disdain for God's Word

As Jehudi read three or four columns, the king would cut them off with a knife and throw them into the fire in the fire pot, until the entire scroll was consumed in the fire that was in the fire pot. Yet neither the king nor any of his servants who heard all these words was afraid, nor did they tear their garments.
Jeremiah 36:23-24

The gall of a selfish king is so strong that he officially disdains the Word of God. Jeremiah was given a message for the king that was written on a scroll and then read to the king in the comfort of his palace. In front of his staff he casually slices up the scroll as it is being read and then burns it strip by strip. He clearly did not accept Jeremiah's message, neither did he yield to God's authority over him.

He did not heed the call to repentance at the Word of The Lord. Instead, his actions are the exact opposite. He should have torn his garments but instead he cut up the scroll. He should have been wearing the ashes of mourning, but instead he burned the scroll that contained God's message just for him. He did not heed God's warning.

The Lord responded by having Jeremiah dictate a second scroll that contained all of the first message, plus a pronouncement of impending judgment on the palace. Soon his kingdom would be taken away. The king's disdain for God would be eliminated by the shock and awe of the Babylonian army.

The principle to notice is that any disrespect for God's Word is direct disobedience to God. It is that simple. There is no exception to this fact. When God speaks, His truth and holiness infuse His words with unique and unparalleled authority. There are consequences for dismissing the words of the Creator of the universe. You cannot rise above God. Not even the mightiest ruler on the earth comes close to His power. There is only one God, and the upstart who defies Him will fall in failure by his own disdain for God. It's just a matter of timing in the will of the God Whose Word never returns to Him empty and always accomplishes what He sent it to do.