Laughter in the Old and New Testaments Quiz

Answer: Abraham

Abraham "fell on his face and laughed" when God told him he and his elderly wife Sarah would become parents of a bouncing baby boy. Genesis 17:17 states Abraham was one hundred years old Sarah was ninety. (Genesis 18:17 also tells of Sarah laughing at the news.)

Scripture goes on to tell of Sarah giving birth to Isaac. Isaac would marry Rebekah and they would have two children -- Jacob and Esau.

Answer: Sanballat

Sanballat, along with Tobiah and Geshem, laughed at Nehemiah's plans to rebuild Jerusalem, as per Nehemiah 2:19. The derision, however, only made Nehemiah more convinced than ever about the need to reconstruct the city.

In Nehemiah 2:20, he is quoted as telling Sanballat, Tobiah and Geshem that "the God of heaven Himself will prosper us; therefore we His servants will arise and build, but you have no heritage or right or memorial in Jerusalem."

Scripture would go on to state Nehemiah would have the last laugh.

Incidentally, the NIV, states Nehemiah was "mocked and ridiculed" with the word 'laughed' not being used.

Answer: Hezekiah

Hezekiah was laughed at when he issued a decree for a Passover celebration for Israel. Details are found in 2 Chronicles 30:1-10.

According to the passage, the Passover had not been observed for "a long time in the prescribed manner" and Hezekiah took action to change things. Scripture tells of the king sending runners throughout all Israel and Judah with letters urging the people to "return to the LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel."

However, the runners received a mixed reception. Verse 10 tells of the runners passing from city to city through Ephraim and Manasseh, as far as Zebulun, "but they laughed at them". Verse 11 and 12 go on state "nevertheless some from Asher, Manasseh, and Zebulun humbled themselves and came to Jerusalem" while "the hand of God was on Judah to give them singleness of heart to obey the command of the king."

Answer: Psalms

The only book in the Bible telling of God laughing is the Book of Psalms. Mention is made of God laughing in three different verses -- Psalm 2:4, 37:13 and 59:8. The verses tell of God laughing at the wicked and those who oppose Him.

Psalm 37:12-13, for example, states in the NKJV:
"The wicked plots against the just,
And gnashes at him with his teeth.
The LORD laughs at him,
For He sees that his day is coming."

Answer: Proverbs

Proverbs 14:13 is the correct answer. To put the verse in contest, here's how Proverbs 14:12-14 reads in the NKJV:
"There is a way that seems right to a man,
But its end is the way of death.
Even in laughter the heart may sorrow,
And the end of mirth may be grief.
The backslider in heart will be filled with his own ways,
But a good man will be satisfied from above."

Incidentally, Proverbs 14:13 in the NIV states, "Even in laughter the heart may ache and rejoicing may end in grief."

The Book of Proverbs contains a number of witty sayings popular with Jews and Christians. The book follows Psalms in both the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Bible. Most of the book was written by Solomon, the son of David.

Answer: Bildad

Bildad was one of three friends who attempted to comfort Job after he suffered through a series of calamities. Bildad was a Shuhite and he was accompanied by Eliphaz a Temanite and Zophar a Naamathite. A fourth friend, Elihu, appears in the 32nd chapter of Job. Their conversations with Job comprise a major portion of the book.

The book of Job tells of Job having seven sons and three daughters who were killed when "suddenly a great wind came from across the wilderness and struck the four corners of the house, and it fell on the young people." On top of this, Job ended up in failing health and lost all his material wealth.

However, Job 42:12-17 tells of a happy ending to Job's life.

It's in Job 8:21, Bildad told Job, God would fill the mouth of a righteous man with laughter. To put the verse in context, here's how Job 8:20-21 reads in the NKJV:
"Behold, God will not cast away the blameless,
Nor will He uphold the evildoers.
He will yet fill your mouth with laughing,
And your lips with rejoicing."

Answer: Ecclesiastes

The statement about there being a time to weep and a time to laugh is from Ecclesiastes 3:4. Even if a person has never read the Bible, the words of Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 could very well be familiar. The verses are featured in the song 'Turn, Turn, Turn (to Everything There is a Season)' released by the Byrds in 1965.

According to Wikipedia, 'Turn, Turn Turn (to Everything There is a Season)' hit Number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and Number 26 on the UK Singles Chart. The song was popular for a number of reasons, not the least of which was it struck a chord with a world which was desperately seeking peace at a time when the War in Vietnam was dominating the headlines and newscasts of the day.

The song was first released by the folk group The Limeliters on their 1962 album 'Folk Matinee'. Wikipedia reports Judy Collins also released a version of the song in 1963. However, the version by The Byrds would prove to be far and away the most successful.

Answer: Isaac

Isaac is the correct answer, as per Genesis 21:3-6.

According to notes in the NKJV Study Bible, Isaac means 'He (God) is Laughing (Now)'

"At one time Abraham had laughed at the improbability of having a son in his old age (Genesis 17:17)," study notes state. "Sarah had laughed too (see Genesis 18:12). But now with the birth of a child, laughter took on its happier meaning. Sarah got the joke (Verses 5 and 6)!"

The study notes also make this observation about Genesis 21:6: "Among the many name jokes in the Bible, few are as wonderful as this one; the words for laugh in this verse are related to the name Isaac."

Isaac would marry Rebekah and they would be the parents of twin boys, Esau and Jacob.

Answer: James

James 4:9 is the correct answer. The verse is part of a passage in which the writer of James states humility cures worldliness. To put the verse in context, here's how James 4:7-10 reads in the NKJV: "Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up."

Although the book is named after James, no one knows for sure who he was. Some believe the book was written by the half-brother of Jesus while others insist the brother of John was the author. Other possibilities are James, the son of Alphaeus and James the father of the apostle called Judas.

Notes in the NKJV Study Bible also state James was a common name in the days of the early church. The beginning sentence in the book in the NKJV says "James, a bondservant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ." With that claim, James could have been practically any Christian with such a name.

Answer: Jesus

Jesus was laughed at when He made the statement a twelve year old girl was sleeping and not dead. Details are found in Mark 5:21-42 and Luke 8:40-56, passages recounting Jesus raising Jairus's daughter from the dead.

As morbid as it sounds, there was laughter after the little girl's death. In the accounts in Mark as well as Luke, it tells of people weeping for the dead girl outside her home. However, when Jesus appeared and stated the girl was not dead but was simply sleeping, the 'mourners' laughed at him. In other words, they saw Jesus as someone who was demented with no concept of reality. A few moments later, however, their laughter turned to total amazement when Christ raised the girl from the dead.

(While the KJV and NIV state the mourners laughed at Jesus, the NKJV states they ridiculed him.)