Source shape: Brenton LXX Jeremiah 41 corresponds to familiar MT Jeremiah 34. All verse numbers, order, and wording follow the LXX text exactly. Familiar MT chapter numbers are noted only for cross-reference.
Jeremiah 41:1-7 LXX — The word to Sedekias during the siege of Jerusalem and the remaining cities (familiar MT 34:1-7)
1. The word that came to Jeremias from the Lord (now Nabuchodonosor king of Babylon, and all his army, and all the country of his dominion, were warring against Jerusalem, and against all the cities of Juda,) saying, 2. Thus has the Lord said; Go to Sedekias king of Juda, and thou shalt say to him, Thus has the Lord said, This city shall certainly be delivered into the hands of the king of Babylon, and he shall take it, and shall burn it with fire: 3. and thou shalt not escape out of his hand, but shalt certainly be taken, and shalt be given into his hands; and thine eyes shall see his eyes, and thou shalt enter into Babylon. 4. But hear the word of the Lord, O Sedekias king of Juda; Thus saith the Lord, 5. Thou shalt die in peace: and as they wept for thy fathers that reigned before thee, they shall weep also for thee, saying, Ah lord! and they shall lament for thee down to the grave: for I have spoken the word, said the Lord. 6. And Jeremias spoke to king Sedekias all these words in Jerusalem. 7. And the host of the king of Babylon warred against Jerusalem, and against the cities of Juda, and against Lachis, and against Azeca: for these strong cities were left among the cities of Juda.
The word comes while the full force of Babylon is arrayed against Jerusalem and the remaining fortified cities. Jeremiah is sent to Sedekias with the certain word of capture, burning, and exile. Yet even in this word of judgment there is a note of honor in death: Sedekias will die in peace and be lamented as his fathers were.
Jeremiah 41:8-11 LXX — The covenant to set Hebrew servants free (familiar MT 34:8-11)
8. The word that came from the Lord to Jeremias, after king Sedekias had concluded a covenant with the people, to proclaim a release; 9. that every one should set at liberty his servant, and every one his handmaid, the Hebrew man and Hebrew woman, that no man of Juda should be a bondman. 10. Then all the nobles, and all the people who had entered into the covenant, engaging to set free every one his man-servant, and every one his maid, turned, 11. and gave them over to be men-servants and maid-servants.
After the initial word, Sedekias and the people enter a covenant in the house of the Lord to proclaim release: every Hebrew servant and handmaid is to go free. The nobles and people swear this publicly. For a moment the covenant language of the Exodus is invoked in the present crisis.
Jeremiah 41:12-25 LXX — The revocation, profaning of the name, and the Lord’s release to sword, pestilence, and famine (familiar MT 34:12-22)
12. And the word of the Lord came to Jeremias, saying, 13. Thus saith the Lord; I made a covenant with your fathers in the day wherein I took them out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage, saying, 14. When six years are accomplished, thou shalt set free thy brother the Hebrew, who shall be sold to thee: for he shall serve thee six years, and then thou shalt let him go free: but they hearkened not to me, and inclined not their ear. 15. And this day they turned to do that which was right in my sight, to proclaim every one the release of his neighbour; and they had concluded a covenant before me, in the house whereon my name is called. 16. But ye turned and profaned my name, to bring back every one his servant, and every one his handmaid, whom ye had sent forth free and at their own disposal, to be to you men-servants and maid-servants. 17. Therefore thus said the Lord; Ye have not hearkened to me, to proclaim a release every one to his neighbour: behold, I proclaim a release to you, to the sword, and to the pestilence, and to the famine; and I will give you up to dispersion among all the kingdoms of the earth. 18. And I will give the men that have transgressed my covenant, who have not kept my covenant, which they made before me, the calf which they prepared to sacrifice with it, 19. the princes of Juda, and the men in power, and the priests, and the people; 20. I will even give them to their enemies, and their carcases shall be food for the birds of the sky and for the wild beasts of the earth. 21. And I will give Sedekias king of Judea, and their princes, into the hands of their enemies, and the host of the king of Babylon shall come upon them that run away from them. 22. Behold, I will give command, saith the Lord, and will bring them back to this land; and they shall fight against it, and take it, and burn it with fire, and the cities of Juda; and I will make them desolate without inhabitants.
The people and nobles quickly revoke the release they had proclaimed. They bring back those they had set free and force them into servitude again. The Lord recalls the ancient covenant from the Exodus: after six years the Hebrew brother must be released. What they did “this day” in the house where the Lord’s name is called they have now profaned by turning back. Therefore the Lord proclaims a different release: to the sword, pestilence, famine, and dispersion. The calf they cut to seal the covenant will now witness against them. The princes, priests, and people who broke it will be given to their enemies. Sedekias and the city will fall exactly as previously announced.
Spiritual Fruit 🍇
Covenant language without covenant fidelity becomes a witness against the speaker. The people proclaim release in the house where the Lord’s name is called, then force the freed servants back into bondage when the political pressure changes. The sin is not only exploitation. They profane God’s name by using solemn worship to promise a mercy they intend to revoke.
This chapter searches ordinary relationships. Have we offered forgiveness and then reclaimed the debt when resentment became useful? Have we promised freedom from control, only to tighten our grip when another person’s independence cost us something? In parish service, leadership, employment, and family life, mercy must survive the moment when mercy becomes inconvenient. Ancient debt-servitude is not identical to modern labor or social systems, but the prophetic measure remains: power is judged by whether it honors the dignity and release God commands.
Lord Jesus Christ, who frees those held in bondage, make my promises truthful. Keep me from invoking Your name while reversing mercy for advantage. Teach me to release the debts I have promised to release and to use authority for healing rather than possession. Amen.
Teaching Notes
Jeremiah 41:1-7 LXX — The word to Sedekias during the siege of Jerusalem and the remaining cities (familiar MT 34:1-7)
- The siege is total: Jerusalem and the last strong cities are under assault.
- Even the word of certain capture and exile includes a measure of honor in the manner of the king’s death.
Jeremiah 41:8-11 LXX — The covenant to set Hebrew servants free (familiar MT 34:8-11)
- The release is framed explicitly in terms of the Exodus covenant: no Hebrew is to remain a bondman.
- The covenant is made publicly in the house where the Lord’s name is called.
Jeremiah 41:12-25 LXX — The revocation, profaning of the name, and the Lord’s release to sword, pestilence, and famine (familiar MT 34:12-22)
- The people “turned and profaned my name” by re-enslaving those they had released.
- The Lord recalls the precise terms of the six-year release law they had ignored for generations.
- The calf of the covenant they cut now stands as witness to their breach.
- The “release” the Lord proclaims is to sword, pestilence, famine, and scattering—the direct reversal of the mercy they had promised but withheld.
Sources
Embedded Scripture is from Brenton’s English Septuagint (LXX).