A SERIOUS LOOK AT JOY

(part3)

The Bible has its lighter moments, using wit in the form of irony, satire, puns or word-plays. It has some 500 word-plays in the Old Testament and at least 200 in the New Testament. There’s the ludicrously human situation in the Garden of Eden where the man blames the woman and she in turn blames the serpent. Other notable passages include: “You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel” (Matthew 23:24);

“the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye…" (Matthew 7:3-5)

However, humor is a literary quality easily lost in translation (The Interpreter’s Dictionary of the Bible Volume 2, 1990 Abingdon Press, p. 660).

A biblical archeology study on laughter pointed out that Jesus must have been a compelling personality, riveting teacher and fun person to be around, to keep the attention of crowds for days, even to the point of making people forget to eat, bring food or worry about work, as in the case of the crowd of 5,000 who followed him (Mark 6:30-44).

Where Jesus resurrected Jairus’ 12-year-old daughter, Mark records the reaction of those in the room as completely astonished In other words, probably stunned and silent. Jesus responds with something practical and light-hearted: He tells them to give her something to eat (Mark 5:42-43). Jesus used practical knowledge to break a tense situation: The little girl, who had been sick, experienced death, and is now alive and hungry.

Joy is used 165 times in the King James version. Here are a few rendered in the Amplified Bible with varied connotations that cultivate peace and joy, helping people recover, heal and be refreshed: “Deceit is in the heart of those who devise evil, but counselors of peace have joy” (Proverbs 12:20).

“So, the women left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy and ran to tell [the good news to] the disciples”. (Matthew 28:8)

“When the Messiah triumphs over evil and ushers in His millennial reign, surely there will be shouts of joy! That hopeful good news brings calm in times of trouble. This hope should have a centering effect on our well-being, a somber kind of joy—knowing the whole world’s suffering will end soon.

" I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth." (3 John 1:4).

Just as we do with our own children, joy has a wonderful emotional range, from outrageously wacky to light-hearted puns to calm smiles, thanks to our brilliant, creative designer.

Have great joy!!!