Jeremiah 34:11
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Their "turning around" wasn't just a change of mind, but a reversal of a righteous act, meaning they actively made their freed people return into bondage, not just passively let it happen. This highlights their deliberate cruelty, undoing the very freedom they had just proclaimed.
But afterward they turned around and took back the male and female slaves they had set free, and brought them into subjection as slaves.
English Standard Version (ESV)
King Zedekiah and the people of Jerusalem had made a solemn covenant to set their Hebrew slaves free, a move that seemed like a step towards obedience. However, shortly after this agreement, they shockingly reversed their decision, forcing the very people they had just liberated back into servitude. This betrayal of their word and God's law ignited God's judgment, as detailed in the verses that follow.
They proclaimed liberty, even making a solemn covenant before God. But their actions quickly revealed a different heart.
Jeremiah 34:8-11 shows a community making a public, covenantal promise to free their enslaved people. This wasn't just a civil agreement; it was done "before me in the house which is called by my name" (v. 15). This covenant was meant to align them with God's law and character. However, their obedience was superficial and temporary. As soon as the immediate pressure of the siege eased (indicated by the context in vv. 21-22 and external historical events), they 'turned around' (v. 11) and forced those they had freed back into bondage. This wasn't just a broken promise; it was a profound betrayal of their covenant with God, showing their actions were driven by circumstance rather than genuine conviction.
It wasn't just about the slaves; their actions deeply insulted the God they claimed to serve. How does freedom become a tool for oppression?
Calvin points out that their violation of the covenant didn't just harm their fellow Israelites; it 'profaned my name' (v. 16). By making a solemn vow to uphold God's law regarding freedom and then breaking it, they demonstrated a profound disrespect for God's holiness and authority. This act suggested that God's name and covenant were merely tools to be used for their own convenience, not the ultimate standard for their lives. The 'liberty' they proclaimed was then twisted into a means to re-establish their own power and control, a perversion of true freedom that God intends. Their hypocrisy turned a potentially righteous act into a grievous sin against God himself.
Ask a follow-up
When a society breaks faith with God and its people, what kind of 'liberty' does God proclaim in return?
The consequence for breaking this covenant was severe. God, through Jeremiah, declares that because they refused to 'proclaim liberty' to their people, He would proclaim a liberty for them – a liberty to the sword, pestilence, and famine (v. 17). This is a powerful, ironic judgment. They treated their fellow humans as mere possessions, denying them the freedom God ordained. In response, God would 'free' them from their homes and kingdoms, scattering them to be consumed by destruction. This 'liberty' signifies not liberation, but a terrible, uncontrolled release into judgment, emphasizing that God takes covenant-breaking and oppression very seriously.
This event highlights a critical moment where a covenant, made under duress and with a hopeful reformation, was quickly abandoned when perceived danger receded. It underscores how shallow repentance, driven by fear rather than genuine change, inevitably leads to harsher judgment.
Late 8th - Early 6th century BC
Disregard of Hebrew Law on Servant Release
For generations, the people of Judah had largely ignored the Law of Moses requiring the release of Hebrew servants after six years of service, a covenant established by God when He brought Israel out of slavery in Egypt.
c. 589-588 BC— this verse
Zedekiah's Covenant of Release
King Zedekiah, likely prompted by Jeremiah's prophecy and under pressure from an invading Babylonian army, made a covenant with the people of Jerusalem to proclaim liberty for all Hebrew slaves, intending to obey God's law.
During the Siege of Jerusalem
Siege Interrupted by Egyptian Army
The Babylonian siege of Jerusalem was temporarily lifted when a relief army from Egypt approached, creating a window of opportunity and perceived safety for the city's inhabitants.
During the Siege of Jerusalem
Recalls of Freed Slaves
Taking advantage of the perceived reprieve from the siege, the people of Jerusalem broke their covenant, forcibly returning the male and female slaves they had set free back into servitude.
During the Siege of Jerusalem
Jeremiah's Prophecy of Judgment
In response to the broken covenant and the re-enslavement of freed people, God sent Jeremiah to prophesy judgment upon Judah, declaring that liberty would be proclaimed to them by the sword, pestilence, and famine.
c. 586 BC
Fall of Jerusalem
The Babylonians returned, breached Jerusalem's walls, and destroyed the city and its temple, fulfilling God's judgment upon Judah for their disobedience and broken covenants.
This passage outlines the original law regarding Hebrew servants, establishing a framework for limited servitude that Jeremiah's people had failed to uphold and later violated after a temporary observance.
Deuteronomy 15:12This verse reiterates the law of releasing Hebrew servants after a set period, highlighting the principle of liberty that the people of Jerusalem had initially proclaimed but then rescinded.
Nehemiah 5:1-5This passage shows a similar pattern of oppression and violation of covenant rights, where the people cry out against their leaders for exploiting them and enslaving their children, mirroring the betrayal seen in Jeremiah's time.
Luke 12:47-48Jesus' teaching here on accountability connects to Jeremiah's message, emphasizing that those who know God's will and His covenant but deliberately disobey will face greater judgment, a principle starkly illustrated by the people's betrayal of their freed slaves.
Philemon 1:15-16This New Testament passage offers a contrast, where a runaway slave is returned not to further subjugation but with the plea for him to be received as a brother in Christ, highlighting a more profound freedom found in Christ that transcends earthly servitude.
calvinJeremiah 34:8-17: "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;"
Ut dimitteret quisque servum suum, et quisque ancillam suam (vir, vir, ad verbum, sed significat quisque indefinite) Hebraeum vel Hebraeum liberos, ut ne ultra servirent ipsis (vel, transitive, ut alii malunt et bene quadrat, ut non haberent cos servos) inter Judaeos vir fratrem suum.
Now…
pooleJeremiah 34:11: "But afterward 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 handmaids."
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 the courts of justice ought to have executed the law o…
Their "turning around" wasn't just a change of mind, but a reversal of a righteous act, meaning they actively made their freed people return into bondage, not just passively let it happen. This highlights their deliberate cruelty, undoing the very freedom they had just proclaimed.
King Zedekiah and the people of Jerusalem had made a solemn covenant to set their Hebrew slaves free, a move that seemed like a step towards obedience. However, shortly after this agreement, they shockingly reversed their decision, forcing the very people they had just liberated back into servitude. This betrayal of their word and God's law ignited God's judgment, as detailed in the verses that follow.
King Zedekiah and the people of Jerusalem had made a solemn covenant to set their Hebrew slaves free, a move that seemed like a step towards obedience. However, shortly after this agreement, they shockingly reversed their decision, forcing the very people they had just liberated back into servitude. This betrayal of their word and God's law ignited God's judgment, as detailed in the verses that follow.
"But afterward they turned around and took back the male and female slaves they had set free, and brought them into subjection as slaves." — Their "turning around" wasn't just a change of mind, but a reversal of a righteous act, meaning they actively made their freed people return into bondage, not just passively let it happen. This h…
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Last reviewed October 2026
