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"I Was Only Joking!"

         Like a maniac shooting flaming arrows of death is one who deceives their neighbor and says, “I was only joking!” (Proverbs 26:18-19)

Remember the woman who carried a “bloody head of Trump” on stage as part of her comedy routine? Or the scene in Jaws where the kids made a shark fin and went snorkeling, only to come up in a ring of boats filled with men aiming rifles? Or all those quips and putdowns that were and are used in media. Technically, most of those aren’t deceptions of neighbors, but consider how often “JK” is added to something on social media as a disclaimer, so everyone knows that the person who just said the hurtful thing should not be held responsible for the pain it caused. “It was a joke” seems to be considered a universal antidote for the burns received.

 But saying, “I was only joking!” not only does not make the injury caused disappear, but it tells everyone that what was said was a lie and that any fault for pain belongs to the injured person for taking it personally. That means that from a Biblical perspective, what we find amusing at the expense of another is the spiritual equivalent of being a school shooter. Um. Ouch.

This is why I have difficulties with both conservative and liberal media’s “put down artists,” and other comedians. This is why I need to be careful about my own mouth. It’s far too easy to chuckle while we destroy others, and too easy to encourage others to laugh along.

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