King Jehoiakim did not want to fast or repent. He contemptuously cut up Jeremiah’s prophetic
scroll and burned it. Then he sent officers to arrest Jeremiah and Baruch. Notice how verse 19,
where temple officials tell Jeremiah to hide, interacts with verse 26—“the LORD had hidden
them.” We usually see God work through human instruments.

• Although he trusted that God was with him, surely Jeremiah was a little nervous about confronting the king who had just burned the Lord’s prophecy. He even had an addition, a hard message directed specifically to the king (verses 29-31). How does knowing God is with you give you strength to face challenges in your life?
• The book of Jeremiah, as we have it, was collected and edited, likely after Jeremiah’s death. “Many similar words were added to them” (verse 32) means we have, not just the scroll Baruch wrote, but other messages from Jeremiah. How did God workthrough faithful editors and copyists, as well as prophets and apostles, to bring us the Bible?