...Are you in effect suggesting that we have indirect speech in the first line of v.16? After all, if the line read "'amar yhwh 'elohey yisra'el kiy-sane' shallax", then we would have no qualms about translating as indirect speech, "the LORD God of Israel says that he hates divorce". And the first two lines of this verse seem to be poetic parallels, which may explain the departure from the normal word order.
It is possible that another reading, given in some translations, may be
correct:
"For He hates divorce, says the Lord God of Israel. One covers violence
over his garment, says the Lord of Hosts.
This translation depnds on several understandings. First, in Mal 2:16 the
Lord would speak of Himself in the third person, as He does in 1:9. Second,
2:16 would continue the reference to God in the third person that occurs in
2:13-15. And third, it requires a reader's understanding that the verb
about covering oneself with violence could not refer to God, even though
there would be no outward change in subject.
However, 2:13-15 is probably not the Lord speaking directly, but the
prophet, for the prophet seems to be speaking beginning in verse 10.
Yours,
Harold Holmyard
translator, HCSB
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