Now the king was sitting in the winter house in the ninth month; and there was a fire in the brazier burning before him. When Jehudi had read three or four leaves, the king cut it with the penknife, and cast it into the fire that was in the brazier, until all the scroll was consumed in the fire that was in the brazier. The king and his servants who heard all these words were not afraid, and didn’t tear their garments.
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Jeremiah 36:22-24 sits inside this longer paragraph.
They went in to the king into the court; but they had laid up the scroll in the room of Elishama the scribe. Then they told all the words in the hearing of the king. So the king sent Jehudi to get the scroll; and he took it out of the room of Elishama the scribe. Jehudi read it in the hearing of the king, and in the hearing of all the princes who stood beside the king. Now the king was sitting in the winter house in the ninth month; and there was a fire in the brazier burning before him. When Jehudi had read three or four leaves, the king cut it with the penknife, and cast it into the fire that was in the brazier, until all the scroll was consumed in the fire that was in the brazier. The king and his servants who heard all these words were not afraid, and didn’t tear their garments. Moreover Elnathan and Delaiah and Gemariah had made intercession to the king that he would not burn the scroll; but he would not listen to them. The king commanded Jerahmeel the king’s son, and Seraiah the son of Azriel, and Shelemiah the son of Abdeel, to arrest Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet; but Yahweh hid them.
Parallel Translations
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Now the king was sitting in the winter house in the ninth month; and there was a fire in the brazier burning before him.
When Jehudi had read three or four leaves, the king cut it with the penknife, and cast it into the fire that was in the brazier, until all the scroll was consumed in the fire that was in the brazier.
The king and his servants who heard all these words were not afraid, and didn’t tear their garments.
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Now the king sat in the winterhouse in the ninth month: and there was a fire on the hearth burning before him.
And it came to pass, that when Jehudi had read three or four leaves, he cut it with the penknife, and cast it into the fire that was on the hearth, until all the roll was consumed in the fire that was on the hearth.
Yet they were not afraid, nor rent their garments, neither the king, nor any of his servants that heard all these words.
Show all 3 translations
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Now the king was sitting in the winter-house in the ninth month; and the brazier was burning before him.
And it came to pass, when Jehudi had read three or four columns, that he cut it with the penknife, and cast it into the fire that was in the brazier, until all the roll was consumed in the fire that was in the brazier.
Yet they were not afraid, nor rent their garments, neither the king, nor any of his servants that heard all these words.
Cross-references (34)
- Amos 3:15 (v22) I will strike the winter house with the summer house; and the houses of ivory will perish, and the great houses will have an end,” says…
- Jeremiah 36:16 (v24) Now when they had heard all the words, they turned in fear one toward another, and said to Baruch, “We will surely tell the king of all…
- 1 Kings 22:8 (v23) The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “There is yet one man by whom we may inquire of Yahweh, Micaiah the son of Imlah; but I hate him,…
- Psalms 36:1 (v24) A revelation is within my heart about the disobedience of the wicked: “There is no fear of God before his eyes.”
- 1 Kings 21:27 (v24) When Ahab heard those words, he tore his clothes, and put sackcloth on his flesh, and fasted, and lay in sackcloth, and went softly.
Show all 34 cross-references
- 1 Kings 22:27 (v23) Say, ‘The king says, “Put this fellow in the prison, and feed him with bread of affliction and with water of affliction, until I come in…
- 2 Kings 19:1-2 (v24) When king Hezekiah heard it, he tore his clothes, covered himself with sackcloth, and went into Yahweh’s house. He sent Eliakim, who was…
- Psalms 64:5 (v24) They encourage themselves in evil plans. They talk about laying snares secretly. They say, “Who will see them?”
- Proverbs 1:30 (v23) They wanted none of my counsel. They despised all my reproof.
- Proverbs 13:13 (v23) Whoever despises instruction will pay for it, but he who respects a command will be rewarded.
- Proverbs 19:21 (v23) There are many plans in a man’s heart, but Yahweh’s counsel will prevail.
- Proverbs 21:30 (v23) There is no wisdom nor understanding nor counsel against Yahweh.
- Isaiah 5:18-19 (v23) Woe to those who draw iniquity with cords of falsehood, and wickedness as with cart rope, who say, “Let him make haste, let him hasten his…
- Isaiah 28:14-15 (v23) Therefore hear Yahweh’s word, you scoffers, that rule this people in Jerusalem: “Because you have said, ‘We have made a covenant with…
- Isaiah 36:22–37:1 (v24) Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah, the son of Asaph, the recorder, came to…
- Jonah 3:6 (v24) The news reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and took off his royal robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in…
- Genesis 37:29 (v24) Reuben returned to the pit, and saw that Joseph wasn’t in the pit; and he tore his clothes.
- Deuteronomy 29:19-21 (v23) and it happen, when he hears the words of this curse, that he bless himself in his heart, saying, “I shall have peace, though I walk in the…
- 2 Kings 22:11-19 (v24) When the king had heard the words of the book of the law, he tore his clothes. The king commanded Hilkiah the priest, Ahikam the son of…
- 2 Chronicles 34:19-31 (v24) When the king had heard the words of the law, he tore his clothes. The king commanded Hilkiah, Ahikam the son of Shaphan, Abdon the son of…
- Job 15:4 (v24) Yes, you do away with fear, and hinder devotion before God.
- Psalms 50:17 (v23) since you hate instruction, and throw my words behind you?
- Proverbs 5:12 (v23) and say, “How I have hated instruction, and my heart despised reproof;
- Proverbs 29:1 (v23) He who is often rebuked and stiffens his neck will be destroyed suddenly, with no remedy.
- Isaiah 26:11 (v24) Yahweh, your hand is lifted up, yet they don’t see; but they will see your zeal for the people, and be disappointed. Yes, fire will consume…
- Isaiah 28:17-22 (v23) I will make justice the measuring line, and righteousness the plumb line. The hail will sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters will…
- Jeremiah 3:20 (v22) “Surely as a wife treacherously departs from her husband, so you have dealt treacherously with me, house of Israel,” says Yahweh.
- Jeremiah 5:3 (v24) O Yahweh, don’t your eyes look on truth? You have stricken them, but they were not grieved. You have consumed them, but they have refused…
- Jeremiah 22:14-16 (v22) who says, ‘I will build myself a wide house and spacious rooms,’ and cuts out windows for himself; with a cedar ceiling, and painted with…
- Jeremiah 36:9 (v22) Now in the fifth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, in the ninth month, all the people in Jerusalem, and all the people…
- Jeremiah 36:29-31 (v23) Concerning Jehoiakim king of Judah you shall say, ‘Yahweh says: “You have burned this scroll, saying, “Why have you written therein,…
- Matthew 12:41 (v24) The men of Nineveh will stand up in the judgment with this generation, and will condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah;…
- Romans 3:18 (v24) “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
- Revelation 22:19 (v23) If anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, may God take away his part from the tree of life, and out of the holy…
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this passage (19 sources)
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain On vv23–24 Here Jeremiah shews how little he had effected; for…
Here Jeremiah shews how little he had effected; for the king not only cast aside but tore the roll into pieces, and after having torn it, he wished its memory to perish, for he cast it into the fire. This trial must have grievously affected the mind of the Prophet; he had dictated that roll by God’s command; he saw now that all his labor had been in vain. He might then have complained to God that so much labor had been spent without fruit. For why had God bidden the roll to be written, except for the purpose of leading the king and his counsellors to repentance. As to the people, the Prophet could not know whether it had answered the end for which he sent his scribe Baruch to them, for no account is given as to the attention paid by them. But Baruch was led to the king’s palace, so the minds of all were kept in suspense: what was now the issue? The king burnt the roll. There is no doubt then but that the mind of the Prophet was much affected. But God thus exercises his servants when he bids them to speak to the deaf or to bring light to the blind.
Let us then learn simply to obey God, though the labor he requires from us may seem to be useless. And hence Paul rises above all the ingratitude of the world and says, that the ministers of the Gospel are a sweet odor to God, whether for death or for life, (2 Corinthians 2:15, 16) for though the greater part are rendered worse by hearing the Gospel, yet the obedience rendered to God by ministers is acceptable to him, nor is the event to be looked to. Jeremiah then saw that the king’s mind was exasperated, but he did not on that account repent of his obedience, for he knew that the event was to be left with God and to his will. The duty of men is to execute whatever God commands, though no fruit may appear to proceed from their labors. This then is one thing.
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Now as to the king, we see in him as in a glass how monstrous is their blindness who are the slaves of Satan. Surely the king, when God so thundered in his ears, ought to have been terrified. He could not indeed treat the word with ridicule, but he became enraged, and acted violently like a rabid wild beast, and vented his rage against the roll itself! If he thought Jeremiah to have been the author, why did he not disregard him as a man of no authority in public affairs? for Jeremiah could not have lessened his character as a king. There is then no doubt but that he perceived, though unwillingly, that he had to do with God; why then did he become thus enraged? what could he hope to gain by such madness towards God? But this, as I have said, was that dreadful blindness which is found in all the reprobate, whose minds the devil has fascinated; for on the one hand they perceive, willing or unwilling, that God is present, and that they are in a manner summoned to his tribunal; and on the other, as though they were forgetful of God, they rage madly against him.
It is then said of King Jehoiakim, that while he was in his winter-house and sitting before the fire, when three or four pages had been read, he cut the roll with an iron pen, or with the small knife of a scribe. The word תער tor, means often a razor, but is to be taken here for the knife used by scribes, un canivet. The king, in the first place, did not wait until Jehudi finished the roll; after he had heard three or four leaves, or pages, as we call them, he seized the roll and cut it; and in the second place, being not content with this sacrilege he burnt the roll, as though he could abolish God’s judgment together with the book. But we shall hereafter see what he gained by this intemperate spirit in burning the roll until the whole was consumed in the fire It now follows —
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv22, 24 Which contained part of November, and part of December.
Which contained part of November, and part of December.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv22–24 Jer 36:22 Now the king sat in the winterhouse…
Jer 36:22 Now the king sat in the winterhouse in the ninth month: and [there was a fire] on the hearth burning before him.
Ver. 22. Now the king sat in the winter house.] There sat he, in that his stately and sumptuous palace built by iniquity, {Jer 22:13-14} curans cuticulam ad focum, keeping himself warm in his winter chamber, and careless of calling upon God; while the people, cold and empty, were fasting and praying in the temple, and hearing the Word read by Baruch.
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In the ninth month,] sc., Of the sacred year, which month was part of our November and part of December, a cold season; but that thing of naught, his body, which he now made so much of, was shortly after to be cast out unburied, in the day to the heat, and in the night to the frost. {Jer 36:30}
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv22–24 The ninth month with them answered part of our…
The ninth month with them answered part of our November and December, which was a time of the year called for fires.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv22–24 Now the king sat in the winter house, in…
Now the king sat in the winter house, in the ninth month,.... The month Cisleu, which answers to part of November, and part of December; and so was the midst of winter, and a proper time for the king to be in his winter house; though, as this was a fast day, it would have been more proper for him to have been at the worship of God in the temple, Jer 36:9. This winter house probably was a winter parlour, as distinguished from a summer parlour, Jdg 3:20; and both might be under the same roof, or parts of the same house; only the one might be more airy and cool, and the other more close and warm. Kings had their summer and winter houses; see Amo 3:15; this circumstance is mentioned for the sake of what follows, the burning of the roll; and accounts for there being a fire at hand to do it:
and there was a fire on the hearth burning before him; there was a stove, or some such vessel or instrument, in which a large fire of wood was made, at which the king sat to keep himself warm while the roll was reading, and about which the princes stood.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv22–23 The ninth month - Answered to part of our…
The ninth month - Answered to part of our November and December.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv22–23 Verse 22. Winterhouse] A warm apartment suited to the…
Verse 22. Winterhouse] A warm apartment suited to the season of the year, (December,) when in Palestine there is often snow upon the ground, though it does not last long. A fire on the hearth-a pan or brazier of burning coals. This is the case to the present day. In cold weather the rich burn wood in brass or earthen pans, placed in any part of the room; the indigent burn sticks on the floor.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv22–24 Jer 36:22. Now the king sat in the winter-house…
Jer 36:22. Now the king sat in the winter-house — The princes and great men had distinct houses, or apartments, fitted for the several seasons of the year, Amo 3:15. In the ninth month — Which answers to the latter end of our November and part of December. And there was a fire on the hearth burning before him — Hebrew, יאת האח לפניו מבערת, et focus coram ipso ardebat, Buxtorff: literally, And a hearth, or, fire-pan was burning before him. Thus the LXX., και εσγαρα πυρος κατα
προσωπον αυτου: and a pan of fire before him. To the same purpose the Vulgate, et posita erat arula coram eo plena prunis, There was set before him a little altar, or fire-pan, full of burning coals. The reason of this phraseology we have in the account which Lightfoot gives us from Maimonides, namely, that chimneys were not admitted at Jerusalem by reason of the smoke. And Mr. Harmer tells us, (chap. 3. obs. 24,) that Sir John Chardin, in his MS. notes, supposes that the fire which was burning before Jehoiakim was a pan of coals; and cites a passage from him, which says, in French, “This was just as persons of quality warm themselves in winter in Persia, and particularly in Media, and wherever there is no want of wood. The manner in which they sit will not allow them to be near a chimney: in these places, therefore, of the East, they have great brasiers of lighted coals.” Harmer likewise informs us, that “the fires used at Aleppo, in the lodging rooms, are of charcoal in pans; and that pans of coals are the fires which are often made use of in winter in Egypt.” It may be observed further here, that this description of Jehoiakim sitting in his winter-house, in the ninth month, with a pan of fire before him, answers to Dr. Russel’s account, who says, that the most delicate in those countries make no fires till the end of November. How long they continue the use of them he does not say: but we learn from other sources, that in Judea they are continued far into the spring: see Joh 18:18.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv22–23 The winterhouse - A separate portion of the palace…
The winterhouse - A separate portion of the palace was used for residence according to the season (marginal reference).
And there was a fire on the hearth ... - And the fire-pan burning before them. On the middle of the floor was a brazier containing burning charcoal.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv22–24 Winter-house. He was very magnificent, and had other apartments…
Winter-house. He was very magnificent, and had other apartments for summer. Though the climate was warm, fires would be useful in November. --- Hearth. There was no chimney used, and the smoke went out by the door, or by holes at the top of the room, as we see in some old monasteries. (Calmet) --- Charcoal was probably used, Baruch vi. 42.
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv22–24 winter house-- (Amo 3:15).
winter house-- (Amo 3:15).
ninth month--namely, of the religious year, that is, November or December.
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fire on . . . hearth--rather, the stove was burning before him. In the East neither chimneys nor ovens are used, but, in cold weather, a brazen vessel containing burning charcoal; when the wood has burned to embers, a cover is placed over the pot to make it retain the heat.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv22–24 THE READING TO THE KING, Jer_36:19-26.
THE READING TO THE KING, Jer_36:19-26.
22. Winter house — A special part of the palace used for that season.
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Fire on the hearth — Brazier. The houses of the Jews, as usual in the east, were warmed not by means of chimneys or living fires, but by open vessels containing coals.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv22–24 22. in the winter house] See on Jer_36:9. It…
22. in the winter house] See on Jer_36:9. It was a cold and rainy time of the year (see Ezr_10:9). Amos (Jer_3:15) mentions both winter and summer houses. “In common parlance the lower apartments are simply el beit—the house; the upper is the ullîyeh, which is the summer house. Every respectable dwelling has both.… If these are on the same storey, then the external and airy apartment is the summer house, and that for winter is the interior and more sheltered room. It is rare to meet a family which has an entirely separate dwelling for summer.”—Thomson, The Land and the Book, p. 309.
in the ninth month] omit with LXX.
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there was a fire in the brasier] Brasiers containing charcoal are placed in a depression in the middle of a room for purposes of warming. The change of one Hebrew consonant gives us the right sense. As the MT. stands, it is defective and lacking in grammar.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv22–24 (22) Now the king sat in the winterhouse in…
(22) Now the king sat in the winterhouse in the ninth month.—The “winterhouse” (the palaces of kings seem to have been commonly provided with such a special apartment; comp. Amo_3:15) was probably the southern wing of the palace. It was in November or December, and, as glass windows were unknown, a charcoal fire, placed after the Eastern fashion in a brazier, or earthen pot, in the middle of the room, was a necessity. So we find a fire in the court of the high priest’s palace in the raw early morning of a Passover in March or April (Joh_18:18).
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv22–24 In the winter house; i.e. that part of the…
In the winter house; i.e. that part of the royal palace (beth, house, may also be rendered apartment) which was arranged for a winter habitation. (comp. Amo_3:15) According to Dr. Thomson ("The Land and the Book," p. 309), the more airy part of a house is called "summerhouse," and the more sheltered room "winter house." The ninth month, in which the events now being related took place, corresponded approximately to our December. It was, therefore, the cold and rainy season; December is a stormy month in Palestine. A fire on the hearth; rather, in the chafing dish (or, brazier). It was a vessel with live coals placed in the centre of the room, still used in the East in cold weather.
Vers. 22-26. The burning of the roll.
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When the princes informed Jehoiakim of the circumstances connected with the reading of Jeremiah"s prophecies, the king sent an attendant, Jehudi, to fetch the roll and read it to him. It has been said that he showed contempt for the Word of God by relegating the reading to a page instead of sending for Baruch. But Baruch had probably escaped to seclusion at the warning of the courtiers (ver. 19), and as he had left the roll in other hands, what was more natural than that Jehoiakim should send for it without a thought of Jeremiah"s appointment of a reader? Indeed, it matters little who reads; the question is How is the reading received?
I CONSIDER THE ACTION OF THE KING. It was December the cold and rainy month. A fire blazed on the brazier. As the roll was read, the king cut it up and flung the sections into the fire, till he had destroyed the whole of it. His action was one of rage and folly. He would have no more of the prophet"s dreadful words for himself; he would prevent them from further influencing others; he would vent his rage upon the record, though he could not touch the truths contained in it. Are there not many who inwardly sympathize with this violence of Jehoiakim? They dare not say they wish the Bible to be destroyed. But there are things in it which testify against them so strongly that they would keep them forever out of sight. The special features of Jehoiakim"s action are significant.
1. It was beyond his rights. King as he was, the roll did not belong to him. Neither had he any authority over the inspired word of prophecy. Earthly power confers no privilege and power in Divine things.
2. It was brutally violent. Jehoiakim cut up and burnt the roll that was all he could do. To refute its contents was beyond his power.
3. It was vain and futile. The roll might be burnt, but the truth it contained could not be destroyed, nor could it even be suppressed. Another roll could be written, and the burning of the first would be an advertisement for the second. Violent opposition thus benefits the cause it would destroy. The burning of Tyndale"s Bibles was one of the best means for securing the circulation of a larger number of English Bibles.
4. It was suggested by a temptation. The fire was at hand an unusual thing, apparently, just suited to the occasion. There is an evil providence as well as a higher providence of good. It is not safe to follow the superficial indication of events. That is as likely to come from below as from above.
5. It was deliberate. Piece by piece the roll was cut up and burnt. Hasty passion might excuse the first burning, but not the whole process.
6. It was complete. All the roll was consumed. There was no discrimination. The act was symbolical. The rejection Of one part of truth will lead to the rejection of the whole of it.
7. It was really injurious only to the perpetrator. The roll could not feel; the truth could not be destroyed; another roll could be written. But the burning of the roll was to the king"s own loss. That roll contained the only available prescription for the healing of the distresses of himself and his kingdom. The Bible is really sent for the good of the worst of men. Their rejection of it is only to their own loss.
II CONSIDER THE CONDUCT OF THE COURTIERS.
1. Some stood by and watched the burning. They did not aid it; but they did not hinder it. Therefore they shared the responsibility of the king. For we are responsible for the evil we will not restrain as well as for that we commit, so that in doing little harm we may yet be guilty of much. The courtiers had no valid excuse for their indifference. Royal authority cannot justify acquiescence in wrong. Personal fear is no excuse, since it is better to die for the right than desert it in sheer cowardice. These men showed no fear (ver. 24). They had been alarmed (ver. 16). But religious fears are transitory, and if not acted on leave the heart more hardened than they find it.
2. Some expostulated. These men had been more permanently affected by the reading of Baruch. They carried the impressions made in the temple to their conduct at the court. That is a proof of a real influence of the words of Jeremiah upon them. It is little that we feel the weight of religion in church. The test is how far this dwells with us in the world, and when it would urge to unpopular, difficult, or dangerous actions.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On v24 Yet they were not afraid.
Jer_36:24
Yet they were not afraid.
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The hardening power of sin
Is it conceivable that men who believed Jeremiah to be a prophet of God should despise his words? Is it credible that, after preaching for twenty years, those who listened to him should think him a prophet, and yet throw his sermons in the fire? I am afraid this is very conceivable and very credible: I see nothing in it a whir more incredible than in this, that men who dare not deny the Bible to be the Word of God, should know what is right and not do it, that they should have warning of a far more fearful captivity than that which was coming on the Jews, and yet should never tremble. The king of Judah and his people were not in the condition of men who had been sinning in ignorance, and to whom a sudden message had come from God to warn them to repent; they had no excuse of this kind, they had been deliberately disobeying God in spite of the warnings of Jeremiah, they had sinned against light, as we say, and so they had become blinded and hardened. At first probably, when they heard the prophet, they felt that they were living wickedly and made resolutions to amend, but by and by temptation came again and they gave way; then once more they would hear the warning voice, but somehow it would not this time be so terrible. Is it difficult to find examples of the like thing now? of men who by little and little fall from one sin to another, who have been taught as children the way of God and have been told of heaven and hell, and so are scared at first when they think that the wages of sin is death; but by and by this truth seems to lose its edge, sin has gained more hold, and Satan has said as he did to Eve, Ye shall not surely die; one sin leads to another, and each seems easier than the one before it; things which once appeared frightful now seem simple and familiar, and thus after a time the man becomes hardened. This is what the confession of many criminals confirms, they trace their wretchedness hack to some much smaller sin committed when young: a boy disobeys his parents, and perhaps would not believe you if you told him that he had taken one step towards the gallows; and let this may be true. This I understand by the deceitfulness of sin, to which the apostle refers its hardening power (Heb_3:13); it is deceitful, because what we call a small sin appears trifling, because we judge of sins merely in themselves, without considering to what they lead. If in a war a general were to see a few of the enemys soldiers straggling over the hills, he might say that they were so few that they were not worth considering, but would he say so? or would he not rather look upon them as the forerunners of a great army, would he not prepare at once to resist the host of enemies which he must know lurked behind? In like manner the sins of childhood are the forerunners of the great army of the world, the flesh, and the devil, which comes up in maturer years, and the only safe course is to look upon no sin as trifling, but to root out every enemy whether small or great, lest perhaps we allow our enemy to gain such strength as shall end in our overthrow. We will consider first the ease of a man who seldom or never goes to church. Now I suppose the reason such a man would give is, that he does not see the use of it. Did he always think so? Most probably he had been taught differently when a child, he had been taught that God is with His people gathered together in His Name, that our Lord Jesus Christ is there; he was taught this, and he once believed it, but now he thinks he is as well at home: how has this change come about? has he reasoned about it? probably not at all: has any one for whom he has any respect told him so? certainly not: then what has changed him? it is the effect of habit; he has been hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. What I have just said will apply almost without change to the case of a man who never prays. He was taught to pray as a child, and perhaps he continues the practice, till at length, because he does not act up to his prayers, he finds the practice tiresome, and so he finds an excuse to omit prayer occasionally; then he grows more careless and more irregular, and yet the omission costs him less and less pain, till at last the time comes when he forgets God altogether, and so starves his soul to death. Or again, what shall we say of those who continually hear of their duty, and do not do it, or at all events do it in a very stinted degree? One man is just and kind and liberal, being scarcely aware of it himself, and another is niggardly and churlish, not because he thinks it right to be so, but because he has become hardened. It is a thing for every one of us to think over and pray over, whether we are in all things following God without reserve, and whether there may not be some point in which we are falling very grievously short, but to which habit has hardened us. (Bishop Harvey Goodwin.)
Afraid of the Bible
A celebrated infidel once said, There is one thing which mars all the pleasure of my life. Indeed, replied his friend; what is that? I am afraid the Bible is true, was the answer. If I could know for certain that death is an eternal sleep, I should be happy--my joy would be complete. But here is the thorn that stings me--this is the sword that pierces my very soul: if the Bible is true, I am lost for ever. This is the Bible upon the truths of which many have lived, and in the belief of which many have died. Oh, how terribly afraid would they have been if anyone had been able to show that it was untrue! For upon its truths all their hopes are built. An untrue Bible would mean an untrue Christ; and a Christless death would be a death of doom to them. (Quiver.)
A foolish bravery
I. It is a foolish bravery to ignore facts. Just that did Jehoiakim. It was a fact that he had sinned. It was a fact that Jeremiah was Gods prophet. It was a fact that God, by the mouth of Jeremiah, had spoken doom for the sin of Jehoiakim unless he should repent. But Jehoiakim would have nothing of these facts. He cut the roll to pieces and threw it in the fire, &c. This did not change the facts.
1. It is a fact that good is what ought to be.
2. It is a fact that God is the good.
3. It is a fact that evil is what ought not to be.
4. It is a fact that the good which ought to be must be against the evil which ought not to be.
5. It is therefore a fact that God, who is the good which ought to be, must be Himself against the evil which ought not to be.
6. It is, therefore, a further fact that if I choose the evil which ought not to be, the good God, who must be against the evil which ought not to be, must be against me.
II. It is a foolish bravery to imagine yourself an exception from the working of the Divine law. Have you never been subdued into a vast awe, as the absolute irreversibleness of natural law has been pressed upon you? It is because natural law is so unchanging that we may build our cities, and send our ships, and plough our fields, and reap our harvests. But there is another and a fearful side to this irreversibleness of natural law. When, for any reason, man stands athwart one of these great natural laws, the penalty for violation is sure to smite. And this is as true in the moral realm. It is a foolish bravery to think yourself an exception to Gods law. He said it--there am many who think it who do not so plainly say it--that young man, whom I was seeking to dissuade from courses of dissipation. Oh, he answered, it may hurt other fellows, but it wont me; I am an exception. How crammed with folly such temerity!
III. It is a foolish bravery to refuse truth which you dislike.
IV. It is a foolish bravery to go on heedlessly, saying, i dont care.
V. It is a foolish bravery to refuse repentance. (W. Hoyt, D. D.)
The guilt of indifference to Divine threatenings
1. The man who hears Gods threatenings without being afraid, and His kind invitations and promises without being melted, does in effect say to His face, I consider nothing which Thou canst utter as of sufficient importance to excite the smallest emotion; neither Thy favour nor Thy displeasure is of the least consequence to me; I dread not Thy threatenings, I regard not Thy promises; after Thou hast said all that Thou canst say, I remain perfectly unmoved, and prepared to execute, not Thy pleasure, but my own. And if this does not express the utmost contempt of God, what can express it?
2. This sin also involves and indicates the highest degree of unbelief, of that unbelief which makes God a liar. When a man brings us intelligence of most important events, of events in which, if true, we are deeply interested, we cannot tell him more plainly that we disbelieve everything which he has said, than by remaining perfectly unaffected. He then who is but in a small degree affected by Gods Word, has but little faith in it, and he who is not at all affected by it has no faith in it at all. He is as completely an infidel as anyone who ever gloried in the name.
3. Those who hear or read the Word of God without being affected, display extreme hardness of heart. They show that their hearts are absolutely unimpressible by any motives or considerations which infinite wisdom itself can suggest; that they are of so much more than flinty hardness, as to resist that Word which God Himself declares to be like a fire, and a hammer, that breaketh the rock in pieces. (E. Payson, D. D.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
C. I. Scofield 1917 · Public Domain On v22 ninth month
ninth month
i.e. December.
The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On v23 It happened that
It happened that
This phrase is used here to mark an important event in the story. If your language has a way for doing this, you could consider using it here.
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Jehudi
See how you translated this in Jeremiah 36:14.
columns
these are columns of words on the scroll
would cut it off
"would cut that part of the scroll off"
with a knife
"using a scribe's knife" or "using the kind of knife that scribes use"
brazier
See how you translated this in Jeremiah 36:22.
until all of the scroll was destroyed
"until the scroll was completely gone"
all these words
the words from the scroll that Baruch wrote as Jeremiah dictated
nor did they tear their clothes
People tore their cloths when they were extremely sad. AT: "nor did they mourn by tearing their clothes" (See: Symbolic Action)
translationWords
king
fire
scroll
servant
word
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On v23 36:23-24 Jehoiakim was so antagonistic and hardened that after…
36:23-24 Jehoiakim was so antagonistic and hardened that after three or four columns of the scroll were read, he cut off the section with a sharp knife and threw it into the fire. Jehoiakim’s father, Josiah, had responded very differently when the newly discovered Book of the Law was read to him (2 Kgs 22:11).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.