Verse-by-Verse Bible Commentary
Jeremiah 34:7

Clarke's Commentary

Verse Jeremiah 34:7. Against Lachish, and against Azekah — These were two cities of Judah of considerable importance: they had been strongly fortified by Rehoboam, 2 Chronicles 11:9-11; 2 Chronicles 32:9.

Bridgeway Bible Commentary

Treacherous slave-owners (34:1-22)

Again Jeremiah tells King Zedekiah that Jerusalem will fall to the Babylonians. Zedekiah himself will be taken to Babylon but will not be executed. When he eventually dies he will be given a fitting royal funeral (34:1-7).
Earlier, when the Babylonians laid siege to Jerusalem, Zedekiah issued a command that slave-owners were to release all their Hebrew slaves. He no doubt hoped that his action would win God’s favour, and he probably thought it had succeeded when an army from Egypt came to Jerusalem’s aid and the Babylonians temporarily withdrew (v. 21; see also 37:5). Having gained the relief from siege they were looking for, the slave-owners then recaptured their slaves (8-11).

Through Jeremiah God now announces his judgment on the actions of the slave-owners. He approves of their releasing the slaves, for this is in keeping with the law he gave to Israel in the time of Moses (12-15; cf. Exodus 21:2; Deuteronomy 15:12-14). But by recapturing the slaves, they have shown their contempt for God and his law (16).

Besides disregarding the law of God, the slave-owners have broken their promise (their covenant). God will therefore punish them according to the oath that people swear when making a covenant. (The ancient practice was that the two parties to a covenant walked between the pieces of a slaughtered animal and called down the animal’s fate upon themselves if they broke the covenant.) In the case of the treacherous slave-owners of Jerusalem, this means that they will now be slaughtered (17-20). God will recall the Babylonian armies to complete their conquest of Jerusalem (21-22).

Coffman's Commentaries on the Bible

TIME WHEN THIS WAS PROPHESIED

“Then Jeremiah the prophet spake all these words unto Zedekiah king of Judah in Jerusalem, when the king of Babylon’s army was fighting against Jerusalem, and against all the cities of Judah that were left, against Lachish and against Azekah; for these alone remained of the cities of Judah as fortified cities.”

It is a marvelous fact that the details of this siege of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar have been strikingly confirmed by the spade of the archaeologist within our very generation. “The Mari letters and the Lachish Ostraca (broken pieces of pottery with inscriptions upon them) have been uncovered in the ruins of Lachish during the years 1935-1938, and have been positively dated in this very year of the final siege of Jerusalem.”Merrill F. Unger, Unger’s Bible Dictionary (Chicago: Moody Press, 1966), p. 10. “These treasures were discovered by the Wellcome-Marston Expedition.”The New Bible Dictionary, p. 704.

“Lachish and Azekah” These were important fortified towns, which longer than any others except Jerusalem itself, resisted the Chaldean army. Lachish, at one time, had been larger than Jerusalem itself, and according to the Lachish Letters was the last to surrender prior to the fall of Jerusalem. Lachish was located 23 miles southwest of Jerusalem, and Azekah was eleven miles north of Lachish. Letter No. 4 deals with the very time when this prophecy was written by Jeremiah.

It records urgent military messages from the commander of Jerusalem’s defenders to the garrison commander in Lachish, saying, “Let my lord know that we are watching the signals of Lachish (the smoke signals), according to all the indications which my lord has given; for we cannot see Azekah (evidently Azekah had fallen).”J. A. Thompson, The Bible and Archeology (Grand Rapid, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1972) p. 608.

There are also mentioned in these letters a half dozen names, including that of the father of Baruch, which are also found in this section of Jeremiah. Now, not for a moment, do we suppose that anything in the Bible needs to be confirmed either by pagan writers, or by fragments digged up from ancient ruins; but it is interesting and encouraging indeed to find that the deeper the spade of the archaeologist goes, the more is the proof of the truth of every word in the Holy Bible verified.

“This prophecy was given just a short time before Letter IV was written,”Anthony L. Ash, Psalms (Abilene, Texas: A.C.U. Press, 1987), p. 245. because Azekah had not yet fallen (Jeremiah 34:7).

Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible

This marks the exact time, that it was early in the campaign, while the outlying fortresses still occupied the attention of Nebuchadnezzars army. Lachish and Azekah were strong cities in the plain toward Egypt and must be taken before the Chaldseans could march upon Jerusalem: otherwise the Egyptians might collect there and fall upon them.

Calvin's Commentary on the Bible

He again repeats that Jerusalem was then surrounded by the army of the king of Babylon, as well as the other cities of Judah, which he names, even Lachish and Azekah. He seems, therefore, indirectly to reprove the arrogance of Zedekiah, for he still retained his high spirits, when yet he was reduced to such straits. All the cities of Judah, — how many were they? Two, says the Prophet. This, then, was no unsuitable way of indirectly exposing to ridicule the vain confidence of the king, who still thought that he could overcome the enemy, though he was master only of three cities, that is, Jerusalem, Lachish, and Azekah. But the Prophet gives a reason why these cities did not immediately fall into the hands of the king of Babylon, because they were fortified. It hence follows, that the other cities were taken without trouble, or that they surrendered of their own accord. Zedekiah the king was then deprived of his power, and yet he had not relinquished the ferocity of his mind, nor was he terrified by the threatenings of the Prophet; and this was a proof of extreme madness. For he hence appears that he was alienated in mind; for. the dreadful hand of God was put forth against him, and yet he rushed headlong to his own ruin as a wild beast destitute of reason. Let us proceed, —

Smith's Bible Commentary

Chapter 34

Now we come to a chronologically new set of prophecies, and this is one that Zedekiah threw him in jail for back in the thirty-first chapter, thirty-second chapter.

The word which came unto Jeremiah from the LORD, 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 saith the LORD, the God of Israel; Go and speak to Zedekiah king of Judah, and tell him, Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I will give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire ( Jeremiah 34:1-2 ):

It made the king mad. Threw Jeremiah in jail.

And thou shalt not escape out of his hand, 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 ( Jeremiah 34:3 ).

And this is what Zedekiah referred to, that's why he threw him in the prison.

Yet hear the word of the LORD, O Zedekiah the king of Judah; Thus saith the LORD of thee, Thou shalt not die by the sword; But you will die in peace: and with the burnings for you, as they did to the former kings which were before you, they will burn incense for thee; for they will lament thee, saying, Ah lord! for I have pronounced the word, saith the LORD. Then Jeremiah the prophet spake all these words unto Zedekiah king of Judah in Jerusalem, When the king of Babylon's army fought against Jerusalem, and against all the cities of Judah that were left, against Lachish, and against Azekah: for these defensed cities remained in the cities of Judah. This is the word that came to 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; [so Zedekiah proclaimed] That all of them were to set their servants free, if he had a servant that was a Hebrew or a Hebrewess, that they were to set them free; that no one should have them for their servants, that is, a Jew who is his brother. Now when all the princes, and all the people, had entered into the covenant, they heard every one that they should let his manservant, and every maidservant, go free, that none should serve themselves of them any more; then they obeyed, and let them go. But afterward they took them right back again. Therefore the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying, Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel; I made a covenant with your fathers in the day that I brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondmen, saying, At the end of seven years let ye go every man his brother who is a Hebrew, which hath been sold unto thee; and when he hath served thee for six years, you shall let him go free [in the seventh year]: but your fathers did not hearken to me, neither inclined their ear. And ye were now turned, and had done right in my sight, in proclaiming liberty ( Jeremiah 34:4-15 )

This was right. They haven't been obeying this, but you were right when you did it, proclaiming liberty.

every man to his neighbor; and ye had made a covenant before me in the house which is called by my name: But you turned and polluted my name, and caused every man his servant, and every man his handmaid, which he had set at liberty at their pleasure, to return, and you brought them back into slavery, to be your servants and your handmaids. Therefore thus saith the LORD; Ye have not hearkened unto me, in proclaiming liberty, every one to his brother, and every man to his neighbor: behold, I proclaim a liberty for you, saith 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. 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 two, and passed between the parts thereof, The princes of Judah, and the princes of Jerusalem, the eunuchs, the priests, and all the people of the land, which passed between the parts of the calf ( Jeremiah 34:15-19 );

They did that in the covenant. They cut the calf and passed between it, which means we make the covenant. But they have broken it.

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 fowls of the heaven, and to the beasts of the earth. 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 Babylon's army, which are gone up from you. Behold, I will command, saith the LORD, and cause them to return to this city; and they shall fight against it, and take it, and burn it with fire: and I will make the cities of Judah desolate [without a habitation] without any inhabitants ( Jeremiah 34:20-22 ).

So this is because of the broken covenant. They did the right thing setting the slaves free because that was under the law. You're not to have a Hebrew as your slave. If you do have one, he serves for six years, the seventh year he goes free. And that's what we referred to earlier. Man has been under the bondage of Satan for 6,000 years. We're about ready to go free in the millennial reign of Christ. Satan will be bound for a thousand years.

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Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

The announcement of Zedekiah’s fate 34:1-7

"The Book of Consolation has ended, and Jeremiah 34:1 confronts its readers with the full force of the invading imperial army. The destruction of Jerusalem and the remainder of Judah seems inevitable (Jeremiah 34:3) because the LORD has made Nebuchadrezzar ruler over all the nations and because burning with fire is a fitting consequence for their deeds. . . .

"This unit serves to direct the readers’ attention to the issue of obedience to the LORD’s word as it is explored in Jeremiah 34:8-22 and chaps. 35-36." [Note: Ibid., p. 181.]

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

Jeremiah delivered this message to Zedekiah when Nebuchadnezzar was besieging the last two remaining fortified cities of Judah (besides Jerusalem), namely, Lachish and Azekah, both important Judean towns in the Shephelah. The Shephelah was the foothills between the coastal plain to the west and the hill country to the east. Lachish stood about 25 miles southwest of Jerusalem, and Azekah stood about 11 miles north of Lachish and about 18 miles west southwest of Jerusalem. Lachish was larger than Jerusalem, [Note: Harrison, Jeremiah and . . ., p. 146.] and it fell to the Babylonians in 587 B.C.

An important archaeological find, the Lachish Letters, 21 in all, contain calls for help from outpost commanders to the garrison commander at Lachish. These letters confirm the accuracy of the biblical references to the siege of Lachish. [Note: See Pritchard, ed., p. 324.]

Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible

When the king of Babylon's army fought against Jerusalem,.... Had laid close siege to it, and still continued it:

and against all the cities of Judah that were left; unconquered by him; when he invaded the land, he fought against, and took, and ravished all the cities that lay in his way; and it seems there were none that stood out against him but Jerusalem, now besieged by him, and two others, next mentioned:

against Lachish, and against Azekah; for these defenced cities remained of the cities of Judah; two cities that had been fortified by Rehoboam, 2 Chronicles 11:9; and were the only ones besides Jerusalem, which as yet had not fallen into the hands of the king of Babylon.

Henry's Complete Commentary on the Bible

      1 The word which came unto Jeremiah from the LORD, 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,   2 Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel; Go and speak to Zedekiah king of Judah, and tell him, Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I will give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire:   3 And thou shalt not escape out of his hand, 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.   4 Yet hear the word of the LORD, O Zedekiah king of Judah; Thus saith the LORD of thee, Thou shalt not die by the sword:   5 But thou shalt die 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, saith the LORD.   6 Then Jeremiah the prophet spake all these words unto Zedekiah king of Judah in Jerusalem,   7 When the king of Babylon's army fought against Jerusalem, and against all the cities of Judah that were left, against Lachish, and against Azekah: for these defenced cities remained of the cities of Judah.

      This prophecy concerning Zedekiah was delivered to Jeremiah, and by him to the parties concerned, before he was shut up in the prison, for we find this prediction here made the ground of his commitment, as appears by the recital of some passages out of it, Jeremiah 32:4; Jeremiah 32:4. Observe,

      I. The time when this message was sent to Zedekiah; it was when the king of Babylon, with all his forces, some out of all the kingdoms of the earth that were within his jurisdiction, fought against Jerusalem and the cities thereof (Jeremiah 34:1; Jeremiah 34:1), designing to destroy them, having often plundered them. The cities that now remained, and yet held out, are named (Jeremiah 34:7; Jeremiah 34:7), Lachish and Azekah. This intimates that things were now brought to the last extremity, and yet Zedekiah obstinately stood it out, his heart being hardened to his destruction.

      II. The message itself that was sent to him. 1. Here is a threatening of wrath. He is told that again which he had been often told before, that the city shall be taken by the Chaldeans and burnt with fire (Jeremiah 34:2; Jeremiah 34:2), that he shall himself fall into the enemy's hands, shall be made a prisoner, shall be brought before that furious prince Nebuchadnezzar, and be carried away captive into Babylon (Jeremiah 34:3; Jeremiah 34:3); yet Ezekiel prophesied that he should not see Babylon; nor did he, for his eyes were put out, Ezekiel 12:13. This Zedekiah brought upon himself from God by his other sins and from Nebuchadnezzar by breaking his faith with him. 2. Here is a mixture of mercy. He shall die a captive, but he shall not die by the sword he shall die a natural death (Jeremiah 34:4; Jeremiah 34:4); he shall end his days with some comfort, shall die in peace,Jeremiah 34:5; Jeremiah 34:5. He never had been one of the worst of the kings, but we are willing to hope that what evil he had done in the sight of the Lord he repented of in his captivity, as Manasseh had done, and it was forgiven to him; and, God being reconciled to him, he might truly be said to die in peace, Note, A man may die in a prison and yet die in peace. Nay, he shall end his days with some reputation, more than one would expect, all things considered. He shall be buried with the burnings of his fathers, that is, with the respect usually shown to their kings, especially those that had done good in Israel. It seems, in his captivity he had conducted himself so well towards his own people that they were willing to do him this honour, and towards Nebuchadnezzar that he suffered it to be done. If Zedekiah had continued in his prosperity, perhaps he would have grown worse and would have departed at last without being desired; but his afflictions wrought such a change in him that his death was looked upon as a great loss. It is better to live and die penitent in a prison than to live and die impenitent in a palace. They will lament thee, saying, Ah lord! an honour which his brother Jehoiakim had not, Jeremiah 22:18; Jeremiah 22:18. The Jews say that they lamented thus over him, Alas! Zedekiah is dead, who drank the dregs of all the ages that went before him, that is, who suffered for the sins of his ancestors, the measure of iniquity being filled up in his days. They shall thus lament him, saith the Lord, for I have pronounced the word; and what God hath spoken shall without fail be made good.

      III. Jeremiah's faithfulness in delivering this message. Though he knew it would be ungrateful to the king, and might prove, as indeed it did, dangerous to himself (for he was imprisoned for it), yet he spoke all these words to Zedekiah,Jeremiah 34:6; Jeremiah 34:6. It is a mercy to great men to have those about them that will deal faithfully with them, and tell them the evil consequences of their evil courses, that they may reform and live.