And it came to pass in the fourth year - About the end of this year, see Jeremiah 36:9. This discourse also bears its own date, and was probably delivered at a time when the people enjoyed peace, and were about to celebrate one of their annual fasts.
In the fourth year of Jehoiakim - See Jeremiah 25:1 note. The present chapter belongs to the very end of that year. The capture of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar took place early in Jehoiakim‘s fourth year, long before the writing of Jehoiakim‘s scroll. The humiliation seems to have sunk deeply into the heart of Jehoiakim, and when Jeremiah prophesied extended dominion to the Chaldaeans Jeremiah 36:29, his anger knew no bounds. It was the fact that judgment had begun which made it expedient to gather Jeremiah‘s predictions into one volume, with the object:
(1) of inducing the people to repent, and
(2) of persuading the king to be a true subject of the Chaldaean empire.
All who receive the messages that the Lord sends to purify and cleanse them from all habits of disobedience to His commandments and conformity to the world, and who repent of their sins and reform, looking to God for help and walking in the way of obedience to His commandments, will receive divine help to correct their evil course of action. But those who apparently repent and seek the Lord, yet do not put away the evil of their doings, will not only disappoint themselves, but when their course is placed before them in symbols or parables, they will feel shame and sorrow because they have disappointed the Lord. They have hoped and trusted in their own course of action. As a people they have been reproved, and yet they have not put away the evil works that called for reproof (Manuscript 65, 1912). 4BC 1159.1
Now Covering the Same Ground—[Jeremiah 36:1-7 quoted.] This chapter is a record of historical events that will be repeated. Let all who desire to receive warning, read carefully. 4BC 1159.2
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