34:4–5 The Lord added that Zedekiah would not be
executed by the sword but would “die peacefully,” i.e., a natural death as
opposed to a violent one. The text describes the honors that would be accorded
to him as ruler at the time of his death. (See 2 Chr 16:14; 21:19 for
references to this burial practice.) The fire in his honor is not a reference
to cremation, which was not practiced by the Israelites, but to the custom of
burning aromatic spices in honor of the deceased. (F. B. Huey, Jeremiah,
Lamentations [The New American Commentary 16; Nashville: Broadman &
Holman, Publishers, 1993], 307)
