Jeremiah 34

THE word which came unto Jeremiah from the LORD The Revelation of the will of God to Ieremiah to be published to the people, during the time of the siege. The seven first verses are plainly prophesie from that in the latter part of the chapter. I as (as some think) for this prophesie that the Prophet was imprisoned (for in this prophesie the Sermons are much disordered in the placing of them) so as this prophesie showing the cause for which the King imprisoned him, is set after others, chap. 32. which were during the time of his imprisonment., (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,

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 will give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire.

And thou shalt not escape out of his hands, 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 We had all this chap. 32.3, 4. see the notes there..

Yet hear the word of the LORD, O Zedekiah king of Judah, Thus says the LORD of thee, Thou shalt not dye by the sword;

But thou shalt die in peace This only place informeth us concerning the manner of Zedekiahs Death, and that both negatively and positively. Negatively, That he did not dye by the Sword, the King of Babylon took him, killed his Sons before his Eyes, then put out his Eyes, and bound him in chains, chap. 39.7. but killed him not, as we learn from this Text, but he died a natural death, which is here meant by dying 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 says the LORD and had an honourable burial, which the King of Babylon would not allow Ieh jachim, as we read chap, 22.18. he was buried with the burial of an Ass, and his Body was cast out of the gates of Ierusalem, and no man lamented for him; but as to Zedekiah they burned sweet odors for him, (after the manner of the burial of Kings 2 Chron. 16.14.) and made solemn Lamentation for him. The Jews in their Chronology, called by them Seder Olam, give us the form of their Lamentation thus. Alas! Zedekiah is dead, who drank the dregs of all ages, That is, who was punished for the sins of all former ages..

Then Jeremiah the prophet spake all these words unto Zedekiah king of Judah in Jerusalem.

When the king of Babylons army fought against Jerusalem, an against all the cities of Judah that were left, against Lachish, and against Azekah; for these defenced cities remained of the cities of Judah The Prophet was not afraid to go and do the message God had intrusted him with to the King, upon which he was imprisoned as we read before chap. 32.3. the time it should seem was after that the King of Babylon had invaded the Country, and taken the greatest part of it; only three fortified places remained, which he was besieging. viz. Ierusalem, which was the chief City of that Countrey, and Lachish of the conquest of which we read, Ios. 10.31. disposed of to the Tribe of Iudah. Ioh. 15.39. and Azekah, which was a City of Iudah, of which we read in the same chapters..

¶ 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 This verse plainly beginneth a new Prophesie, but at what particular time, this Revelation, or the publication of it was, we are not told only the occasion of it is recorded. God had made a particular Law respecting the Jewish Nation. That if any had bought an Hebrew servant, he should serve but six years, and in the seventh should go out free, Exod. 21.2. Deut. 15.12. It came into Zedekiahs mind to make a Proclamation for the execution of this Law, what moved him to it we have not recorded. The learned Author of the English Annotations, observeth well that it was their usual course when they were in some great straits to make some partial Reformation, Iud. 10.15, 16. Psal. 78.34, 35. Hos. 6.1..

That every man should let his man-servant, and every man his maid-servant being an Hebrew, or an Hebrewess go free, that none should serve himself of them, to wit, of a Jew his brother This was the tenour of Gods Law mentioned in the above-named Texts, and it seemeth Zedekiah taking notice of the common violation of this Law, and the Jews ordinary oppressing those of their own nation this way, judging that this might be one of those sins for which the wrath of God was at this time kindled against them, he caused the people to make a Covenant, that they would give that liberty to their Servants of either Sex, which the Law of God required of which he made Proclamation..

Now when all the princes, and all the people which had entred into the covenant heard that every one should let his man-servant, and every one his maid-servant go free, that none should serve themselves of them any more, then they obeyed and let them go The Princes and the people, having first with the King agreed to the thing, upon the issu ng out of his Proclamation, they at first yielded obedience to it..

But afterwards 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 hand-maids Like a company of wretched hypocrites they reformed this abuse, only to serve a turn which when it was served, they returned again to their old oppression, and in this thing not the people alone, but the Government was to be blamed for their Judges in their Courts of Justice, ought to have executed the Law of the Lord, and to have restrained the covetous and oppressive humour of the people. The learned Author of the English Annotations thinketh that that which altered their minds, was a little alteration of their state, during the siege for chap. 37.5. we read that the Babylonians and Caldeans hearing of an army coming out of Egypt, to relieve the City, lest the siege for a time, and that the Prophet, ver. 21. of this chapter relates to that, when he prophesied, that the King of Babylons Army should return. But these wretched men, seeing the Babylonian Army raised from the siege, concluded they were now out of Gods hands, and repented of their Repentance in this particular, and would make all their servants return into their former servitude..

¶ Therefore the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,

Thus says the LORD the God of Israel, I made a covenant The Law of God is called often a Covenant, because it containeth the will of God which he would have them do to which (whether they express their consent or no) they are bound to consent, and agree. But to the Iewes all Gods Lawes given on Mount Sinai were a formal explicit Covenant, God explicitly telling them what he would have them to do, and they as explicitly promising they would do it, Exod. 24.3. with your fathers, in the day that I brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondmen It was a double aggravation of their sin, that this Covenant was made betwixt God, and them in consideration of his kindness in bringing them out of Egypt, and from the consideration that they were bondmen in Egypt, and so ought to have taught them the hearts of Bondmen, so as they should have compassionated them whom they kept in the like distress in which they had been themselves, and from which God had delivered them. We stand concerned to remember the Vowes we make to God in our distress, for God will not forget them, Gen. 35.1. as also to compassionate them, who fall into the same distresses that we have been in, and out of which God has saved us, God expecteth that we should show the same compassion to others, Math. 18.33., saying,

At the end of seven years, let ye go every man his brother an Hebrew, which has been sold unto thee; and when he has served thee six years, thou shalt let him go free from thee This is but a Repetition of the Law, Exod 21., Deut. 15.12. which concerned such persons as were sold by others, or had sold themselves, God would not have his People take advantage of the sudden and rash acts of their brethren, which were the effects of passion.: but your fathers hearkned not unto me, neither inclined their ear Notwithstanding this law the Iews who were always a very covetous griping people, did otherwise..

And ye were now turned That is, reformed in this particular, in which you had done the thing which I commanded you, proclaiming a liberty to your Servants., and had done right in my sight, in proclaiming liberty every man to his neighbour p, and ye had made a covenant before me in the house which is called by my name And you made a Covenant in my Presence to that purpose, and that in the Temple, where it seemeth this Covenant was made..

But ye turned, and polluted my name You again licked up your vomit, and pro aned my name, swearing by it to do that which you have not done, and orced your servants, though dismissed, to return again unto their former bondage and subjection to you., 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 s.

Therefore thus says the LORD, Ye have not hearkened unto me in proclaiming liberty every one to his brother, and every man to his neighbour They had turned and given a liberty, ver. 20. how does God say here they had not? So God accounteth none to have done those good acts, which they do in a fit, or merely to serve themselves of God; he says, they had not done it, because they did not persist to do it, in such a case mens Righteousness shall by God never be remembred, but they shall dye in the sins they have committed.: behold, I proclaim a liberty for you, says the LORD, to the sword, and to the pestilence, and to the famine, and I will make you to be removed, into all the kingdoms of the earth Seeing you have refused to manumise your Servants at my command, I will manumise you, and set you free from my Protection and care. You shall perish by the Sword, Famine and Pestilence, and those of you who escape them, shall see how pleasant a thing it is to be Slaves, and in servitude, for you shall be dispersed in many Nations; and be servants to the Rulers of them..

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 This was a Ceremony which they used in making of Covenants, not without something of a warrant from a Divine President, Gen. 15.9, 10. it is said ver. 19. That same day the Lord made a Covenant with Abraham (that Covenant was a promise that Abrahams seed should possess the land of Canaan) ver. 8. Abraham said unto God whereby shall I know that I shall inherit it, ver. 9. God bids him take an hei er of three years old, and a she goat of three years old, and a ram of three years old, &c. ver. 10. it is said, that he took them, and divided them in the midst, and laid each piece one against another. Indeed we read nothing there of the Parties covenanting, passing betwixt the parts of the Beasts so divided, but this was afterwards used in making Covenants betwixt men, which had in it a secret imprecation or wishing that they might be cut in pieces like those Beasts, if they did not keep the Covenants which they made. It should seem that these Iews in the making of their solemn Promise or Covenant with God about releasing their Servants used this rite; they cause a calf, or heifer to be cut in pieces, and the parts to be laid in the Temple right over one another, then they recited this Covenant, and in the way of a solemn promise, or confirmation of their resolution to make their promise good, they passed betwixt the parts of the Calf, or Heifer so cut, silently agreeing that God should cut them in pieces like that Beast if they did not make their words good. Hence is the Heb. phrase of cutting a covenant, for making it. This was a Ceremony ordinarily used also amongst the Heathens, as we are informed by Cicero, Li y, and others.,

The princes of Judah, and the princes of Jerusalem, the eunuchs, and the priests, and all the people of the land, which passed betwixt the parts of the calf.

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 fowles of the heaven, and to the beasts of the earth God does not threaten all the Iews, but those only, who had made this Covenant, and formally confirmed it, by killing a Beast, and passing through the parts of it thus divided, and laid opposite one to another. Of these he spareth none but threatens both the King and Nobles and great Courtiers, as well as the People. That he would give them into the hand of their Enemies that thirsted after their blood, they should be slain, and their dead bodies should not be buried. Herein the Righteousness of God appeared, by doing to them as they desired (by passing betwixt the Calf) that God would do in case they did not keep to the promise they had made, and called God to witness, and challenging him to destroy them if they did not fulfil what they covenanted for..

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 Babylons army which are gone up from you Here is nothing in this Verse, but what was said before, save only in the last clause, where mention is made of the King of Babylons Army which was gone up from them, the occasion of which we shall meet with chap. 37.5. because there was an Army came out of Egypt to assist the Iews..

Behold, I will command, says the LORD, and cause them to return to this city I will put it into their hearts to return says the Lord, and they shall come back again to the siege, and shall rise up no more till they have taken the City and burned it with fire, and made the whole country desolate. The motions of Armies are under the Government of Divine Providence, they are at Gods command; when he bids them come they come, what he bids them do they do, and shall certainly effect what God has determined. When we come to chap. 39. we shall read of the fulfilling of this Prophecy., 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.