Jehoiakim Burns Jeremiah’s Scroll
1In the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the Lord: 2“Take a scroll and write on it all the words 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 till now. 3Perhaps when the people of Judah hear about every disaster I plan to inflict on them, they will each turn from their wicked ways; then I will forgive their wickedness and their sin.”
4So Jeremiah called Baruch son of Neriah, and while Jeremiah dictated all the words the Lord had spoken to him, Baruch wrote them on the scroll. 5Then Jeremiah told Baruch, “I am restricted; I am not allowed to go to the Lord’s temple. 6So you go to the house of the Lord on a day of fasting and read to the people from the scroll the words of the Lord that you wrote as I dictated. Read them to all the people of Judah who come in from their towns. 7Perhaps they will bring their petition before the Lord and will each turn from their wicked ways, for the anger and wrath pronounced against this people by the Lord are great.”
8Baruch son of Neriah did everything Jeremiah the prophet told him to do; at the Lord’s temple he read the words of the Lord from the scroll. 9In the ninth month of the fifth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, a time of fasting before the Lord was proclaimed for all the people in Jerusalem and those who had come from the towns of Judah. 10From the room of Gemariah son of Shaphan the secretary, which was in the upper courtyard at the entrance of the New Gate of the temple, Baruch read to all the people at the Lord’s temple the words of Jeremiah from the scroll.
11When Micaiah son of Gemariah, the son of Shaphan, heard all the words of the Lord from the scroll, 12he went down to the secretary’s room in the royal palace, where all the officials were sitting: Elishama the secretary, Delaiah son of Shemaiah, Elnathan son of Akbor, Gemariah son of Shaphan, Zedekiah son of Hananiah, and all the other officials. 13After Micaiah told them everything he had heard Baruch read to the people from the scroll, 14all the officials sent Jehudi son of Nethaniah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Cushi, to say to Baruch, “Bring the scroll from which you have read to the people and come.” So Baruch son of Neriah went to them with the scroll in his hand. 15They said to him, “Sit down, please, and read it to us.”
So Baruch read it to them. 16When they heard all these words, they looked at each other in fear and said to Baruch, “We must report all these words to the king.” 17Then they asked Baruch, “Tell us, how did you come to write all this? Did Jeremiah dictate it?”
18“Yes,” Baruch replied, “he dictated all these words to me, and I wrote them in ink on the scroll.”
19Then the officials said to Baruch, “You and Jeremiah, go and hide. Don’t let anyone know where you are.”
20After they put the scroll in the room of Elishama the secretary, they went to the king in the courtyard and reported everything to him. 21The king sent Jehudi to get the scroll, and Jehudi brought it from the room of Elishama the secretary and read it to the king and all the officials standing beside him. 22It was the ninth month and the king was sitting in the winter apartment, with a fire burning in the firepot in front of him. 23Whenever Jehudi had read three or four columns of the scroll, 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. 24The king and all his attendants who heard all these words showed no fear, nor did they tear their clothes. 25Even though Elnathan, Delaiah and Gemariah urged the king not to burn the scroll, he would not listen to them. 26Instead, the king commanded Jerahmeel, a son of the king, Seraiah son of Azriel and Shelemiah son of Abdeel to arrest Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet. But the Lord had hidden them.
27After the king burned the scroll containing the words that Baruch had written at Jeremiah’s dictation, the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: 28“Take another scroll and write on it all the words that were on the first scroll, which Jehoiakim king of Judah burned up. 29Also 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 both man and beast?” 30Therefore this is what the Lord says about Jehoiakim king of Judah: He will have no one to sit on the throne of David; his body will be thrown out and exposed to the heat by day and the frost by night. 31I will punish him and his children and his attendants for their wickedness; I will bring on them and those living in Jerusalem and the people of Judah every disaster I pronounced against them, because they have not listened.’ ”
32So Jeremiah took another scroll and gave it to the scribe Baruch son of Neriah, and as Jeremiah dictated, Baruch wrote on it all the words of the scroll that Jehoiakim king of Judah had burned in the fire. And many similar words were added to them.
Kong Jojakim brænder Jeremias’ bogrulle
1I kong Jojakim af Judas fjerde regeringsår sagde Herren til mig: 2„Tag en bogrulle og sørg for at få nedskrevet alle mine budskaber om Israel, Juda og de øvrige nationer. Begynd med de budskaber, jeg gav dig tilbage i Josias’ dage, og nedskriv dem alle sammen helt op til i dag. 3Måske vil Judas folk vende om fra deres ondskab, når de læser om den frygtelige straf, der venter dem. Hvis de omvender sig, vil jeg tilgive dem.”
4Da sendte jeg bud efter Baruk, Nerijas søn, og han nedskrev alle profetierne efter mit diktat.
5Da arbejdet var overstået, sagde jeg til Baruk: „Jeg har ikke lov til at gå op i templet. 6Derfor skal du på den næste fastedag gå op i templet og læse alle budskaberne højt for folket. Den dag vil der være folk samlet fra hele Judas land. 7Måske de så vil vende om fra deres ondskab og bede Herren om tilgivelse, før det er for sent. For Herren har truet sit folk med forfærdelige ting.”
8-10Baruk gjorde, som jeg havde bedt ham om. I den niende måned i kong Jojakims femte regeringsår blev der udråbt en faste, og folk fra hele Juda kom til templet for at deltage i højtiden. Da gik Baruk op i templet for at oplæse alle budskaberne i bogrullen. Han placerede sig i den øvre forgård ved indgangen til Den Nye Port, hvor Gemarja, der var søn af statssekretæren Shafan, havde et værelse. Fra det sted kunne alle i tempelforgården høre ham.
11Da Gemarjas søn, Mika, hørte alle disse budskaber fra Herren, 12gik han hen til statssekretærens værelse i kongens palads, hvor landets øverste embedsmænd sad i møde. Blandt de tilstedeværende var sekretæren Elishama; Delaja, søn af Shemaja; Elnatan, søn af Ahbor; Gemarja, søn af Shafan; og Zidkija, søn af Hananja. 13Mika fortalte dem nu om alt det, han havde hørt Baruk læse op for folket. 14Derefter sendte embedsmændene en mand ved navn Jehudi hen for at sige til Baruk, at han skulle komme hen til dem med bogrullen. Det gjorde Baruk så. 15„Sæt dig ned og læs op for os,” sagde embedsmændene, og Baruk læste for dem.
16Da han var færdig, så embedsmændene forfærdede på hinanden og sagde: „Det må vi fortælle kongen.” 17Så spurgte de Baruk: „Sig os, hvordan har du fået alt det skrevet ned? Var det Jeremias, der dikterede det for dig?” 18„Ja, det var ham, der dikterede for mig, og jeg skrev det hele ned med blæk i denne bogrulle,” svarede Baruk. 19„Du og Jeremias må hellere gå under jorden,” sagde embedsmændene til Baruk. „Fortæl ikke nogen, hvor I befinder jer.” 20Derefter gemte embedsmændene bogrullen i sekretæren Elishamas kontor og gik til kongen for at fortælle ham det hele.
21Kongen sendte straks Jehudi af sted for at hente bogrullen i Elishamas værelse, og Jehudi læste den op for kongen og hans hoffolk. 22Kongen sad foran ildstedet i paladsets vintersal, for det var koldt i årets niende måned. 23Hver gang Jehudi havde læst tre-fire spalter, skar kongen det læste stykke af rullen, og kastede det i ilden. Sådan blev han ved, indtil hele bogrullen var brændt. 24Hverken kongen eller hans hoffolk viste nogen tegn på forfærdelse over budskaberne, og ingen af dem rev deres klæder itu i fortvivlelse. 25Elnatan, Delaja og Gemarja bad kongen om endelig ikke at brænde bogrullen, men han hørte ikke på dem. 26Derefter gav kongen en befaling til Jerahme’el, der var medlem af kongefamilien, samt Seraja, Azriels søn, og Shelemja, Abde’els søn, om at arrestere både mig og Baruk. Men Herren beskyttede os, så vi ikke blev opdaget.
27Efter at kongen havde brændt bogrullen, sagde Herren til mig: 28„Få fat i en ny bogrulle og sørg for at få skrevet alle de ord ned, der stod i den første bogrulle, som kongen brændte. 29Og sig så til kongen: Herren siger: Du brændte bogrullen, fordi der stod, at den babyloniske konge skal ødelægge landet og gøre det folketomt. 30Derfor siger Herren til dig: Ingen af dine efterkommere får chancen for at blive konge efter dig. Dit lig bliver smidt på jorden og udsat for sol om dagen og frost om natten. 31Jeg vil straffe dig, din familie og dine hoffolk for jeres ondskab. Ja, jeg vil lade alle de ulykker, jeg har truet med, ramme jer og Judas og Jerusalems folk, fordi I ikke ville lytte til mine advarsler.”
32Så fik jeg fat i en ny bogrulle og begyndte forfra med at diktere budskaberne for Baruk. Alt, hvad der stod i den bogrulle, som kong Jojakim brændte, kom med, ja, endnu mere end før, for der blev gjort adskillige tilføjelser.
