Whenever 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. (Jeremiah 36:23)It was a fasting day when many of the faithful would flock to the temple for worship and prayer, yet Jeremiah had been barred from that sacred place. So Jeremiah instructed Baruch, his secretary, to write down his prophecies on a scroll and then read them to the people of Judah who had traveled to Jerusalem for the fast. (This was likely after the first exiles had been transported to Babylon but prior to the taking of the second group. People could still travel and there was probably little if any Babylonian military presence.)
Baruch complied with Jeremiah's instructions, but when palace officials heard him reading from the scroll, they were alarmed, knowing they would have to report these events to the king. Still, being sympathetic to Jeremiah, they sent both Baruch and the prophet into hiding before making their report.
Seated before the fire in his winter quarters, the king demanded the scroll be read in his presence. As three or four columns were read, Jehoiakim took a knife and cut that portion from the scroll and burned it in his firepot. By the time the assistant was finished reading, the entire scroll had been burned to ashes.
How do you respond to Scripture that makes you uncomfortable?
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