ירמיהו, פרק ל״ד, פסוק י׳

The agreement to free the slaves reached across all levels of society, uniting everyone from government officials to everyday citizens. Together, they gathered in an impressive public ceremony to form a binding covenant. Their participation was not merely a matter of quietly listening to the terms; it represented a complete, willing acceptance of the new reality.

The historical account emphasizes the people's acceptance twice, which can be understood in a couple of ways. On a practical storytelling level, the details of the agreement are quite long, outlining both the immediate release of the slaves and a firm promise never to enslave them again. Because of this lengthy explanation, the narrative naturally brings the focus back to the people's obedience at the end of the thought to tie the entire event together [מצודת דוד].

Beyond the storytelling style, this dual emphasis also points to two distinct phases in the liberation process [מלבי״ם, מצודת דוד]. The first phase was the agreement in principle, consisting of the commitment to free the slaves immediately and to avoid subjugating them in the future. The second phase was the transition from theory to practice. After agreeing to the terms, the people actively followed through and physically sent the workers away from their homes.

While committing to the covenant was a public and dramatic display, carrying out the actual release was an incredibly complex undertaking. Sending the slaves away demanded that the people make profound changes to their daily habits and fundamentally restructure how their entire society functioned [ביאור שטיינזלץ].