_The King Hears and Acts._
Jehudi arrived in Gemariah's chamber to hear Baruch finish this:
"Thus saith the Lord:
"'Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom; neither let the
mighty man glory in his might. Let not the rich man glory
in his riches; but let him that glorieth, glory in this,
that he hath understanding, and knoweth me, that I am the
Lord who exerciseth loving-kindness, justice and righteousness
in the earth; for in these things I delight, saith the Lord.'"
Jehudi pushed his way roughly through the crowd to Baruch. He laid his
hand upon the speaker's shoulder and ordered him, in the name of the
princes, to accompany him.
Baruch did not hesitate. His mind had been made up to face any
consequences that might result from his mission. His heart, therefore,
was strong and he accompanied Jehudi without protest.
Some of the princes marveled at the youth of Baruch, when they beheld
him. He felt much reassured when Gemariah stepped forward, smiled at
him and took the scroll from his hands. The son of Shaphan glanced at
several columns of the scroll, returned it to Baruch and said:
"Sit down, now, and read it in our ears."
While selecting his passages, Baruch thought very quickly. Why not
select prophecies that these princes would repeat to the king? Nothing
could please his master more than that Jehoiakim should hear; perhaps,
at last, he would understand. Therefore Baruch chose the following,
addressed to the "King of Judah that sittest upon the throne of David,
thou and thy servants and thy people".
"Execute ye justice and righteousness and deliver him that
is robbed out of the hand of the oppressor; and do no wrong,
do no violence, to the sojourner, the fatherless, nor the
widow; neither shed innocent blood in this place.
"For if ye do this thing, indeed, then shall there enter in
by the gates of this house kings sitting upon the throne of
David, riding in chariots and on horses, he, and his servants
and his people. But if ye will not hear these words, I swear
by myself, saith the Lord, that this house shall become
a desolation."
As Baruch proceeded, he noted the restlessness of the princes under
the thunderbolt denunciations contained in his master's words. So, he
selected for his concluding passage this warning:
"For thus saith the Lord concerning the house of the king
of Judah:
"'Thou art Gilead unto me, and the head of Lebanon; yet
surely I will make thee a wilderness, and cities which are
not inhabited.
"'And I will prepare destroyers against thee, every one with
his weapons; and they shall cut down thy choice cedars, and
cast them into the fire.
"'And many nations shall pass by this city, and they shall
say every man to his neighbor, "Wherefore hath the Lord
done thus unto this great city?" Then they shall answer,
"Because they forsook the covenant of the Lord their God,
and worshiped other gods, and served them."'"
Upon hearing this, the princes "turned in fear one toward another,"
and the spokesman said, "We will surely tell the king of all
these words."
Baruch was happy. His first venture upon his mission had proved more
successful than even Jeremiah could have hoped. He handed the scroll
to Jehudi, expressed his thanks for the courtesy shown him, made his
adieus and prepared to leave. Gemariah stopped him at the entrance,
however, and said to him, warningly and with emphasis:
"Go, hide thee, thou and Jeremiah, and let no man know where
ye are."
Baruch left the palace completely satisfied. Not only had he read the
prophecies to the people, but also to the princes; and now the princes
themselves were to read them to the king. On his way to Jeremiah's
hiding place, however, some of the joy in his heart left him, because,
thinking of Gemariah's suggestion, he feared lest the anger of the
king should be aroused and a search be sent out for Jeremiah with the
purpose of arresting him.
The winter palace was one of the achievements upon which Jehoiakim
always congratulated himself because of its structure and beauty.
Gemariah and the princes found the king in the sun parlor. Though the
day was bright and clear, it was unusually cold. A charcoal fire in an
Assyrian-wrought brass brazier, provided warmth for Jehoiakim who, at
this time, was by no means a well man.
The king was greatly amused by Gemariah's story of the incidents at
the Temple gate and in the scribe's chamber. He laughed heartily at
the fact that Neriah's son was turning prophet.
Jehoiakim asked to see the scroll. Gemariah, not knowing what the
king's attitude would be, had left it behind. Jehudi was sent for it.
Jehoiakim seated himself comfortably in front of the brazier, while
the princes were standing, and ordered Jehudi to read to him.
Jehudi had read but three or four columns when the king, to the
amazement of the princes, rose and in anger snatched it out of
his hands.
He glanced through parts of the papyrus, and, with an amused smile,
took a penknife out of his robe and began to slice the scroll
into pieces.
Several of the princes appealed to the king not to destroy it. In
reply, Jehoiakim walked up and down the chamber, cursing and swearing
that such things should be in his kingdom. He punctuated his remarks
by throwing piece after piece of the scroll into the brazier until it
was all consumed. Then he dismissed the princes, called them back and
ordered that the army prepare for rebellion, dismissed them again,
once more called them back and gave command that Jeremiah and Baruch
be found and brought before him, dead or alive.