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InterlinearVerse GEN EXO LEV NUM DEU JOB JOS JDG RUTH 1 SAM 2 SAM PSA AMOS HOS 1 KI 2 KI 1 CHR 2 CHR PROV ECC SNG JOEL MIC ISA ZEP HAB JER LAM YNA (JNA) NAH OBA DAN EZE EZRA EST NEH HAG ZEC MAL LAO GES LES ESG DNG 2 PS TOB JDT WIS SIR BAR LJE PAZ SUS BEL MAN 1 MAC 2 MAC 3 MAC 4 MAC YHN (JHN) MARK MAT LUKE ACTs YAC (JAM) GAL 1 TH 2 TH 1 COR 2 COR ROM COL PHM EPH PHP 1 TIM TIT 1 PET 2 PET 2 TIM HEB YUD (JUD) 1 YHN (1 JHN) 2 YHN (2 JHN) 3 YHN (3 JHN) REV
Mal 3 V1 V2 V3 V4 V5 V6 V7 V8 V9 V10 V11 V12 V13 V15 V16 V17 V18
OET (OET-LV) You(pl)_have_said is_futility to_serve god and_what is_the_profit (cmp) we_have_kept charge_of_his and_because/when we_have_walked mournfully from_face/in_front_of YHWH hosts.
OET (OET-RV) You’ve all said, ‘It’s a waste of time serving God. What did we gain by keeping his requirements, or by being sorrowful in front of army-commander Yahweh?
Notice that this section also starts with the “Statement, Question, Response” pattern. However this time the sequence is expanded. The “Statement-Question” part occurs twice before a longer “Response” is given. (Another difference is that the second statement begins with a short question.) The “Statement-Question-Response” pattern marks the beginning of a new section.
3:6 is a transitional verse, as 2:17 was. Again, it is recommended that you take it as the first verse of this new section.
You have said,
You(plur) have said,
‘It is futile to serve God.
‘Serving God is futile.
‘It is useless to worship and serve God.
It is futile to serve God: That is, it is pointless/useless to serve God. This is a return to the topic which had caused God to be upset with the people (see 2:17).
to serve God: Here to serve means “to worship, to behave in a proper way towards God.”
What have we gained by keeping His requirements
What benefit is it to us(excl) if we(excl) obey his commands,
You(plur) also say, ‘What difference does it make if we(excl) obey him?
keeping His requirements: That is, obeying his commandments.
and walking mournfully before the LORD of Hosts?
and if we(excl) humbly mourn because of our(excl) sins in the presence of Yahweh Sabaot?
What difference does it make if we(excl) humble ourselves(excl) before Yahweh Sabaot and weep because we(excl) have sinned?
walking mournfully: That is, the people were “behaving as those who are truly sorry for the sins they have committed.” This implied that they had truly repented and were obeying the LORD once more. It contrasts with 3:15a, which mentions “the arrogant” people.
In 3:14c–d the people asked a rhetorical question. The question emphasizes the idea in 3:14b and adds further details. If you would not use a question in that way in your language, it may be better to use a statement. For example:
14aYou have said, 14b“It is useless to serve God. 14cIt did no good to obey his laws 14dand to show the Lord All-Powerful that we were sorry for what we did.” (NCV)
Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / quotesinquotes
אֲמַרְתֶּ֕ם שָׁ֖וְא עֲבֹ֣ד אֱלֹהִ֑ים וּמַה־בֶּ֗צַע כִּ֤י שָׁמַ֨רְנוּ֙ מִשְׁמַרְתּ֔וֹ וְכִ֤י הָלַ֨כְנוּ֙ קְדֹ֣רַנִּ֔ית מִפְּנֵ֖י יְהוָ֥ה צְבָאֽוֹת
said vain serve ʼElohīm and,what? profit that/for/because/then/when keeping charge_of,his and=because/when walking mourners from=face/in_front_of YHWH armies/messengers
If it would be clearer in your language, you could translate this so that there is not a quotation within a quotation. Alternate translation: [You have said that it is worthless to serve God, and you have asked how it has profited you that you have kept his charge and that you have walked mournfully to the face of Yahweh of Armies]
Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor
הָלַ֨כְנוּ֙
walking
Yahweh is speaking of how the people have lived as if they had walked on a path. If it would be clearer in your language, you could state the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: [we have lived]
Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / metonymy
מִפְּנֵ֖י יְהוָ֥ה צְבָאֽוֹת
from=face/in_front_of YHWH armies/messengers
The people are using the word face to mean presence by association with the way people can see the face of someone who is present. Alternate translation: [in the presence of Yahweh of Armies]
OET (OET-LV) You(pl)_have_said is_futility to_serve god and_what is_the_profit (cmp) we_have_kept charge_of_his and_because/when we_have_walked mournfully from_face/in_front_of YHWH hosts.
OET (OET-RV) You’ve all said, ‘It’s a waste of time serving God. What did we gain by keeping his requirements, or by being sorrowful in front of army-commander Yahweh?
Note: The OET-RV is still only a first draft, and so far only a few words have been (mostly automatically) matched to the Hebrew or Greek words that they’re translated from.
Acknowledgements: The Hebrew text, lemmas, and morphology are all thanks to the OSHB and some of the glosses are from Macula Hebrew.