And it came to pass in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, that this word came unto Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,

JEREMIAH 36:1KJV
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Jeremiah 36:1 (KJV)

What does Jeremiah 36:1 mean?

Jeremiah 36:1 sets a specific time for a message from the LORD to Jeremiah: the fourth year of King Jehoiakim’s rule in Judah. The verse introduces what follows as a message received by Jeremiah, rather than as Jeremiah’s own announcement.

The words “saying” lead into the LORD’s instructions in the next verse. Naming Jehoiakim as Josiah’s son identifies which king was ruling when the message came.

The Hebrew behind Jeremiah 36:1

  • “word” — דָּבָר (davar): This can mean a word, a message, or a matter. Here, “word” introduces a communication, not merely a single spoken word.
  • “LORD” — יְהוָה (YHWH): This is the personal name of Israel’s God. The KJV’s capital letters distinguish the name from the ordinary title “Lord.”

Why Jeremiah 36:1 matters

  • The date helps place the message in Judah’s history. Jehoiakim’s fourth year is generally placed around 605–604 BC.
  • The message is presented as something Jeremiah received. The phrase “came unto Jeremiah” introduces the instructions that follow, including the command to write on a scroll in verse 2.
  • The message belongs before the scroll is read to the king. Later in the chapter, Jehoiakim hears the scroll and cuts and burns it as it is read.

Where else these words appear

“Jehoiakim” Hebrew H3079 · used in 37 verses

  • 2 Kings 23:34 And Pharaohnechoh made Eliakim the son of Josiah king in the room of Josiah his father, and turned his name to Jehoiakim, and took Jehoahaz away: and he came to Egypt, and died there.
  • Jeremiah 1:3 It came also in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the carrying away of Jerusalem captive in the fifth month.
  • Jeremiah 35:1 The word which came unto Jeremiah from the LORD in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, saying,

“Josiah” Hebrew H2977 · used in 48 verses

  • 1 Kings 13:2 And he cried against the altar in the word of the LORD, and said, O altar, altar, thus saith the LORD; Behold, a child shall be born unto the house of David, Josiah by name; and upon thee shall he offer the priests of the high places that burn incense upon thee, and men's bones shall be burnt upon thee.
  • 2 Chronicles 33:25 But the people of the land slew all them that had conspired against king Amon; and the people of the land made Josiah his son king in his stead.
  • Jeremiah 1:3 It came also in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the carrying away of Jerusalem captive in the fifth month.

“fourth” Hebrew H7243 · used in 54 verses

  • Genesis 1:19 And the evening and the morning were the fourth day.
  • 2 Samuel 3:4 And the fourth, Adonijah the son of Haggith; and the fifth, Shephatiah the son of Abital;
  • 1 Chronicles 26:11 Hilkiah the second, Tebaliah the third, Zechariah the fourth: all the sons and brethren of Hosah were thirteen.

“Jeremiah” Hebrew H3414 · used in 133 verses

  • 2 Kings 23:31 Jehoahaz was twenty and three years old when he began to reign; and he reigned three months in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah.
  • Jeremiah 28:15 Then said the prophet Jeremiah unto Hananiah the prophet, Hear now, Hananiah; The LORD hath not sent thee; but thou makest this people to trust in a lie.
  • Jeremiah 38:9 My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet, whom they have cast into the dungeon; and he is like to die for hunger in the place where he is: for there is no more bread in the city.