Whenever Jehudi had read three or four columns of the scroll, the king cut them off with a scribe’s knife and threw them into the firepot, until the entire scroll was burned in the fire – Jeremiah 36:23. 

Jeremiah 36:23

When Smith was finally arraigned before the Magistrate, the court was jam-packed. The small town of Kinsu was besieged by television cameras and the national media. His case had gained national prominence because of its magnitude, and the insolence of the statements he periodically released to the press. He boasted of his ‘achievements’ and claimed that he would never see the courtroom or face jail time.

For twenty-six years, Smith had craftily eluded the local Police and the Criminal Investigation Team. The press went to sleep on the case after some time, and it was almost forgotten. But finally, he was arrested. The media exploded and the courtroom overflowed on his first appearance. 

Smith sat in the dock with no emotion. His legal team was huge and very adept at such high-profile criminal cases; so, he had hope. As the case dragged into months of torturous arguments from both sides, Smith occasionally interjected with his defiant words, claiming the court had no jurisdiction over him, and that the whole trial was a sham.

Finally, the prosecution overwhelmed the court with their evidence and Smith was jailed for life. As he was escorted to the waiting police vehicle, a reporter asked what he thought about his sentence. “Never trust in your craftiness, nor your legal team, when committing a crime, for the law will eventually catch-up with you,” Smith said, as he was whisked away to the State penitentiary.

Smith’s case reminds me of the story of King Jehoiakim, son of Josiah. He was a terrible king who did detestable things in Judah. When he heard about Jeremiah’s prophesy concerning God’s judgment on Judah, (Jer. 36:2), he ordered that it be read to him (20, 21). However, “Whenever Jehudi read three or four columns of the scroll, the king cut them off with a scribe’s knife and threw them into the firepot, until the entire scroll was burned in the fire” (23). What impudence! What contempt for the word of God!

But the fact is this: You can burn the Bible, but you cannot do away with the word of God. You can make countless arguments against it or formulate the best scientific theory to convince yourself that it is not true, but you cannot wish it away. You either believe it and live or remain in your sins and face God’s wrath (Rm. 6:23). It is the reality of life; a choice everyone must make while on earth. As Jesus said, “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words will never pass away” (Matt. 24:35).

King Jehoiakim burned the scroll, but he could not get rid of what God had decreed. The scroll was re-written (Jer. 36:32), and all the disaster it proclaimed came to pass (2 Chron. 36:6-21). By the order of Nebuchadnezzar, Jehoiakim was finally bound in bronze shackles and sent to Babylon where he died (6).