Hosea 9

¹ People of Israel, stop to dey celebrate una festival like pagan. Una don turn away from una God and una no dey faithful to him. Una don sell unaself like prostitute for the god Baal for all over the land and una don love the corn wey una think say he use pay una!

² But soon una no go get enough corn and olive oil, and wine no go dey.

³ The people of Israel no go remain for the land of God but go con go back Egypt and go chop forbidden food for Assyria.

⁴ For that foreign land, dem no go fit offer wine offering to God, or bring him sacrifice. Their food go make everybody wey chop am unclean, like food wey dem don chop for funeral, dem go only use am to satisfy their hunger; dem no go fit take any of them go Temple of God.

⁵ And when the appointment time of festival to honor God come, wetin them go do then?

⁶ When disaster come and people don scatter, people of Egypt go gather them up - dem go gather them for Memphis! Thorn bushes and weed go grow for their treasure of silver and place where their home dey before.

⁷ Time for punishment don come, the time when people go get wetin dem deserve. Israel go know am, when that happen! This prophet wey una talk say na fool. This man wey get spirit of God dey craze." You people hate me so much because una sin too plenty.

⁸ God don send me as prophet to warn him people, Israel. Yet una wan trap me like bird for everywhere wey I go. Even for Temple of God, the people na prophet enemy.

⁹ Dem be evil wey no get hope for everything wey dem do, just as dem be for Gibeah. God go remember their sin and go punish them for am.

¹⁰ God talk say, "When I first find Israel, e be like finding grape wey dey grow for desert. When I first see una ancestor, e be like seeing first ripe figs of the season. But when dem come Mount Peor, dem begin to dey worship Baal, and soon dem become disgusting as the god wey dem love.

¹¹ Greatness of Israel go fly away like bird, and dem no go born children to them again, pregnant woman no go dey again, giving birth no go dey again.

¹² But even if dem bring up children, I go take them away and no one go dey alive. When I abandon these people, bad things go happen to them."

¹³ God, I dey see say them dey hunt their children down and kill them.

¹⁴ Wetin I fit ask you make you do to this people? Make their women barren! Make dem no fit nurse their pikin!

¹⁵ God say, "All their evil begin for Gilgal. Na there I begin to dey hate them. And because of the evil wey dem don do, I go drive them commot for my land. I no go love them again; all their leaders don turn against me.

¹⁶ People of Israel na like plant wey hin root don dry and wey no bear fruit. Dem no get children, but even if dem get, I go kill those children wey dem love."