The princes of Judah, and the princes of Jerusalem, the eunuchs, and the priests, and all the people of the land, which passed between the parts of the calf;
The leaders of Judah, the officials of Jerusalem, the court servants, the priests, and all the people of the land who walked between the pieces of the sacrificed calf;
This verse lists all the people who participated in a sacred covenant ceremony by walking between the cut pieces of a sacrificed animal.
📚 Historical Context
In the time of King Zedekiah, during the Babylonian siege of Jerusalem, the leaders of Judah made a covenant to free their Hebrew slaves as required by God's law in Exodus. They sealed this agreement by passing between the halves of a calf, an ancient Near Eastern ritual that symbolized a self-curse if the covenant was broken. This act highlighted the people's hypocrisy, as they later ignored their promise, leading to God's judgment through the prophet Jeremiah.
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