Jeremiah 36 - Bible Study, Explanation, and Application
Jeremiah 36 Bible Study
INTRO AND TIMELINE:
Jeremiah was a priest who lived in Anathoth (3 miles from Jerusalem). His ministry was directed towards the people of Judah, immediately before and during their exile in Babylon. His work as a prophet dates from 627 BC through the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians in 586 BC.
Jeremiah is the longest book in the English Bible by word count. The book has 52 chapters.
Jeremiah prophesied under the following Kings of Judah:
Manasseh (687-642 BC)
Amos (642-640 BC)
Josiah (640-609 BC)
Jehoiakim (initially known as Eliakim, 609-598 BC)
Jehoiachin (also known as Jeconiah or Coniah, 598-597 BC)
Zedekiah (His reign ended when Babylon conquered Judah, (597-586 BC)
COST OF PAPYRUS PAPER:
In Jeremiah 36, Jeremiah wrote the words of God on a scroll.
It’s highly likely the scroll was made out of papyrus paper from Egypt. The paper was labor intensive to make and required gluing together thin strips of the papyrus reed.
Some historians estimate a sheet of exported papyrus to cost between the equivalent of $30-50 USD per sheet.
If a scroll contained 20 sheets, it could have exceeded the equivalent of $1000 USD.
In modern times, we don’t always appreciate the ease with which we can publish books and disseminate information.
OUTLINE:
JEREMIAH AND BARUCH WRITE THE WORDS OF GOD IN A SCROLL (36:1-21):
In the 4th year of King Jehoiakim, God told Jeremiah to take a scroll and write down all the words that He had spoken to him since the beginning of his time as a prophet.
God wanted to give Judah a written record of all He had said. They wouldn’t listen to the spoken words of the prophets, perhaps a book would have more effect.
Jeremiah dictated all the words to Baruch and he wrote them on the scroll.
Since Jeremiah was banned from entering the Temple, he told Baruch to take the scroll into the Temple on the day of fasting and read the contents to all the people.
Baruch did as he was instructed. He read the scroll in the 9th month of Jehoiakim’s 5th year.
When the king’s officials heard about the scroll, they asked Baruch to read it to them. When they heard the contents, they looked at each other in fear.
The officials told Baruch and Jeremiah to hide while they shared the scroll with the king.
KING JEHOIAKIM BURNS JEREMIAH’S SCROLL (36:22-26):
The king was in his winter palace with a fire burning near him.
As the scroll was read to him, he used a knife to cut off the section that had just been read and threw it in the fire. He did this until the entire scroll was burned.
Though the lower officials had been struck with fear by the reading, the king and his high officials showed no signs of fear or repentance.
King Jehoiakim was mad that Jeremiah wrote about Jerusalem being conquered by the Babylonians.
The king order Jeremiah and Baruch to be arrested, but “the Lord hid them” (36:26).
JEREMIAH AND BARUCH REWRITE THE SCROLL (36:27-32):
God told Jeremiah and Baruch to rewrite the entire scroll with a few additions.
God was going to punish Jehoiakim by ending his family dynasty and giving him a disgraceful death. His sons would not sit on the throne of Judah, and upon his death, his body would be thrown out in the open air like the carcass of a dead animal.
God reaffirmed His intention to bring disaster on Jerusalem for their sins and stubbornness.
APPLICATION:
I found it interesting that King Jehoiakim’s lower officials were struck with fear when God’s words were read to them out of Jeremiah’s scroll, almost as if they had never heard them before.
It seems they felt immediate action needed to be taken, but their zeal was squashed by the king.
Why were they ignorant of God’s words before the reading? It’s not clear, but perhaps they just weren’t seeking God, living their comfortable lives in the king’s court without giving much thought to their souls or relationship with the Lord.
All it took was one reading to awaken them to their desperate spiritual needs.
It makes me wonder how many people today would recognise a need to take immediate action if they heard the words of God published widely and boldly.
There are a lot of people who are living comfortable lives who don’t give thought to what God requires of them or the consequences of ignoring Him.
We need to be busy spreading the message of God everywhere. There are likely many people in our proximity who just need a good confrontation with truth to wake up!
