Jeremiah 36:23

Jeremiah 36:23

I. Why has God given us the Bible? Not to bewilder us, not to tempt our curiosity, not to found rival sects, but to bring us to Himself to obtain forgiveness of iniquity and sin. The one object of the Bible is the salvation of mankind.

II. Man is so unwilling to hear anything unpleasant or disagreeable about himself that he gets into a wrong temper before he actually knows what God's object is. Jehoiakim did not hear the whole roll. Did any man ever destroy the Bible who knew it wholly? The difficulty is in the "three or four leaves."

III. Men have not destroyed revelation when they have destroyed the Bible. The penknife cannot reach its spirit, the fire cannot touch its life. The history of the Bible is one of the proofs of its inspiration.

IV. The desire to cut the Bible with the penknife and to cast it into the fire, is quite intelligible, because in a sense profoundly natural.

V. This desire to mutilate the Holy Word shows itself in various ways, some of them apparently innocent*; others of them dignified with fine names, and claiming attention as the last developments of human progress. Human nature shows itself most vividly in the treatment of the Bible.

Parker, The Ark of God, p. 217; see also Penny Pulpit, No. 899.

Notice some lessons which this subject suggests.

I. Those who in their early days have resisted holy influences, generally turn out the most wicked of men. When a man deliberately tramples on conviction, and resists the dealings of God's spirit, he uses the most effectual means to sear his conscience and harden his heart.

II. If a man's religion is not genuine and heart deep, it often happens that troubles and calamities only drive him further away from God. What effect had all his misfortunes and disasters on Jehoiakim? Did they soften him? Did they incline him to a better course of life? Not a bit. He grew worse than ever.

III. As the heart gets hardened in sin, there is a growing unwillingness to listen to the voice of God. As soon as a young man begins an evil course, and resolves to take his fill of sinful pleasures, he acquires a hatred of his Bible, and a disinclination to attend the house of God. If he cannot silence God's ministers, he will keep as far as possible from them, and shut his ears against all good counsel.

J. Thain Davidson, The City Youth, p. 225.

References: Jeremiah 36:3 . Homiletic Quarterly, vol. i., p. 551.Jeremiah 36:22 , Jeremiah 36:23 . J. Cox, Expositions, 2nd series, p. 192.Jeremiah 36:23 . Preacher's Monthly, vol. iv., p. 231; D. Moore, Penny Pulpit, No. 3504.