Jeremiah36

The LORD commanded Jeremiah to dictate prophecies of judgment and a call to repentance to Baruch, who wrote them on a scroll. Baruch read this scroll publicly and to the princes, who then brought it before King Jehoiakim. The king defiantly burned the scroll, but the LORD commanded Jeremiah to write another, adding a specific judgment against Jehoiakim for his act.
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God Commands the Writing of the Scroll

1
In the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the LORD: ​
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“Take a scroll and write on it all the words I have spoken to you concerning Israel, Judah, and all the nations, from the day I first spoke to you during the reign of Josiah until today. ​
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Perhaps when the people of Judah hear about all the calamity I plan to bring upon them, each of them will turn from his wicked way. Then I will forgive their iniquity and their sin.” ​
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So Jeremiah called Baruch son of Neriah, and at the dictation of Jeremiah, Baruch wrote on a scroll all the words that the LORD had spoken to Jeremiah. ​
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Then Jeremiah commanded Baruch, “I am restricted; I cannot enter the house of the LORD; ​
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so you are to go to the house of the LORD on a day of fasting, and in the hearing of the people you are to read the words of the LORD from the scroll you have written at my dictation. Read them in the hearing of all the people of Judah who are coming from their cities.
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Perhaps they will bring their petition before the LORD, and each one will turn from his wicked way; for great are the anger and fury that the LORD has pronounced against this people.”
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So Baruch son of Neriah did everything that Jeremiah the prophet had commanded him. In the house of the LORD he read the words of the LORD from the scroll.

Baruch Reads the Prophecy Publicly

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Now in the ninth month of the fifth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, a fast before the LORD was proclaimed to all the people of Jerusalem and all who had come there from the cities of Judah. ​
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From the chamber of Gemariah son of Shaphan the scribe, which was in the upper courtyard at the opening of the New Gate of the house of the LORD, Baruch read from the scroll the words of Jeremiah in the hearing of all the people. ​
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When Micaiah son of Gemariah, the son of Shaphan, heard all the words of the LORD from the scroll,
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he went down to the scribe’s chamber in the king’s palace, where all the officials were sitting: Elishama the scribe, Delaiah son of Shemaiah, Elnathan son of Achbor, Gemariah son of Shaphan, Zedekiah son of Hananiah, and all the other officials. ​
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And Micaiah reported to them all the words he had heard Baruch read from the scroll in the hearing of the people.
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Then all the officials sent word to Baruch through Jehudi son of Nethaniah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Cushi, saying, “Bring the scroll that you read in the hearing of the people, and come here.” So Baruch son of Neriah took the scroll and went to them.
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“Please sit down,” they said, “and read it in our hearing.” So Baruch read it in their hearing.
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When they had heard all these words, they turned to one another in fear and said to Baruch, “Surely we must report all these words to the king.” ​
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“Tell us now,” they asked Baruch, “how did you write all these words? Was it at Jeremiah’s dictation?”
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“It was at his dictation,” Baruch replied. “He recited all these words to me and I wrote them in ink on the scroll.”
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Then the officials said to Baruch, “You and Jeremiah must hide yourselves and tell no one where you are.” ​

King Jehoiakim Burns the Scroll

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So the officials went to the king in the courtyard. And having stored the scroll in the chamber of Elishama the scribe, they reported everything to the king. ​
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Then the king sent Jehudi to get the scroll, and he took it from the chamber of Elishama the scribe. And Jehudi read it in the hearing of the king and all the officials who were standing beside him.
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Since it was the ninth month, the king was sitting in his winter quarters with a fire burning before him. ​
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And as soon as Jehudi had read three or four columns, Jehoiakim would cut them off with a scribe’s knife and throw them into the firepot, until the entire scroll had been consumed by the fire. ​
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Yet in hearing all these words, the king and his servants did not become frightened or tear their garments. ​
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Even though Elnathan, Delaiah, and Gemariah urged the king not to burn the scroll, he would not listen to them. ​
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Instead, the king commanded Jerahmeel, a son of the king, as well as Seraiah son of Azriel and Shelemiah son of Abdeel, to seize Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet. But the LORD had hidden them. ​

Judgment on Jehoiakim and the Rewritten Scroll

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After the king had burned the scroll containing the words that Baruch had written at Jeremiah’s dictation, the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah:
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“Take another scroll and rewrite on it the very words that were on the original scroll, which Jehoiakim king of Judah has burned. ​
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You are to proclaim concerning Jehoiakim king of Judah that this is what the LORD says: You have burned the scroll and said, ‘Why have you written on it that the king of Babylon would surely come and destroy this land and deprive it of man and beast?’
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Therefore this is what the LORD says about Jehoiakim king of Judah: He will have no one to sit on David’s throne, and his body will be thrown out and exposed to heat by day and frost by night. ​
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I will punish him and his descendants and servants for their iniquity. I will bring on them, on the residents of Jerusalem, and on the men of Judah, all the calamity about which I warned them but they did not listen.”
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Then Jeremiah took another scroll and gave it to the scribe Baruch son of Neriah, and at Jeremiah’s dictation he wrote on it all the words of the scroll that Jehoiakim king of Judah had burned in the fire. And many similar words were added to them. ​

Study Notes for Jeremiah 36

Verse 1

This chapter is a historical narrative set in the fourth year of Jehoiakim (c. 605 BC), a crucial period following Nebuchadnezzar’s victory at Carchemish, marking Babylon’s ascent and the imminent danger to Judah.

Verse 2

The scroll was meant to contain all the prophecies Jeremiah had given since the days of Josiah, covering about 23 years of warnings against Israel, Judah, and the surrounding nations.

Verse 3

Theological purpose. The immediate objective of writing the prophecies was not merely documentation, but to prompt national repentance and secure divine forgiveness, demonstrating God's persistent mercy.

Verse 4

Baruch (son of Neriah) serves here as Jeremiah’s trusted scribe and chronicler. This collaboration ensured the physical preservation and transmission of Jeremiah’s frequently unpopular prophecies.

Verse 5

Jeremiah was 'shut up,' likely meaning he was restricted from entering the Temple courts, perhaps due to previous arrests or threats (cf. Jer. 20), necessitating Baruch’s role as the public messenger.

Verse 9

The public fast was declared in the ninth month (Kislev, Nov/Dec 604 BC), likely in response to a major Babylonian military campaign, intensifying the people’s anxiety and making them receptive to a divine message.

Verse 10

Reading the scroll in the chamber of Gemariah, the son of Shaphan (a respected figure who had assisted King Josiah’s reforms), ensured the message reached influential circles in the capital.

Verse 12

The presence of several named officials indicates that the message was taken seriously by key members of the royal administration, who sought to verify the contents before informing the king.

Verse 16

The princes’ reaction of fear ('terror') shows they recognized the gravity and divine authority of the words, contrasting sharply with the king's later casual disregard.

Verse 19

The princes’ advice to hide demonstrates their prudence and fear of Jehoiakim’s notoriously cruel temperament, recognizing that the king would likely seek violent retribution against the messengers.

Verse 20

The princes stored the scroll in a chamber before approaching the king, perhaps hoping to protect it, or perhaps to distance themselves slightly from the message before presenting it to the volatile monarch.

Verse 22

The setting—the king sitting in the warm 'winterhouse' with a fire—emphasizes his comfort and indifference, contrasting sharply with the prophetic message of imminent national catastrophe.

Verse 23

This act of cutting and burning the scroll was a dramatic, defiant rejection of God’s authority and His prophetic word, publicly declaring the king’s refusal to repent or fear divine judgment.

Verse 24

The failure to tear their garments (the traditional sign of mourning, horror, or repentance) highlights the hardheartedness and spiritual callousness of the king and his immediate court.

Verse 25

The intercession of Elnathan, Delaiah, and Gemariah reveals that not all the royal officials supported the king’s sacrilegious act, showing a remnant of conscience within the leadership.

Verse 26

The phrase 'the LORD hid them' affirms God’s sovereign protection over his chosen servants, preventing the king's immediate attempt to silence the prophetic voice.

Verse 28

The command to rewrite the scroll underscores the resilience and permanence of God’s Word. Human effort cannot destroy divine revelation; it will be preserved and fulfilled.

Verse 30

This prophecy condemns Jehoiakim to a shameful, unburied death (cf. Jer. 22:18–19). This was the ultimate disgrace in ancient culture, signifying a complete curse and rejection by God.

Verse 32

The rewritten scroll was not merely a copy but included 'many like words.' Rejection of God’s initial warning often results in a compounded message of harsher judgment.

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