Jeremiah 34
EasyEnglish Bible
God warns Zedekiah
34 The Lord spoke to Jeremiah again, while King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and his army were attacking Jerusalem. Soldiers from all the kingdoms that King Nebuchadnezzar ruled joined with Babylon's own soldiers to make a large army. They were attacking Jerusalem and the towns around it. 2 The Lord, Israel's God, said to Jeremiah, ‘Go to Zedekiah, king of Judah, and give him this message: The Lord says, “I will put this city under the power of the king of Babylon. He will burn it down. 3 You will not be able to escape. Babylon's soldiers will certainly take hold of you. They will take you to the king of Babylon. You will have to stand in front of the king of Babylon and answer his questions. Then you will go to Babylon as his prisoner.
4 But listen to the promise that the Lord makes to you, Zedekiah, king of Judah. I, the Lord, promise you that you will not die in a battle. 5 Instead, you will die with peace in your mind. People will burn incense to give you honour when they bury you. They did that for your ancestors who ruled as kings before you. They will do it for you too. When you die, people will weep because they are sad. They will say, ‘This is terrible! Our king has died!’ That is my promise to you, says the Lord.” ’
6 The prophet Jeremiah told all this to King Zedekiah of Judah, in Jerusalem. 7 This happened when the king of Babylon's army were attacking Jerusalem and the cities of Lachish and Azekah. Those were the only strong cities in Judah that were not yet under his power.
King Zedekiah and the slaves
8 At another time, the Lord gave Jeremiah another message for King Zedekiah. Zedekiah had made an agreement with the people of Jerusalem. They all agreed to let their slaves go free. 9 Everyone in Judah who had a Hebrew slave must let their slave go free, both male and female slaves. Nobody should keep another Israelite person as their slave. 10 All the officers and the people agreed with the king that they would do this. They would not continue to have male or female slaves. They let them go free, as they had promised. 11 But later, they decided that they would not do that. They took the men and women back to work for them as slaves again. They forced them to do that.
12 Then the Lord said to Jeremiah, 13 ‘The Lord, Israel's God, says this to the people: I made a covenant with your ancestors when I brought them out of Egypt. They had been slaves when they were there. 14 I told them, “When any Hebrew slave has worked for you for six years, you must let them go free. In the seventh year after they sold themselves to you, you must set them free.”[a] But your ancestors did not listen to me. They did not obey me. 15 But now, you yourselves agreed to do what pleases me. You decided to obey me. You made a serious agreement with me in the temple which is my home. You let your slaves go free. 16 But now you have turned back to your old ways. You have refused to give me honour. You had let your slaves go free, as they wanted to do. But now you have forced them to work for you as your slaves again.
17 So I, the Lord, tell you this: You have not obeyed me. You have not let your Israelite slaves become free men and women. So now I will make you free! Yes, you will be free to let war, famine or disease kill you. People of all the kingdoms in the world will see how disgusting you are. 18 I will punish the people who did not obey the agreement that they made with me. When they made that agreement, they cut a young cow into two pieces and they walked between the pieces. Because they have not obeyed their agreement, I will now cut them into pieces, like the young cow.[b]
19 I will punish the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the king's officers and the priests. I will punish all the people of Judah who refused to obey the agreement that they made with me. 20 I will put them under the power of their enemies. Their enemies will kill them. Birds and wild animals will eat their dead bodies as food.
21 I will also put King Zedekiah of Judah and his officers under the power of their enemies. Their enemies will want to kill them. The king of Babylon's army has stopped attacking Jerusalem for a time. But I will put King Zedekiah and his officers under their power. 22 I will command Babylon's army to return to this city. They will fight against it and they will take it. They will burn the city down. I will also cause the other towns of Judah to become heaps of stones. Nobody will live in them any more.’
Footnotes
- 34:14 See Deuteronomy 15:12-18.
- 34:18 See Genesis 15:7-16. At that time, people showed that they agreed to a promise in a special way. They killed an animal and they cut it into two pieces. Then they walked between the pieces. They asked to receive punishment if they did not obey their promise.
Jeremiah 34
King James Version
34 The word which came unto Jeremiah from the Lord, when Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and all his army, and all the kingdoms of the earth of his dominion, and all the people, fought against Jerusalem, and against all the cities thereof, saying,
2 Thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel; Go and speak to Zedekiah king of Judah, and tell him, Thus saith the Lord; Behold, I will give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire:
3 And thou shalt not escape out of his hand, but shalt surely be taken, and delivered into his hand; and thine eyes shall behold the eyes of the king of Babylon, and he shall speak with thee mouth to mouth, and thou shalt go to Babylon.
4 Yet hear the word of the Lord, O Zedekiah king of Judah; Thus saith the Lord of thee, Thou shalt not die by the sword:
5 But thou shalt die in peace: and with the burnings of thy fathers, the former kings which were before thee, so shall they burn odours for thee; and they will lament thee, saying, Ah lord! for I have pronounced the word, saith the Lord.
6 Then Jeremiah the prophet spake all these words unto Zedekiah king of Judah in Jerusalem,
7 When the king of Babylon's army fought against Jerusalem, and against all the cities of Judah that were left, against Lachish, and against Azekah: for these defenced cities remained of the cities of Judah.
8 This is the word that came unto Jeremiah from the Lord, after that the king Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people which were at Jerusalem, to proclaim liberty unto them;
9 That every man should let his manservant, and every man his maidservant, being an Hebrew or an Hebrewess, go free; that none should serve himself of them, to wit, of a Jew his brother.
10 Now when all the princes, and all the people, which had entered into the covenant, heard that every one should let his manservant, and every one his maidservant, go free, that none should serve themselves of them any more, then they obeyed, and let them go.
11 But afterward they turned, and caused the servants and the handmaids, whom they had let go free, to return, and brought them into subjection for servants and for handmaids.
12 Therefore the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying,
13 Thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel; I made a covenant with your fathers in the day that I brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondmen, saying,
14 At the end of seven years let ye go every man his brother an Hebrew, which hath been sold unto thee; and when he hath served thee six years, thou shalt let him go free from thee: but your fathers hearkened not unto me, neither inclined their ear.
15 And ye were now turned, and had done right in my sight, in proclaiming liberty every man to his neighbour; and ye had made a covenant before me in the house which is called by my name:
16 But ye turned and polluted my name, and caused every man his servant, and every man his handmaid, whom he had set at liberty at their pleasure, to return, and brought them into subjection, to be unto you for servants and for handmaids.
17 Therefore thus saith the Lord; Ye have not hearkened unto me, in proclaiming liberty, every one to his brother, and every man to his neighbour: behold, I proclaim a liberty for you, saith the Lord, to the sword, to the pestilence, and to the famine; and I will make you to be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth.
18 And I will give the men that have transgressed my covenant, which have not performed the words of the covenant which they had made before me, when they cut the calf in twain, and passed between the parts thereof,
19 The princes of Judah, and the princes of Jerusalem, the eunuchs, and the priests, and all the people of the land, which passed between the parts of the calf;
20 I will even give them into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of them that seek their life: and their dead bodies shall be for meat unto the fowls of the heaven, and to the beasts of the earth.
21 And Zedekiah king of Judah and his princes will I give into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of them that seek their life, and into the hand of the king of Babylon's army, which are gone up from you.
22 Behold, I will command, saith the Lord, and cause them to return to this city; and they shall fight against it, and take it, and burn it with fire: and I will make the cities of Judah a desolation without an inhabitant.
Jeremiah 34
Christian Standard Bible Anglicised
Jeremiah’s Word to King Zedekiah
34 This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord when King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon,(A) his whole army, all the kingdoms of the lands under his control,(B) and all other peoples were fighting against Jerusalem and all its surrounding cities: 2 ‘This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Go, speak to King Zedekiah of Judah, and tell him, “This is what the Lord says: I am about to hand this city over to the king of Babylon,(C) and he will burn it. 3 As for you, you will not escape(D) from him but are certain to be captured and handed over to him. You will meet the king of Babylon eye to eye and speak face to face;[a](E) you will go to Babylon.
4 ‘ “Yet hear the Lord’s word, King Zedekiah of Judah. This is what the Lord says concerning you: You will not die by the sword; 5 you will die peacefully. There will be a burning ceremony for you just like the burning ceremonies for your ancestors, the kings of old who came before you.(F) ‘Oh, master! ’ will be the lament for you, for I have spoken this word. This is the Lord’s declaration.” ’
6 So the prophet Jeremiah related all these words to King Zedekiah of Judah in Jerusalem 7 while the king of Babylon’s army was attacking Jerusalem and all of Judah’s remaining cities – that is, Lachish and Azekah,(G) for they were the only ones left of Judah’s fortified cities.
The People and Their Slaves
8 This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord after King Zedekiah made a covenant with all the people who were in Jerusalem to proclaim freedom(H) to them. 9 As a result, each was to let his male and female Hebrew slaves go free, and no one was to enslave his fellow Judean.(I) 10 All the officials and people who entered into covenant to let their male and female slaves go free – in order not to enslave them any longer – obeyed and let them go free. 11 Afterwards, however, they changed their minds and took back their male and female slaves they had let go free and forced them to become slaves again.
12 Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah from the Lord: 13 ‘This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I made a covenant(J) with your ancestors when I brought them out of the land of Egypt, out of the place of slavery, saying, 14 “At the end of seven years, each of you must let his fellow Hebrew who sold himself[b] to you go. He may serve you six years, but then you must let him go free from your service.”(K) But your ancestors did not obey me or pay any attention. 15 Today you repented and did what pleased me, each of you proclaiming freedom for his neighbour. You made a covenant before me(L) at the house that bears my name.(M) 16 But you have changed your minds(N) and profaned my name.(O) Each has taken back his male and female slaves who had been set free to go wherever they wanted, and you have again forced them to be your slaves.
17 ‘Therefore, this is what the Lord says: You have not obeyed me by proclaiming freedom, each for his fellow Hebrew and for his neighbour.(P) I hereby proclaim freedom for you(Q) – this is the Lord’s declaration – to the sword, to plague, and to famine! I will make you a horror to all the earth’s kingdoms.(R) 18 As for those who disobeyed my covenant,(S) not keeping the terms of the covenant they made before me, I will treat them like the calf they cut in two in order to pass between its pieces.(T) 19 The officials of Judah and Jerusalem, the court officials, the priests, and all the people of the land who passed between the pieces of the calf – 20 all these I will hand over to their enemies, to those who intend to take their life. Their corpses will become food for the birds of the sky and for the wild animals of the land.(U) 21 I will hand King Zedekiah of Judah and his officials over to their enemies, to those who intend to take their lives, to the king of Babylon’s army that is withdrawing. 22 I am about to give the command – this is the Lord’s declaration – and I will bring them back to this city. They will fight against it, capture it, and burn it.(V) I will make Judah’s cities a desolation, without inhabitant.’(W)
Jeremiah 34
New King James Version
Zedekiah Warned by God
34 The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord, (A)when Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army, (B)all the kingdoms of the earth under his dominion, and all the people, fought against Jerusalem and all its cities, saying, 2 “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: ‘Go and (C)speak to Zedekiah king of Judah and tell him, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Behold, (D)I will give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire. 3 And (E)you shall not escape from his hand, but shall surely be taken and delivered into his hand; your eyes shall see the eyes of the king of Babylon, he shall speak with you (F)face[a] to face, and you shall go to Babylon.’ ” ’ 4 Yet hear the word of the Lord, O Zedekiah king of Judah! Thus says the Lord concerning you: ‘You shall not die by the sword. 5 You shall die in peace; as in (G)the ceremonies of your fathers, the former kings who were before you, (H)so they shall burn incense for you and (I)lament for you, saying, “Alas, lord!” For I have pronounced the word, says the Lord.’ ”
6 Then Jeremiah the prophet spoke all these words to Zedekiah king of Judah in Jerusalem, 7 when the king of Babylon’s army fought against Jerusalem and all the cities of Judah that were left, against Lachish and Azekah; for only (J)these fortified cities remained of the cities of Judah.
Treacherous Treatment of Slaves
8 This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, after King Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people who were at Jerusalem to proclaim (K)liberty to them: 9 (L)that every man should set free his male and female slave—a Hebrew man or woman—(M)that no one should keep a Jewish brother in bondage. 10 Now when all the princes and all the people, who had entered into the covenant, heard that everyone should set free his male and female slaves, that no one should keep them in bondage anymore, they obeyed and let them go. 11 But afterward they changed their minds and made the male and female slaves return, whom they had set free, and brought them into subjection as male and female slaves.
12 Therefore the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, 13 “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: ‘I made a (N)covenant with your fathers in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage, saying, 14 “At the end of (O)seven years let every man set free his Hebrew brother, who [b]has been sold to him; and when he has served you six years, you shall let him go free from you.” But your fathers did not obey Me nor incline their ear. 15 Then you [c]recently turned and did what was right in My sight—every man proclaiming liberty to his neighbor; and you (P)made a covenant before Me (Q)in the house which is called by My name. 16 Then you turned around and (R)profaned My name, and every one of you brought back his male and female slaves, whom you had set at liberty, at their pleasure, and brought them back into subjection, to be your male and female slaves.’
17 “Therefore thus says the Lord: ‘You have not obeyed Me in proclaiming liberty, every one to his brother and every one to his neighbor. (S)Behold, I proclaim liberty to you,’ says the Lord—(T)‘to the sword, to pestilence, and to famine! And I will deliver you to (U)trouble among all the kingdoms of the earth. 18 And I will give the men who have transgressed My covenant, who have not performed the words of the covenant which they made before Me, when (V)they cut the calf in two and passed between the parts of it— 19 the princes of Judah, the princes of Jerusalem, the [d]eunuchs, the priests, and all the people of the land who passed between the parts of the calf— 20 I will (W)give them into the hand of their enemies and into the hand of those who seek their life. Their (X)dead bodies shall be for meat for the birds of the heaven and the beasts of the earth. 21 And I will give Zedekiah king of Judah and his princes into the hand of their enemies, into the hand of those who seek their life, and into the hand of the king of Babylon’s army (Y)which has gone back from you. 22 (Z)Behold, I will command,’ says the Lord, ‘and cause them to return to this city. They will fight against it (AA)and take it and burn it with fire; and (AB)I will make the cities of Judah a desolation without inhabitant.’ ”
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 34:3 Lit. mouth to mouth
- Jeremiah 34:14 Or sold himself
- Jeremiah 34:15 Lit. today
- Jeremiah 34:19 Or officers
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Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
