Jeremiah 36:17

Modern

“Tell us now,” they asked Baruch, “how did you write all these words? Was it at Jeremiah’s dictation?”

Traditional

And they asked Baruch, saying, Tell us now, How didst thou write all these words at his mouth?

Literal

And they asked Baruch, saying: “Declare, please, to us how did you write all these words? From his mouth?

Latin

Et interrogaverunt eum, dicentes: Indica nobis quomodo scripsisti omnes sermones istos ex ore ejus.

Hebrew

English

“Tell us now,” they asked Baruch, “how did you write all these words? Was it at Jeremiah’s dictation?”

The officials wanted to learn where the scroll came from and what its messages meant.

This description of Jehoiakim’s cynical response to God's call for repentance and obedience (Jeremiah 36:3, 7) highlights the hopelessness of the situation.
Nowhere else does the Old Testament offer such detailed information about preserving spoken messages in written form.

These two chapters reflect on events from twenty years ago when Jehoiakim was king.

Theme notes and profiles

John 9:15
So the Pharisees also asked him how he had received his sight. The man answered, “He put mud on my eyes, and I washed, and now I can see.”
John 9:26–27
“What did He do to you?” they asked. “How did He open your eyes?”
John 9:10–11
“How then were your eyes opened?” they asked.

Baruch: Jeremiah's scribe who recorded and delivered his prophecies