Thomas Aquinas Commentary Jeremiah 34:12-22

"Therefore the word of Jehovah came to Jeremiah from Jehovah, saying, Thus saith Jehovah, 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 bondage, saying, At the end of seven years ye shall let go every man his brother that is a Hebrew, that hath been sold unto thee, and hath served thee six years, thou shalt let him go free from thee: but your fathers hearkened not unto me, neither inclined their ear. And ye were now turned, and had done that which is right in mine eyes, in 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 ye turned and profaned my name, and caused every man his servant, and every man his handmaid, whom ye had let go free at their pleasure, to return; and ye brought them into subjection, to be unto you for servants and for handmaids. Therefore thus saith Jehovah: ye have not hearkened unto me, to proclaim liberty, every man to his brother, and every man to his neighbor: behold, I proclaim unto you a liberty, saith Jehovah, to the sword, to the pestilence, and to the famine; and I will make you to be tossed to and fro among all the kingdoms of the earth. And I will give the men that have transgressed my covenant, that have not performed the words of the covenant which they made before me, when they cut the calf in twain and passed between the parts thereof; the princes of Judah, and the princes of Jerusalem, the eunuchs, and the priests, and all the people of the land, that passed between 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 food unto the birds of the heavens, 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, that are gone away from you. Behold, I will command, saith Jehovah, 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 a desolation, without inhabitant." — Jeremiah 34:12-22 (ASV)

1. Here, he threatens those who transgressed.

   1. First, he speaks of the guilt of their fathers when he speaks of the covenant: I made a covenant. This refers to the previous passage: not according to the covenant which I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand, that I might lead them from the land of Egypt, a covenant which they have made void (Jeremiah 31:32).

      He then speaks of the transgression: and they did not hearken to me. This also refers to a previous passage: they did not listen, nor did they incline their ear, but turned away, each one in the depravity of his own evil heart (Jeremiah 11:8).

      Then he addresses the guilt of the children when he speaks of the making of the covenant: and you turned, from the transgression of their fathers, in the house, that is, in the temple. As Isaiah says, The house of our sanctification, and of our glory, where our fathers praised you (Isaiah 64:11).

      But you have turned back and have polluted my name, by transgressing. This is why the law says, Do not take the name of the Lord your God in vain (Exodus 20:7). And as Ezekiel records, Not because of you shall I act, O house of Israel, but because of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations unto whom you have gone (Ezekiel 36:22).

   2. Second, he threatens punishment: therefore, thus says the LORD. Concerning this, there are two points.

      1. First, he gives the punishment communally with regard to everyone when he predicts slaughter: behold, I proclaim freedom, meaning, so that you may be freely killed. This refers to the earlier prophecy: those who are for the sword, to the sword, and those who are for famine, to famine, and those who are for captivity, to captivity (Jeremiah 15:2).

         He also speaks of the bondage of those who remain: and I shall give the men . . . the calf. This refers to the covenant they established by the division of a calf offered in sacrifice to God.Reminiscent of Abraham’s covenant of the parts; cf. Genesis 15:1–15. This manner of speaking, “to strike a covenant” (percutere foedus or ferire foedus), arose from this custom.Percutere or ferire by themselves can mean “to strike,” “to cut,” “to slay,” etc., but when they take foedus, “covenant,” as an object, they signify making a pact or treaty, for an animal was often slain to ratify such an event. The idiom is the same in Hebrew as well. As Lamentations says, The Lord gave me into a hand from which I shall not be able to escape (Lamentations 1:14).

         He also predicts that their dead bodies will be devoured: and their dead bodies shall be for meat to the birds of the air. As the psalmist says, They made the bodies of your servants food for the birds of the sky, and meat for the beasts of the earth (Psalms 79:2).

         He speaks particularly with regard to the princes: and Zedekiah, the king of Judah, and his princes. As Deuteronomy warns, The Lord shall bring you and your king, whom you shall establish over you, into a people which you and your fathers knew not (Deuteronomy 28:36). The phrase who have withdrawn from you refers to those who were viewed as foreigners. See chapter 37 below (Jeremiah 37:4).

      2. Second, he speaks of the order in which this will be fulfilled: behold, I command. This refers to the earlier passage: they have made my pleasant field an empty wilderness. They have made it a desolation, and it has mourned for me (Jeremiah 12:10–11).