ng it, which was on the
occasion of a great festival that was held at Jerusalem, and which
brought the inhabitants of the land together from all parts of Judea.
On the day of the festival, Baruch took the roll in his hand, and
stationed himself at a very public place, at the entrance of one of
the great courts of the Temple; there, calling upon the people to hear
him, he began to read. A great concourse gathered around him, and all
listened to him with profound attention. One of the by-standers,
however, went down immediately into the city, to the king's palace,
and reported to the king's council, who were then assembled there,
that a great concourse was convened in one of the courts of the
Temple, and that Baruch was there reading to them a discourse or
prophecy which had been written by Jeremiah. The members of the
council sent a summons to Baruch to come immediately to them, and
to bring his writing with him.

When Baruch arrived, they directed him to read what he had written.
Baruch accordingly read it. They asked him when and how that discourse
was written. Baruch replied that he had written it, word by word, from
the dictation of Jeremiah. The officers informed him that they should
be obliged to report the circumstances to the king, and they counseled
Baruch to go to Jeremiah and recommend to him to conceal himself, lest
the king, in his anger, should do him some sudden and violent
injury.[D]

[Footnote D: See the account of these transactions in the 36th chapter
of Jeremiah.]

The officers then, leaving the roll in one of their own apartments,
went to the king, and reported the facts to him. He sent one of his
attendants, named Jehudi, to bring the roll. When it came, the king
directed Jehudi to read it. Jehudi did so, standing by a fire which had
been made in the apartment, for it was bitter cold.

After Jehudi had read a few pages from the roll, finding that it
contained a repetition of the same denunciations and warnings by which
the king had often been displeased before, he took a knife and began
to cut the parchment into pieces, and to throw it on the fire. Some
other persons who were standing by interfered, and earnestly begged
the king not to allow the roll to be burned. But the king did not
interfere. He permitted Jehudi to destroy the parchment altogether,
and then sent officers to take Jeremiah and Baruch, and bring them to
him but they were nowhere to be found.

The prophet, on one occasion, was