Shredding the Sacred Scroll: A Parable for Today
On Tuesday mornings, I join a Zoom Bible study called Text Talk, led by my former Citrus Heights ELCA Lutheran pastor. The topic this week was Jeremiah 36, where King Jehoiakim sliced and burned the prophetic scroll dictated by Jeremiah the prophet to his scribe Baruch. Sources: 2 kings; 2 Chronicles; Jeremiah 31-39; Lutheran Study Bible notes; biblegateway.com; Wikipedia. Backstory and timeline 721 BC, as prophesied by Isaiah and others, Northern Israel fell to Assyria. Her people were removed to Mesopotamia, and foreigners were imported into the region. This squelched national identity and made it impossible for captive rebels to stage an escape. Nor could Judah decide to ally with the north to strengthen resistance to invasion. It was genius, really. So, the towns and villages of Judah were the remnant of the people of Israel. 640 BC: 8-year-old Josiah became king of Judah in Jerusalem. Under the tutelage of faithful priests, he initiated reforms, trying to discou...