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THIS MATERIAL HAS NOT BEEN EDITED FOR SCRIPTURAL ACCURACY, SPELLING, OR GRAMMAR J E R E M I A H

CHAPTER THIRTY FOUR Jer 34:1-7 Bible Text 34:1 THE WORD that came to Jeremiah from the Lord when Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army and all the kingdoms of the earth under his dominion and all the people were fighting against Jerusalem and all of its cities: 2 Thus says the Lord, the 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 burn it with fire. 3 And you will not escape out of his hand but will surely be taken and delivered into his hand; 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 shall not die by the sword; 5 But you shall die in peace. And as with the burnings of [spices and perfumes on wood that were granted as suitable for and in honor of] your fathers, the former kings who were before you, so shall a burning be made for you; and [people] shall lament for you, saying, Alas, lord! 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 cities of Judah that were left, against Lachish and Azekah, for these were the only fortified cities remaining of the cities of Judah. AMP

Jeremiah 34:1 34:1. chronology. A more detailed chronology for the beginning of the siege of Jerusalem appears in 2 Kings 25:1 and Jer 52:4, the ninth year of Zedekiah's reign and the tenth day of the tenth month (January 588). The events described in Jer 34:1-7 most likely took place in early spring 588, prior to the Egyptian invasion that briefly lifted the siege. (IVP Comm.) 34:1-7 Jeremiah’s oracle concerning King Zedekiah. 34:1 The initial verse sets the passage in the time of Nebuchadnezzar’s siege of Jerusalem in 588 BCE. [Jewish Study Bible]

Note: ‘And you will see the king of Babylon face to face and speak to him in person; and you will be brought to Babylon…You will not die by the sword. You will die a peaceful death.’ Jer. 34:3-5, ‘His eyes shall behold his eyes: he should go to Babylon.’ Yet Ezekiel 12:13 declared that he should not “see” Babylon. Both statements were true; for we read that Zedekiah did “see” the king of Babylon at Riblah, but his eyes being put out there (2 Kings 25:6, 7 ‘So they took the king, and brought him up to the king of Babylon to Riblah; and they gave judgment upon him. And they slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and put out the eyes of Zedekiah, and bound him with fetters of brass, and carried him to Babylon’), he never saw Babylon, though he was led there. The Companion Bible

Jer 34:1 The ordinary view of this prophecy (Jer 34), that it is a more full account of the narrative given in Jer 32:3-5, is not so probable as that which takes it in connection with (Jer 21). Jeremiah had then informed Zedekiah by his messengers that Jerusalem would certainly be captured: but he was still in a condition to obtain good terms, and the prophet goes to him and

1 THIS MATERIAL HAS NOT BEEN EDITED FOR SCRIPTURAL ACCURACY, SPELLING, OR GRAMMAR lays before him the alternative. Zedekiah with all the obstinacy of a weak man chose to continue the war, and lost kingdom, eyesight, and liberty. (Barnes' Notes)

III. THE LABOUR AND SUFFERING OF THE PROPHET BEFORE AND AFTER THE CONQUEST AND DESTRUCTION OF JERUSALEM CH. 34-45 Jer 34:1-7 Under this title may be placed the whole of the contents of these twelve chapters, which fall into three divisions:

1. For (ch. 34-36) contain partly utterances of Jeremiah in the early part of the siege of Jerusalem under Zedekiah, partly matters of fact in Jehoiakim's time. 2. Next, mention is made, in (ch. 37-39), of the toils and sufferings of the prophet during that siege, until the fall of the city; then, 3. In (ch. 40-44), is depicted his active labour among the people who had been left behind in the land by the Chaldeans, and who afterwards fled to Egypt;

Finally, as an appendix to the account of his labors among the people, we find, in (ch. 45), the words of comfort addressed to Baruch by Jeremiah. 1. The second of these divisions is marked by a historical introduction, (Jer 37:1-2), 2. And the third by a somewhat lengthened prophetic heading. 3. Only (ch. 34-36), which we regard as the first division, seems to be without an external bond of unity.

The relation of (ch. 34) to the following is analogous to that of (ch. 21). Just as the collection of special announcements regarding judgment and deliverance, (ch. 21), was introduced by the utterances of the prophet in the beginning of the last siege of Jerusalem by the Chaldeans; so too, in our third division, the collected evidences of the labors of Jeremiah before and after the destruction of Jerusalem, are introduced, (ch. 34), by the utterances which predict quite definitely what shall be the issue of the siege of the city and the fate of the king and people. The first of these utterances is set in a frame of historical statements regarding the siege (vv. 1, 7); this setting marks it out as an introduction to the notices following.

But the second utterance, (vv. 8-22), refers to the fact of the manumission of the Hebrew men- and maid-servants during the siege, and the canceling of that measure afterwards. The following (chs. 35, 36), furnish two proofs of the activity of the prophet under Jehoiakim, which, on account of their historical nature, could not be introduced till now, since they would not admit of being inserted in the collection of the particular prophecies of coming judgment, (ch. 21-29). (From Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament)

A. Prophecies Delivered under Zedekiah, and Events of Jehoiakim's Time Ch. 34-36

Ch. 34. Concerning Zedekiah and the Emancipation of the Men- and Maid-Servants This chapter contains two prophecies of the time of the siege of Jerusalem under Zedekiah, of which the:

1. First, (vv. 1-7), announces to the king the fruitlessness of resistance to the power of the Chaldeans;

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2. The second, (vv. 8-22), threatens the princes and people of Judah with severe judgments for annulling the manumission of the Hebrew men- and maid-servants. Both of these utterances belong to the first period of the siege, probably the ninth year of the reign of Zedekiah. (Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament)

Jer 34:1-7 According to (v. 1), the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah when "Nebuchadnezzar and," i.e., with, "his entire host, and all the kingdoms of the land of the dominion of his hand, and all the nations, were fighting against Jerusalem and all her towns." The words are multiplied to represent the strength of the Chaldean army, so as to deepen the impression of overpowering might, against which resistance is vain. The army consists of men drawn from all the kingdoms of the territory he rules, and of all nations. According to (v. 7), the strong towns not yet taken are meant, especially those strongly fortified, Lachish and Azekah in the plain (Josh 15:39, 35), the former of which is shown still under the name Um Lakhis, while the latter is to be sought for in the vicinity of Socho; (see on Josh 10:3, 10, and 2 Chron 11:9). - Jeremiah is to say to the king: (Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament)

Jeremiah 34:5 34:5. funeral fire. These funeral rites were quite elaborate and included the burning of spices as well as a general lamentation and internment in the family tomb. The fire does not imply cremation of the body or an attempt to mask the odors associated with a diseased body, but rather was an expensive display of the king's wealth. The practice is well known among Assyrian kings, where it was used as an apostrophic ritual. (IVP Commentary) 34:5: The promise of a peaceful death for Zedekiah resembles the oracle of the prophetess Huldah to Zedekiah’s father Josiah (2 Kings 22:14-20; 2 Chronicles 34:22-28) and contrasts markedly with Jeremiah’s oracle for Jehoiakim (36:27-31; cf. 22:24-30). Jeremiah (52:7-11 cf. 2 Kings 25:4-7) states that Zedekiah is in a Babylonian prison have seen his sons slaughtered before his own eyes were put out, thus this is likely an unfulfilled prophecy of Jeremiah. It is quite remarkable that such prophecies were preserved. [Jewish Study Bible]

Jeremiah 34:7 34:7. Lachish and Azekah. These two Judean fortresses guarded the Shephelah border and were the last remaining towns to fall to the invading Babylonians. Dominating the Shephelah and western Judah, Lachish served as the center point of the defensive line of the kings of Judah. Located midway between Jerusalem and the Philistine city states, Lachish guarded the major roads from the coast inland. Its site, Tell ed-Dewier, shows evidence of occupation from the Chalcolithic Period, with massive construction of city defenses and an impressive city gate in the Middle Bronze II (as a major Canaanite city) and Iron II (as the western bastion established after the division of the kingdoms; 2 Chron 11:5-10). Despite its commanding position (a tell 150 feet high), the city fell after a siege by the Assyrian king Sennacherib in 701 B.C. (Annals of Sennacherib; for more information see 2 Chron 32:9). Graphic evidence of the ferocity of this siege are found in Assyrian reliefs from the royal palace at Nineveh depicting the events and the remains of a massive siege ramp on the

3 THIS MATERIAL HAS NOT BEEN EDITED FOR SCRIPTURAL ACCURACY, SPELLING, OR GRAMMAR southwest corner of the tell. A mass burial, with approximately fifteen hundred bodies, may also be a result of the fall of the city. The city was rebuilt toward the end of the seventh century, but it never regained the importance it had in Assyrian times. Written records of the Babylonian siege in Jeremiah's time exist in the form of twenty-one ostraca letters that were discovered in a guardroom in the city gate (see next entry). Azekah (Tell Zakariya) stood eleven miles north of Lachish and eighteen miles southwest of Jerusalem. It is only a one-acre site overlooking the Elah Valley, but since it is about thirteen hundred feet above sea level, it has strategic value as a mountain stronghold (mentioned in the Assyrian records of Sargon II). The Lachish Letters mention when Azekah's signal fire went out—a very ominous sign for both Lachish and Jerusalem. 34:7. Lachish Letters. The Lachish Letters consist of twenty-one inscribed pieces of broken pottery (ostraca—only twelve of which are actually letters), found at Tell ed-Duweir in British excavations led by J. L. Starkey between 1932 and 1938. The letters were written in a cursive form of Hebrew with a reed pen and a soot-based black ink. They were found in the remains of the city's guardroom and may have been copies of letters sent to Jerusalem by the commander of the garrison during the invasion of Judah by Nebuchadnezzar in 589-587. The letters reflect the breakdown in military discipline during this time of emergency and describe the negotiation with Egypt to reinforce Judah and the desperate situation of the defenders as they note the extinguishing of the signal fires from neighboring Azekah. (IVP Bible Commentary)

34:7: Lachish and Azekah were fortified Judean cities located respectively 60 km (35 miles) and 25 km (15 miles) southwest of Jerusalem in the Shephelah. [Jewish Study Bible]

Jer 34:1-7 The message in (vv. 4, 5) states more in detail what that was which lay before Zedekiah: he shall fall into the hands of the king of Babylon, be carried into exile in Babylon, yet shall not die a violent death through the sword, but die peacefully, and be buried with honor-not, like Jehoiakim, fall in battle, and be left unmourned and unburied (Jer 22:18 f.). This intimation accords with the notices given elsewhere as to the end of Zedekiah (32:5; 39:5-7). Although Zedekiah died a prisoner in Babylon (Jer 52:11), yet his imprisonment would not necessarily be an obstacle in the way of an honorable burial after the fashion of his fathers. When Jehoiachin, after an imprisonment of thirty-seven years, was raised again to royal honors, then also might there be accorded not merely a tolerably comfortable imprisonment to Zedekiah himself, but to the Jews also, at his death, the permission to bury their king according to their national custom.

Nor is anything to be found elsewhere contrary to this view of the words. The supposition that Zedekiah caused the prophet to be imprisoned on account of this message to him, which (Nägelsbach) has labored hard to reconcile with the common acceptation of the passage, is wholly devoid of foundation in fact, and does not suit the time into which this message falls; For Jeremiah was not imprisoned till after the time when the Chaldeans were obliged for a season to raise the siege, on the approach of the Egyptians, and that, too, not at the command of the king, but by the watchman at the gate, on pretence that he was a deserter. (K & D)

Jer 34:5 [In peace] (See Jer 12:12 note).

[Burn odors] "Make a burning." The burning was probably that of piles of wood, and spices were added only as a special honor. It was not a Jewish custom to burn the dead. As these burnings depended upon the estimation in which the dead king was held, the verse implies a prosperous reign, such as Zedekiah might have had as an obedient vassal to Babylon.

[I have pronounced the word] I have spoken the word. (Barnes’ Notes)

Jer 34:7 This marks the exact time that it was early in the campaign, while the outlying fortresses still occupied the attention of Nebuchadnezzar's army. Lachish and Azekah were strong cities in the plain toward Egypt and must be taken before the Chaldeans could march upon Jerusalem: otherwise the Egyptians might collect there and fall upon them. (Barnes' Notes)

Jer 34:8-22 Bible Text 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 liberty to them: 9 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 And all the princes and all the people obeyed, who had entered into the covenant that everyone would let his manservant and his maidservant go free, so that none should make bondmen of them any more; they obeyed, and let them go. 11 But afterward they turned around and caused the servants and the handmaids whom they had let go free to return [to their former masters] 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 says 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 bondage, saying, 14 At the end of seven years you shall let every man his brother who is a Hebrew go free who has sold himself or has been sold to you and has served you six years; but your fathers did not listen to and obey Me or incline their ear [submitting and consenting to Me]. [Deut 15:12.] 15 And you recently turned around and repented, doing what was right in My sight by proclaiming liberty each one to his neighbor [who was his bond servant]; and you made a covenant or pledge before Me in the house which is called by My Name.

16 But then you turned around and defiled My name; each of you caused to return to you your servants, male and female, whom you had set free as they might desire; and you brought them into subjection again to be your slaves. 17 Therefore thus says the Lord: You have not listened to Me and obeyed Me in proclaiming liberty each one to his brother and neighbor. Behold, I proclaim to you liberty--to the sword, to pestilence, and to famine, says the Lord; and I will make you to be tossed to and fro and to be a horror among all the kingdoms of the earth! 18 And the men who have transgressed My covenant, who have not kept the terms of the covenant or solemn pledge which they had made before Me, I will make them [like] the [sacrificial] calf which they cut in two and then passed between its separated parts [solemnizing their pledge to Me]--I will make those men the calf! [Gen 15:9, 10, 17.]

19 The princes of Judah, the princes of Jerusalem, the eunuchs, the priests, and all the people of the land who passed between the parts of the calf, 20 I will give them into the hands of their 5 THIS MATERIAL HAS NOT BEEN EDITED FOR SCRIPTURAL ACCURACY, SPELLING, OR GRAMMAR enemies and into the hands of those who seek their life. And their dead bodies will be food for the birds of the heavens and the beasts of the earth. 21 And Zedekiah king of Judah and his princes will I give into the hands of their enemies and into the hands of those who seek their life, and into the hand of the king of Babylon's army which has withdrawn from you. 22 Behold, I will command, says the Lord, and cause them [the Chaldeans] to return to this city; and they shall fight against it and take it and burn it with fire. I will make the cities of Judah desolation without inhabitant. AMP

Jeremiah 34:8-11 34:8-11. proclamation of release. Zedekiah's extraordinary proclamation to release all Hebrew debt slaves comes in the period after the beginning of the Babylonian siege of Jerusalem (January 588) and before the Egyptian invasion of Palestine that temporarily ended the siege (summer 588). It is unclear whether the release was simply a way to add to the number of available defenders for the city or was associated in some way with the slave legislation found in Exodus21:2-6, Lev 25:39-55 and Deut 15:2-3. In the ancient Near East the freeing of prisoners (from debtors' prison) as an act of justice often occurred in the first or second year of a new king's reign (and then periodically after that). For example, the Old Babylonian period king Ammisaduqa (seventeenth century B.C.) cancelled economic debts on behalf of Shamash. Thus, the "jubilee" in this case was primarily on behalf of those in debt (for either financial or legal reasons) and debt-slaves. Unlike that of Israel, this Babylonian edict was entirely at the whim of the monarch, and there is no evidence that it was divinely sanctioned. (IVP Bible Background Commentary) [General Information - 34:8-22 the oracle concerning slaves.] This oracle attempts to provide justification for Zedekiah’s punishment by accusing him of reneging on an agreement to release slaves during the siege of Jerusalem. [Jewish Study Bible]

(General Information - Jer 34:8-11) The covenant which Zedekiah concluded with all the people at Jerusalem, according to what follows, consisted in a solemn vow made before the Lord in the temple, probably confirmed by sacrifices, to set free the male and female slaves of Hebrew descent, in conformity with the law, (Ex 21:1-4; Deut 15:12). The law required the gratuitous manumission of these after seven years of service. This time, indeed, is not mentioned in our verses, but it is assumed as well known through the law. But, in the general departure of the people from the Lord and His commandments, the observance of this law had probably long been intermitted, so that, in consequence of the solemn engagement to obey it once more, a great number of Hebrew male and female slaves received their freedom, inasmuch as very many had served longer than seven years; however, we need not suppose that all bond men and women were liberated at once.

The resolution, v. 9, that every one should liberate his Hebrew man- or maid-servant, and that no one should continue to impose servitude on a Jew, his brother, i.e., compel him any longer to serve as a slave, is conditioned by the law, which is assumed as well known: this also accords with the expression `abaad-baam lªbilªtiy, which is used in a general way of the treatment of Hebrew men- and maid-servants, (Lev 25:39). However, it is also possible that a liberation of all bond men and women took place without regard to the duration of their servitude, partly for the purpose of averting, by such obedience to the law, the calamity now threatening the city, and partly also to employ the liberated slaves in the defence of the city; for, according to (v. 21 f.),

6 THIS MATERIAL HAS NOT BEEN EDITED FOR SCRIPTURAL ACCURACY, SPELLING, OR GRAMMAR the emancipation took place during the siege of Jerusalem, and after the departure of the Chaldeans the solemn promise was revoked. (Keil & Delitzsch Commentary)

Jer 34:8-22 It is usual with commentators to say that, the laws dealing with the emancipation of the Hebrew slaves, as also that of the land resting during the sabbatical year, were not observed. The narrative teaches us the exact contrary. The manumission of the slaves on the present occasion was the spontaneous act of Zedekiah and the people. They knew of the law, and acknowledged its obligation. The observance of it was, no doubt, lax: the majority let their own selfish interests prevail; but the minority made might give way to right, and Zedekiah supported their efforts though only in a weak way. Early in January, in the ninth year of Zedekiah, the Chaldaean army approached Jerusalem.

The people made a covenant with the king, who appears as the abettor of the measure, to let their slaves go free. Possibly patriotism had its share in this: and as Jerusalem was strongly fortified, all classes possibly hoped that if the slaves were manumitted, they too would labor with a more hearty good-will in resisting the enemy. In the summer of the same year the Egyptians advanced to the rescue, and Nebuchadnezzar withdrew to meet their attack.

The Jews with a strange levity, which sets them before us in a most despicable light, at once forced the manumitted slaves back into bondage. With noble indignation Jeremiah rebukes them for their treachery, assures them that the Chaldaean army will return, and warns them of the certainty of the punishment which they so richly merited. (Barnes’ Notes)

Verse 8 As the Chaldaean army swept over the country the wealthier classes would all flee to Jerusalem, taking with them their households. And as the Mosaic Law was probably more carefully kept there than in the country, the presence in these families of slaves who had grown grey in service may have given offence to the stricter classes at the capital. (Barnes' Notes)

Jeremiah 34:14 34:14. sabbatical year release. See the comments on Ex 21:2-6; Lev 25:39-55; and Deut 15:2- 3. Each of these passages deal with the matter of releasing slaves either in the seventh year or during the Jubilee year. (IVP Bible Background Commentary) 34:14 According to the slave laws of (Deuteronomy 15:1-18; Exodus 21:1-11 cf. Leviticus 25:39-55), a person could become a slave to repay a debt. The laws specify six years as the period of time for such service. A man goes free in the seventh year, unless he formally and publicly declares his willingness to remain a slave forever (the laws for women differ between the two texts). According to (Leviticus Chapter 25), a “release” or “jubilee” is proclaimed ever fiftieth year (seven weeks of years) so that property that was sold to pay a debt reverts to its original owner (the sale actually functions as a sort of loan in which the creditor gains use of the property for the specified period of time).

This text in Jeremiah generally follows the law as it appears in (Deuteronomy Chapter 15), which is not surprising given the affinities of Jeremiah to Deuteronomy. The Deuteronomy text, however, seems to suggest that the slave is released at the beginning of the seventh year of service, while Jeremiah seems to understand this, perhaps based on the broader context of

(Deuteronomy Chapter 15 see especially verses 1-6), as meaning that all slaves are released at each sabbatical (seventh) year. [Jewish Study Bible]

34:15-16 Perhaps Zedekiah entered into an agreement to declare a release for all slaves in the city, so that they would be free to participate in Jerusalem’s defense, and when the Babylonians lifted the siege of the city to fight a relief force sent by Egypt (see Chapter 37), Zedekiah and the creditors reneged, forcing those freed to return to their slave status. [Jewish Study Bible]

Jer 34:12-22 Verse 13-16. In (vv. 13-16) the Lord sets before the people and their rulers their new offence; in (vv. 17-22) He announces to them the punishment for this new deed by which the covenant is broken. In order to place the transgression in its proper light, He mentions, first of all, that, when He led Israel out of Egypt, He concluded with them a covenant to the effect that every one of them should set free his Hebrew servant at the end of seven years; He also mentions that their fathers had transgressed this covenant (vv. 13, 14). The designation of Egypt as a house of bondmen, as in (Ex 13:3, 14; 20:2; Deut 6:12, etc.), possesses a special emphasis, and points to what is mentioned in (Deut 15:15) as the motive for obeying the law referred to in the address. Because Israel was a servant in Egypt, and the Lord has redeemed him out of this house of bondmen, therefore must they not treat as slaves their brethren who had fallen into poverty, but set them free after six years of service. (Keil & Delitzsch Commentary)

The expression "at the end (after the lapse) of seven years" is to be understood in the same way as the expression "after eight days." As this just means "when seven days are completed," so also, according to the law, (Ex 21:2; Deut 15:12), the emancipation was to follow in the seventh year, after six full years of service. "Who sold himself to thee" is an expression copied from (Deut 15:12.) – From this sin of their fathers they had now for a little turned away, and, in a solemn covenant, resolved to free the bondmen, as the law decreed (v. 15); but they have immediately profaned the name of the Lord again by revoking this decree, viz., by breaking the covenant made before God. lªnapªshaam (OT: 5315), "according to their pleasure," like lªnapªshaah (OT: 5315), (Deut 21:14). (Keil & Delitzsch Commentary)

34:18. cutting a calf in two. The ritual of severing an animal body as part of a covenant- making ceremony is found only here and in Gen 15:9-10 (see the comment on this passage). Ancient Near Eastern parallels from the Old Babylonian Mari letters and the eighth-century Aramaic text of the Sefire Treaty between Abban and Yarimlim both describe cutting an animal in two. The symbolic aspect of this type of sacrifice is to provide a graphic picture of what would happen to the covenant-breaker. When the landowners of Judah took back their debt slaves after the Egyptian invasion had temporarily lifted the siege of Jerusalem, they broke their solemn oath to Yahweh and laid themselves open to horrendous punishment. 34:21. Babylonian withdrawal. The Egyptian pharaoh Psammeticus II had spent much of his reign attempting to regain the territory in Phoenicia and Palestine that Nebuchadnezzar had taken away from his predecessor Necho II. Judah relied heavily on Egyptian promises of aid in return for rebellion against the Babylonians (as noted in the Lachish Letters). Their hopes and the hopes of the Judean exiles were seemingly answered when Pharaoh Apries (who had succeeded to the throne in 589) finally invaded southern Palestine in early summer 588 (see Ezek 30:20-26). This, plus an Egyptian fleet that sailed to Tyre and quickly took control there (mentioned by the Greek historian Herodotus), forced Nebuchadnezzar to withdraw from

Jerusalem. The Egyptians, however, were quickly defeated (possibly near Gaza), and the siege resumed by late summer 588. (IVP Bible Background Commentary: Old Testament) 34:18 Jeremiah cites the practice of passing between the halves of a slaughtered calf to make (literally “cut”) a covenant. The practice is attested in the Bible (Genesis 15:7-21) and in ancient Near Eastern treaties. The parties to an agreement pass between the two halves of slaughtered animals that represent what will happen to them if they violate the terms of the agreement. The practice functions as a formal ratification of an agreement. [Jewish Study Bible]

34:21 Because Zedekiah violated the covenant or agreement that he had made, Jeremiah contends that he is now subject to punishment at the hands of the Babylonians (Jeremiah 34:8- 22; 33:35, 26 is the haftarah for the parashah of Mishpatim (Exodus 21:1-24, 18), which contains the first collection of law from Sinai, beginning with the slave law. [Jewish Study Bible]

Verse 17-18. The announcement of punishment. Because ye have not hearkened, by proclaiming, every one, liberty to his bondman (this certainly had been done, but was again undone by annulling the decree), therefore I proclaim liberty for you; i.e., you, who have hitherto been my servants (Lev 25:55), I discharge from this relation-deliver you up to your fate as regards the sword, etc., that the sword, famine, and pestilence may have power over you. From (v. 18) we see that, when alliances were entered into, the contracting parties slaughtered an, "calf," i.e., a young bullock, cut it in two halves, and went through between the pieces that were placed opposite one another.

(See on Gen 15:10) for details regarding this most ancient custom and its meaning: according to the account of (Ephraem Syrus), it is of Chaldean origin. Thus are explained the phrases used to signify the making of a covenant. bªriyt (OT: 1285) kaarat (OT: 3772), to cut a covenant.

Verse 19-22. (Vv. 19-22) give the real explanation of the threatening attached to the ritual of the covenant. Princes, officers of the court, priests and people, who have transgressed the covenant, shall die by the hand of the enemy, and perish ignominiously. On (v. 20 b, cf. Jer 7:33; 16:4, etc). On caariyciym (OT: 5631) [to castrate, eunuch] see on (Gen 37:36). King Zedekiah also, with his princes, his retinue, shall fall into the hand of his enemies, into the hands of the Chaldeans, who have now withdrawn from Jerusalem (on mee`al (OT: 5921) [above, over, upon or against] `aalaah (OT: 5927) [to ascend, arise] (see on Jer 21:2). (See also 37:5-8). (From Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament)

“…he may go up from us.” Jeremiah 21:2

Jeremiah 34:21 Superficial repentance In liberating their slaves under the influence of terror, and reclaiming them when the cause of alarm had disappeared, the Jews afford a striking instance of superficial repentance. This must be distinguished from an insincere repentance referred to in an earlier prophecy (Jer 3:10). That is nothing but a hollow mockery from the first, a mere pretence of conscious hypocrisy; but this is genuine so far as it goes - only it goes but a very little way.

I. THE CAUSE OF SUPERFICIAL REPENTANCE IS FEAR OF PAINFUL CONSEQUENCES. When the invader was at their gates Zedekiah and his people were so terrified that they were willing to do and promise anything that would mitigate the wrath of God who had permitted the calamity to visit them for their sins. Fear was the sole motive of their hasty covenant of emancipation. II. Now, this may be a useful initiative of a thorough repentance; but then it must lead to deeper feelings of hearty detestation of sin on its own account. Fear of penalties, without any abhorrence of the moral evil that merits them can only produce superficial results. Earnest repentance involves a turning from sin rather than a flight from its penalties. III. Hence the importance of seeking to lead men to repentance through influencing the conscience, rather than by means of mere appeals to selfish terror. Thus St, Paul reasoned with Felix "of righteousness and temperance" as well as of "judgment to come" (Acts 24:25). IV. Lurid pictures of the horrors of hell may work upon the feelings, of people with visible effect, but if these take the place of the far more difficult rousing of the moral sense, the effect of them will be very superficial and not all spiritual. Such a sensational style of preaching is tempting because it is easy, and apparently very effective, but its fruits are disappointing, and come short of the less pretentious efforts that aim at awakening the conscience. THE CHARACTERISTIC OF SUPERFICIAL REPENTANCE IS CHANGE OF CONDUCT WITHOUT CHANGE OF HEART. That was no genuine reformation which Zedekiah hurried through in the face of imminent danger. True, the slaves were freed and the Law was obeyed. But there was no indication of a revived respect for the Law, or of a lessening of greed and cruelty, nor of a larger recognition of the rights of fellow citizens. There was no change of heart, in fact. Such is the result of a repentance of fear without conviction of conscience. This reformation is worthless in the sight of God, who looks at the disposition of the heart.

THE EFFECT OF SUPERFICIAL REPENTANCE IS A TEMPORARY REFORMATION. As soon as Nebuchadnezzar withdrew his army, the Jews renounced their covenant and took back their slaves. The motive for the change was gone, and with it the change ceased. A repentance of terror is not likely to outlive the terror. The fears of the night are forgotten in the thoughtless confidence of the day. This is strikingly illustrated in the vacillation of Pharaoh - willing to let the Hebrews go while a plague was raging, but withdrawing his promise as soon as it was stayed. Therefore this superficial repentance is practically worthless. Nothing can be solid and enduring in life that does not spring from personal conviction and true feeling. We need a real desire to turn from sin, and a determination to seek a better life for its own sake, in order to secure a lasting change. For this we must seek Divine grace, in order that we may be "born from above." (From The Pulpit Commentary)