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.

God Commands the Writing of the Scroll

1
In the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, ​
2
Take a scroll of a book, and write therein all the words that I have spoken to you against Israel, and against Judah, and against all the nations, from the day I spoke to you, from the days of Josiah, even to this day. ​
3
It may be that the house of Judah will hear all the evil which I purpose to do to them; that they may return every man from his evil way; that I may forgive their iniquity and their sin. ​
4
Then Jeremiah called Baruch the son of Neriah; and Baruch wrote from the mouth of Jeremiah all the LORD’s words, which he had spoken to him, on a scroll of a book. ​
5
Jeremiah commanded Baruch, saying, I am shut up; I can’t go into the LORD’s house: ​
6
therefore you go, and read in the scroll, which you have written from my mouth, the LORD’s words in the ears of the people in the LORD’s house on the fast day; and also you shall read them in the ears of all Judah who come out of their cities.
7
It may be they will present their supplication before the LORD, and will return everyone from his evil way; for great is the anger and the wrath that the LORD has pronounced against this people.
8
Baruch the son of Neriah did according to all that Jeremiah the prophet commanded him, reading in the book the LORD’s words in the LORD’s house.

Baruch Reads the Prophecy Publicly

9
Now in the fifth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, in the ninth month, all the people in Jerusalem, and all the people who came from the cities of Judah to Jerusalem, proclaimed a fast before the LORD. ​
10
Then Baruch read the words of Jeremiah from the book in the LORD’s house, in the room of Gemariah the son of Shaphan, the scribe, in the upper court, at the entry of the new gate of the LORD’s house, in the ears of all the people. ​
11
When Micaiah the son of Gemariah, the son of Shaphan, had heard out of the book all the LORD’s words,
12
he went down into the king’s house, into the scribe’s room: and behold, all the princes were sitting there, Elishama the scribe, and Delaiah the son of Shemaiah, and Elnathan the son of Achbor, and Gemariah the son of Shaphan, and Zedekiah the son of Hananiah, and all the princes. ​
13
Then Micaiah declared to them all the words that he had heard, when Baruch read the book in the ears of the people.
14
Therefore all the princes sent Jehudi the son of Nethaniah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Cushi, to Baruch, saying, Take in your hand the scroll in which you have read in the ears of the people, and come. So Baruch the son of Neriah took the scroll in his hand, and came to them.
15
They said to him, Sit down now, and read it in our ears. So Baruch read it in their ears.
16
Now when they had heard all the words, they turned in fear one toward another, and said to Baruch, “We will surely tell the king of all these words.” ​
17
They asked Baruch, saying, Tell us now, How did you write all these words at his mouth?
18
Then Baruch answered them, He pronounced all these words to me with his mouth, and I wrote them with ink in the book.
19
Then the princes said to Baruch, Go, hide, you and Jeremiah; and let no man know where you are. ​

King Jehoiakim Burns the Scroll

20
They went in to the king into the court; but they had laid up the scroll in the room of Elishama the scribe; and they told all the words in the ears of the king. ​
21
So the king sent Jehudi to get the scroll; and he took it out of the room of Elishama the scribe. Jehudi read it in the ears of the king, and in the ears of all the princes who stood beside the king.
22
Now the king was sitting in the winter house in the ninth month: and there was a fire in the brazier burning before him. ​
23
When Jehudi had read three or four leaves, the king cut it with the penknife, and cast it into the fire that was in the brazier, until all the scroll was consumed in the fire that was in the brazier. ​
24
They were not afraid, nor tore their garments, neither the king, nor any of his servants who heard all these words. ​
25
Moreover Elnathan and Delaiah and Gemariah had made intercession to the king that he would not burn the scroll; but he would not hear them. ​
26
The king commanded Jerahmeel the king’s son, and Seraiah the son of Azriel, and Shelemiah the son of Abdeel, to take Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet; but the LORD hid them. ​

Judgment on Jehoiakim and the Rewritten Scroll

27
Then the LORD’s word came to Jeremiah, after that the king had burned the scroll, and the words which Baruch wrote at the mouth of Jeremiah, saying,
28
Take again another scroll, and write in it all the former words that were in the first scroll, which Jehoiakim the king of Judah has burned. ​
29
Concerning Jehoiakim king of Judah you shall say, Thus says the LORD: You have burned this scroll, saying, Why have you written therein, saying, The king of Babylon shall certainly come and destroy this land, and shall cause to cease from there man and animal?
30
Therefore thus says the LORD concerning Jehoiakim king of Judah: He shall have no one to sit on the throne of David; and his dead body shall be cast out in the day to the heat, and in the night to the frost. ​
31
I will punish him and his seed and his servants for their iniquity; and I will bring on them, and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and on the men of Judah, all the evil that I have pronounced against them, but they didn’t listen.
32
Then took Jeremiah another scroll, 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 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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