In the covenant code of Exodus 21-23, much attention is paid to guidelines for how to treat people who become indentured servants in order to work off a debt. The Israelites had recently suffered in slavery in Egypt. When God rescued them, he wanted them to be free to serve him, not some human master. So he put guidelines in place to ensure that the Israelites would no longer be treated as slaves. These guidelines also forbade an Israelite from trying to "play God" by being a slaveholder.
Centuries later, King Zedekiah of Judah led the inhabitants of Jerusalem in setting Hebrew servants free (Jer 34:8-10). But then this covenant was cancelled and the servants were taken back (verse 11).
In light of Israel's history, this was an especially grievous offense. God rebuked Judah for this sin, which helped lead to the exile of the country's elite in Babylon (vv 11-22).
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