To have knowledge, you must first have reverence for the LORD. Stupid people have no respect for wisdom and refuse to learn.

Then you will call for wisdom, but I will not answer. You may look for me everywhere, but you will not find me.

You have never had any use for knowledge and have always refused to obey the LORD.

and you will say, "Why would I never learn? Why would I never let anyone correct me?

I wouldn't listen to my teachers. I paid no attention to them.

Those who do not find me hurt themselves; anyone who hates me loves death."

Any who love knowledge want to be told when they are wrong. It is stupid to hate being corrected.

Those who do evil things hate the light and will not come to the light, because they do not want their evil deeds to be shown up.

Because those people refuse to keep in mind the true knowledge about God, he has given them over to corrupted minds, so that they do the things that they should not do.

You teach others---why don't you teach yourself ? You preach, "Do not steal"---but do you yourself steal?

You boast about having God's law---but do you bring shame on God by breaking his law?

and use every kind of wicked deceit on those who will perish. They will perish because they did not welcome and love the truth so as to be saved.

The result is that all who have not believed the truth, but have taken pleasure in sin, will be condemned.

The time will come when people will not listen to sound doctrine, but will follow their own desires and will collect for themselves more and more teachers who will tell them what they are itching to hear.

They will turn away from listening to the truth and give their attention to legends.

"But your people rebelled and disobeyed you; they turned their backs on your Law. They killed the prophets who warned them, who told them to turn back to you. They insulted you time after time,

But for just a bribe you let the guilty go free, and you keep the innocent from getting justice.

Your wise men are put to shame; they are confused and trapped. They have rejected my words; what wisdom do they have now?

They will answer, 'No, why should we? We will all be just as stubborn and evil as we want to be.' "

As soon as Jehudi finished reading three or four columns, the king cut them off with a small knife and threw them into the fire. He kept doing this until the entire scroll was burned up.

Although Elnathan, Delaiah, and Gemariah begged the king not to burn the scroll, he paid no attention to them.

After King Jehoiakim had burned the scroll that I had dictated to Baruch, the LORD told me

The LORD told me to say to the king, "You have burned the scroll, and you have asked Jeremiah why he wrote that the king of Babylonia would come and destroy this land and kill its people and its animals.

I will punish you, your descendants, and your officials because of the sins all of you commit. Neither you nor the people of Jerusalem and of Judah have paid any attention to my warnings, and so I will bring on all of you the disaster that I have threatened."