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1.5 KiB
the word of Yahweh of hosts came to me, saying, "Speak
This idiom is used to introduce a special message from God. Alternate translation: "Yahweh of hosts gave me a message. He said, 'Speak" or "Yahweh of hosts spoke this message to me: 'Speak" (See: rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-idiom)
in the fifth and in the seventh month
"in months 5 and 7" (See: rc://en/ta/man/translate/translate-ordinal)
in the fifth
The word "month" can be supplied in translation. Alternate translation: "in the fifth month" (See: rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-ellipsis)
in the seventh month
The assumed knowledge is that the Jews mourned during a part of the seventh month of the Hebrew calendar because in this month the remaining Jews in Jerusalem fled to Egypt after the murder of Gedaliah, whom the king of Babylon appointed as governor over Judah. The seventh month is during the last part of September and the first part of October on Western calendars. (See: rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-explicit and rc://en/ta/man/translate/translate-hebrewmonths)
for these seventy years
The assumed knowledge is that the people of Israel had been slaves in Babylon for 70 years. (See: rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-explicit and rc://en/ta/man/translate/translate-numbers)
were you truly fasting for me?
This question is asked to make the people think about what their real reason for fasting had been. It can be translated as a statement. Alternate translation: "you were not really fasting for me." (See: rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-rquestion)