Jeremiah34
English Standard Version
1The that to from the Lord, when of and his and the of the under his and the were of its :
2Thus the Lord, the of : and to of and to him, Thus the Lord: Behold, I am this into the of the of , and he shall it with .
3You shall his but shall be and into his . You shall the of to with him to . And you shall to .
4Yet the of the Lord, O of ! the Lord you: You shall by the .
5You shall in . And as spices were for your , the were you, people shall for you and for you, saying, , ! have the , the Lord.
6Then the to of , in ,
7when the of the of was and the of that were , and , these were the only of that .
8The came to the Lord, had a with the in to make a of to them,
9that should his , and , so that no should a , his .
10And they , the and the who had into the that would his , or , so that they would be . They and set them .
11But they and took the and they had , and brought them into as .
12The of the Lord to from the Lord:
13 the Lord, the of : I myself a with your I of the of , of the of , ,
14At the of of you must set the has been to you and has you ; you must him . But your did to me their to me.
15You and what was in my by , to his , and you a me in the is by my ,
16but then you and my when each of his and , you had according to their , and you them into to be your .
17 , the Lord: You have me by , every to his to his ; , I to you to the , to , and to , the Lord. I will you a to the of the .
18 the my and did the of the they me, I will make them like the that they in and its —
19the of , the of , the , the , and the of the who the of the .
20And I will them into the of their and into the of those who their . Their shall be for the of the and the of the .
21And of and his I will into the of their and into the of those who their , into the of the of the of which has from you.
22 , I will , the Lord, and will bring them to . And they will it and it and it with . I will the of a .
Study Guide
Public-domain commentary and original-language notes for Jeremiah 34.
Chapter Summary
In this chapter: Zedekiah's death at Babylon foretold. (1-7). The Jews reproved for compelling their poor brethren to return to unlawful bondage. (8-22).
vv1-7
Zedekiah is told that the city shall be taken, and that he shall die a captive, but he shall die a natural death. It is better to live and die penitent in a prison, than to live and die impenitent in a palace.
vv8-22
A Jew should not be held in servitude above seven years. This law they and their fathers had broken. And when there was some hope that the siege was raised, they forced the servants they had released into their services again. Those who think to cheat God by dissembled repentance and partial reformation, put the greatest cheat upon their own souls. This shows that liberty to sin, is really only liberty to have the sorest judgments. It is just with God to disappoint expectations of mercy, when we disappoint the expectations of duty. And when reformation springs only from terror, it is seldom lasting. Solemn vows thus entered into, profane the ordinances of God; and the most forward to bind themselves by appeals to God, are commonly most ready to break them. Let us look to our hearts, that our repentance may be real, and take care that the law of God regulates our conduct.
Key Words
דָּבָר: a word; by implication, a matter (as spoken of) or thing; adverbially, a cause
אָמַר: to say (used with great latitude)
יִרְמְיָה: Jirmejah, the name of eight or nine Israelites
נְבוּכַדְנֶאצַּר: Nebukadnetstsar (or -retstsar, or -retstsor), king of Babylon
מֶלֶךְ: a king
בָּבֶל: Babel (i.e. Babylon), including Babylonia and the Babylonian empire
כֹּל: properly, the whole; hence, all, any or every (in the singular only, but often in a plural sense)
חַיִל: probably a force, whether of men, means or other resources; an army, wealth, virtue, valor, strength
מַמְלָכָה: dominion, i.e. (abstractly) the estate (rule) or (concretely) the country (realm)
אֶרֶץ: the earth (at large, or partitively a land)
Cross References
Jeremiah 34The Mosaic covenantal law requiring Hebrew servants to be set free after six years of service.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
The Sabbatical year command to let Hebrew brothers sold to servitude go free.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Parallels the specific warning that Zedekiah would be delivered into Nebuchadnezzar's hand.
Supported by Matthew Poole, John Calvin, JFB
The ancient custom of cutting sacrificial animals in two to make a covenant.
Supported by JFB
Customary burning of aromatic spices for royal burials, which Zedekiah is promised.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Contrasts Zedekiah's peaceful lamented death with Jehoiakim's shameful, unmourned 'burial of an ass.'
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Levitical prohibition against treating a brother Hebrew as a bondservant.
Supported by JFB
The temporary lifting of the Babylonian siege by Pharaoh's army, prompting the relapse into enslavement.
Supported by JFB
Pharaoh's pattern of hardening his heart and reneging as soon as relief was granted.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Violating an oath made in God's house profanes and pollutes His holy name.
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Deuteronomic curse fulfilled in Israel being removed into all the kingdoms of the earth.
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The passing of covenanting parties between divided pieces of animals.
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A parallel post-exilic struggle where wealthy Jews illegally enslaved their poor brethren.
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The measure you use will be measured to you; they refused liberty, so God proclaims liberty to sword.
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