New International Reader s Version - NIrV - 1996
Jeremiah 36
1
A message came to me from the Lord. It came in the fourth year that Jehoiakim was king of Judah. He was the son of Josiah. The message said,
Reference
Kingdom
Jeremiah 25:1
2
"Get a scroll. Write on it all of the words I have spoken to you. Write down what I have said about Israel, Judah and all of the other nations. Write what I have said to you from the time of King Josiah until now.
Reference
3
The people of Judah will hear about all of the trouble I plan to bring on them. Maybe then all of them will turn from their evil ways. If they do, I will forgive their sins and the evil things they have done."
Reference
Evil
Jeremiah 18:8
Jeremiah 26:3
Jeremiah 36:7
Jeremiah 18:11
Parallel theme
Deuteronomy 30:2
Ezekiel 12:3
2 Peter 3:9
Jeremiah 24:7
Sin
Acts 3:19
Acts 26:18
4
So I sent for Baruch, the son of Neriah. I told him to write down all of the words the Lord had spoken to me. And Baruch wrote them on the scroll.
Reference
6
So you go there. Go on a day when the people are fasting. Read to them from the scroll. Read the words of the Lord you wrote down as I gave them to you. Read them to all of the people of Judah who come in from their towns.
7
They will hear what the Lord will do to them when his burning anger blazes out against them. Then perhaps they will pray to him. And maybe all of them will turn from their evil ways."
Reference
Evil
Jeremiah 36:3
Jeremiah 4:4
Parallel theme
Jeremiah 21:5
2 Kings 22:17
References Lord
Lamentations 4:11
2 Kings 22:13
8
Baruch, the son of Neriah, did everything I told him to do. He went to the Lord's temple. There he read the words of the Lord from the scroll.
Reference
Parallel theme
Jeremiah 1:17
9
It was in the fifth year that Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah, was king of Judah. It was the ninth month of that year. A time of fasting at the Lord's temple had been ordered. All of the people in Jerusalem were told to take part in it. So were those who had come in from the towns of Judah.
Reference
10
Baruch read to all of the people who were at the Lord's temple. He read my words from the scroll. He was in the room of the secretary Gemariah. It was located in the upper courtyard at the entrance of the New Gate of the temple. Gemariah was the son of Shaphan.
Reference
People
Parallel theme
Jeremiah 52:25
Jeremiah 36:25
2 Samuel 8:17
References Lord
Jeremiah 26:10
Jeremiah 35:4
Word
Jeremiah 36:11
11
Micaiah was the son of Gemariah, the son of Shaphan. Micaiah heard Baruch reading all of the Lord's words that were written on the scroll.
12
Then he went down to the secretary's room in the royal palace. All of the officials were sitting there. They included the secretary Elishama and Delaiah, the son of Shemaiah. Elnathan, the son of Acbor, was also there. So was Gemariah, the son of Shaphan. Zedekiah, the son of Hananiah, was there too. And so were all of the other officials.
Reference
People
13
Micaiah told all of them what he had heard. He told them everything Baruch had read to the people from the scroll.
Reference
Parallel theme
2 Kings 22:10
14
All of the officials sent Jehudi to speak to Baruch, the son of Neriah. Jehudi was the son of Nethaniah. Nethaniah was the son of Shelemiah. Shelemiah was the son of Cushi. Jehudi said to Baruch, "Come. Bring the scroll you have read to the people." So Baruch went to them. He carried the scroll with him.
Reference
People
Parallel theme
Jeremiah 36:2
15
The officials said to him, "Please sit down. Read the scroll to us." So Baruch read it to them.
16
They heard all of its words. Then they looked at each other in fear. They said to Baruch, "We must report all of these words to the king."
Reference
17
They said to Baruch, "Tell us. How did you happen to write all of these things? Did Jeremiah tell you to do it?"
Reference
Parallel theme
John 9:15
18
"Yes," Baruch replied. "He told me to write down all of these words. So I wrote them in ink on the scroll."
Reference
19
Then the officials spoke to Baruch. They said, "You and Jeremiah must go and hide. Don't let anyone know where you are."
Reference
20
The officials put the scroll in the room of the secretary Elishama. Then they went to the king in the courtyard. They reported everything to him.
Reference
Kingdom
Jeremiah 36:12
21
The king sent Jehudi to get the scroll. Jehudi brought it from the room of the secretary Elishama. He read it to the king. All of the officials were standing beside the king. So they heard it too.
Reference
22
It was the ninth month. The king was sitting in his winter apartment. A fire was burning in the fire pot in front of him.
Reference
Parallel theme
Amos 3:15
23
Jehudi read three or four columns from the scroll. Then the king cut them off with a secretary's knife. He threw them into the fire pot. He did that until the entire scroll was burned up in the fire.
Reference
Parallel theme
1 Kings 22:8
Proverbs 19:21
Proverbs 21:30
Proverbs 1:30
Proverbs 13:13
1 Kings 22:27
24
The king and some of his attendants heard all of those words. But they weren't afraid. They didn't tear their clothes.
Reference
25
Elnathan, Delaiah and Gemariah begged the king not to burn the scroll. But he wouldn't listen to them.
Reference
26
Instead, the king commanded three men to arrest the secretary Baruch and the prophet Jeremiah. But the Lord had hidden them. The three were Jerahmeel, Seraiah and Shelemiah. Jerahmeel was a member of the royal court. Seraiah was the son of Azriel. And Shelemiah was the son of Abdeel.
Reference
People
Parallel theme
Psalm 91:1
1 Kings 17:3
Isaiah 26:20
Psalm 27:5
Psalm 64:2
Psalm 57:1
Psalm 32:7
Prophecy
1 Kings 19:10
1 Kings 19:14
References Lord
Acts 12:11
27
A message came to me from the Lord. It came after the king burned the scroll that had the words Baruch had written down. I had told him to write them. The message said,
28
"Get another scroll. Write on it all of the words that were on the first one. King Jehoiakim burned that one up.
29
"Also tell King Jehoiakim, 'The Lord says, "You burned that scroll. You said to Baruch, 'Why did you write that the king of Babylonia would certainly come? Why did you write that he would destroy this land? Why did you write that he would cut off people and animals alike from it?' "
Reference
Kingdom
Job 15:24
Jeremiah 32:3
Parallel theme
Isaiah 30:10
Isaiah 45:9
Isaiah 29:21
Deuteronomy 29:19
References Lord
Jeremiah 26:9
30
" 'So now the Lord has something to say about Jehoiakim, the king of Judah. He says, "No one from Jehoiakim's family line will sit on David's throne. Jehoiakim's body will be thrown out. It will lie outside in the heat by day and in the frost at night.
Reference
References Lord
Jeremiah 22:30
31
I will punish him and his children and his attendants. I will punish them for their sinful ways. I will bring on them all of the trouble I said I would. And I will bring it on the people of Jerusalem and Judah. They have not listened to me." ' "
Reference
32
So I got another scroll. I gave it to the secretary Baruch, the son of Neriah. I told him what to write on it. He wrote down all of the words that were on the scroll King Jehoiakim had burned up in the fire. And he added many more words the Lord had given to me. They were similar to those that had already been written.
Reference
Chapter Summary
Jeremiah 36 presents a dramatic confrontation between God's word and human resistance. The chapter takes place during the reign of King Jehoiakim, several years before Jerusalem's final destruction, when Babylon is becoming the dominant power and Jeremiah has spent years warning Judah that continued rebellion will bring disaster.
God tells Jeremiah to put his prophetic messages into writing. The purpose is not simply to create a historical record; God specifically says that perhaps the people will hear the warnings and turn from their evil ways, so that He may forgive them.
Because Jeremiah is unable to go to the Temple, he dictates the message to Baruch, his trusted scribe. Baruch then takes the scroll to the Temple and reads it publicly during a time of fasting, giving the people and their leaders an opportunity to hear God's warning.
The officials who hear the message become frightened. They recognize that the words are serious and report them to the king's court. Baruch is questioned about how the scroll was created, and he explains that Jeremiah dictated the words while he wrote them down.
The officials realize that King Jehoiakim may react badly, so they tell Jeremiah and Baruch to hide.
Their concern proves justified.
When the scroll is brought before King Jehoiakim, the king listens as portions are read. Instead of responding with repentance, however, he takes a knife, cuts each section from the scroll, and throws it into the fire.
This is one of the strongest symbolic actions in Jeremiah. The king is not merely ignoring God's message; he is deliberately trying to destroy the written evidence of God's warning.
Yet destroying the scroll does not destroy God's word.
The officials are afraid, but Jehoiakim shows no fear or repentance. Even when some officials ask him not to burn the scroll, he refuses to listen. He then orders Jeremiah and Baruch to be arrested, but they cannot be found because God protects them.
God's response is strikingly simple: write it again.
Jeremiah receives another scroll, and Baruch writes the message again, with additional words added to it. The physical scroll can be burned, but the message itself cannot be destroyed.
The chapter therefore presents a powerful lesson about the difference between rejecting a message and eliminating its truth. Jehoiakim can destroy the parchment, but he cannot change what God has said or prevent the coming events.
God then announces judgment against Jehoiakim because he has deliberately rejected the warning. The king's refusal to listen does not remove the coming Babylonian judgment; instead, it confirms the hardness of his leadership.
The chapter also highlights the importance of writing and preserving God's message. Jeremiah's words are transferred from prophetic speech to written form, copied by Baruch, publicly read, preserved despite royal opposition, and rewritten after destruction.
The central message is that human beings may reject, suppress, or even destroy the written form of God's warning, but they cannot destroy God's word or prevent His purposes from being fulfilled, because when King Jehoiakim cuts Jeremiah's scroll into pieces and burns it, God simply commands Jeremiah to produce another scroll and the message is written again with additional words; the chapter therefore contrasts the fear and openness of some officials with the hardened rejection of the king, showing that God's warnings are given as an opportunity for repentance rather than merely as announcements of punishment, while also demonstrating that attempts to silence God's truth cannot prevent His purposes from moving forward.
God tells Jeremiah to put his prophetic messages into writing. The purpose is not simply to create a historical record; God specifically says that perhaps the people will hear the warnings and turn from their evil ways, so that He may forgive them.
Because Jeremiah is unable to go to the Temple, he dictates the message to Baruch, his trusted scribe. Baruch then takes the scroll to the Temple and reads it publicly during a time of fasting, giving the people and their leaders an opportunity to hear God's warning.
The officials who hear the message become frightened. They recognize that the words are serious and report them to the king's court. Baruch is questioned about how the scroll was created, and he explains that Jeremiah dictated the words while he wrote them down.
The officials realize that King Jehoiakim may react badly, so they tell Jeremiah and Baruch to hide.
Their concern proves justified.
When the scroll is brought before King Jehoiakim, the king listens as portions are read. Instead of responding with repentance, however, he takes a knife, cuts each section from the scroll, and throws it into the fire.
This is one of the strongest symbolic actions in Jeremiah. The king is not merely ignoring God's message; he is deliberately trying to destroy the written evidence of God's warning.
Yet destroying the scroll does not destroy God's word.
The officials are afraid, but Jehoiakim shows no fear or repentance. Even when some officials ask him not to burn the scroll, he refuses to listen. He then orders Jeremiah and Baruch to be arrested, but they cannot be found because God protects them.
God's response is strikingly simple: write it again.
Jeremiah receives another scroll, and Baruch writes the message again, with additional words added to it. The physical scroll can be burned, but the message itself cannot be destroyed.
The chapter therefore presents a powerful lesson about the difference between rejecting a message and eliminating its truth. Jehoiakim can destroy the parchment, but he cannot change what God has said or prevent the coming events.
God then announces judgment against Jehoiakim because he has deliberately rejected the warning. The king's refusal to listen does not remove the coming Babylonian judgment; instead, it confirms the hardness of his leadership.
The chapter also highlights the importance of writing and preserving God's message. Jeremiah's words are transferred from prophetic speech to written form, copied by Baruch, publicly read, preserved despite royal opposition, and rewritten after destruction.
The central message is that human beings may reject, suppress, or even destroy the written form of God's warning, but they cannot destroy God's word or prevent His purposes from being fulfilled, because when King Jehoiakim cuts Jeremiah's scroll into pieces and burns it, God simply commands Jeremiah to produce another scroll and the message is written again with additional words; the chapter therefore contrasts the fear and openness of some officials with the hardened rejection of the king, showing that God's warnings are given as an opportunity for repentance rather than merely as announcements of punishment, while also demonstrating that attempts to silence God's truth cannot prevent His purposes from moving forward.