THE BOOK OF THE PROPHET
JEREMIAH
Jeremiah 36 ©
Jeremiah, at God’s command, causes Baruch to write his prophecies in a large roll, and upon a day of humiliation to read out of it in the house of the Lord before all the people, v. 1, etc. This is told to the king’s princes, who presently send for Baruch with the roll, and, having caused from it to be read to them, they report the matter unto king Jehoiakim, 11. Who causes the roll to be fetched, and, having caused a part of it to be read, he cuts the roll in pieces, and casts it into the fire, and burns it, though many of the princes dissuaded him from it, 21. He commands Jeremiah and Baruch to be apprehended, which God prevents, 26. Jeremiah, at God’s command, causes all these and more similar prophecies to be written again in another roll, and foretells the king, the city and the land their judgments, 27.
AND it came to pass in the 1fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, that this word came unto Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,
Take thee a rolla of a 2book, and writeb therein all the words that I have spoken unto thee against Israel, and against Judah, and against all the nations, from the day I spake unto thee, from the days of 3Josiah, even unto this day.
4It may be that 5the house of Judah will hear all the 6evil which I purpose to do unto them; that they may return every man from his evil way; that I may forgive their iniquity and their sin.
Then Jeremiah called Baruch the son of Neriah: and Baruch wrote from the mouth of Jeremiah all the words of the LORD, which he had spoken unto him, upon a roll of a book.
And Jeremiah commanded Baruch, saying, I am 7shut up; I cannot go into the house of the LORD:
Therefore go thou, and read in the roll, which thou hast written from my mouth, the words of the LORD in the ears of the people in the LORD's house upon the 8fasting day: and also thou shalt read them in the ears of all Judah that 9come out of their cities.
It may be they will 10present their supplication before the LORD, and will return every one from his evil way: for great is the 11anger and the fury that the LORD hath pronounced against this people.
And Baruch the son of Neriah did according to all that Jeremiah the prophet commanded him, reading in the book the words of the LORD in the LORD's house.
And it came to pass in the fifth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, in the 12ninth month, that they proclaimed a fast 13before the LORD to all the people in Jerusalem, and to all the people that 14came from the cities of Judah unto Jerusalem.
Then read Baruch in the book the words of Jeremiah in the house of the LORD, in the 15chamber of Gemariah the son of Shaphan the 16scribe, in the 17higher court, at the entry of the 18new gate of the LORD's house, in the ears of all the people.
¶When Michaiah the son of Gemariah, the son of Shaphan, had heard out of the book all the words of the LORD,
Then he went down into the king's house, into the 19scribe’s chamber: and, lo, all the princes sat there, even Elishama the scribe, and Delaiah the son of Shemaiah, and 20Elnathan the son of Achbor, and 21Gemariah the son of Shaphan, and Zedekiah the son of Hananiah, and all the princes.
Then Michaiah 22declared unto them all the words that he had heard, when Baruch read the book in the ears of the people.
Therefore all the princes sent Jehudi the son of Nethaniah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Cushi, unto Baruch, saying, Take in thine hand the roll wherein thou hast read in the ears of the people, and come. So Baruch the son of Neriah took the roll in his hand, and came unto them.
And they said unto him, Sit down now, and 23read it in our ears. So Baruch read it in their ears.
Now it came to pass, when they had heard all the words, they were afraid 24both one and other, and said unto Baruch, 25We will surely tell the king of all these words.
And they asked Baruch, saying, Tell us now, How didst thou write all these words at his mouth?
Then Baruch answered them, He 26pronounced all these words unto me with his mouth, and I wrote them with 27ink in the 28book.
Then said the princes unto Baruch, Go, hide thee, thou and Jeremiah; and let no man know where ye be.
¶And they went in to the king into the 29court, but they 30laid up the roll in the chamber of Elishama the scribe, and told all the words in the ears of the king.
So the king sent 31Jehudi to 32fetch the roll: and he took it out of Elishama the scribe's chamber. And Jehudi read it in the ears of the king, and in the ears of all the princes which stood 33beside the king.
Now the king sat in the 34winterhouse in the 35ninth month: 36and there was a fire 37on the hearth burning before him.
And it came to pass, that when Jehudi had read 38three or four leaves, he 39cut it with the 40penknife, and cast it into the fire that was on the hearth, until all the roll was consumed in the fire that was on the hearth.
Yet they were not afraid, nor 41rent their garments, neither the king, nor any of his 42servants that heard all these words.
Nevertheless Elnathan and Delaiah and Gemariah had made intercession to the king that he would not burn the roll: 43but he would not hear them.
But the king commanded Jerahmeel the son 44of Hammelech, and Seraiah the son of Azriel, and Shelemiah the son of Abdeel, 45to take Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet: but the LORD hid them.
¶Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, after that the king had burned the roll, and the words which Baruch wrote at the mouth of Jeremiah, saying,
46Take thee again another roll, and write in it all the former words that were in the first roll, which Jehoiakim the king of Judah hath burned.
And thou shalt 47say 48to Jehoiakim king of Judah, Thus saith the LORD; Thou hast burned this roll, saying, Why hast thou written therein, 49saying, The king of Babylon shall 50certainly come and destroy this land, and shall cause to cease 51from thence man and beast?
Therefore thus saith the LORD of Jehoiakim king of Judah; He shall have 52none to sit upon the throne of David: and his 53deadc body shall be cast out in the day to the heat, and in the night to the frost.
And I will 54punish him and his seed and his 55servants for their iniquity; and I will bring upon them, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and upon the men of Judah, all the evil that I have 56pronounced against them; but they hearkened not.
¶Then took Jeremiah another roll, and gave it to Baruch the scribe, the son of Neriah; who wrote therein from the mouth of Jeremiah all the words of the book which Jehoiakim king of Judah had burned in the fire: and there were added besides unto them many like words.