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
Jeremiah 34
New American Standard Bible
A Prophecy against Zedekiah
34 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, when (A)Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army, with (B)all the kingdoms of the earth that were under his [a]control and all the peoples, were fighting against Jerusalem and all its cities, saying, 2 “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel says: ‘(C)Go and speak to Zedekiah king of Judah and say to him, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Behold, (D)I am handing this city over to the king of Babylon, and (E)he will burn it with fire. 3 And as for you, (F)you will not escape from his hand, for you will assuredly be caught and handed over to him; and you will (G)see the king of Babylon eye to eye, and he will speak with you [b]face to face, and you will go to Babylon.’”’ 4 Yet hear the word of the Lord, Zedekiah king of Judah! This is what the Lord says concerning you: ‘You will not die by the sword. 5 You will die in peace; and as spices were burned for your fathers, the former kings who were before you, so they will (H)burn spices for you; and (I)they will mourn for you, crying, “Oh, my lord!”’ For I have spoken the word,” declares the Lord.
6 Then Jeremiah the prophet spoke (J)all these words to Zedekiah king of Judah in Jerusalem 7 when the army of the king of Babylon was fighting against Jerusalem and all the remaining cities of Judah, that is, (K)Lachish and (L)Azekah, for they alone remained as (M)fortified cities among the cities of Judah.
8 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord after King Zedekiah had (N)made a covenant with all the people who were in Jerusalem, to (O)proclaim [c]release to them: 9 that each person was to set his male servant free and each his female servant, a (P)Hebrew man or a Hebrew woman, so that (Q)no one would keep them, his Jewish brother or sister, in bondage. 10 And all the (R)officials and all the people obeyed who had entered into the covenant that each person was to set his male servant free and each his female servant, so that no one would keep them in bondage any longer; they obeyed, and set them free. 11 But afterward they turned around and took back the male servants and the female servants whom they had set free, and brought them into subjection as male servants and as female servants.
12 Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, 13 “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel says: ‘I (S)made a covenant with your forefathers on the day that I (T)brought them out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage, saying, 14 “(U)At the end of seven years each of you shall set free his Hebrew brother who [d]has been sold to you and has served you for six years, and you shall send him out free from you.” But your forefathers (V)did not obey Me nor incline their ear to Me. 15 Although recently you had turned and (W)done what is right in My sight, each one proclaiming [e]release to his neighbor, and you had (X)made a covenant before Me (Y)in the house which is called by My name. 16 Yet you (Z)turned and (AA)profaned My name, and each person [f]took back his male servant and each his female servant whom you had set free according to their desire, and you brought them into subjection to be your male and female servants.’
17 “Therefore this is what the Lord says: ‘You have not obeyed Me in proclaiming [g]release, each one to his brother and each to his neighbor. Behold, I am (AB)proclaiming a [h]release to you,’ declares the Lord, ‘to the (AC)sword, to the plague, and to the famine; and I will make you a (AD)terror to all the kingdoms of the earth. 18 I will give the people who have (AE)violated My covenant, who have not fulfilled the words of the covenant which they made before Me, when they (AF)cut the calf in two and passed between its parts— 19 the (AG)officials of Judah and the officials of Jerusalem, the high officials and the priests, and all the people of the land who passed between the parts of the calf— 20 I will hand them over to their enemies and to those who (AH)seek their lives. And their (AI)dead bodies will be food for the birds of the sky and the animals of the earth. 21 (AJ)Zedekiah king of Judah and his officials I will also hand over to their enemies and to those who seek their lives, and to the army of the king of Babylon which has (AK)withdrawn from you. 22 Behold, I am going to give a command,’ declares the Lord, ‘and I will bring them back to this city, and they will fight against it and (AL)take it and burn it with fire; and I will make the cities of Judah a (AM)desolation (AN)without inhabitant.’”
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 34:1 Lit dominion
- Jeremiah 34:3 Lit his mouth with your mouth
- Jeremiah 34:8 Or liberty
- Jeremiah 34:14 Or has sold himself
- Jeremiah 34:15 Or liberty
- Jeremiah 34:16 Lit made his male servant return and
- Jeremiah 34:17 Or liberty
- Jeremiah 34:17 Or liberty
Jeremiah 34
Amplified Bible
A Prophecy against Zedekiah
34 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord when Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army, with all the kingdoms of the earth that were under his sovereignty and all the peoples, were fighting against Jerusalem and against all of its cities: 2 “Thus says the Lord God of Israel, ‘Go and speak to Zedekiah king of Judah and tell him: “Thus says the Lord, ‘Behold, I am giving this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he will set it on fire and burn it down. 3 You will not escape from his hand, for you will definitely be captured and handed over to him; you will see the king of Babylon eye to eye, and he will speak with you face to face; and you will go to Babylon.’”’ 4 Yet hear the word of the Lord, O Zedekiah king of Judah! Thus says the Lord concerning you, ‘You will not die by the sword. 5 You will die in peace; and as spices were burned for [the memory and honor of] your fathers, the former kings who reigned before you, so shall a [ceremonial] burning be made for you; and people will lament (grieve) for you, saying, “Alas, lord (master)!”’ For I have spoken the word,” says the Lord.
6 Then Jeremiah the prophet spoke all these words to Zedekiah king of Judah in Jerusalem 7 when the army of the king of Babylon was fighting against Jerusalem and against all the remaining cities of Judah, against Lachish and Azekah, for these were the [only] fortified cities among the cities of Judah.
8 The word came to Jeremiah from the Lord after King Zedekiah had made a covenant (solemn pledge) with all the [Hebrew] people who were [slaves] in Jerusalem to proclaim liberty to them: 9 that every man should let his Hebrew slaves, male and female, go free, so that no one should make a slave of a Jew, his brother. 10 So all the princes and all the people who had entered into the covenant agreed that everyone would let his male servant and his female servant go free, and that no one would keep them in bondage any longer; they obeyed, and set them free. 11 But afterward they backed out [of the covenant] and made the male servants and the female servants whom they had set free return [to them], and brought the male servants and the female servants again into servitude.
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 covenant (solemn pledge) with your forefathers 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 seven years each of you shall set free his Hebrew brother who has sold himself [into servitude] or who has been sold to you and has served you six years, you shall release him from [serving] you; but your forefathers did not listen [submissively] to Me or obey Me.(A) 15 So then you recently turned and repented, doing what was right in My sight, each man proclaiming release [from servitude] to his countryman [who was his bond servant]; and you had made a covenant before Me in the house which is called by My [a]Name. 16 Yet you backed out [of the covenant] and profaned My Name, and each man took back his servants, male and female, whom had been set free in accordance with their desire, and you brought them into servitude [again] to be your male servants and your female servants.”’
17 “Therefore says the Lord, ‘You have not obeyed Me; you have not proclaimed liberty to your brother and your countryman. Behold (listen very carefully), I am proclaiming liberty to you—[liberty to be put] to the sword, [liberty] to [be ravaged by] the virulent disease, and [liberty] to [be decimated by] famine,’ says the Lord; ‘and I will make you a horror and a warning to all the kingdoms of the earth. 18 The men who have violated My covenant, who have not kept the terms of the solemn pledge which they made before Me when they split the [sacrificial] calf in half, and then afterwards walked between its separated pieces [sealing their pledge to Me by placing a curse on themselves should they violate the covenant—those men I will make like the calf]!(B) 19 The princes of Judah, the princes of Jerusalem, the high officials, the priests, and all the people of the land who passed between the parts of the calf, 20 I will give into the hand of their enemies and into the hand of those who seek their lives. And [like the body of the calf] their dead bodies will be food for the birds of the sky and the beasts of the earth. 21 Zedekiah king of Judah and his princes I will place into the hand of their enemies and into the hand of those who seek their life, and into the hand of the army of the king of Babylon which has withdrawn from you. 22 Behold, I am going to command [the Chaldeans who rule Babylon],’ says the Lord, ‘and I will bring them back to this city; and they will fight against it and take it and set it on fire. I will make the cities of Judah a desolation without inhabitant.’”
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 34:15 See note Deut 12:5.
Jeremia 34
Svenska Folkbibeln
Varning till Sidkia
34 Detta ord kom till Jeremia från Herren när Nebukadressar, kungen i Babel, med hela sin här och med alla de riken på jorden som lydde under hans välde och med alla folk angrep Jerusalem och alla dess lydstäder. Han sade: 2 Så säger Herren, Israels Gud: Gå till Sidkia, Juda kung, och säg till honom: Så säger Herren: Se, jag ger denna stad i den babyloniske kungens hand och han skall bränna upp den i eld. 3 Själv skall du inte kunna komma undan hans hand, utan du skall gripas och lämnas i hans hand och stå inför kungen i Babel, öga mot öga. Han skall tala med dig ansikte mot ansikte, och du skall komma till Babel.
4 Men hör Herrens ord, du Sidkia, Juda kung: Så säger Herren om dig: Du skall inte dö genom svärd. 5 I frid skall du dö. Och liksom man har tänt rökelse till dina fäders ära, till de kungar som har varit före dig, så skall man också tända rökelse till din ära och ropa: "Ack, ve, herre!" och hålla dödsklagan över dig Ty detta har jag talat, säger Herren.
6 Profeten Jeremia sade allt detta till Sidkia, Juda kung, i Jerusalem, 7 medan den babyloniske kungens här belägrade Jerusalem och de städer som ännu återstod i Juda, Lakish och Aseka. De var de enda av Juda städer som fortfarande fanns kvar och var befästa.
Brott mot avtalet om att frige slavar
8 Detta är det ord som kom till Jeremia från Herren, sedan kung Sidkia hade slutit ett förbund med allt folket i Jerusalem att de bland sig skulle utropa frihet, 9 så att var och en skulle frige sin hebreiske slav och sin hebreiska slavinna, detta för att ingen skulle ha sin judiske broder till slav. 10 Alla furstarna och allt folket lydde detta, de som hade gått med i förbundet, att var och en skulle ge sin slav och sin slavinna fria och inte mer ha dem som slavar. De rättade sig efter detta och frigav dem. 11 Men efteråt ändrade de sig och tog tillbaka de slavar och slavinnor som de hade frigivit och tvingade dem på nytt att bli slavar och slavinnor.
12 Då kom Herrens ord till Jeremia. Han sade: 13 Så säger Herren, Israels Gud: Jag slöt ett förbund med era fäder när jag förde dem ut ur Egyptens land, ut ur träldomshuset. Jag sade: 14 "När det har gått sju år skall var och en av er frige sin hebreiske broder, som har sålt sig åt dig och tjänat dig i sex år. Du skall då släppa honom fri ur din tjänst." Men era fäder lyssnade inte på mig och vände inte sina öron till mig. 15 Ni har nyligen vänt om och gjort det som är rätt i mina ögon, då ni utropade frihet, var och en för sin broder. Ni har slutit ett förbund om detta inför mig i det hus som är uppkallat efter mitt namn. 16 Men ni har ändrat er och vanhelgat mitt namn. Var och en har tagit tillbaka sin slav och sin slavinna som ni hade släppt fria enligt deras önskan. Nu har ni tvingat dem att bli era slavar och slavinnor igen.
17 Därför säger Herren så: Ni har inte hört på mig och utropat frihet var och en för sin broder och sin nästa. Så utropar då jag, säger Herren, frihet för er att utlämnas åt svärd, pest och hungersnöd. Jag skall göra er till ett avskräckande exempel för alla riken på jorden. 18 Jag skall utlämna de män som har överträtt mitt förbund och inte hållit orden i det förbund de slöt inför mig, när de delade kalven i två stycken och gick mellan dem. 19 Juda furstar och Jerusalems furstar, hovmännen och prästerna och allt folket i landet som gick mellan styckena av kalven, 20 dem skall jag utlämna åt deras fiender, till de män som vill döda dem. Och deras döda kroppar skall bli till föda åt himlens fåglar och markens djur. 21 Jag skall utlämna Sidkia, Juda kung, och hans furstar i deras fienders hand, till de män som vill döda dem, och till den babyloniske kungens här som nu har dragit bort ifrån er. 22 Se, jag skall befalla dem, säger Herren, att de vänder tillbaka till denna stad. De skall belägra den, inta den och bränna ner den. Jag skall göra Juda städer till en ödemark där ingen bor.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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