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¹ AND it came to pass in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah that this word came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,² Take a scroll of a book and write on it all the words that I have spoken to you against Israel and against Judah and against all the nations from the day I spoke to you, from the days of Josiah even to this day.³ It may be that the house of Judah will hear all the evil which I purpose to do to them; that they may turn every man from his evil way; that I may forgive their trespasses and their sins.⁴ Then Jeremiah called Baruch the son of Neriah; and Baruch wrote from the mouth of Jeremiah all the words of the LORD which he had spoken to him, upon a scroll of a book.⁵ And Jeremiah commanded Baruch, saying, I am shut up; I cannot enter into the house of the LORD;⁶ Therefore go and read the scroll which you have written from my mouth, the words of the LORD, in the presence of the people in the LORDS house on a fast day; and also you shall read them in the presence of all the people of Judah who come out of their cities.⁷ It may be they will present their supplication before the LORD, and every one will turn from his evil way; so that the LORD may cease from the evil which he has pronounced against them; for great is the anger and the fury that he has pronounced against this people.⁸ And Baruch the son of Neriah did according to all that Jeremiah the prophet commanded him, reading in the scroll the words of the LORD in the LORDS house.

⁹ And it came to pass in the fifth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, in the ninth month, when all the people in Jerusalem had proclaimed a fast before the LORD, Baruch read before all the people who came from the cities of Judah to Jerusalem.¹⁰ Then Baruch the scribe read the words of the LORD which Jeremiah the prophet had spoken in the house of the LORD in the chamber of Gemariah the son of Shaphan the scribe in the upper court at the entry of the new gate of the LORDS house before all the people.¹¹ When Michaiah the son of Gemariah, the son of Shaphan, heard all the words of the LORD from the book,¹² He went down from the kings house to the scribes chamber; and he saw all the princes seated there: Elishama the scribe, and Belaiah the son of Shemaiah and Eliathan the son of Achbor and Gemariah the son of Shaphan and Zedekiah the son of Hananiah and all the princes.¹³ Then Michaiah told them all the words that he had heard when Baruch the scribe read the scroll in the presence of the people.¹⁴ Then all the princes sent Jehudi the son of Nethaniah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Cushi, to Baruch, saying, Take in your hand the scroll which you have read before the people, and come. So Baruch the son of Neriah took the scroll in his hand and came to them.¹⁵ And the princes said to him, Sit down now and read it in our presence; so Baruch read it in their presence.¹⁶ Now it came to pass when they had heard all the words that they were alarmed, looking one to another, and they said to Baruch, We will surely tell the king of all these words.¹⁷ And they asked Baruch, saying, Tell us now, how did you write all these words at his mouth?¹⁸ Then Baruch answered them, Jeremiah dictated all these words to me and I wrote them with ink in the book.¹⁹ Then the princes said to Baruch, Go hide, you and Jeremiah; and let no man know where you are.

²⁰ Then the princes went to the king in the courtyard, but they placed the scroll in the chamber of Elishama the scribe, and told all the words in the presence of the king.²¹ So the king sent Jehudi to bring the scroll; and he took it from the chamber of Elishama the scribe, and Jehudi read it before the king and before all the princes who stood before the king.²² Now the king was sitting in the winter house in the ninth month; and there was a fire burning on the brazier before him.²³ And it came to pass that when Jehudi had read three or four pages, the king cut it with the scribes penknife and threw it into the coals of fire; and the whole scroll was consumed in the fire that was on the brazier.²⁴ Yet neither the king nor any of his servants were afraid, nor did they tear their garments when they heard all these words.²⁵ Nevertheless Eliathan and Belaiah and Gemariah had entreated the king not to burn the scroll; but he would not listen to them.²⁶ And the king commanded Jerahmael the kings son and Seraiah the son of Azriel and Shelemiah the son of Abdael to seize Jeremiah the prophet and Baruch the scribe; but the LORD hid them.²⁷ Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah after the king had burned the scroll and the words which Baruch wrote at the mouth of Jeremiah, saying,²⁸ Return from hiding and take another scroll and write on it all the former words that were on the first scroll, which Jehoiakim king of Judah has burned.²⁹ And you shall say to Jehoiakim king of Judah, Thus says the LORD: You have burned this scroll, saying, Why have you written in it and said, The king of Babylon shall certainly come and destroy this land and exterminate from it both man and beast?³⁰ Therefore, thus says the LORD concerning Jehoiakim king of Judah, He shall have not an heir to sit upon the throne of David; and his dead body shall be cast out in the day to the heat and in the night to the frost.³¹ And I will punish him and his offspring and his servants for their iniquity; and I will bring upon them and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem and upon the men of Judah all the evil things that I have pronounced against them; because they did not hearken to my voice.³² Then Jeremiah took another scroll and gave it to Baruch the scribe, the son of Neriah, who wrote on it as Jeremiah dictated all the words which were written in the book which Jehoiakim king of Judah had burned in the fire; and he added to them many similar words.