Upon hearing about this, the leaders of Judah went up from the royal palace to the temple of Yahweh and took their seats to hold court at the gate of Yahweh’s temple.
Then, while all the people were listening in the temple, Baruch publicly read from the scroll everything that I had said. He did this from the room of Gemariah son of Shaphan, the king’s royal scribe. His room was in the upper courtyard near the entrance of the New Gate of the temple.
Nevertheless Jeremiah escaped execution—but only because Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, protected him and would not allow him to be handed over to the furious crowd.
When King Jehoiakim and all his leaders and mighty men heard what Uriah prophesied, the king was determined to put him to death. On hearing this, he was afraid and escaped to Egypt.
All the leaders and all the people made an agreement that everyone should free their slaves, men or women, and no longer keep them enslaved, so they set every slave free.