The answer is: Scroll

Jer 51:63

In the Book of Jeremiah, what seems like a simple act carries deep significance. Jeremiah ties a scroll, filled with prophetic words about the fate of Babylon, to a stone and tosses it in the mighty River Euphrates. This symbolic action acts as a powerful demonstration of Babylon's impending destruction. The scroll represents God's message written on the heart of the people, full of warnings and prophecies.

Fun fact: The Euphrates River, flowing over 1,700 miles through modern-day Turkey, Syria, and Iraq, has been called the cradle of civilization. So, when Jeremiah dumps his scroll into these ancient waters, he is asserting that the hub of human achievement will face Divine judgment. Nothing lasts forever, even the grand empires built on sand!

This act hearkens back to earlier biblical themes. Think of the stones in the Jordan River that marked the Israelites' crossing into the Promised Land (Joshua 4:1-7) or when stones were used as a memorial for important events in Israel’s history. Each of these examples reminds us that God’s words and actions often carry symbolic weight, showcasing how they transcend time and remain relevant through figures like Jeremiah.

In essence, tossing the scroll into the Euphrates epitomizes a testimony; it makes sure the words would drift down the river of history, a reminder that God’s prophetic messages are inextricable from human affairs.