Four funny scenes in the Bible
By Elizabeth Prata
The Bible is a serious document. It is an eternal love letter from God. it is a warning and a promise of judgment for those who rebel. It is amazing in every aspect.
But though it’s a serious document, there are occasional funny scenes in it. After all, it’s about God and His relationship with humankind, and humans are silly, funny, and childlike ridiculous at times.
Some of the scenes that make me smile are the following. See if you chuckle too.
John outruns Peter
The two were running together; and the other disciple ran ahead, faster than Peter, and came to the tomb first; (John 20:4).
This was a funny meme:
Why is it in the Bible? Speculating on why, we do know that Peter was impulsive. Remember when he blurted out things, he lopped off the ear of the guard in the garden, and he jumped in the water to swim to shore when he saw Jesus? So when Peter heard of Jesus’s resurrection, he took off running. We believe John was the youngest disciple, so his youth perhaps outpaced Peter’s impulsiveness. Or maybe the natural competitiveness between men prior to the Spirit coming was allowed to remain in the Bible. But also remember that John was shown to hesitate at the tomb and Peter went in first, so perhaps spiritual maturity outpaced youth’s hesitancy in that instance.
Rhoda slammed the door in Peter’s face
When he knocked at the door of the gate, a slave woman named Rhoda came to answer. When she recognized Peter’s voice, because of her joy she did not open the gate, but ran in and announced that Peter was standing in front of the gate. They said to her, “You are out of your mind!” But she kept insisting that it was so. They said, “It is his angel.” But Peter continued knocking; and when they had opened the door, they saw him and were amazed. (Acts 12:13-16).
Imagine the scene- Peter running through the darkened streets, cloak flapping behind, knowing they will hunt for him. Panting, he arrives at John-Mark’s mom’s house and knocks loudly. Finally seeing light and safety when Rhoda opened the door, Peter thought he’d made it inside. But no. Rhoda is so startled (with shock? joy?) she flees into the house to announce Peter is out there, leaving Peter out there! Funny. Funnier is the praying believers argue with Rhoda. She “kept insisting that it was so”, v 15b; meanwhile Peter “continued knocking” v 16. I think it was Sproul (?) who said that it was harder for Peter to get into Mary’s house than it was for him to break out of jail!
And what were they praying for? Peter’s release. When their prayer as answered, they didn’t put two and two together, lol. Silly humans.
Dagon’s ‘flesh wound’
Monty Python Comedy Troupe had a skit where two knights had a sword fight in the forest. One was King Arthur and the other was the Black Knight. The Black Knight was guarding a tiny bridge that the King needed to pass. The Black knight refused. As the King was more skilled than the Black Knight, Arthur lopped off the other knight’s arm. The injured knight said “‘Tis but a flesh wound” and would not let the King pass. As the King reluctantly continued lopping off the remaining limbs, the wounded knight kept insisting he was OK, and even at the end continued screaming epithets toward the victorious King as he went on his way over the bridge.
1Now the Philistines took the ark of God and brought it from Ebenezer to Ashdod. 2Then the Philistines took the ark of God and brought it into the house of Dagon, and placed it beside Dagon. 3When the Ashdodites got up early the next day, behold, Dagon had fallen on his face to the ground before the ark of the LORD. So they took Dagon and set him back in his place. 4But when they got up early the next morning, behold, Dagon had fallen on his face to the ground before the ark of the LORD. And the head of Dagon and both palms of his hands were cut off on the threshold; only the torso of Dagon was left. (1 Samuel 5:1-4)
I always think of that when I read about Dagon. The people insisting its but a flesh wound and continuing the fight even after obvious defeat by the King.
Does your god use the toilet? Elijah’s taunts
Elijah was allowed to enter a contest with the prophets of Baal on Mt Carmel. In this corner of the ring, Elijah representing Yahweh. In this corner, Prophets of Baal. When Baal did not perform or answer in any way, despite fervent supplications from the false prophets, Elijah taunted them-
Now it happened at noon, that Elijah mocked them and said, “Call out with a loud voice, for he is a god; either he is occupied or relieving himself, or is on a journey, or perhaps he is asleep and needs to be awakened.” (1 Kings 18:27 LSB).
Though the Bible is sometimes graphic, it is not crude for the sake of being crude. But here, we have a sliver of a reference to toilet activity. Ellicott’s Commentary explains, “The mockery of Elijah is apparently even blunter and more scornful in the sense of the original language—… is merely the bitter irony of sheer contempt, calling Baal a god only to heap upon him ideas most ungodlike.”
Our God is high and not like us humans. He does not sleep. He does not neglect his duty and go into retirement. He is always working. He isn’t human with human needs for food or to eliminate waste. He is GOD. He is not like is in any essence or molecule. And that is the sense Elijah was invoking here. But it must have been fun to taunt them this way.
What tickles you in the Bible? Philip’s lateral rapture where he was preaching in one place and whisked to another and still kept preaching? The young man who fell asleep at Paul’s lengthy sermon and fell out the window? The Bible displays God in all His majesty and humans in all our neediness and ridiculousness. The Bible is an honest document!
