ירמיהו, פרק כ״א, פסוק ט׳

The inhabitants of a besieged city face a stark, agonizing choice. To remain within the defensive walls guarantees destruction, while survival demands the unthinkable act of surrendering to the enemy outside. Anyone who delays and stays inside the city [ביאור שטיינזלץ] ultimately dooms themselves to perish through the ravages of the sword, famine, or plague [מצודת דוד].

The only viable path to safety involves leaving the city and giving oneself over to the Chaldeans. This act is a complete surrender, a submission to the enemy's mercy and rule [מצודת דוד, מצודת ציון, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. Executing such a surrender, however, was not a simple task. The city's guards strictly prevented anyone from leaving the gates without a valid reason. Therefore, the sole opportunity to defect arose during an active military sortie against the Chaldean forces. In the chaos of the battlefield, a person wishing to surrender could simply hand themselves over to the enemy, choosing to remain with them rather than returning behind the city walls [מלבי״ם].

Those who take this desperate step are promised their lives, a survival described through striking wartime imagery. They are told their life will become like the spoils of war [מצודת ציון]. The primary approach among commentators is that just as a soldier hastily snatches loot from an enemy to keep for themselves, the person who surrenders snatches their own life away from certain death [רש״י, רד״ק, מצודת דוד, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. Building upon the scenario of defecting during combat, [מלבי״ם] adds a poignant layer: for the person who surrenders during the clash, the only prize they will carry away from the battlefield is the sheer preservation of their own existence.