And thou shalt not escape out of his hand, but shalt surely be taken, and delivered into his hand; and thine eyes shall behold the eyes of the king of Babylon, and he shall speak with thee mouth to mouth, and thou shalt go to Babylon.

JEREMIAH 34:3KJV
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Jeremiah 34:3 (KJV)

What does Jeremiah 34:3 mean?

Jeremiah 34:3 tells King Zedekiah that the king of Babylon will capture him and take him to Babylon. Jeremiah delivers this message from the Lord while Jerusalem is under attack. Zedekiah will not avoid the Babylonian king’s control.

The repeated image of being in another’s “hand” pictures the loss of freedom to an enemy. “Mouth to mouth” describes a direct conversation between the two kings, rather than a message sent through someone else. The verse moves from capture to a personal encounter and then to Zedekiah’s journey to Babylon.

The Hebrew behind Jeremiah 34:3

  • “surely be taken” — תָּפַשׂ (taphas): The word means to seize or capture. Its repeated form in Hebrew gives force to the prediction, which the KJV expresses with “surely.”
  • “hand” — יָד (yad): The word means a hand and can also express power or control. Here, being delivered into the Babylonian king’s hand describes Zedekiah coming under his authority.

Why Jeremiah 34:3 matters

  • The encounter with Babylon’s king is presented as personal. “Thine eyes shall behold the eyes of the king of Babylon” places Zedekiah before the ruler himself.
  • Going to Babylon is not the same as dying immediately in the siege. The next verses add that Zedekiah will not die by the sword and that people will mourn for him at his death (Jeremiah 34:4–5).
  • The later account records both the meeting and the journey. The Babylonian king speaks judgment against Zedekiah at Riblah, and Zedekiah is then taken to Babylon (Jeremiah 39:5–7).

Where else these words appear

“surely” Hebrew H8610 · used in 60 verses

  • Genesis 4:21 And his brother's name was Jubal: he was the father of all such as handle the harp and organ.
  • 2 Kings 14:13 And Jehoash king of Israel took Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Jehoash the son of Ahaziah, at Bethshemesh, and came to Jerusalem, and brake down the wall of Jerusalem from the gate of Ephraim unto the corner gate, four hundred cubits.
  • Jeremiah 50:16 Cut off the sower from Babylon, and him that handleth the sickle in the time of harvest: for fear of the oppressing sword they shall turn every one to his people, and they shall flee every one to his own land.

“out” Hebrew H4422 · used in 85 verses

  • Genesis 19:17 And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed.
  • 2 Chronicles 16:7 And at that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah, and said unto him, Because thou hast relied on the king of Syria, and not relied on the LORD thy God, therefore is the host of the king of Syria escaped out of thine hand.
  • Isaiah 37:38 And it came to pass, as he was worshipping in the house of Nisroch his god, that Adrammelech and Sharezer his sons smote him with the sword; and they escaped into the land of Armenia: and Esarhaddon his son reigned in his stead.