Jeremiah 34:20

Jeremiah 34:20 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)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.
• New International Version (NIV)I will deliver into the hands of their enemies who want to kill them. Their dead bodies will become food for the birds and the wild animals.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And I will give them into the hand of their enemies and into the hand of those who seek their lives. Their dead bodies shall be food for the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth.
• New King James Version (NKJV)I will give them into the hand of their enemies and into the hand of those who seek their life. Their dead bodies shall be for meat for the birds of the heaven and the beasts of the earth.

Context of Jeremiah 34:20

18I will punish those people who have violated their covenant with me. I will make them like the calf they cut in two and passed between its pieces. I will do so because they did not keep the terms of the covenant they made in my presence. 19I will punish the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the court officials, the priests, and all the other people of the land who passed between the pieces of the calf. I will hand them over to their enemies who want to kill them. Their dead bodies will become food for the birds and the wild animals. 21I will also hand King Zedekiah of Judah and his officials over to their enemies who want to kill them. I will hand them over to the army of the king of Babylon, even though they have temporarily withdrawn from attacking you. 22For I, the Lord, affirm that I will soon give the order and bring them back to this city. They will fight against it and capture it and burn it down. I will also make the towns of Judah desolate so that there will be no one living in them.”’”

Jeremiah 34:20 word by word

וְנָתַתִּ֤י אוֹתָם֙ בְּיַ֣ד אֹֽיְבֵיהֶ֔ם וּבְיַ֖ד מְבַקְשֵׁ֣י נַפְשָׁ֑ם וְהָיְתָ֤ה נִבְלָתָם֙ לְמַֽאֲכָ֔ל לְע֥וֹף הַשָּׁמַ֖יִם וּלְבֶהֱמַ֥ת הָאָֽרֶץ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• I will even giveנָתַןnâthan · to give: giveH5414
• them into the handיָדyâd · hand: powerH3027
• of their enemiesאֹיֵב'ôyêb 'ôyêb · enemyH341
• of them that seekבָּקַשׁbâqash · to seekH1245
• their lifeנֶ֫פֶשׁnephesh · soul: lifeH5315
• and their dead bodiesנְבֵלָהnebêlâh · carcassH5038
• shall be for meatמַאֲכָלma'ăkâl · foodH3978
• unto the fowlsעוֹף‛ôph · birdH5775
• of the heavenשָׁמַיִםshâmayim shâmeh · heavenH8064
• and to the beastsבְּהֵמָהbehêmâh · animalH929
• of the earthאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776

Cross-references for Jeremiah 34:20

• Jeremiah 4:30And you, Zion, city doomed to destruction, you accomplish nothing by wearing a beautiful dress, decking yourself out in jewels of gold, and putting on eye shadow! You are making yourself beautiful for nothing. Your lovers spurn you. They want to kill you.
• Jeremiah 11:21Then the Lord told me about some men from Anathoth who were threatening to kill me. They had threatened, “Stop prophesying in the name of the Lord or we will kill you!”
• Jeremiah 21:7Then I, the Lord, promise that I will hand over King Zedekiah of Judah, his officials, and any of the people who survive the war, starvation, and disease. I will hand them over to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and to their enemies who want to kill them. He will slaughter them with the sword. He will not show them any mercy, compassion, or pity.’
• Jeremiah 22:25I will hand you over to those who want to take your life and of whom you are afraid. I will hand you over to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and his Babylonian soldiers.
• Jeremiah 38:16So King Zedekiah made a secret promise to Jeremiah and sealed it with an oath. He promised, “As surely as the Lord lives who has given us life and breath, I promise you this: I will not kill you or hand you over to those men who want to kill you.”
• Jeremiah 44:30I, the Lord, promise that I will hand Pharaoh Hophra king of Egypt over to his enemies who are seeking to kill him. I will do that just as surely as I handed King Zedekiah of Judah over to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, his enemy who was seeking to kill him.’”
• Jeremiah 49:37I will make the people of Elam terrified of their enemies, who are seeking to kill them. I will vent my fierce anger and bring disaster upon them,” says the Lord. “I will send armies chasing after them until I have completely destroyed them.
• Jeremiah 7:33Then the dead bodies of these people will be left on the ground for the birds and wild animals to eat. There will not be any survivors to scare them away.
• Jeremiah 16:4They will die of deadly diseases. No one will mourn for them. They will not be buried. Their dead bodies will lie like manure spread on the ground. They will be killed in war or die of starvation. Their corpses will be food for the birds and wild animals.
• Jeremiah 19:7In this place I will thwart the plans of the people of Judah and Jerusalem. I will deliver them over to the power of their enemies who are seeking to kill them. They will die by the sword at the hands of their enemies. I will make their dead bodies food for the birds and wild beasts to eat.
• 1 Samuel 17:44The Philistine said to David, “Come here to me, so I can give your flesh to the birds of the sky and the wild animals of the field!”
• 1 Kings 14:11Dogs will eat the members of your family who die in the city, and the birds of the sky will eat the ones who die in the country.”’ Indeed, the Lord has announced it!
• 1 Kings 16:4Dogs will eat the members of Baasha’s family who die in the city, and the birds of the sky will eat the ones who die in the country.”
• 1 Kings 21:23The Lord says this about Jezebel, ‘Dogs will devour Jezebel by the outer wall of Jezreel.’
• 2 Kings 9:34He went inside and had a meal. Then he said, “Dispose of this accursed woman’s corpse. Bury her, for after all, she was a king’s daughter.”
• Ezekiel 29:5I will leave you in the wilderness, you and all the fish of your waterways; you will fall in the open field and will not be gathered up or collected. I have given you as food to the beasts of the earth and the birds of the skies.

Commentaries on Jeremiah 34:20

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 8-22Verses 8-22 It is usual with commentators to say that, the laws dealing with the emancipation of the Hebrew slaves, as also that of the land resting during the sabbatical year, were not observed. The narrative teaches us the exact contrary. The manumission of the slaves on the present occasion was the spontaneous act of Zedekiah and the people. They knew of the law, and acknowledged its obligation. The observance of it was, no doubt, lax: the majority let…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 8-22Verses 8-22 A Jew should not be held in servitude above seven years. This law they and their fathers had broken. And when there was some hope that the siege was raised, they forced the servants they had released into their services again. Those who think to cheat God by dissembled repentance and partial reformation, put the greatest cheat upon their own souls. This shows that liberty to sin, is really only liberty to have the sorest judgments. It is just…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 17-20Because they broke their covenant, the Lord would separate them from his protection. This expression refers to a covenant ceremony where they killed and cut a calf into two parts from head to tail. Those making a covenant walked between the pieces to show they agreed to be cut apart if they broke the covenant (see Genesis 15:9–18). All classes of people in Judah broke their oath, so they would all receive the punishment they agreed to.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2020. I will even give--resuming the sentence begun, but not completed (Jr 34:18), "I will give," &c. seek their life--implacably: satisfied with nothing short of their blood; not content with booty. dead bodies--The breakers of the covenant shall be cut in pieces, as the calf between whose parts they passed.Read the comment

Topics related to Jeremiah 34:20

• Covenant
• Sabbatic Year
• Servant

In the dictionaries

• Zedekiah (2)
• Zedekiah

Commentaries on Jeremiah 34

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings