Jeremiah 9

9 ¹Ah, if only my head fit turn spring of water, and my eyes turn fountain of tears, so that I go fit cry day and night for di people wey dem don kill for my people pikin! ²Ah, if only I get one traveler place to lodge for di wilderness, so that I go fit comot from my people and go far from dem! Because all of dem na people wey dey commit adultery, one gang of betrayers.

³Dem dey bend dem tongue like bow; na lie, no be faithful heart, don grow strong for di land. Dem dey move from one evil go anoda evil, and dem no know me, na so our Papa talk.

⁴Make everybody dey careful of im neighbor, and make dem no trust any broda; because every broda na deceiver, and every neighbor dey waka around dey spread bad talk.

⁵Everybody dey deceive im neighbor, and nobody dey talk true; dem don train dem tongue to dey talk lie, dem dey tire dembody with di bad tins wey dem dey do. ⁶You dey live for inside deceit; because of dem deceit dem refuse to know me, na so our Papa talk.

⁷Naim make di Papa wey be Oga ova di army for heaven talk say: I dey near to refine dem and test dem, because how else I go take do, because of my people pikin? ⁸Dem tongue na arrow wey dey kill; e dey talk deceit. With im mouth everybody dey talk peace to im neighbor, but for im heart e dey set trap for am. ⁹Abi I no go punish dem for dis tins? Na so our Papa talk. Abi I no go bring justice come on nation wey be like dis? ¹⁰“I go cry and wail for di mountains, and I go raise cry-cry song for di grazing land of di wilderness, because dem don scatter am finish so that nobody dey pass through, and nobody dey hear di sound of cattle again. From di birds for di sky reach di animals, all of dem don run comot go. ¹¹I go turn Jerusalem to heap of rubbish, place wey jackal dey stay; and I go turn di towns of Judah to place wey don waste, wey nobody dey live.”

¹²Who get wisdom reach to understand dis tin? Na who our Papa mouth don talk to, so that e go explain why di land don spoil, e don burn like wilderness, wey nobody dey cross am?

¹³And our Papa talk say: Because dem abandon my instruction, wey I give dem, and dem no obey my voice or waka inside am, ¹⁴but dem stubbornly follow dem own heart and dem go after di Baals, as dem papa-papa teach dem. ¹⁵So di Papa wey be Oga ova di army for heaven, our Papa of Israel, talk say: I go feed dis people bitter food and I go give dem poison water make dem drink. ¹⁶I go scatter dem among nations wey dem and dem papa-papa neva know, and I go send sword follow dem until I destroy dem.

¹⁷Na dis be wetin di Papa wey be Oga ova di army for heaven talk: Make una consider well! Call di women wey sabi mourn well-well; send for di ones wey don practice cry-cry song. ¹⁸Make dem hurry come raise wailing on top us, so that our eyes go dey run with tears and our eyelid go dey pour water.

¹⁹Because dem dey hear sound of wailing from Zion: See as we don scatter! Shame don cover us finish, because we don leave di land, because dem don pull down our house. ²⁰Now, una women, hear di word of our Papa; make una ear receive di word of im mouth. Teach una daughters how to wail, and make each one teach im neighbor cry-cry song. ²¹Because death don climb enter through our window; e don enter our palace, e dey cut off di children from di street and di young men from di market square.

²²Talk say: Na dis be wetin our Papa declare: Di dead body of people go fall like manure for di open field, like bundle of grain wey dem leave for back of di person wey dey harvest, wey nobody dey to gather dem.

²³Na dis be wetin our Papa talk: Make di wise person no boast for im wisdom, make di strong person no boast for im strength, make di rich person no boast for im riches; ²⁴but make di person wey wan boast, boast for dis one: say e understand and e know me—say na me be your Papa, wey dey act with faithful love, justice, and correct-and-holy way for di earth; because na dis tins dey sweet me, na so our Papa talk.

²⁵See, di days dey come, na so our Papa talk, wen I go punish everybody wey dem circumcise for flesh only. ²⁶Egypt, Judah, Edom, di sons of Ammon, Moab, and all di people wey dey cut di hair for di side of dem head and dey live for desert. Because all dis nations no dey circumcise, and all di house of Israel get hard heart.