuɖuɖu meli na wo o, eye alẽhawo le fu kpem.
What sounds of pain come from the beasts! the herds of cattle are at a loss because there is no grass for them; even the flocks of sheep are no longer to be seen.
19 Yehowa, xɔ na mí! Elabena dzo bi gbe damawo, eye dzo ƒe aɖe fia atiwo katã le gbedzi.
O Lord, my cry goes up to you: for fire has put an end to the grass-lands of the waste, and all the trees of the field are burned with its flame.
20 Gbemelãwo gɔ̃ hã le ɣli dom be nàxɔ na yewo, elabena tsi mie le tɔʋuwo me, dzo bi gbe siwo le lãnyiƒewo keŋ.
The beasts of the field are turning to you with desire: for the water-streams are dry and fire has put an end to the grass-lands of the waste.

< Yoel 1 >