Jeremiah 36

1. And it came to pass in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,

2. “Take for yourself a scroll of a book, and write in it 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 plan to do to them, that they may each man turn from his evil way, so 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 words of the LORD, which He had spoken to him, on a roll of a book.

5. And Jeremiah commanded Baruch, saying, “I am restricted. I cannot go into the house of the LORD.

6. Therefore you go, and read from the scroll which you have written from my mouth, the words of the LORD in the ears of the people in the LORD’S house on the day of fasting. 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 prayer before the LORD, and will return, each one from his evil way. For great is the anger and the fury that the LORD has spoken against this people.”

8. And Baruch the son of Neriah did according to all that Jeremiah the prophet commanded him, reading from the book, the words of the LORD in the LORD’S house.

9. And it came to pass in the fifth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, in the ninth month, they called a fast before the LORD to all the people in Jerusalem, and to all the people who came from the cities of Judah to Jerusalem.

10. And Baruch read from the book, the words of Jeremiah in the house of the LORD, in the room of Gemariah the son of Shaphan the scribe, in the higher court, at the entrance to the New Gate of the LORD’S house, in the ears of all the people.

11. When Michaiah, the son of Gemariah, the son of Shaphan, heard all the words of the LORD out of the book,

12. Then he went down into the king’s house, into the scribe’s room. And, lo, all the rulers sat there, even 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 rulers.

13. Then Michaiah 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 rulers sent Jehudi the son of Nethaniah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Cushi, to Baruch, saying, “Take the scroll in your hand from which you have read in the ears of the people, and come.” So Baruch the son of Neriah took the roll in his hand and came to them.

15. And they said to him, “Sit down now, and read it in our ears.” So Baruch read it in their ears.

16. And it came to pass when they had heard all the words, they turned to one another in fear and said to Baruch, “We will surely tell the king of all these words.”

17. And they asked Baruch, saying, “Tell us now, how did you write all these words at his mouth?”

18. Then Baruch answered them, “He spoke all these words to me with his mouth, and I wrote them with ink in the book.”

19. And the rulers said to Baruch, “Go hide yourselves, you and Jeremiah; and let no man know where you are.”

20. And they went in to the king into the court. But they laid up the roll in the room of Elishama the scribe, and told all the words in the ears of the king.

21. So the king sent Jehudi to bring the roll. And he took it out of the room of Elishama the scribe. And Jehudi read it in the ears of the king, and in the ears of all the rulers who stood beside the king.

22. And the king sat in the winter house in the ninth month; also with a fire burning in the hearth before him.

23. And it came to pass when Jehudi had read three or four leaves, he cut it with the scribe’s knife and threw it into the fire in the hearth, until all the scroll was burned up by the fire that was in the hearth.

24. Yet the king and all his servants who heard these words were not afraid, nor did they tear their garments.

25. But Elnathan and Delaiah and Gemariah had pleaded with the king that he should not burn the scroll, but he would not listen to them.

26. And the king commanded Jerahmeel the son of the king, and Seraiah the son of Azriel, and Shelemiah the son of Abdeel, to seize Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet. But the LORD hid them.

27. Then the Word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, after the king had burned the scroll and the words which Baruch wrote at the mouth of Jeremiah, saying,

28. “Take for yourself 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. And you shall say to Jehoiakim king of Judah, ‘Thus says the LORD, “You have burned this scroll, saying, ‘Why have you written in it, saying, “The king of Babylon shall certainly come and destroy this land, and shall cause man and beast to cease from there?” ’ ”

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. And I will punish him and his seed and his servants for their iniquity. And I will bring on them, and on the people of Jerusalem, and on the men of Judah, all the evil that I have spoken against them; but they did not hearken.” ’ ”

32. Then Jeremiah took another scroll and gave it to Baruch the scribe, the son of Neriah, who wrote in it from the mouth of Jeremiah all the words of the book which Jehoiakim king of Judah had burned in the fire. And many words like them were added besides.