Jeremiah 36 tells how God told the prophet to write down his messages, how a scroll was read aloud in the temple and before the king, and how King Jehoiakim burned it piece by piece. These questions are for a small group, a Sunday class, or a quiet personal study. Each section can be used on its own, and the leader’s notes explain what to draw out of the text.
Jeremiah 36 at a Glance
The chapter opens in the fourth year of Jehoiakim with God instructing Jeremiah to dictate a scroll of everything he has said about Israel, Judah and the nations. Because Jeremiah is barred from the temple, he sends Baruch to read the scroll publicly on a fast day. Officials hear it, grow afraid, and take the scroll to the king, who listens to a few columns and burns the rest in his winter house.
The chapter closes with God commanding Jeremiah to produce a second scroll, with an added judgment on the king. The story moves from a call to speak, through public reading and royal reaction, to a word that cannot be silenced.
Observation Questions
Use these first to get the group looking closely at the text. Let people answer from the passage before anyone offers an interpretation, and have someone read the relevant verses aloud before each question.
Jeremiah 36:2-3
2 “Take a scroll of a book, and write in it all the words that I have spoken to you against Israel, and against Judah, and against all the nations, from the day I spoke to you, from the days of Josiah, even to this day. 3 It may be that the house of Judah will hear all the evil which I intend to do to them; that they may each return from his evil way; that I may forgive their iniquity and their sin.”
(WEB)
This passage states God’s purpose for the scroll, which is that the people might hear and turn from evil. Reading it aloud at the start of the session frames the whole chapter around repentance and mercy.
Jeremiah 36:6-7
6 Therefore you go, and read from the scroll which you have written from my mouth, the LORD’s words, in the ears of the people in the LORD’s house on the fast day. Also you shall read them in the ears of all Judah who come out of their cities. 7 It may be they will present their supplication before the LORD, and will each return from his evil way; for the LORD has pronounced great anger and wrath against this people.”
(WEB)
Here God’s instruction to read the scroll on a fast day is given directly to Baruch. Hearing it aloud helps the group picture the public reading and the hope behind it.
Jeremiah 36:16-18
16 Now when they had heard all the words, they turned in fear one toward another, and said to Baruch, “We will surely tell the king of all these words.” 17 They asked Baruch, saying, “Tell us now, how did you write all these words at his mouth?” 18 Then Baruch answered them, “He dictated all these words to me with his mouth, and I wrote them with ink in the book.”
(WEB)
The officials’ fear and Baruch’s careful answer show how God’s word is received and examined. Reading these verses aloud encourages honest discussion about how people respond to Scripture.
Jeremiah 36:23-24
23 When Jehudi had read three or four leaves, 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. 24 The king and his servants who heard all these words were not afraid, and didn’t tear their garments.
(WEB)
These verses describe the king’s deliberate destruction of the scroll. Reading them aloud brings the central tension of the chapter into focus and prompts reflection on hardened hearts.
Jeremiah 36:27-28
27 Then the LORD’s word came to Jeremiah, after the king had burned the scroll, and the words which Baruch wrote at the mouth of Jeremiah, saying, 28 “Take again another scroll, and write in it all the former words that were in the first scroll, which Jehoiakim the king of Judah has burned.
(WEB)
God’s command for a second scroll shows that his word cannot be destroyed. Ending the reading with this passage leaves the group with a note of hope and steady trust.
Memory Verse for Jeremiah 36
Jeremiah 36:3
It may be that the house of Judah will hear all the evil which I intend to do to them; that they may each return from his evil way; that I may forgive their iniquity and their sin.”
(WEB)
This verse holds the heart of the chapter: God’s desire that people hear, turn back and receive forgiveness. Memorizing it helps keep the purpose of God’s warnings in view.
A Closing Prayer for the Group
Father, we thank you that you speak clearly and that your word is written for us to hear. Give us the courage to listen when your message is hard, and the humility to turn from the ways we have followed. When others try to silence your word or cut it out of their lives, hold us steady in your truth. Let our group be a place where Scripture is read with care, received with honest hearts, and lived out in our daily steps. Thank you for your patience and your mercy, which call us back to you. Amen.
