22 It was the ninth month and the king was sitting in the winter apartment, with a fire burning in the firepot in front of him.
Jeremiah had dictated God’s message of warning and judgment to his scribe, Baruch, who read it publicly. Eventually, the scroll reached King Jehoiakim. Instead of responding with repentance—like his father Josiah once did—Jehoiakim sat in his warm winter room, by a cozy fire, during the ninth month (December/January in the Hebrew calendar). This detail sets the stage for the chilling irony: in comfort, the king would reject the word of God and literally burn it piece by piece (Jeremiah 36:23).
Jehoiakim’s posture is a warning for us. Surrounded by comfort, he treated God’s warning with contempt. Comfort can lull us into a false sense of security, making it easier to dismiss hard truths. We may not sit in a literal winter apartment with a firepot, but when life is “warm and cozy,” we’re tempted to filter God’s Word—keeping only what feels comfortable and discarding what convicts. This verse invites a heart check: when God’s Word challenges you, do you receive it… or reach for the fire?
