Jeremiah 45
McGeeCHAPTER 45THEME: Prophecy to BaruchBaruch was a friend who acted as sort of an assistant to Jeremiah. He was the one who wrote the words of Jeremiah on the scroll which was sent to King Jehoiakim, and the king cut the scroll with a knife and pitched it into the fire (ch. 36). When Jeremiah was in prison and bought the property in Anathoth, Baruch carried out the transaction for him. He had the papers signed and carried through with all the necessary work for the purchase of the land (ch. 32). Finally, Baruch was taken down into Egypt with Jeremiah according to chapter Jer_43:6. The prophecy to Baruch which we have here in chapter 45 was actually given during the reign of Jehoiakim. That is the reason we said at the beginning of the book that although there is a certain semblance of chronological order in the Book of Jeremiah, it is not arranged chronologically. Although the prophecy was given back during the reign of Jehoiakim, it is recorded here, and I think there is a reason for that. I believe it is recorded here as an encouragement to Baruch. The Lord had already revealed to him what would happen to him if he identified himself with Jeremiah the prophet. This should be an encouragement to him when he was forced to go to Egypt with the remnant of Judah.
Jeremiah 45:2
Things were pretty bad during the reign of Jehoiakim, but that was nothing compared with what was going to follow. The really bad time would occur after the era of Jehoiakim.
Jeremiah 45:4
Even though things were going to get very much worse, God wanted Baruch to know that He was the One who was responsible for it. God assumed responsibility for what would happen to the land of Judah; therefore, Baruch could go along with the program.
Jeremiah 45:5
This prophecy was given to Baruch when he was still a young man. God told him that he couldn’t expect to arrive at some high goal for himself at this tragic time in the history of the nation. He would live through very troubled times, but he would come through it with his life because God would preserve him. Now Jeremiah and Baruch, his friend and associate, are old men in Egypt. They have seen how God did preserve them through the troubled times in which they lived.