Introduction
At this point, Jeremiah has preached for more than twenty years. He was reviled, despised, and imprisoned (Jeremiah 33).
Pharoah Necho defeated Judah and deposed the king. He made Eliakim king in place of Jehoahaz and gave him the regnal name of Jehoiakim. As long as Jehoiakim paid tribute to Egypt, Egypt protected Judah from invasion. Unfortunately, Egypt was just defeated by the Babylonians. It’s only a matter of time before the Babylonians invade Judah.
The Inspiration of the Word, vv. 1-4
A. Jehovah revealed His Word to Jeremiah.
B. Jeremiah spoke His Word to Baruch.
C. Baruch wrote His Word in a book/scroll.
D. This is the meaning of inspiration. It is “God-breathed,” 2 Peter 1:21.
The Proclamation of the Word, vv. 5-10
A. Jeremiah was bound, but God’s Word is not, v. 5, 2 Timothy 2:9.
B. Baruch proclaimed the Word by reading the book to the fasting people.
The Preservation of the Word, vv. 11-32
A. Micaiah was stirred by the Word and shared the Word with the princes, vv. 12-13.
B. The princes were stirred by the Word and shared the Word with the king, vv. 16-20.
C. The King was unmoved by the Word and burned the Word in the fire, vv. 21-26.
1. The King commanded that Jeremiah and Baruch be arrested, v. 26.
2. But the Lord hid Baruch and Jeremiah.
D. Jeremiah and Baruch were moved by the Lord to reproduce the book and add a subscript, vv. 27-32.
1. Jehoiakim thought he would destroy the Word, but the Word destroyed him. He would die a miserable death and leave no heir to claim his throne (Jer_36:30). His son Jehoiachin did take the throne when his father died, but he lasted only three months before being taken captive to Babylon (2Ki_24:6-12).
2. Godless people have attacked the Bible for centuries, yet it still stands. Jeremiah wrote a new copy of his book, so the king’s efforts were in vain. We still have Jeremiah’s prophecy, but King Jehoiakim has long since turned to dust. Men and women who love sin oppose the Bible because the Bible exposes them and warns of the wrath to come. In A.D. 303 Emperor Diocletian of Rome sought out and burned copies of God’s Word, and then erected a monument that read: “Extinct is the name of Christians.” Twenty years later Constantine made Christianity the official religion of Rome and put the Bible back into the hands of the people. Haters of the truth persecuted Wycliffe because he translated the Bible into English; Tyndale was burned at the stake; yet the Bible is still here. God preserves His Word. “Forever, O Lord, Your Word is settled in heaven” (Psa 119:89 4, NKJV). “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but My words shall not pass away” (Mat_24:35). The person who builds his life on the Bible builds on that which cannot be shaken. –Warren Wiersbe
The Consolation of the Word, 45:1-5
A. The temptation to conform to the times, v. 3.
1. Baruch’s brother, Seraiah, was one of the king’s officers (Jeremiah 32:12; 51:59).
2. Why identify yourself with a hated preacher like Jeremiah when you can be a secretary to the king?
B. The courage to stand up against temptation, v. 5.
Conclusion
It is not easy to stand true to the Word in days of opposition and persecution. Paul wrote, “Demas has forsaken me, having loved this present world” (2Timothy 4:10). And Paul himself, like Jeremiah and Baruch, suffered persecution and trouble because of the Word (2Timothy 2:8-9), but at the close of his life, he was able to say, “I have kept the faith.”
How are you treating God’s Word? Are you putting it on the shelf? (Jeremiah 36:20) Are you cutting it to pieces, as do the “modern critics” of the Bible? Are you seeking to destroy it? Or are you bowing before it and obeying its truths? “All Your precepts concerning all things I consider to be right; I hate every false way” (Psa 119:128). –Warren Wiersbe