I 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.
Jeremiah 34:18 NET
Jerusalem was under siege by the Babylonian army. Their prospects looked bleak. And so, seemingly as a last resort, the people turned to the Lord, making a covenant with him to release their slaves. The Babylonian army withdrew temporarily. And the people broke their covenant with God and reclaimed their slaves. At least, that appears to be what is described in Jeremiah 34:8-22.
Making a Promise to God
There are several references in this passage to passing between the cut pieces of a calf. This reflects one form of covenant-making. An animal would be killed and cut in half. The parties making the covenant would then walk between the pieces. The significance of this action was that if one party broke the terms of the covenant, the same fate—death and destruction—would await them. This form of covenant-making is also seen in Genesis 15.
The covenant—or promise—that the people of Jerusalem made with God was that if they freed their slaves, God would deliver them from the Babylonian army. Israel was supposed to free their Hebrew slaves after seven years of service (Ex. 21:2), but that had not been done recently, if ever.
And Failing to Follow Through
So, in an attempt to gain favor with God, they opted to do this. They freed their slaves. Until the danger had passed, and then they reclaimed their slaves. So, God pronounced that they would face the fate they had hoped to avoid by passing through the cut pieces of the calf. They would be destroyed.
How often are we guilty of doing essentially what the residents of Jerusalem did in this passage? We face some challenging situation in life and promise God that if he delivers us, we will change our ways and be more faithful in serving him. And we may actually change for a while. Until the difficulty passes and we relapse back into our old ways.
We are better off not making promises to God than making them and not following through. But even better is to follow through on our promises and commitments to God. To be faithful to him in all we are and do.
