Jeremiah 34 - 36

King Zedekiah is given a promise that he will be taken captive by Babylon, but will die peacefully and be lamented by his constituents.  The king declares that all Hebrew slaves are to be freed; the people obey this command, but later regret the decision and re-enslave their former slaves.  This enrages the Lord and he pronounces great punishment upon them.  The land will be left desolate because of their sin.  The Rechabites, however, obey the commands not only of God but of their ancestors as well.  God pronounces a special blessing upon this household for their obedience.  Jeremiah puts all the words of his prophecies into a scroll that is delivered to king Jehoiakim.  The king, displeased with the content of the prophecies, cuts the scroll apart and burns the pieces.  As punishment for this, God promises that Jehoiakim will die violently, his progeny will not survive, and no one from his line will ever again sit on the throne of the nation.  God's Word is to be taken seriously, and is not available for human revision.