Slave Remission in Jeremiah 34:8-22

Abstract

The laws of the Torah are famous for its merciful articles on the topic of slaves, who could be released from their bonds after six years of service. Jeremiah 34:8-22 may be the only testimony that the Old Testament laws were put into practice, because this text reports an event of a certain slave remission at the end of Zedekiah’s reign. Jerusalem was under attack by Babylonian army, and Zedekiah and his people made a covenant to set their Hebrew slaves free. This seemingly pious act could not last long, however, because the owners of those slaves took them back as soon as the Babylonian army retreated from Jerusalem. Observing the outcome of the covenant, Jeremiah the prophet condemned the king and Judeans for breaking the promise with the Lord and their blasphemous act caused by selfish desire. The purpose of this article is, first and foremost, to check if the laws of the Torah can be applied on the event described in Jer. 34. Secondly,the historical and socio-economic rationale of the event will be deduced and some supporting historical sources are to be examined. Comparing Jer. 34 with the laws of Exodus 21, Deuteronomy 15, and Leviticus 25, it becomes clear that Zedekiah’s slave remission was not the intended situation that the laws of the Torah define. Jeremiah seemed to interpret the general spirit of the Hebrew legal tradition and apply it to the event in question. As for historical sources that may shed light on our event, we have several episodes from the Classic world, in which slaves were recruited as soldiers in time of war. With a promise of future freedom, the slaves could be a much needed source of man-power and also turn into a firm defense line against the enemy’s psychological warfare. The ‘Siege Documents’ from ancient Mesopotamia provide a vivid portrayal of a city under attack, especially the lack of food for people who are weak and in lower classes of the society. Certain Akkadian contracts show special sales condition that cancels the royal proclamation of liberty, which may partly explain why the Hebrew slaves were so easily subjugated back to their former masters. Through this research, it can be said that the slave remission of Jer. 34 was one-of-a-kind event with little relevance to the laws of the Torah. Zedekiah and his courtiers had good historical and socio-economic reasons to set their slaves free at the time of the siege. Jeremiah’s evaluation of the event was not a precise application of the Hebrew law, but a religious interpretation on the basis of the gist of the law.