Chapter 43

¹ In the fourth Year of Joakim son of Josias king of Juda, the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

² Take thee a ¹roll of a book, and write upon it all the words which I spoke to thee

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against Jerusalem, and against Juda, and against all the nations, from the day when I spoke to thee, from the days of Josias king of Juda, even to this day. ³ Perhaps the house of Juda will hear all the evils which I purpose to do to them; that they may turn from their evil way; and so I will be merciful to their iniquities and their sins.

⁴ So Jeremias called Baruch the son of Nerias: and he wrote from the mouth of Jeremias all the words of the Lord, which he had spoken to him, on a roll of a book. ⁵ And Jeremias commanded Baruch, saying, I am in prison; I cannot enter into the house of the Lord: ⁶ so thou shalt read in this roll in the ears of the people in the house of the Lord, on the fast day; and in the ears of all Juda that come out of their cities, thou shalt read to them. ⁷ Peradventure their supplication will come before the Lord, and they will turn from their evil way: for great is the wrath and the anger of the Lord, which he has pronounced against this people.

⁸ And Baruch did according to all that Jeremias commanded him--reading in the book the words of the Lord in the Lord's house. ⁹ And it came to pass in the ²eighth year of king Joakim, in the ninth month, all the people in Jerusalem, and the house of Juda, proclaimed a fast before the Lord. ¹⁰ And Baruch read in the book the words of Jeremias in the house of the Lord, in the house of Gamarias son of Saphan the scribe, in the upper court, in the entrance of the new gate of the house of the Lord, and in the ears of all the people.

¹¹ And Michæas the son of Gamarias the son of Saphan heard all the words of the Lord, out of the book. ¹² And he went down to the king's house, into the house of the scribe: and, behold, there were sitting there all the princes, Elisama the scribe, and Dalæas the son of Selemias, and Jonathan the son of Acchobor, and Gamarias the son of Saphan, and Sedekias the son of Ananias, and all the princes. ¹³ And Michæas reported to them all the words which he had heard Baruch reading in the ears of the people.

¹⁴ And all the princes sent to Baruch son of Nerias Judin the son of Nathanias, the son of Selemias, the son of Chusi, saying, Take in thine hand the roll in which thou readest in the ears of the people, and come. So Baruch took the roll, and went down to them. ¹⁵ And they said to him, Read it again in our ears. And Baruch read it. ¹⁶ And it came to pass, when they had heard all the words, that they took counsel each with his neighbour, and said, Let us by all means tell the king all these words. ¹⁷ And they asked Baruch, saying, Where didst thou write all these words? ¹⁸ And Baruch said, Jeremias told me from his own mouth all these words, and I wrote them in a book. ¹⁹ And they said to Baruch, Go, and hide, thou and Jeremias; let no man know where ye are.

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²⁰ And they went in to the king into the court, and gave the roll to one to keep in the house of Elisama; and they told the king all these words. ²¹ And the king sent Judin to fetch the roll: and he took it out of the house of Elisama: and Judin read in the ears of the king, and in the ears of all the princes who stood round the king. ²² Now the king was sitting in the winter house: and there was a fire on the hearth before him. ²³ And it came to pass when Judin ³had read three or four leaves, he cut them off with ⁴a penknife, and cast them into the fire that was on the hearth, until the whole roll was consumed in the fire that was on the hearth. ²⁴ And the king and his servants that heard all these words sought not the Lord, and rent not their garments. ²⁵ But Elnathan and Godolias ⁵suggested to the king that ⁶he should burn the roll.

²⁶ And the king commanded Jeremeel the king's son, and Saræas the son of Esriel, to take Baruch and Jeremias: but they were hidden.

²⁷ Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremias, after the king had burnt the roll, even all the words which Baruch wrote from the mouth of Jeremias, saying, ²⁸ Again take thou another roll, and write all the words that were on the roll, ⁷which king Joakim has burnt. ²⁹ And thou shalt say, Thus saith the Lord; Thou hast burnt this roll, saying, Why hast thou written therein, saying, The king of Babylon shall certainly come in, and destroy this land, ⁸and man and cattle shall fail from off it?

³⁰ Therefore thus saith the Lord concerning Joakim king of Juda; He shall not have a man to sit on the throne of David: and his carcass shall be cast forth in the heat by day, and in the frost by night. ³¹ And I will visit him, and his family, and his servants: and I will bring upon him, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and upon the land of Juda, all the evils which I spoke of to them; and they hearkened not.

³² And Baruch took another roll, and wrote upon it from the mouth of Jeremias all the words of the book ⁹which Joakim had burnt: and there were yet more words added to it like the former.