Jeremiah 36
1 When Jehoiakim had been the king of Judah for almost four years, Yahweh gave this message to me:
It came about in the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, that this word came to Jeremiah from Yahweh, and he said,
2 “Get a scroll, and write on it the messages that I have given to you regarding Israel, Judah, and the other nations. Write all of the messages, starting from the time that I gave you the first message, when Josiah was the king, up until now.
“Take a scroll for yourself and write on it all the words that I have told you concerning Israel and Judah, and every nation. Do this for everything I have told from the days of Josiah until this very day.
3 When the people of Judah hear [again] about all the disasters that I plan to cause them to experience, perhaps each one of them will repent. If they do that, I will be able to forgive them for the wrong/evil things that they have done.”
Perhaps the people of Judah will listen to all the disasters that I intend to bring on them. Perhaps everyone will turn away from his wicked way, so I can forgive their iniquity and their sin.”
4 [So] I summoned Baruch, the son of Neraiah. Then, as I dictated to him all the messages that Yahweh had spoken to me, he wrote them on a scroll.
Then Jeremiah called Baruch son of Neriah, and Baruch wrote in a scroll, at Jeremiah's dictation, all the words of Yahweh spoken to him.
5 Then I said to him, “I am not allowed to [leave here and] go to the temple.
Next Jeremiah gave a command to Baruch. He said, “I am in prison and cannot go to Yahweh's house.
6 So, you go [to the temple] on the [next] day when the people are (fasting/abstaining from food), and read to them the messages from Yahweh that you wrote while I dictated them to you. Read them [aloud] to all the people [who are there, including] the people of Judah who come [there] from their towns.
So you must go and read from the scroll that you wrote at my dictation. On the day of the fast, you must read Yahweh's words in the hearing of the people in his house, and also in the hearing of all of Judah who have come from their cities. Proclaim these words to them.
7 Perhaps they will turn from their evil behavior and request Yahweh [to act mercifully toward them]. [They must do that, ] because Yahweh is very angry with them and has threatened to punish them severely.”
Perhaps their pleas for mercy will come before Yahweh. Perhaps each person will turn from his wicked way, since the wrath and fury that Yahweh has proclaimed against this people are severe.”
8 Baruch did what I told him to do. He [went to the temple and] read [to the people] all those messages from Yahweh.
So Baruch son of Neriah did everything that Jeremiah the prophet had commanded him to do. He read aloud the words of Yahweh in the house of Yahweh.
9 He did it in December on a day when their leaders had proclaimed that all the people in Jerusalem and the people who had come there from [other] towns in Judah should fast to [please/honor] Yahweh. [It was when] Jehoiakim had been king for almost five years.
It came about in the fifth year and ninth month of Jehoiakim son of Josiah, king of Judah, that all the people in Jerusalem and the people who came to Jerusalem from the cities of Judah proclaimed a fast before Yahweh.
10 Baruch read to all the people the messages [that he had written] on the scroll. [He read them while he was] in the temple, in the room where Gemariah stayed. He was the son of Shaphan, [who had previously been the king’s] secretary. That room was close to the upper courtyard [of the temple], near the entrance to the temple that is [called] the New Gate.
Baruch read aloud Jeremiah's words in the house of Yahweh, from the room of Gemariah son of Shaphan the scribe, in the upper courtyard, by the gate of the entrance to the house of Yahweh. He did this in the hearing of all the people.
11 When Micaiah, who was the son of Gemariah and grandson of Shaphan, heard those messages from Yahweh,
Now Micaiah son of Gemariah son of Shaphan heard all of Yahweh's words in the scroll.
12 he went down to the secretary’s room in the palace, where all the king’s officials were meeting. Elishama the [king’s] secretary [was there]. Delaiah the son of Shemaiah, Elnathan the son of Acbor, Gemariah, Zedekiah the son of Hananiah, and all the [other] officials [of the king were also there].
He went down to the house of the king, to the secretary's room. Look, all the officials were sitting there: Elishama the secretary, Delaiah son of Shemaiah, Elnathan son of Akbor, Gemariah son of Shaphan, and Zedekiah son of Hananiah, and all the officials.
13 When Micaiah told them about the messages that Baruch had been reading to the people,
Then Micaiah reported to them all the words that he had heard that Baruch read aloud in the hearing of the people.
14 the officials sent Jehudi, who was the son of Nethaniah and grandson of Shelemiah and great-grandson of Cushi, to tell Baruch to come [and read the messages to them, also]. So Baruch took the scroll and went to them.
So all the officials sent Jehudi son of Nethaniah son of Shelemiah son of Cushi, to Baruch. Jehudi said to Baruch, “Take the scroll in your hand, the scroll from which you were reading in the hearing of the people, and come.” So Baruch son of Neriah took the scroll in his hand and went to the officials.
15 They said to him, “Please sit down and read it [to us].” So Baruch did what they requested.
Then they said to him, “Sit down and read this in our hearing.” So Baruch read the scroll.
16 After they had heard all the messages, they were afraid. They looked at each other and [then] they said, “We must tell these messages to the king!”
It happened that when they heard all these words, each man turned in fear to the one next to him and said to Baruch, “We must certainly report all of these words to the king.”
17 Then they asked Baruch, “How did you get this scroll? Did Jeremiah dictate to you all the messages on this scroll?”
Then they asked Baruch, “Tell us, how did you come to write all these words at Jeremiah's dictation?”
18 Baruch replied, “[Yes], Jeremiah dictated them to me, and I wrote them with ink on this scroll.”
Baruch said to them, “He dictated all these words to me, and I wrote them in ink on this scroll.”
19 Then the officials told Baruch, “You and Jeremiah must both hide. Do not tell anyone where you are!”
Then the officials said to Baruch, “Go, hide yourself, and Jeremiah, too. Do not let anyone know where you are.”
20 They put the scroll in the room of Elishama, the king’s secretary. Then they went to the king, who was in the courtyard, and reported to him everything [that Baruch had read to them].
So they put the scroll in the room of Elishama the secretary, and they went to the king in the courtyard and they reported everything in the hearing of the king.
21 Then the king sent Jehudi to get the scroll. Jehudi brought it from Elishama’s room and read it to the king, while all the [king’s] officials were standing there.
Then the king sent Jehudi to get the scroll. Jehudi took it from the room of Elishama the secretary. Then he read it in the hearing of the king and all the officials who were standing beside him.
22 It was in the cold season, and the king was in a part of the palace where he stayed when it was cold. He was sitting in front of a fire [to keep/be warm].
Now the king was staying in the winter house in the ninth month, and a brazier was burning in front of him.
23 Each time Jehudi finished reading three or four columns, the king cut off that section of the scroll with a knife and threw it into the fire. He did that, section by section, until the entire scroll was burned up.
It happened that as Jehudi read three or four columns, the king would cut it off with a knife and throw it into the fire in the brazier until all of the scroll was destroyed.
24 Neither the king nor his officials showed that they were afraid [that God would punish them]. They did not tear their clothes [to show that they were sorry for what they had done].
But neither the king nor any of his servants who heard all these words were frightened, nor did they tear their clothes.
25 Elnathan, Delaiah, and Gemariah pleaded with the king not to burn the scroll, but he did not pay any attention.
Elnathan, Delaiah, and Gemariah had even urged the king not to burn the scroll, but he did not listen to them.
26 Then the king commanded his son Jerahmeel, Seraiah the son of Azriel, and Shelemiah the son of Abdeel to arrest Baruch and me. But [they were unable to do that because] Yahweh had hidden us.
Then the king commanded Jerahmeel, a relative, Seraiah son of Azriel, and Shelemiah son of Abdeel to arrest Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet, but Yahweh had hidden them.
27 After the king had burned the scroll on which were written the messages that I had dictated to Baruch, Yahweh said this to me:
Then the word of Yahweh came to Jeremiah after the king had burned the scroll and the words that Baruch had written at Jeremiah's dictation, saying,
28 “Get another scroll, and [tell Baruch to] write everything again, the same messages that he had written on the scroll that the king burned.
“Go back, take another scroll for yourself, and write in it all the words that were on the original scroll, the one that Jehoiakim king of Judah burned.
29 [Then go to] the king and say to him, ‘Yahweh says this: “You burned the scroll [because you did not like] what was written on it, that the king of Babylon would surely [RHQ] come [with his army] and destroy this land and get rid of all the people and the animals.
Then you must say this to Jehoiakim king of Judah: 'You burned that scroll, saying, “Why have you written on it, 'The king of Babylon will certainly come and destroy this land, for he will destroy both man and beast in it'?”'”
30 Now this is what [I], Yahweh, say about [you], Jehoiakim: 'None of your descendants will rule this kingdom [MTY]. Your corpse will be thrown out [on the ground and not be buried]; it will be under the hot [sun] during the days and [struck by] frost during the nights.
Therefore Yahweh says this concerning you, Jehoiakim king of Judah: “No descendant of yours will ever sit on the throne of David. As for you, your corpse will be thrown out into the heat of day and the frost of night.
31 I will punish you and your family and your officials for their sins. And I will cause the people of Jerusalem and the people of the [other] towns in Judah to experience all the disasters that I promised, because you all would not pay attention [to what I said]!'” '”
For I will punish you, your descendants, and your servants for the iniquity of you all. I will bring on you, on all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and on every person in Judah all the disasters with which I have threatened you with, but to which you paid no attention.”
32 So I took another scroll, and again I dictated the messages to Baruch. He wrote everything that had been written on the [other] scroll, the one that King Jehoiakim had burned in the fire. [But this time, I] added more messages.
So Jeremiah took another scroll and gave it to Baruch son of Neriah the scribe. Baruch wrote on it at Jeremiah's dictation all the words that had been in the scroll burned by Jehoiakim king of Judah. Furthermore, many other similar words were added to this scroll.
