Jeremiah 34

1 The word which came unto Jeremiah from the Lord, when Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, and all his army, and all the kingdoms of the country ruled by his power, and all the people, fought against Jerusalem, and against all its cities, saying,

The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, when Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, and his entire army, and all the kingdoms of the earth that were under the authority of his hand, and all the people were making war against Jerusalem and against all of its cities, saying:

2 Thus hath said the Lord, the God of Israel, Go and speak to Zedekiah the king of Judah, and say to him, Thus hath said the Lord, Behold, I will give up this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, that he may burn it with fire:

“Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Go, and speak to Zedekiah, the king of Judah. And you shall say to him: Thus says the Lord: Behold, I will deliver this city into the hands of the king of Babylon, and he will burn it with fire.

3 And thou thyself shalt not escape out of his hand; but thou shalt surely be caught, and be delivered into his hand; and thy eyes shall see the eyes of the king of Babylon, and his mouth shall speak with thy mouth, and to Babylon shalt thou go.

And you will not escape from his hand. Instead, you will be overtaken and captured, and you will be delivered into his hand. And your eyes will see the eyes of the king of Babylon, and his mouth will speak with your mouth, and you will enter into Babylon.

4 Yet hear the word of the Lord, O Zedekiah king of Judah, Thus hath said the Lord respecting thee, Thou shalt not die by the sword:

Even so, listen to the word of the Lord, Zedekiah, king of Judah: Thus says the Lord to you: You will not die by the sword.

5 In peace shalt thou die; and as burnings were made for thy fathers, the former kings who were before thee, so shall they make burnings for thee; and “Ah lord” shall they lament for thee; for I have spoken the word, saith the Lord.

Instead, you will die in peace. And, in accord with the burnings of your fathers, the former kings who were before you, so will they burn you. And they will mourn you, saying: ‘Alas, lord!’ For I have spoken the word, says the Lord.”

6 And Jeremiah the prophet spoke unto Zedekiah the king of Judah all these words in Jerusalem,

And Jeremiah, the prophet, spoke all these words to Zedekiah, the 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 against 'Azekah; for these had been left of the cities of Judah as fortified cities.

And the army of the king of Babylon fought against Jerusalem and against all the cities of Judah that remained, against Lachish and against Azekah. For only these remained out of the cities of Judah that were fortified cities.

8 The word which came unto Jeremiah from the Lord, after king Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people who were at Jerusalem, to proclaim among themselves freedom;

The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, after king Zedekiah had struck a pact with all the people in Jerusalem, proclaiming

9 That every man should dismiss his man-servant, and every man his maid-servant, being a Hebrew man or a Hebrew woman, free; so that no man among them should exact labor of a Jew, his brother.

that each one should release his man servant, and each one his woman servant, as a free Hebrew man and a free Hebrew woman, and that they should never be rulers over them, that is, over the Jews, their own brothers.

10 And all the princes had hearkened, with all the people, who had entered into the covenant, that every one should dismiss his man-servant, and every one his maid-servant, free, that no one should exact labor of them any more: and they had obeyed, and dismissed them.

Then all the leaders and all the people who entered into the pact, heard that each one should release his man servant, and each one his woman servant, to be free, and that they should no longer rule over them. Therefore, they listened, and they released them.

11 But they had turned afterward, and they had brought back the men-servants and the maid-servants whom they had dismissed as free, and had subjected them to become men-servants and maid-servants.

But later on, they turned back. And they took back again their man servants and their woman servants, whom they had released to be free. And they subjugated them as male and female servants.

12 And the word of the Lord [then] came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying,

And the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying:

13 Thus hath said the Lord, the God of Israel, —I myself made a covenant with your fathers on the day that I brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondmen, saying,

“Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: I struck a pact with your fathers in the day when I led them away from the land of Egypt, from the house of servitude, saying:

14 At the end of seven years shall ye dismiss every man his brother the Hebrew, who may have been sold unto thee; and when he hath served thee six years, then shalt thou dismiss him from thee; but your fathers hearkened not unto me, and inclined not their ear.

‘When seven years have been completed, let each one release his brother, a Hebrew, who had been sold to him. And so he will serve you for six years, and then you shall release him to be free from you.’ But your fathers did not listen to me, nor did they incline their ear.

15 And ye had turned this day, and done what is right in my eyes, to proclaim freedom every man to his neighbor; and ye had made a covenant before me in the house over which my name is called;

And today you converted, and you did what is right in my eyes, so that you proclaimed liberty, each one to his friend. And you entered into a pact in my sight, in the house in which and over which my name is invoked.

16 But ye have turned again, and profaned my name, and ye have brought back every man his man-servant, and every man his woman-servant, whom ye had dismissed as free at their pleasure, and have subjected them to be unto you for men-servants and for women-servants.

But now you have turned back, and you have stained my name. For you have led back again, each one his man servant, and each one his woman servant, whom you had released so that they would be free and under their own authority. And you have subjugated them, so that they would be your servants and handmaids.”

17 Therefore thus hath said the Lord, Ye indeed have not hearkened unto me, to proclaim freedom, every one to his brother, and every one to his neighbor: behold, I proclaim a freedom over you, saith the Lord, to the sword, to the pestilence, and to the famine; and I will make you a horror unto all the kingdoms of the earth.

Because of this, thus says the Lord: “You have not heeded me, though you proclaimed liberty, each one to his brother and each one to his friend. Behold, I am proclaiming a liberty for you, says the Lord, to the sword, to pestilence, and to famine. And I will cause you to be removed to all the kingdoms of the earth.

18 And I will give up the men that have transgressed my covenant, who have not fulfilled the words of the covenant which they had made before me, at the calf which they cut in twain, and between the parts whereof they passed,

And I will give over the men who have betrayed my covenant, and who have not observed the words of the covenant, to which they assented in my sight when they cut the calf into two parts and passed between its parts:

19 The princes of Judah, and the princes of Jerusalem, the court-servants, and the priests, and all the people of the land, who have passed between the parts of the calf;

the leaders of Judah, and the leaders of Jerusalem, the eunuchs and the priests, and all the people of the land, who have passed between the parts of the calf.

20 [Yea] I will give them up into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of those that seek their life; and their dead bodies shall become food unto the fowls of the heavens, and to the beasts of the earth.

And I will give them into the hands of their enemies and into the hands of those who are seeking their life. And their dead bodies will be food for the birds of the air and for the beasts of the earth.

21 And Zedekiah the king of Judah and his princes will I give up into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of those that seek their life, and into the hand of the army of the king of Babylon, that are [now] gone away from you.

And Zedekiah, the king of Judah, and his leaders, I will give over to the hands of their enemies, and to the hands of those who are seeking their lives, and to the hands of the armies of the king of Babylon, which had withdrawn from you.

22 Behold, I will command, speaketh the Lord, and I will bring them back to this city; and they shall fight against it, and capture it, and burn it with fire: and the cities of Judah will I make a desert without an inhabitant.

Behold, I will command, says the Lord, and I will lead them back to this city, and they will fight against it, and seize it, and set it on fire. And I will make the cities of Judah into a desolation, for there shall be no inhabitant.”