After King Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people in Jerusalem to proclaim liberty, the word came to Jeremiah from the LORD
Parallel translations
- WEB The word came to Jeremiah from Yahweh, after king Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people who were at Jerusalem, to proclaim liberty to them;
- KJV 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;
- NKJV 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:
- NASB The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord after King Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people who were in Jerusalem, to proclaim release to them:
- NLT This message came to Jeremiah from the Lord after King Zedekiah made a covenant with the people, proclaiming freedom for the slaves.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
A word comes to Jeremiah after Zedekiah and the people made a covenant to free their Hebrew slaves. It introduces an account of broken promises.
Overview
Under the pressure of the siege, the king led the people to proclaim liberty for enslaved fellow Israelites, an act of covenant obedience. This sets up a sobering example of repentance that proved short-lived. The episode tests whether the people will truly obey God's law concerning their brothers.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 16
- Lev 25:10So you are to consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim liberty in the land for all its inhabitants. It shall be your Jubilee, when each of you is to return to his property and to his clan.
- 2 Kgs 23:2–3And he went up to the house of the LORD with all the people of Judah and Jerusalem, as well as the priests and the prophets—all the people small and great—and in their hearing he read all the words of the Book of the Covenant that had been found in the house of the LORD.
- 2 Kgs 11:17Then Jehoiada made a covenant between the LORD and the king and the people that they would be the LORD’s people. He also made a covenant between the king and the people.
- Jer 34:17Therefore this is what the LORD says: You have not obeyed Me; you have not proclaimed freedom, each man for his brother and for his neighbor. So now I proclaim freedom for you, declares the LORD—freedom to fall by sword, by plague, and by famine! I will make you a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth.
- Neh 5:1–13About that time there was a great outcry from the people and their wives against their fellow Jews.
- Isa 61:1The Spirit of the Lord GOD is on Me, because the LORD has anointed Me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent Me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and freedom to the prisoners,
- Lev 25:39–46If a countryman among you becomes destitute and sells himself to you, then you must not force him into slave labor.
- 2 Chr 34:30–33And he went up to the house of the LORD with all the people of Judah and Jerusalem, as well as the priests and the Levites—all the people small and great—and in their hearing he read all the words of the Book of the Covenant that had been found in the house of the LORD.
- 2 Chr 15:12–15Then they entered into a covenant to seek the LORD, the God of their fathers, with all their heart and soul.
- Deut 15:12If a fellow Hebrew, a man or a woman, is sold to you and serves you six years, then in the seventh year you must set him free.
- 2 Chr 29:10Now it is in my heart to make a covenant with the LORD, the God of Israel, so that His fierce anger will turn away from us.
- Jer 34:14–15Every seventh year, each of you must free his Hebrew brother who has sold himself to you. He may serve you six years, but then you must let him go free. But your fathers did not listen or incline their ear.
- Neh 9:38In view of all this, we make a binding agreement, putting it in writing and sealing it with the names of our leaders, Levites, and priests.”
- Exod 23:10–11For six years you are to sow your land and gather its produce,
- Exod 21:2–4If you buy a Hebrew servant, he is to serve you for six years. But in the seventh year, he shall go free without paying anything.
- 2 Chr 23:16Then Jehoiada made a covenant between himself and the king and the people that they would be the LORD’s people.
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Christ at the center
Against the failure of false shepherds Jeremiah promises the Righteous Branch, 'The LORD our righteousness,' and the new covenant written on the heart and sealed in the blood of Christ.
How Jeremiah 34:8 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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