Hosea 9

9 ¹ Do not rejoice, Israel do not exult like the nations. For you have been unfaithful, forsaking your Father you have loved a prostitute's wages on every threshing floor.

² Threshing floor and winepress will not feed them and the new wine will fail them. ³ They will not remain in our Father's land Ephraim will return to Egypt and in Assyria they will eat unclean food. ⁴ They will not pour out wine offerings to our Father and their sacrifices will not please him. Their bread will be like the bread of mourners all who eat it will be defiled. For their bread will feed only their hunger it will not enter the house of our Father.

⁵ What will you do on the day of the appointed feast, on the day of our Father's festival? ⁶ For look they are fleeing from destruction but Egypt will gather them and Memphis will bury them. Nettles will overrun their silver treasures thorns will fill their tents.

⁷ The days of punishment have come the days of reckoning have come let Israel know it! The prophet is a fool, the man inspired by the spirit is mad because your iniquity is great and your hostility is great. ⁸ The prophet is the watchman of Ephraim, with my Father yet a bird trap lies on all his paths and hostility in the house of his Father. ⁹ They have sunk deep into corruption, as in the days of Gibeah. He will remember their iniquity he will punish their sins.

¹⁰ Like grapes in the wilderness I found Israel like the first fruit on the fig tree in its first season I saw your ancestors. But they came to Baal-peor and consecrated themselves to shame and they became as detestable as the thing they loved. ¹¹ Ephraim's glory will fly away like a bird no birth, no pregnancy, no conception. ¹² Even if they raise their children, I will bereave them until no one is left. Yes, woe to them when I turn away from them! ¹³ Ephraim, as I have seen, was planted like Tyre in a meadow yet Ephraim must lead his children out to the slaughter.

¹⁴ Give them, our Father what will you give them? Give them a miscarrying womb and dry breasts.

¹⁵ All their evil is at Gilgal there I came to hate them. Because of the wickedness of their deeds I will drive them out of my house. I will love them no longer all their officials are rebels. ¹⁶ Ephraim is struck down their root is dried up they will bear no fruit. Even if they give birth, I will put their cherished children to death.

¹⁷ My Father will reject them because they have not listened to him they will become wanderers among the nations.