Jeremiah causes Baruch to write his prophecy, 1-4, and publicly to read it, 5-10. The princes, having intelligence thereof by Michaiah, send Jehudi to fetch the scroll and read it, 11-18. They make Baruch hide himself and Jeremiah, 19. The king Jehoiakim, being certified thereof, hears part of it and burns the scroll, 20-26. Jeremiah denounces his judgment, 27-31. Baruch writes a new copy, 32.
1 And it came to pass in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, that 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, 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 purpose to do to them so that they may each return from his evil way and 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 upon a scroll of a book. 5 And Jeremiah commanded Baruch, saying, "I am confined, I cannot go into the house of the LORD. 6 Therefore, go and read the words of the LORD from the scroll which you have written from my mouth in the ears of the people in the LORD'S house upon the day of fasting. And also you shall read them in the ears of all of Judah who come out of their cities. 7 It may be that they will present their supplication before the LORD and will each return from his evil way, for the anger and the fury is great that the LORD has pronounced against this people." 8 And Baruch the son of Neriah did according to all that Jeremiah the prophet commanded him, reading in 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, that they proclaimed 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 Then Baruch read in the book the words of Jeremiah in the house of the LORD, in the chamber of Gemariah the son of Shaphan the scribe, in the higher court, at the entry of 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, had heard out of the book all the words of the LORD, 12 He went down into the king's house, into the scribe's chamber, and behold, all the princes sat there, even Elishama the scribe, Delaiah the son of Shemaiah, Elnathan the son of Achbor, Gemariah the son of Shaphan, Zedekiah the son of Hananiah, and all the princes. 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 princes sent Jehudi the son of Nethaniah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Cushi, to Baruch, saying, "Take in your hand the scroll in which you have read in the ears of the people and come." So Baruch the son of Neriah took the scroll 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 Now it came to pass when they had heard all the words, they turned in fear to one another 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 from his mouth?" 18 Then Baruch answered them, "He pronounced all these words to me with his mouth, and I wrote them with ink in the book." 19 Then the princes said to Baruch, "Go, hide yourself—you and Jeremiah—and let no man know where you are."
20 And they went to the king in the court, but they laid up the scroll in the chamber of Elishama the scribe and told all the words in the ears of the king. 21 So the king sent Jehudi to bring the scroll, and he took it out of the chamber of Elishama the scribe. And Jehudi read it in the ears of the king and in the ears of all the princes who stood beside the king. 22 Now the king sat in the winter-house in the ninth month, and there was a fire on the hearth burning before him. 23 And it came to pass, that when Jehudi had read three or four leaves, he cut it with the scribe's pen-knife and cast it into the fire that was on the hearth until all the scroll was consumed in the fire that was on the hearth. 24 Yet they were not afraid, nor rent their garments—neither the king, nor any of his servants who heard all these words. 25 Nevertheless, Elnathan, Delaiah, and Gemariah had made intercession to the king that he would not burn the scroll, but he would not hear them. 26 But the king commanded Jerahmeel the son of Hammelech, Seraiah the son of Azriel, and Shelemiah the son of Abdeel to take 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 again another scroll and write in it all the former words that were in the first scroll, which Jehoiakim 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 therein, saying, "The king of Babylon shall certainly come and destroy this land and 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 upon 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 offspring and his servants for their iniquity, and I will bring upon them, upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and upon the men of Judah all the evil that I have pronounced against them, but they did not listen."'"
32 Then Jeremiah took another scroll and gave it to Baruch the scribe, the son of Neriah, who wrote therein from the mouth of Jeremiah all the words of the book which Jehoiakim king of Judah had burned in the fire. And again there were added to them many words like these.
Matthew Henry Commentary - Jeremiah, Chapter 36[➚]