Mocking

“Then I prayed, ‘Hear us, our God, for we are being mocked. May their scoffing fall back on their own heads, and may they themselves become captives in a foreign land!’” Nehemiah 4:4

As I read this verse of scripture, my head heard another voice. It was that of Richard Gere playing the role of “Ike” in “Runaway Bride”. I don’t know how many of you have seen that movie, but believe it or not, the Lord used this Hollywood production to teach me so many truths.

The verse above had my mind recall the scene at the rehearsal dinner. Toasts were being given to “Maggie”, the bride, played by Julia Roberts, but all of them were sarcastic and cruel. Those speaking thought they were being funny as they highlighted all her flaws in jest, but their words were cutting deep. Ike, the reporter, sees past Maggie’s smile and embarrassment to the pain in her heart. He stands to give his own toast, not to the bride, but to those attending the luau who had been mocking her.

“May you find yourselves the bulls eye of an easy target, may you be publicly flogged for all your bad choices, and may your noses be rubbed in all your mistakes.”

Mocking. Do you know that word is defined as “abusing vocally”? Teasing. Taunting. Ridicule. Treat with contempt. There’s nothing amusing about this derisive language. It is a deliberate action to inflict pain and is usually sourced in envy.

Ike’s desire was similar to Nehemiah’s. He wanted to see the mocker’s brought to shame. Mockery places someone over you as a superior. The speech might be slight and subtle, yet it remains sharp and causes internal bleeding of emotions.

Have you ever been the target of this vicious cruelty? You don’t stand alone. Christ Himself was mocked. Matthew 27:28-29 says, “They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, and then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on his head. They put a staff in his right hand and knelt in front of him and mocked him. ‘Hail, king of the Jews!’ they said.”

Truth can never truly be harmed by mockery. It can be used as a distinguishing tool between fact and fiction.

How did Jesus handle mockery? First He committed it to His Father. 1 Peter 2:23 says, “He did not retaliate when he was insulted, nor threaten revenge when he suffered. He left his case in the hands of God, who always judges fairly.” Christ’s character was visibly seen against a background of mockery.

What would be the opposite of mocking? When mocking someone we are drawing extra attention to them using speech in a negative way. Maybe the opposite would be to ignore them completely. Ignoring what Christ has done for us might cause Him more pain than those who scorned His crucifixion. Neglecting spending time with Him…our silence…may bring more misery than any mocking. Something to consider.