Dictation and Dread: The Unburnable Word Text: Jeremiah 36:1-19
Introduction: An Authority Problem
The modern world, and tragically, much of the modern church, has a problem with authority. Specifically, it has a problem with an external, objective, written authority. We prefer a God who communicates in the gentle whispers of the heart, in subjective feelings, in personal impressions that can be conveniently tailored to our preferences. We want a customizable deity, a god whose word can be curated to fit our sensibilities, a divine editor who is happy to strike out the uncomfortable bits.
But the God of the Bible is not like that at all. He is a God who speaks publicly, clearly, and authoritatively. And when He speaks on matters of ultimate importance, He has it put down in writing. This chapter in Jeremiah is a profound case study in the nature of God's written Word. It is not a collection of helpful suggestions. It is not a book of inspirational thoughts for you to pick and choose from. It is a public, legal, and binding declaration from the Sovereign of the universe. It is a Word that lands in the middle of the room, a Word that demands a response. The response it provokes reveals the true condition of the human heart, stripping away all pretense. Here we see the Word commissioned, the Word proclaimed, and the Word investigated, and in it all, we see the pattern for how God continues to deal with men.
The Text
Now it happened that in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from Yahweh, saying, "Take a scroll of a book and write on it all the words which I have spoken to you concerning Israel and concerning Judah and concerning all the nations, from the day I first spoke to you, from the days of Josiah, even to this day. Perhaps the house of Judah will hear all the evil which I devise to bring on them, in order that every man will turn from his evil way; then I will forgive their iniquity and their sin."
Then Jeremiah called Baruch the son of Neriah, and Baruch wrote on a scroll at the dictation of Jeremiah all the words of Yahweh which He had spoken to him. And Jeremiah commanded Baruch, saying, "I am confined; I cannot go into the house of Yahweh. So you shall go and read from the scroll, which you have written at my dictation, the words of Yahweh in the hearing of the people in the house of Yahweh on a fast day. And also you shall read them in the hearing of all the people of Judah who come from their cities. Perhaps their supplication will come before Yahweh, and everyone will turn from his evil way, for great is the anger and the wrath that Yahweh has spoken against this people." So Baruch the son of Neriah did according to all that Jeremiah the prophet commanded him, reading from the book the words of Yahweh in the house of Yahweh.
Now it happened in the fifth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, in the ninth month, that all the people in Jerusalem and all the people who came from the cities of Judah to Jerusalem called for a fast before Yahweh. Then Baruch read from the book the words of Jeremiah in the house of Yahweh in the chamber of Gemariah the son of Shaphan the scribe, in the upper court, at the entry of the New Gate of the house of Yahweh, in the hearing of all the people.
Then Micaiah the son of Gemariah, the son of Shaphan, heard all the words of Yahweh from the book. And he went down to the king's house, into the scribe's chamber. And behold, all the officials were sitting there, Elishama the scribe, and Delaiah the son of Shemaiah, and Elnathan the son of Achbor, and Gemariah the son of Shaphan, and Zedekiah the son of Hananiah, and all the other officials. And Micaiah declared to them all the words that he had heard when Baruch read from the book in the hearing of the people. Then all the officials sent Jehudi the son of Nethaniah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Cushi, to Baruch, saying, "Take in your hand the scroll from which you have read in the hearing of the people and come." So Baruch the son of Neriah took the scroll in his hand and went to them. And they said to him, "Sit down, please, and read it in our hearing." So Baruch read it in our hearing. Now it happened that when they heard all the words, they turned in dread one to another and said to Baruch, "We will surely declare all these words to the king." And they asked Baruch, saying, "Declare to us, please, how did you write all these words? Was it at his dictation?" Then Baruch said to them, "He dictated all these words to me, and I wrote them with ink on the book." Then the officials said to Baruch, "Go, hide yourself, you and Jeremiah, and do not let anyone know where you are."
(Jeremiah 36:1-19 LSB)
The Word Commissioned (vv. 1-3)
The entire affair begins with a divine command. God tells Jeremiah to take a scroll and write down everything. This is a foundational act. The spoken prophecies, delivered over the course of two decades, are to be consolidated into one authoritative document. Why? Because the written word is permanent. It is fixed. It cannot be misremembered, conveniently forgotten, or altered by wishful thinking. The scroll is to become an objective witness, a legal deposition in God's covenant lawsuit against His people.
"Perhaps the house of Judah will hear all the evil which I devise to bring on them, in order that every man will turn from his evil way; then I will forgive their iniquity and their sin." (Jeremiah 36:3)
But notice the purpose God Himself gives. This is the severe mercy of God. The scroll is filled with declarations of "all the evil which I devise to bring on them," but the purpose of this terrifying warning is not simply to condemn. The purpose is to call to repentance. God does not delight in judgment. He sends the written warning as a final, gracious, tangible opportunity to avert disaster. This is not some kind of abstract fatalism; it is a concrete covenantal summons. The law is preached, the judgment is announced, so that grace might be sought. God puts the bad news in writing so that the good news of forgiveness might be received.
The Word Delegated and Proclaimed (vv. 4-8)
Jeremiah is "confined." He is likely persona non grata at the temple, a place he has so thoroughly and publicly condemned. The religious establishment has cancelled him. But the Word of God is not confined. This is a critical principle for all of history. The power is in the message, not the messenger. You can lock up the prophet, but you cannot lock up the prophecy. So Jeremiah delegates the task to his faithful scribe, Baruch.
"Baruch wrote on a scroll at the dictation of Jeremiah all the words of Yahweh which He had spoken to him." (Jeremiah 36:4)
Baruch's job is straightforward: take dictation and then read it aloud. He is a conduit. This is a beautiful, simple picture of divine inspiration. God speaks to the prophet, the prophet dictates to the scribe, the scribe writes the words. There is a direct, unbroken chain of authority that begins in the mind of God and ends up as ink on a scroll. The setting for the reading is then chosen with perfect irony. It is a "fast day." The people are all gathered, performing their religious duties, likely feeling quite pious about it all. And into this atmosphere of self-congratulatory religion, Baruch drops a bomb. He reads the unvarnished, terrifying, and holy words of Yahweh. He reminds them that true fasting is turning from evil ways, not just skipping a meal. The scroll exposes the vast chasm between their outward religion and the true repentance God requires.
The Word Investigated (vv. 9-19)
Once proclaimed, the Word begins to do its work. It cannot be ignored. It is not neutral. A young man named Micaiah hears it, understands its gravity, and immediately reports it to the royal officials. The scroll is now moving from the religious sphere to the political sphere, because God's Word has absolute jurisdiction over both. There is no king, no court, no government that is not accountable to the Word of God.
"Now it happened that when they heard all the words, they turned in dread one to another and said to Baruch, 'We will surely declare all these words to the king.'" (Jeremiah 36:16)
The officials summon Baruch. They do not dismiss the report out of hand. They want to hear it for themselves. And their reaction is telling: "they turned in dread one to another." This is the proper, initial human reaction to the unshielded holiness and wrath of Almighty God. They are terrified. They recognize that this is not the word of a man; it carries the unmistakable weight of divine authority. It is real.
Their next question is the most important question in the entire passage. It is the question that determines everything.
"Declare to us, please, how did you write all these words? Was it at his dictation?" (Jeremiah 36:17)
They are asking about the provenance of the document. They are investigating its inspiration. Is this just Jeremiah's political opinion? Is it his own gloomy poetry? Or is it something more? Baruch's answer is the bedrock of our confidence in all of Scripture: "He dictated all these words to me, and I wrote them with ink on the book." It is a direct, unambiguous claim of divine origin. This is God's Word, transcribed. The officials understand the implications perfectly. If what Baruch says is true, then they are not dealing with a rogue prophet. They are dealing with Yahweh Himself.
Their final action is a revealing mixture of fear and worldly wisdom. "Go, hide yourself, you and Jeremiah." They know their king. They know that a man like Jehoiakim does not respond to the Word of God with dread and repentance, but with rage and violence. They believe the message enough to fear for the safety of the messengers. They are caught in the middle, afraid of God, but also very much afraid of the king.
The Word in Your Hearing
This entire episode is about the inescapable nature of God's written Word. That scroll, which caused such a stir and provoked such dread in Jerusalem, was just a fraction of what you now hold in your hands or have on your phone. The entire counsel of God, from Genesis to Revelation, has been written down for us, preserved by God's providence, and has been read in your hearing this morning.
The central question posed by the officials to Baruch is the same question posed to every person in this room today: where did this Book come from? Is it the product of human ingenuity, a collection of religious fables and moralistic stories? Or is it what it has always claimed to be: the very dictation of God? As Baruch said of his scroll, so the church has always said of the Bible: God dictated, and holy men wrote as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
Therefore, we are confronted with the same choice as the men of Judah. We have heard the words. We have heard of the evil God has devised against all sin and all rebellion. We have heard of His coming wrath. But we have also heard His gracious purpose: "Perhaps you will hear... and turn... and I will forgive." The Bible is God's great and terrible warning to the world, but it is a warning that contains the remedy.
That ancient scroll pointed to a coming judgment by the Babylonians. Our completed Bible points to a final judgment that has already fallen upon the Incarnate Word, Jesus Christ. He stood in the gap and absorbed the full measure of the wrath that we deserved. The rejection of Jeremiah's scroll was a prelude, a type, of the rejection of the Son of God. But God, in His infinite power, does not allow His Word to be ultimately destroyed. As we will see, the king would burn that scroll, but God would simply have it rewritten with interest. The rulers of this age crucified the Lord of Glory, but God raised Him from the dead.
The Word of God, whether written on a scroll or incarnate in the Son, is unburnable. It is indestructible. It will accomplish the purpose for which He sends it. The question for us, then, is simple. When this Word is read in our hearing, do we react with the arrogant contempt of a king who thinks he can destroy it with a penknife and a fire? Or do we react with the dread of the officials, a holy fear that leads us, not to hide from a petty tyrant, but to run to the foot of the cross, where the very one who dictated the Word offers full and free forgiveness to all who turn and believe?