_Beginning of the End._
Jeremiah waited eagerly for the return of Baruch and listened most
attentively to the story of his adventure at the Temple and in the
palace of the king. His pupil's bravery and courage in trying moments
pleased the master greatly, and he complimented Baruch on his
achievements thus far. The question of the restoration of the scroll
never entered Jeremiah's mind at all, on account of his gladness in
having had his discourses brought home to the king.
Three days later, however, Ebed-melech brought with the provisions the
news that Jehoiakim had burned the scroll. Upon hearing this, all the
spirit of hopefulness left Jeremiah. He lost his temper and, at once,
dictated the following prophecy against Jehoiakim:
"Concerning Jehoiakim, king of Judah, thou shalt say,"
Thus saith the Lord:
"'Thou has burned this roll, saying "Why hast thou written
therein saying, The king of Babylon shall certainly come
and destroy this land, and shall cause to cease from thence
man and beast?"'
"Therefore, thus saith the Lord concerning Jehoiakim, king
of Judah:
"'He shall have none to sit upon the throne of David; and
his dead body shall be cast out in the day to the heat, and
in the night to the frost. And I will punish him and his seed
and his servants for their iniquity; and I will bring upon
them, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and upon the men
of Judah, all the evil that I have pronounced against them.'"
Then Jeremiah took another papyrus and began once more the laborious
task of dictating his discourses to Baruch.
Those were indeed days of pain and sorrow for Jeremiah and Baruch.
They were not troubled so much by Jehoiakim's designs upon their
lives--for Ebed-melech kept them well informed on the progress of the
search--as they were by the preparations for rebellion. They knew that
this was the beginning of the end.
At one time the faithful, old Ethiopian warned them that the search
party was near at hand. They were forced to hide in a cave for two
days. It was then that Jeremiah cried:
"Woe is me, my mother, that thou hast borne me a man of
strife and a man of contention to the whole earth."
This danger past, Jeremiah and Baruch continued their laborious task
of finishing the new scroll of prophecies. Then came Spring, and with
it Jehoiakim's rebellion.
Nebuchadrezzar had not yet fully established himself on his throne in
Babylon. He was too busy to deal with the rebellious Judean, himself.
So he ordered a guerrilla warfare to be carried on by detached troops
in all parts of Judah. It was only a question of time, however, when
Nebuchadrezzar would invade Judah with his entire army and crush
Jehoiakim like a snail under foot. No wonder that Jeremiah asked:
"Who will have pity on thee, O Jerusalem?
Or who will bemoan thee?
Or who will turn aside to ask for thy welfare!"
His grief was not alone for the great and glorious city and for its
people, but for himself as well, that he should have to witness what
he knew was inevitable:
"Oh, that I could comfort myself against sorrow!
My heart is faint within me.
The harvest is past, the summer is ended and we are not saved.
For the hurt of the daughter of my people am I hurt.
I mourn; dismay hath taken hold of me.
Is there no balm in Gilead?
Is there no physician there?
Why, then, is not the health of the daughter of my
people recovered?
"Oh, that my head were waters and mine eyes a fountain of tears,
That I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter
of my people.
Oh, that I had in the wilderness a lodging place of wayfaring men;
That I might leave my people and go from them."
This despondency and hopelessness did not last long, however. As
Nebuchadrezzar's guerrillas continued their cruel and merciless
warfare, destroying crops and whole villages, Jeremiah determined that
he must once more return to Jerusalem. He was ready and willing to pay
for his efforts in behalf of his country with his life, if need be.
A comforting and encouraging message came to him from God, at
this time:
"I will make thee unto this people a fortified, brazen
wall; and they shall fight against thee, but they shall
not prevail against thee, for I am with thee to save thee
and to deliver thee.
"And I will deliver thee out of the hand of the wicked,
and I will redeem thee out of the hand of the terrible."
But Baruch and Ebed-melech counseled against undue risks. They had
heard that the Rechabites, that tribe of wandering nomads, which,
because of the vow their ancestor, Jonadab, son of Rechab, had taken
never to settle permanently in any definite place and never to follow
agricultural pursuits, had been driven south by the marauding
guerrillas and were making their way toward Jerusalem. Jeremiah and
Baruch fell in with them and came, unobserved, into the city.
Many strange stories had been told about these nomads and the whole
population turned out to gape and wonder at them. Jeremiah directed
them to the Temple, and hundreds of people followed them.
At the Temple, Jeremiah ordered bowls of wine and cups and invited the
Rechabites to refresh themselves with drink.
Jazaniah, their leader, arose in his place and, with a courteous bow
to Jeremiah, replied:
"We drink no wine. For, Jonadab, our father, commanded us:
'Ye shall never drink wine, neither ye nor your sons. And
we have obediently done just as Jonadab, our forefather,
commanded us.'"
This incident gave Jeremiah the opportunity once more to pen his
artillery against the people of Judah and Jerusalem.
"Thus saith the Lord:
"'Will he not learn instruction as to how one should heed
my words? For, while the sons of Jonadab, the son of Rechab,
have performed the command of their forefather, this people
hath not hearkened unto me.'
"Therefore, thus saith the Lord: 'Behold I am about to
bring upon Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the
evil that I have pronounced against them.'"
Jeremiah thus revealed dramatically the meaning of all his preaching.
Just as the Rechabites had remained faithful to the ancient vow of
their ancestors, so must Judah remain faithful to the covenant between
them and their God, if the country was to be saved from the hands of
the Babylonians.
Yet, this proved to be but one more act in the hopeless part that
Jeremiah was playing in the drama of Judah. Hopeless, indeed, it was
now. As Jeremiah himself expressed it:
"Can the Ethiopian change his skin,
Or the leopard his spots?
Then may ye also do good
That are taught to do evil."
The very next year, the year 597, Nebuchadrezzar gathered his full
army at Riblah and prepared to march on Jerusalem.