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Jeremiah 45

God answers Baruch’s weariness by confronting his pursuit of greatness and promising to preserve his life amid judgment.

Baruch son of Neriah is writing down Jeremiah’s words in the fourth year of Jehoiakim’s reign over Judah. Jeremiah delivers a message from YHWH addressed to this scribe, whose complaint is quoted: sorrow has been added to pain, and groaning has brought no rest. God sets Baruch’s distress within the coming destruction of the land, tells him to stop seeking great things for himself, and promises that he will escape with his life.

burnoutfear for the futureserving and tired
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1The message that Jeremiah the prophet spoke to Baruch the son of Neriah, when he wrote these words in a book at the mouth of Jeremiah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, saying,
2“The LORD, the God of Israel, says to you, Baruch:
3‘You said, “Woe is me now! For the LORD has added sorrow to my pain! I am weary with my groaning, and I find no rest.”’
4“You shall tell him, the LORD says: ‘Behold, that which I have built, I will break down, and that which I have planted I will pluck up; and this in the whole land.
5Do you seek great things for yourself? Don’t seek them; for, behold, I will bring evil on all flesh,’ says the LORD, ‘but I will let you escape with your life wherever you go.’”
World English BibleRead in NIV in Psalmlog →Highlighted verses are the most connected.
Key verses
Jeremiah 45:4The images of building and planting place the land’s coming destruction under the authority of the God who established it.
Jeremiah 45:5God joins a direct command against seeking greatness with a personal promise of survival wherever Baruch goes.
Jeremiah 45:1The opening anchors this personal message in Baruch’s work as Jeremiah’s scribe during the reign of Jehoiakim.
Where this chapter reaches

Ecclesiastes shares this chapter’s concern with weary toil and the limits of what a person can gain through striving. Genesis shares the pattern of widespread divine judgment alongside the preservation of human life, seen in the flood account and God’s promise to Baruch here.

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Notice

After reading the whole chapter

What stands out to you about God’s response to Baruch’s complaint that he finds no rest?

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How does the promise of escape with his life reshape Baruch’s pursuit of great things?

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Questions people ask about Jeremiah 45

Who is Baruch in Jeremiah 45?

Baruch is the son of Neriah and the scribe who writes Jeremiah’s words as the prophet dictates them. The message is dated to the fourth year of King Jehoiakim of Judah. Here, Baruch himself receives a word from God addressing his sorrow, weariness, and pursuit of great things.

What are the great things Baruch seeks in Jeremiah 45:5?

The chapter does not identify the great things Baruch seeks. The phrase points to aspirations for himself, which God tells him to stop pursuing as judgment approaches. The contrast is between those unspecified hopes and the concrete promise God makes: Baruch will escape with his life wherever he goes.

Why does God say he will bring evil in Jeremiah 45:5?

In this context, evil refers to calamity or disaster brought in judgment. The preceding verse describes God breaking down what he built and uprooting what he planted throughout the land. The statement concerns destructive judgment; it does not portray God as committing moral wrongdoing. Baruch receives a promise of survival within that judgment.

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Jeremiah · 52 chapters
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What the Bible says about fear →

Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).