Jehoiakim Burns Jeremiah’s Scroll

36 In the fourth year of Jehoiakim^(A) son of Josiah king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the Lord: ² “Take a scroll^(B) and write on it all the words^(C) I have spoken to you concerning Israel, Judah and all the other nations from the time I began speaking to you in the reign of Josiah^(D) till now. ³ Perhaps^(E) when the people of Judah hear^(F) about every disaster I plan to inflict on them, they will each turn^(G) from their wicked ways; then I will forgive^(H) their wickedness and their sin.”

²¹ The king sent Jehudi^(A) to get the scroll, and Jehudi brought it from the room of Elishama the secretary and read it to the king^(B) and all the officials standing beside him. ²² It was the ninth month and the king was sitting in the winter apartment,^(C) with a fire burning in the firepot in front of him. ²³ Whenever Jehudi had read three or four columns of the scroll,^(D) the king cut them off with a scribe’s knife and threw them into the firepot, until the entire scroll was burned in the fire.^(E)

²⁷ After the king burned the scroll containing the words that Baruch had written at Jeremiah’s dictation,^(A) the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: ²⁸ “Take another scroll^(B) and write on it all the words that were on the first scroll, which Jehoiakim king of Judah burned up. ²⁹ Also tell Jehoiakim king of Judah, ‘This is what the Lord says: You burned that scroll and said, “Why did you write on it that the king of Babylon would certainly come and destroy this land and wipe from it^(C) both man and beast?”^{(D) 30} Therefore this is what the Lord says about Jehoiakim^(E) king of Judah: He will have no one to sit on the throne of David; his body will be thrown out^(F) and exposed^(G) to the heat by day and the frost by night.^(H)