Monday, 08 August, 2005: Today’s Bible readings.
27 Now after the king had burned the scroll with the words that Baruch wrote at Jeremiah’s dictation, the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah: 28 “Take another scroll and write on it all the former words that were in the first scroll, which Jehoiakim the king of Judah has burned. 29 And concerning Jehoiakim king of Judah you shall say, ‘Thus says the LORD, You have burned this scroll, saying, “Why have you written in it that the king of Babylon will certainly come and destroy this land, and will cut off from it man and beast?” 30 Therefore thus says the LORD concerning Jehoiakim king of Judah: He shall have none to sit on the throne of David, and his dead body shall be cast out to the heat by day and the frost by night. 31 And I will punish him and his offspring and his servants for their iniquity. I will bring upon them and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem and upon the people of Judah all the disaster that I have pronounced against them, but they would not hear.’”
32 Then Jeremiah took another scroll and gave it to Baruch the scribe, the son of Neriah, who wrote on it at the dictation of Jeremiah all the words of the scroll that Jehoiakim king of Judah had burned in the fire. And many similar words were added to them.
In Jeremiah 36, Jeremiah is no longer allowed to go to the temple, most likely because he continues to preach God’s unpopular message to the people, and so he sends Baruch to read God’s word of the destruction that is coming if the people do not repent.
Some of the officials heard the message and were struck with fear, and so they took the scroll from Baruch and urged him to go into hiding. They then brought the scroll to King Jehoiakim so that he would hear of God’s coming judgment. They saw that they only hope as a nation was that their king would repent and lead the nation to return to God.
But the king did not repent. As they read the scroll, Jehoiakim would cut off the read portion and burn it, though the repentant officials urged him not to be so disrespectful of God’s word. Rather than repent of his evil, Jehoiakim destroyed the entire scroll and ordered Jeremiah and Baruch to be arrested.
What do we learn from this?
It is interesting to see that Jehoiakim had no regard for God’s word and intended to destroy it. But God preserved His own word despite Jehoiakim’s attempts to suppress it. Jehoiakim didn’t evade God’s pronounced judgment by destroying the scroll. Rather, his attempts to destroy God’s word only increased his coming punishment.
There have been people throughout the ages who have also unsuccessfully attempted to destroy God’s word, but they have been similarly unsuccessful. God preserves His word.
We also see that some people will be convicted by the word of God, and others will despise it. The difference is not in the word. It is the same word in both cases. The same scroll with the word from God struck fear and respect into some of the officials, but provoked defiance from Jehoiakim and others of his officials. The difference was in the hearer and not in the word.
We can not control how people will react to God’s word, and their reaction is not our responsibility. We are simply called to bring God’s word, no matter how unpopular it might be, and let Him do the work.
What we are responsible for is what we personally do with God’s word. Do we submit to the correction from God’s word? Do we mourn for the sin we see in our own lives as we study God’s command? Do we claim God’s promises for salvation for those who repent and come to Him in faith? Or do we reject God’s word, and despise it.
Where is Christ in this passage?
The Father’s ultimate Word that He has sent into the world is our Lord and Savour, Jesus Christ. We are responsible for how we respond to God’s final Word.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
1 Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.
