Jeremiah 36

The Explanation

It is a dangerous time in Jerusalem. The Babylonian army is threatening the city, and God has been speaking to the prophet Jeremiah for over twenty years. Now God gives Jeremiah a special task: write everything down. All those warnings, all those words about coming judgment, but also about the chance to turn back.

Jeremiah is not allowed to go to the temple himself. Maybe he had been forbidden, or it was too dangerous. So he calls his friend Baruch, who can write well. Jeremiah speaks the words, Baruch writes them on a scroll. That is a long roll of paper, or actually leather, that you unroll to read.

On a fast day, when many people come to the temple, Baruch reads the scroll aloud. The officials hear about it and get nervous. They call Baruch and ask him to read it again, just for them. They become afraid. This is serious. The king has to hear this. But they warn Baruch: "You and Jeremiah, go hide."

Then the scroll comes to King Jehoiakim. It is winter, and he sits by a fire burning in a brazier. An official begins to read. And now something shocking happens. Every time three or four columns are read, the king takes his knife, cuts that piece off the scroll, and throws it into the fire. Piece by piece, God's words go up in flames. Some of his officials beg him not to do it. He does not listen. He even orders the arrest of Jeremiah and Baruch, but God hides them.

And then God speaks again to Jeremiah. Write it all down once more. Every word. And add this: because King Jehoiakim burned the scroll, judgment will come even more severely on him and his household. So Jeremiah dictates again, and Baruch writes again, and even more words are added than the first time.

What Does This Mean?

The king thinks he can destroy God's words by throwing them in the fire. But you cannot burn God's Word away. Ashes do not silence God. He simply speaks again, and this time He says even more.

It is also striking that some officials do listen. They tremble when they hear the words. But the king, who should have listened first, is the most stubborn. Being important does not mean you are wise.

And notice: Jeremiah must do it all over. All those hours of work, gone. Yet he does not give up. He starts fresh. That is what a prophet does. He keeps speaking, even when no one wants to hear.

The Common Thread

Later, another King comes to Jerusalem. He is also rejected. People try to silence Him too, by hanging Him on a cross. They think: now it is over with His words. But three days later He rises. You cannot burn Jesus away either. You cannot bury Him away.

Jesus is called "the Word" in the Bible. Everything God wanted to say has come together in Him. Jehoiakim burned a scroll. But God's Word kept speaking, all the way to the manger, all the way to the cross, all the way to today, in your Bible.

For You

Sometimes you hear something from the Bible that you would rather not hear. Something about honesty when you have just lied. Something about forgiving someone you are still angry with. Something about God who sees everything.

You cannot cut those words out. You can pretend you did not hear them. You can close the Bible and put it away. But God's Word keeps standing. The question is not whether you can silence God. The question is whether you dare to listen, like those officials who trembled, rather than being stubborn like the king.

And if you are someone who writes, draws, or tells stories about God, remember Baruch. He was not the prophet, but he wrote it down. Small tasks in God's kingdom are not really small.

Talk About It

Why do you think King Jehoiakim burned the scroll instead of just walking away from it? What was he actually afraid of?

Is there something in the Bible that you find hard to hear? What do you do with that?

Praying Together

Lord, Your Word does not burn away. Help me to listen, even when it is difficult. Give me a heart that trembles like those officials, not a heart of stone like the king. Thank You that Jesus is Your living Word. Amen.