Baruch

The holy prophet Baruch was the disciple, scribe and faithful friend of the holy prophet Jeremiah and, according to tradition, the author of the Book of Baruch. He lived in the sixth century before Christ. The Orthodox Church commemorates him on 28 September.

Who he was

Baruch was the son of Neriah, of the tribe of Judah, of a noble family; his brother, Seraiah, was a high servant at the court of King Zedekiah. According to Josephus, he was a Jewish aristocrat. He was the scribe of the prophet Jeremiah and wrote down, as Jeremiah dictated, the prophecies, in two editions. He remained true to the teaching of the great prophet, though, like him, he was at times almost overcome by despondency. While Jeremiah hid from the wrath of King Jehoiakim, he sent Baruch to read the prophecies of warning to the people gathered in the Temple, on a day of fasting. The task was hard and dangerous, but Baruch did it without flinching; when King Jehoiakim heard the scroll, he cut it up piece by piece and threw it in the fire, and Baruch wrote the prophecy again, with additions, at Jeremiah’s word.

The siege of Jerusalem

Baruch was a witness, with Jeremiah, to the siege of Jerusalem by the Babylonians, in 587-586 before Christ. In the middle of the siege Jeremiah bought a field at Anathoth, as a sign of faith in a restoration of Jerusalem, and Baruch was present at the transaction. According to Josephus, he lived with him afterwards at Mizpah.

After the fall of the city

He was carried with Jeremiah to Egypt, where, according to a tradition kept by Jerome, he soon died. According to Christian tradition, both he and Jeremiah were stoned to death by their own people in Egypt. Two other traditions say that he later went, or was carried, to Babylon, after Nebuchadnezzar conquered Egypt.

Writings

Because of his link with Jeremiah, Baruch received growing honour in later centuries. To him is attributed the Book of Baruch, which forms part of the Old Testament in the Orthodox and the Catholic Church, as well as a few other apocryphal writings.