Joel 1

1 ¹Di word of our Papa wey come to Joel, Pethuel pikin. ^a a v1 Di prophets demselves call di name Papa — Isaiah 63:16, Jeremiah 31:9, Malachi 2:10 — so FHB render YHWH as "our Papa" for here, to show wetin dem reveal. ²Hear dis, una elders; listen, all of una wey dey live for dis land. Anything like dis don ever happen for una time, or for di time of una ancestors? ³Tell una pikin dem about am, make una pikin tell dem own pikin, and dem pikin tell di next generation. ⁴Wetin di cutting locust leave, di swarming locust chop; wetin di swarming locust leave, di hopping locust chop; and wetin di hopping locust leave, di destroying locust chop. ^b b v4 Di four words name locust wey come one after di oda, or different kind locust; di Hebrew pile dem up to show say everytin scatter finish — wetin one wave leave, di next one chop am. ⁵Wake up, una drunkard people, and cry; wail, all of una wey dey drink wine, over di sweet wine, because dem don cut am comot from una mouth.

⁶"Because one nation don invade my land, dem strong well well and dem plenty pass count; dem teeth be like lion teeth, and dem get di fang of mama lion. ⁷Dem don scatter my vine dem and break my fig tree; dem don peel di bark comot and throw am for ground, leave di branch dem bare and white."

⁸Wail like virgin wey wear mourning cloth for di husband of her young age. ⁹Dem don cut di grain offering and di drink offering comot from di house of our Papa; di priests, di ministers of our Papa, dey mourn. ^c c v9 "House of our Papa" take di place of "house of the LORD" wey oda English Translations get, to bring back di relationship meaning — God house na di Papa im home. ¹⁰Di field don scatter, di ground dey mourn; because di grain don spoil, di new wine don dry, di oil don fail. ¹¹Make shame catch una, una farmers; wail, una wey dey grow grape, over di wheat and di barley, because di harvest of di field don perish. ¹²Di vine don dry, and di fig tree don wither; di pomegranate, di palm, and di apple—all di trees of di field don dry. For true, joy don wither comot from all people.

Come Back to Una Papa

¹³Wear mourning cloth and cry, una priests; wail, una ministers of di altar. Come, spend di night for mourning cloth, una ministers of my Papa; because dem don hold back di grain offering and di drink offering from di house of una Papa. ¹⁴Announce fasting; call sacred gathering. Gather di elders and all wey dey live for di land come di house of our Papa, and cry out to our Papa. ¹⁵Chai, for dat day! Because di day of our Papa dey near, and e go come like destruction from di Almighty. ^d d v15 Oda translations read "day of the LORD." FHB name di Person wey di day belong to: our Papa, wey dey come to defend and restore im pikin dem. ¹⁶No be say dem don cut di food comot right for our front—joy and gladness don comot from di house of our Papa? ¹⁷Di seed dem don shrivel for di dry ground; di storehouse dem don empty, dem don pull down di granary dem, because di grain don dry. ¹⁸See as di animals dey groan! Di herds of cattle dey wander for confusion because dem no get pasture; even di flocks of sheep dey suffer. ¹⁹Na you, our Papa, I dey call, because fire don chop di pasture of di wilderness, and flame don burn all di trees of di field. ²⁰Even di wild animals dey cry out to you, because di streams don dry, and fire don chop di pasture of di wilderness.