For Christmas my wife got me a 2021 daily calendar of Dad Jokes. It’s a rip-off. Get it? I just made a joke by using the word ripoff as a pun. According to Dictionary.com, a pun is
the humorous use of a word or phrase so as to emphasize or suggest its different meanings or applications, or the use of words that are alike or nearly alike in sound but different in meaning;
a play on words.
If you buy something and it’s a ripoff, that means what you bought isn’t worth what you paid for it. But I used the word ripoff in the literal sense, because each of my calendar sheets is perforated, so it can be ripped off to reveal the next joke for each new day.
Here’s another pun that appeared on the back of the calendar box:
I booked a hotel room for my vacation, but I’m not sure about it. I have reservations.
Haha, get it? To have “reservations” is to have doubts. But “reservations” also means to secure accommodations — like at a hotel. One word can have multiple meanings. You can use that to make people laugh or to make a point. That’s the essence of wordplay.
God does this in Scripture. Because the Bible was originally written in Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek, we don’t always pick up on the puns in English.
Speaking in reference to Adam and Eve, the Lords says in Genesis 2:25, “The man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.” The very next verse, Genesis 3:1, says, “Now the serpent was more crafty than any other best of the field that the Lord God had made.”
The words “naked” and “crafty” both come from the Hebrew word ă·rūm, which means “smooth.” Someone who is naked with no clothes on is smooth (of skin). Someone who is crafty in speech is what we call a “smooth talker.” He says flattering things in order to deceive people — which is exactly what the serpent did to Adam and Eve in the Garden, when he tempted them to disobey God.
In these back-to-back sentences, God uses a pun to make a point. He uses language creatively — not so much to make us laugh as to make us learn.
Truth is often more memorable
when combined with some wit.
Jesus employed wit when rebuking the hypocritical religious leaders in Matthew 23:23-24:
Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.
Here Jesus rebukes the religious leaders for being obsessed over little things while ignoring the big things. That’s the comparison he makes.
But why compare a “gnat” with a “camel”? Why not compare a seed to a tree, or a humming bird to an ostrich? The reason is because Jesus used a pun to make a point. Jesus spoke in Aramaic. The word for “gnat” is galma, and the word for “camel” is gamla. So Jesus said, “You strain out a galma and swallow a gamla.”
Jesus’ remark packed a punch. He used a pun to make a point that the people would not soon forget! Perhaps Jesus’ play on words even evoked a few chuckles — not from the religious leaders, but from the “common folk” whom the leaders had oppressed.
God is to be taken seriously, but he also has a sense of humor. After all, he created us with a sense of humor, and we are made in his image (Gen. 1:27). Plus, Scripture says there is “a time to weep, and a time to laugh” (Eccl. 3:4).
The fruit of the Spirit is joy (Gal. 5:22), and Jesus had “the Spirit without measure” (John 3:34). Children were drawn to Jesus, and the crowds loved to hear him. No doubt he used humor wisely and well.
Sometimes our humor is sinful. We use words in a way that grieves God, while making others laugh. That’s no joke, which is why Scripture clearly states, “Obscene stories, foolish talk, and coarse jokes—these are not for you. Instead, let there be thankfulness to God.” (Eph. 5:4)
Both laughter and language are gifts from God. Let’s be thankful for them and enjoy both, together, for his glory.