Jeremiah 36:7, commentary and pictures

In the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, God commanded Jeremiah to write in a roll of a book all the words He had spoken against Israel and against Judah and against all the nations from the days of Josiah even to that day, so that the house of Judah might hear all the evil He purposed to do to them and each return from his evil way that He might forgive their iniquity and sin. Because Jeremiah was shut up as a prisoner and could not go into the house of the Lord, Baruch son of Neriah, who had written from Jeremiah's mouth all the words of the Lord upon the roll on parchment, was commanded to go and read the words of the Lord in the ears of the people in the Lord's house upon the fasting day and in the ears of all Judah coming out of their cities. He was sent to read aloud the newly written roll to the multitudes gathered at the temple on the national fast day in the ninth month of the fifth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah, as a solemn reproof for sin, a warning of the sure result of continual apostasy, and an earnest appeal to renounce evil. The roll was thus read to the people of Judah gathered at the temple on a fasting day, giving them opportunity to repent.

The verse expresses the hope that hearing the roll will move the people to present their supplication before the Lord and to turn every one from his evil way because great is the anger and the fury the Lord has pronounced against them. The announced judgment is a reason for the people to seek the Lord and turn from their evil ways, bringing their pleas before Him that they may repent before His pronounced anger falls. God sent the warning so the people might seek His favor and receive forgiveness of iniquity and sin, repent and escape judgment rather than have the evil purposed against them come upon them. The warning was given to lead to repentance and not merely to announce punishment.

Ancient Israel did not receive the Lord's reproofs, for when the roll was read to the king it was rejected and burned in rejection and destruction of the prophetic message. The chapter warns Battle Creek and gives God's people in the last days an example to study, since the same messages of warning are being repeated. Some virtually repeat Jehoiakim's act of burning the messages of the Spirit of God instead of repenting and reforming.