And I will give the men that have transgressed my covenant, which have not performed the words of the covenant which they had made before me, when they cut the calf in twain, and passed between the parts thereof,
I will hand over the men who have broken my covenant and failed to keep the promises they made to me. They made this covenant when they cut a calf in half and walked between the pieces.
God is declaring judgment on people who broke their solemn promise to Him, which they had sealed with a traditional covenant ceremony.
📚 Historical Context
In the time of the prophet Jeremiah, during the reign of King Zedekiah and the Babylonian siege of Jerusalem, the people of Judah had made a covenant with God to free their Hebrew slaves as required by Mosaic Law, but they later reneged on this promise. This covenant was sealed through an ancient ritual where a calf was cut in two, and the participants walked between the halves, symbolizing that breaking the agreement would bring severe consequences, much like similar practices in ancient Near Eastern cultures. Such rituals underscored the seriousness of oaths in a society where loyalty to God and community was paramount.
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