Jeremiah 36 · Verse 23

Jeremiah 36:23

And it came to pass, that when Jehudi had read three or four leaves, he cut it with the penknife, and cast it into the fire that was on the hearth, until all the roll was consumed in the fire that was on the hearth.
Jeremiah 36:23, King James Version

Jeremiah 36:23 in other translations

BSBAnd as soon as Jehudi had read three or four columns, Jehoiakim would cut them off with a scribe’s knife and throw them into the firepot, until the entire scroll had been consumed by the fire.
WEBWhen Jehudi had read three or four columns, the king cut it with the penknife, and cast it into the fire that was in the brazier, until all the scroll was consumed in the fire that was in the brazier.
ASVAnd it came to pass, when Jehudi had read three or four leaves, that the king cut it with the penknife, and cast it into the fire that was in the brazier, until all the roll was consumed in the fire that was in the brazier.
YLTand it cometh to pass, when Jehudi readeth three or four leaves, he cutteth it out with the scribe's knife, and hath cast unto the fire, that is on the stove, till the consumption of all the roll by the fire that is on the stove.
DARBYAnd it came to pass, that when Jehudi had read three or four columns, he cut it with the scribe's knife, and cast it into the fire that was in the pan until all the roll was consumed in the fire that was in the pan.
BBEAnd it came about that whenever Jehudi, in his reading, had got through three or four divisions, the king, cutting them with his penknife, put them into the fire, till all the book was burned up in the fire which was burning in the fireplace.
WebsterAnd it came to pass, that when Jehudi had read three or four leaves, he cut it with the scribe's pen-knife, and cast it into the fire that was on the hearth, until all the roll was consumed in the fire that was on the hearth.

What does Jeremiah 36:23 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
23. three or four leaves--not distinct leaves as in a book, but the consecutive spaces on the long roll in the shape of doors (whence the Hebrew name is derived), into which the writing is divided: as the books of Moses in the synagogue in the present day are written in a long parchment rolled round a stick, the writing divided into columns, like pages. pen-knife--the writer's knife with which the reed, used as a pen, was mended. "He" refers to the king (Jr 36:22). As often as Jehudi read three or four columns, the king cut asunder the part of the roll read; and so he treated the whole, until all the parts read consecutively were cut and burnt; Jr 36:24, "all these words," implies that the whole volume was read through, not merely the first three or four columns (1Ki 22:8).

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 23 When Jehudi had read three or four leaves - Rather columns; for the law, and the sacred Hebrew Books, are written in columns of a certain breadth. דלתות delathoth, signifies gates or openings between column and column, or between section and section. He cut it with the penknife - בתער הספר bethaar hassopher, "the knife of the scribe," properly enough penknife. And cast it into the fire - To show his contempt for God's words.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Jeremiah 36:20-32

Those who despise the word of God, will soon show, as this king did, that they hate it; and, like him, they would wish it destroyed. See what enmity there is against God in the carnal mind, and wonder at his patience. The princes showed some concern, till they saw how light the king made of it. Beware of making light of God's word!

Read the full comment on Jeremiah 36:20-32 →

Jeremiah 36:23 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וַיְהִ֣י\׀vay.Hiand it wasH1961
כִּקְר֣וֹאkik.Ro'when read aloudH7121
יְהוּדִ֗יye.hu.DiJehudiH3065
שָׁלֹ֣שׁsha.LoshthreeH7969
דְּלָתוֹת֮de.la.tOtdoorsH1817
וְאַרְבָּעָה֒ve.'ar.ba.'Ahand fourH702
יִֽקְרָעֶ֙הָ֙yik.ra.'E.hahe tore itH7167
בְּתַ֣עַרbe.Ta.'arwith [the] knife ofH8593
הַסֹּפֵ֔רha.so.Ferthe scribeH5608
וְהַשְׁלֵ֕ךְve.hash.Lekhand he threw [it]H7993
אֶל\־'el-intoH413
הָאֵ֖שׁha.'Eshthe fireH784
אֲשֶׁ֣ר'a.SherwhichH834
אֶל\־'el-[was] toH413
הָאָ֑חha.'Achthe fire-potH254
עַד\־'ad-untilH5704
תֹּם֙tomwas consumedH8552
כָּל\־kol-allH3605
הַמְּגִלָּ֔הha.me.gi.Lahthe scrollH4039
עַל\־'al-onH5921
הָאֵ֖שׁha.'Eshthe fireH784
אֲשֶׁ֥ר'a.SherwhichH834
עַל\־'al-[was] onH5921
הָאָֽח\׃ha.'Achthe fire-potH254

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Jeremiah 36:23

  • 1 Kings 22:8

    And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, There is yet one man, Micaiah the son of Imlah, by whom we may enquire of the Lord: but I hate him; for he doth not prophesy good concerning me, but evil. And Jehoshaphat said, Let not the king say so.

  • 1 Kings 22:27

    And say, Thus saith the king, Put this fellow in the prison, and feed him with bread of affliction and with water of affliction, until I come in peace.

  • Proverbs 13:13

    Whoso despiseth the word shall be destroyed: but he that feareth the commandment shall be rewarded.

  • Proverbs 21:30

    There is no wisdom nor understanding nor counsel against the Lord.

  • Isaiah 5:18-19

    Woe unto them that draw iniquity with cords of vanity, and sin as it were with a cart rope: That say, Let him make speed, and hasten his work, that we may see it: and let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel draw nigh and come, that we may know it!

  • Isaiah 28:14-15

    Wherefore hear the word of the Lord, ye scornful men, that rule this people which is in Jerusalem. Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves:

  • Proverbs 19:21

    There are many devices in a man’s heart; nevertheless the counsel of the Lord, that shall stand.

  • Proverbs 1:30

    They would none of my counsel: they despised all my reproof.

  • Jeremiah 36:29-31

    And thou shalt say to Jehoiakim king of Judah, Thus saith the Lord; Thou hast 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 of 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; but they hearkened not.

  • Deuteronomy 29:19-21

    And it come to pass, when he heareth the words of this curse, that he bless himself in his heart, saying, I shall have peace, though I walk in the imagination of mine heart, to add drunkenness to thirst: The Lord will not spare him, but then the anger of the Lord and his jealousy shall smoke against that man, and all the curses that are written in this book shall lie upon him, and the Lord shall blot out his name from under heaven. And the Lord shall separate him unto evil out of all the tribes of Israel, according to all the curses of the covenant that are written in this book of the law:

  • Isaiah 28:17-22

    Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place. And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it. From the time that it goeth forth it shall take you: for morning by morning shall it pass over, by day and by night: and it shall be a vexation only to understand the report. For the bed is shorter than that a man can stretch himself on it: and the covering narrower than that he can wrap himself in it. …

  • Proverbs 29:1

    He, that being often reproved hardeneth his neck, shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
he cut.
29-31; De 29:19-21; 1Ki 22:8,27; Ps 50:17; Pr 1:30; 5:12; 13:13
Pr 19:21; 21:30; 29:1; Isa 5:18,19; 28:14,15,17-22; Re 22:19

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Jeremiah 36:22

    Now the king sat in the winterhouse in the ninth month: and there was a fire on the hearth burning before him.

  • Jeremiah 36:23

    And it came to pass, that when Jehudi had read three or four leaves, he cut it with the penknife, and cast it into the fire that was on the hearth, until all the roll was consumed in the fire that was on the hearth.

  • Jeremiah 36:24

    Yet they were not afraid, nor rent their garments, neither the king, nor any of his servants that heard all these words.

Read all of Jeremiah 36

Jeremiah 36:23 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909
Y fué que, como Jehudí hubo leído tres ó cuatro planas, rasgólo con un cuchillo de escribanía, y echólo en el fuego que había en el brasero, hasta que todo el rollo se consumió sobre el fuego que en el brasero había.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885
Et il arriva que, quand Jehudi en eut lu trois ou quatre pages, le roi le coupa avec le canif du scribe et le jeta au feu qui était dans le brasier, jusqu’à ce que tout le rouleau soit consumé au feu qui était dans le brasier.
German
Elberfelder 1871
Und es geschah, sooft Jehudi drei oder vier Spalten vorgelesen hatte, zerschnitt sie der König mit dem Schreibermesser und warf sie in das Feuer, das im Kohlentopf war, bis die ganze Rolle in dem Feuer des Kohlentopfes vernichtet war.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate
Cumque legisset Judi tres pagellas vel quatuor, scidit illud scalpello scribæ, et projecit in ignem qui erat super arulam, donec consumeretur omne volumen igni qui erat in arula.