Jeremiah 34:17-22

17 Therefore the Lord saith these things, Ye heard not me, that ye preached freedom, each man to his brother, and each man to his friend; lo! (so now) I preach to you freedom, saith the Lord, and to sword, and to hunger, and to pestilence; and I shall give you into stirring to all realms of (the) earth. (And so the Lord saith these things, Ye did not listen to me, ye who proclaimed freedom, each person to their brother, and each person to their friend; so now lo! I proclaim freedom to you, saith the Lord, yea, freedom to the sword, and to hunger, and to pestilence; and I shall give you into stirring, or into loathing, by all the kingdoms of the earth.)
18 And I shall give the men, that brake my bond of peace, and kept not the words of [the] bond of peace, to which they assented in my sight, and kept not the calf which they cutted into two parts; (And I shall make those who broke my covenant, and did not keep, or obey, the words of the covenant, to which they assented before me, to become like the calf which they cut into two parts;)
19 and (they be) the princes of Judah, and the princes of Jerusalem, and the honest (and chaste) servants, and priests (that) went between the partings thereof, and all the people of the land, that went between the partings of the calf; (and these be the leaders of Judah, and the leaders of Jerusalem, and the eunuchs, and the priests who went between its parts, and all the people of the land, who went between the parts of the calf;)
20 and I shall give them into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of them that seek their life; and the dead carrion of them shall be into meat to the volatiles of the air, and to the beasts of (the) earth. (and I shall give them into the hands, or into the power, of their enemies, and into the hands of those who seek their life; and their dead bodies shall be food for the birds of the air, and for the beasts of the earth.)
21 And I shall give Zedekiah, the king of Judah, and his princes, into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of them that seek their life, and into the hand of the hosts of the king of Babylon, that went away from you. (And I shall give Zedekiah, the king of Judah, and his leaders, into the hands of their enemies, and into the hands of those who seek their lives, and into the hands of the army of the king of Babylon, that went away from you.)
22 Lo! I command, saith the Lord, and I shall bring them again into this city; and they shall fight against it, and shall take it, and shall burn it with fire; and I shall give the cities of Judah into wilderness, for there is no dweller. (Lo! I command, saith the Lord, and I shall bring them again into this city; and they shall fight against it, and shall take it, and they shall burn it down; and I shall make the cities of Judah like a wilderness, or like a desert, where there be no inhabitants.)

Jeremiah 34:17-22 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO JEREMIAH 34

In this chapter is a prophecy of the taking and burning of Jerusalem; of the captivity of Zedekiah king of Judah; and of the destruction of the whole land, because of their breach of covenant to let servants go free. The time of this prophecy is observed, Jer 34:1,6,7; the taking and burning of the city, Jer 34:2; the carrying captive the king, who yet should not die a violent death, but in peace, and should have an honourable funeral, Jer 34:3-5; the covenant the king, princes, and people entered into, to let their servants go free, according to the law of God, which was at first observed, and afterwards retracted, Jer 34:8-11; which conduct is taken notice of and resented, Jer 34:13-16; and they are threatened with the sore judgments of God, sword, famine, pestilence, and captivity, the king, princes, priests, and people; and with the destruction, not on of Jerusalem, but of the rest of the cities of Judah, Jer 34:17-22.

Copyright © 2001 by Terence P. Noble. For personal use only.