Burning the Scroll - The Books of Jeremiah & 2 Kings

In this Bible Story, we learn of God speaking through the prophet Jeremiah. His words of comfort, justice, and repentance begin to truly affect the hearts of Judah. However, the king plants seeds of doubt and burns his words in the fire. This story is inspired by Jeremiah 26, 36, 2 Chronicles 36 & 2 Kings 23:31-25:30. Go to BibleinaYear.com and learn the Bible in a Year.

Today's Bible verse is Jeremiah 36:28 from the King James Version.

Episode 156: The kingdom of Judah was now under the power of Egypt. Neco placed Jehoiakim (Josiah’s other son and Jehoahaz’s brother) on the throne as his vassal. One night, however, the boiling pot of Babylon showed up in full force. King Nebuchadnezzar raided the city, the people, and the temple, and he took Jehoiakim captive and made his son Jehoiachin in his place. In all of this, Judah did not turn in repentance. And so God sent the Chaldeans to come and burn the city; destroying the temple. Yet even here, God sent a message of hope to His people.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Let us pray, take thee again another roll, and write
it in all the former words that were in the
first role which Jehoakim, the King of Judah hath burned
Jeremiah thirty six twenty eight. Give me the boldness to
speak and proclaim your truth, even when I face persecution

(00:22):
from those who feel they know better. And the same
way that Jeremiah had the confidence to stand in the
face of opposition, I thank you that I too possess
that same confidence to stand for what is right and godly,
even though I may be the only one holding fast

(00:43):
to your words of truth when society seeks to silence
my words and actions, when those in power look to
burn and destroy your truths, I thank you that your
word and your decrees are eternal and indestructible. Whereas others

(01:05):
fold under the pressure of the mantle of purpose, I
will endure because You've anointed me to share your goodness
and to reach the lost. In whatever environment I'm in,
I declare that revival is on us and change flows
through us. In Jesus's name, Amen, Listening to these daily

(01:34):
prayers strengthens your relationship with God. Continue hearing from the
Lord by listening to today's Bible in a Year brought
to you by Bible in a Year dot.

Speaker 2 (01:44):
Com Burning the Scroll. In our last story, learned about
the calling of Jeremiah. He was chosen as a prophet
to bring the people of Judah back to God. Jeremiah

(02:07):
proclaimed the word of God in the city's streets and
in front of the temple. Much of his words fell
on deaf ears, other words fell on angry ears, and
Jeremiah was forced to feel the blunt force of people's
clubs and fists. Now we learn about the word of
Jeremiah being recorded into a scroll and the word of

(02:27):
God spreading for more people to hear. However, whenever truth
is proclaimed, there are those in power who desire to
repress it. Inspired by the Book of Jeremiah and Second Kings.

Speaker 3 (02:42):
Hello, this is the Bible in a Year podcast and
I'm Jack Graham. In our last episode, we heard of
Jeremiah's call to be God's voice to the people of Judah.
Speaking God's truth can be lonely and often dangerous, but
Jeremiah was a man of courage, and even when he
was weary and tired, he still maintained the ministry and

(03:05):
the mission that God had given him. Today, we'll hear
more of Jeremiah's life and ministry as he proclaimed the
word of God. His words will be recorded onto a
scroll preserved for future generations. But as we've already seen,
Jeremiah would face anger and hatred, and there would be
those trying to silence his voice and the voice of God.

(03:26):
So let's listen to the reading of God's word.

Speaker 2 (03:29):
Now, the righteous king Josiah had passed to be with
his father David. With him, the hope for repentant Judah
grew dim. Jeremiah wasted no time. Josiah's death would set
the North in motion, and it was only a matter
of time before Babylon descended upon God's people. Jeremiah proclaimed

(03:50):
God's call to repentance with urgency. He stood in the
court of the Lord's house and spoke to all the cities.
He waved his hands and raised his v shouting for
all to turn from their ways and come back to
God before it was too late. God wanted to give
Judah every possible chance to turn away from evil. Josiah

(04:12):
did his best to remove all the idols from the nation,
but he could not change their hearts. Only they could
personally choose to worship and love the Lord. Despite Jeremiah's
best efforts, the Lord's warnings were not received with gladness.
In fact, Jeremiah was often met with incredible disdain, especially

(04:33):
from the priests. One day, Jeremiah was finishing his sermon
in front of a large crowd calling for repentance. In
the middle of his proclamation, Jeremiah saw flurry of temple
guards come after him. Jeremiah tried to turn away, but
one of them grabbed him by the ankles. You shall die,
the priests yelled, You speak as God, saying that we

(04:54):
will be destroyed. Who has given you the right? The
priests were so busy focused on their damaged egos that
they could not hear what Jeremiah was trying to tell them.
They detained him, and a large crowd gathered in the
courtyard of the temple to watch. When the king's judges
and officials heard about the commotion near the temple and
came down to settle the matter. This man deserves to die,

(05:18):
the priests spat, You have heard it yourself, He proclaims
destruction against Judah. The officials looked at Jeremiah and gestured
for him to defend himself. The temple guards let go
of him, and Jeremiah spoke again, saying, I say nothing
that has not been asked of me by God himself.
Mend your relationship with him, and he will relent. He

(05:40):
is kind and willing to spare us if we simply
turned back to him. Jeremiah paused, looking at their blank stairs.
He held up his hands and gestured for chains. But
if you truly see me as a threat, go ahead
and detain me. Do what seems good to you, but
know that you would be shedding the blood of an
innocent man. The officials mumbled amongst themselves. Jeremiah looked at

(06:04):
them and then back to the priests. It was tense,
and Jeremiah did not know what would happen next. It
is clear, one of the officials began, that this man
does not deserve to die. He clearly speaks for the Lord,
as did our King Josiah before him. Jeremiah released to
sire of relief. He was more pleased that the people

(06:26):
were finally beginning to understand him. Time had passed and
Jeremiah could see a small revival blossoming. However, Jeremiah could
not shake the feeling that what the Lord was telling
him was for the future generations as well as the current.
So the Lord prompted his heart and told him to
write down all that he had told him. God's words

(06:47):
to Jeremiah would serve as a compass and comfort to
the captive people of Judah in the years to come.
So Jeremiah summoned Baruk, a trusted friend and scribe. Together
they wrote down all the Lord had shown Jeremiah. All
the warnings and calls for repentance were documented for future
generations to read. I am banned from entering the temple

(07:09):
because of the angered priests. Jeremiah said, you must go
and take this scroll to the people, read it to them,
and pray. They turned to God. So Baruk took the
scroll into the temple before God and Man. He declared
the warnings of Jeremiah. Revival began to blossom even more
as the people listened. A fast was declared for the people,

(07:32):
and the priests began to soften towards the warnings of God.
The word of God began to heal the broken hearts
of Judah. People were beginning to run back to God.
They were hearing the voice of their shepherd, as they
once did in the wilderness. However, King Jehoiakim was not
like King Josiah. He was a prideful man. He was

(07:53):
calm and filled with quiet rage. Word came to him
that Baruk was reading the Word of God and people
were filling the temple with repentant hearts. His servants went
to retrieve the scroll written by Baruk and Jeremiah. The
servant brought the scroll back to the king. He was
brooding over the fire, watching the coals pop in the fireplace.

(08:14):
Read it to me, the king said impassively. So the
servant began to read Jeremiah's words. They spoke of coming destruction,
passed sins, and opportunities for love. The words vexed Jehoiakim.
He gestured for the servant to hand him the scroll.
Each page, after it was read, was tossed into the
fire one by one. The Word of God was burnt.

(08:38):
Little did Jehoiakim know the Word of God is eternal
and unwavering. There is no stopping truth. Disaster would befall Jehoiakim.
Disaster unlike anything he could imagine. Jeremiah and Baruk created
another copy of the scroll. It was passed around to
the people and read in the temple. However, the anger

(08:58):
of the king was felt, and people were more reluctant
to receive God's warnings. The blossoming evil retreated for a
moment back into its bud. For now, the people remained
distant from their first love.

Speaker 3 (09:16):
As we opened God's word. Today, Israel's righteous king Josiah
has died. God had promised him that the demise of Judah,
their punishment for years of disobedience, would not come about
in his lifetime. But now with the king gaunt, the
prophet Jeremiah knew that judgment was sure and that time
was short. There was such an urgency to the calling

(09:39):
of this man. God's hand of judgment would not be
stayed forever, and Babylon was growing stronger from the north.
And though punishment would come, God desired to see those
in Judah turn from their ways to worship him once again.
Jeremiah understood the importance of his task, but those to
whom he proclaimed God were unmoved wors Yet they were

(10:03):
bothered by the mere mention of judgment or calamity that
would come upon Judah. Some of Jeremiah's staunchiest opponents were
the priest men who were to guide God's people and
instruct them in his ways, were content to let the
people do as they wished, telling them only what they
wanted to hear. When those who are supposedly ministers of

(10:23):
God refused to speak truth, disobedience, disorder, and disaster are
not far behind. This is also true in our own generation.
When ministers of the gospel or ministers of the church
do not speak God's truth, disaster is sure to follow.
The priests were so threatened, their egos so damaged by

(10:46):
Jeremiah that they wanted him killed and brought him before
the officials calling for his death. Jeremiah's experience foreshadowed what
God's own son Jesus would one day experience the way
the truth and the life came. They put him on
a cross and took his life. The religious establishment always

(11:06):
resists the true work of God. Facing a martyr's fate,
Jeremiah spoke to defend himself. He hoped some of the
people would hear the truth and turn to God. So
in Jeremiah twenty six, verses twelve through fourteen, here is
what we read. Then, Jeremiah spoke to all the officials

(11:27):
and all the people, saying, the Lord sent me to
prophesy against this house and this city. All the words
you have heard now therefore, men's your ways and your deeds,
and obey the voice of the Lord, your God. And
the Lord will relent of the disaster that he has
pronounced against you. But as for me, behold, I am
in your hands. Do with me as seems good and

(11:49):
right to you. Here was a bold, brave, courageous man,
committed and convicted always to obey God, even if it
meant death. With these courageous words, the officials were convinced
that Jeremiah did not actually deserve to die, that he
truly was speaking for God. And slowly hearts began to

(12:11):
warm to the words that Jeremiah the Prophet spoke. These
were just small steps and just the beginning, but there
were seeds of renewal and revival. Jeremiah knew that there
were many who needed to hear his words, so he
and his scribe Barut, committed to writing the words God
gave him to speak. These words, the very words of God,

(12:34):
were not just for his generation, but for those to come.
The scroll with God's warnings was taken into the temple
by Baruk because Jeremiah was not welcomed there. As more
people heard the warnings, more hearts began to change. Even
the priest the religious establishment who had opposed Jeremiah began

(12:56):
to listen. There was hope for the future, but Judah's king, Jehoicam,
was filled with pride. He didn't want to hear condemnation
or of illuming, disaster or judgment. He had the scroll
brought to him, and as it was read, he had
his servant burned it in hopes that God's word would
be snuffed out. How absolutely foolish of this king to

(13:21):
think that he could restrain or stop the word of God.
God will always find a way for his word to
penetrate every heart, and sometimes all he needs are a
few faithful people. Jeremiah and Baruk recorded another scroll, and
he went out to more people as it was read
in the temple. Still, the king's heart was hard and

(13:43):
the people feared this king. So Judah continued on a
path of destruction. We'll hear about that in our next episode.
Dear Lord, may we always be faithful like Jeremiah and
Baruch to deliver your word that we would all ways
believe your word, live your word, and speak your word

(14:04):
because your word is truth. May we be willing to
be courageous and confident that your word will change lives
in Jesus' name. Amen. Thank you for listening to today's
Bible in a Year podcast. I'm pastor Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas.
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(14:25):
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(14:47):
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