² “When you buy a male Hebrew slave, he shall serve six years, but in the seventh he shall go out a free person, without debt.^(A)

¹² “If a member of your community, whether a Hebrew man or a Hebrew woman, is sold^[a] to you and works for you six years, in the seventh year you shall set that person free.^(A)

Treacherous Treatment of Slaves

⁸ The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, after King Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people in Jerusalem to make a proclamation of liberty to them,^{(A) 9} that all should set free their Hebrew slaves, male and female, so that no one should hold another Judean in slavery.^{(B) 10} And they obeyed, all the officials and all the people who had entered into the covenant that all would set free their slaves, male or female, so that they would not be enslaved again; they obeyed and set them free. ¹¹ But afterward they turned around and took back the male and female slaves they had set free and brought them again into subjection as slaves. ¹² The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah from the Lord: ¹³ Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: I myself made a covenant with your ancestors when I brought them out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, saying,^{(C) 14} “Every seventh year each of you must set free any Hebrews who have been sold to you and have served you six years; you must set them free from your service.” But your ancestors did not listen to me or incline their ears to me.^{(D) 15} You yourselves recently repented and did what was right in my sight by proclaiming liberty to one another, and you made a covenant before me in the house that is called by my name,^{(E) 16} but then you turned around and profaned my name when each of you took back your male and female slaves, whom you had set free according to their desire, and you brought them again into subjection to be your slaves.^(F)