A "mocker" in biblical terms refers to an individual who ridicules, scorns, or shows contempt for others, often displaying a lack of respect for God and His commandments. The concept of mockery is frequently addressed in the Bible, highlighting the moral and spiritual dangers associated with such behavior.

Old Testament References

The Old Testament provides several insights into the nature and consequences of being a mocker. In the book of Proverbs, mockers are often contrasted with the wise. Proverbs 21:24 states, "Proud, Arrogant, and Mocking is his name—he behaves with excessive pride." This verse underscores the association between mockery and pride, suggesting that mockers are driven by an inflated sense of self-importance.

Proverbs 9:7-8 warns against engaging with mockers: "He who corrects a mocker brings shame on himself; he who rebukes a wicked man taints himself. Do not rebuke a mocker, or he will hate you; rebuke a wise man, and he will love you." This passage advises caution in dealing with mockers, as they are unlikely to accept correction and may respond with hostility.

The Psalms also address the behavior of mockers. Psalm 1:1 describes the blessed man as one who "does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand in the way of sinners, nor sit in the seat of mockers." Here, mockers are grouped with the wicked and sinners, indicating their opposition to the righteous path.

New Testament References

In the New Testament, mockery is seen as a characteristic of those who reject the truth of the Gospel. During the crucifixion of Jesus, mockery played a significant role. Matthew 27:29 recounts how the Roman soldiers mocked Jesus, saying, "And they twisted together a crown of thorns, set it on His head, and put a staff in His right hand. Then they knelt down before Him and mocked Him, saying, 'Hail, King of the Jews!'"

The apostle Peter warns of mockers in the last days, emphasizing their skepticism and denial of divine promises. 2 Peter 3:3-4 states, "Most importantly, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. 'Where is the promise of His coming?' they will ask. 'Ever since our fathers fell asleep, everything continues as it has from the beginning of creation.'"

Moral and Spiritual Implications

The Bible consistently portrays mockers as individuals who are resistant to wisdom and correction. Their behavior is often linked to pride, arrogance, and a rejection of divine authority. The scriptures caution believers to avoid the company of mockers and to be wary of their influence.

Mockery is not only a social ill but also a spiritual danger, as it reflects a heart that is hardened against God. The biblical narrative encourages believers to pursue humility, wisdom, and a reverence for God, contrasting these virtues with the folly of mockery.1. (n.) One who, or that which, mocks; a scorner; a scoffer; a derider.

2. (n.) A deceiver; an impostor.

3. (n.) A mocking bird.

MOCK; MOCKER; MOCKING

mok, mok'er, mok'-ing (hathal, la`agh, empaizo): To mock is the translation of hathal, "to play upon," "mock," "deride" (Judges 16:10, 13, 15 1 Kings 18:27, "Elijah mocked them"; Job 13:9 twice, the Revised Version (British and American) "deceiveth," "deceive," margin "mocketh," "mock"); of la`agh, "to stammer" or "babble in mimicry," "to mock" or "scorn" (2 Chronicles 30:10 Nehemiah 4:1 Job 11:3; Job 21:3 Proverbs 1:26; Proverbs 17:5; Proverbs 30:17 Jeremiah 20:7). Other words are tsachaq, "to laugh," etc. (Genesis 19:14; Genesis 21:9; Genesis 39:14, 17); qalac, "to call out," or "cry after," "to scoff" or "mock at" (2 Kings 2:23 Ezekiel 22:5); sachaq, "to laugh," "mock" (Job 39:22 Lamentations 1:7); luts, "to scorn" (Proverbs 14:9); sechoq, "laughter," "derision" (Job 12:4); empaizo, "to treat as a child," "mock" (Matthew 2:16; Matthew 20:19; Matthew 27:29, 31, 41 Luke 14:29, etc.); diachleuazo, "to mock," "laugh," etc. (Acts 2:13; Acts 17:32); mukterizo, "to sneer at," "mock," literally, "to turn up the nose" (Galatians 6:7, "God is not mocked," "will not let himself be mocked"); epigelao, "laugh" (Job 2:8; 1Ma 7:34; compare 2Ma 7:39; 2Ma 8:17).

Mocker, hathulim, "deceivers," "mockers" (Job 17:2); luts (Proverbs 20:1 Isaiah 28:22 the King James Version); la`egh, "stammering," "mocking" (Psalm 35:16; compare Isaiah 28:11); sachaq (Jeremiah 15:17); empaiktes, "a mocker," "scoffer," literally, "sporting as children" (Jude 1:18; compare 2 Peter 3:3).

Mocking is the translation of qallacah "mocking," "derision" (Ezekiel 22:4); of empaigmos the Septuagint for qallacah) (Hebrews 11:36; Wis 12:25; Ecclesiasticus 27:28, "mockery"; 2Ma 7:7, "mocking-stock," the Revised Version (British and American) "the mocking"; 2 Maccabees 7:10, "made a mocking-stock" (empaizo)); of mokos (Ecclesiasticus 33:6).

For "mocked of" (Job 12:4) the Revised Version (British and American) has "a laughing-stock to"; for "mockers" (Isaiah 28:22), the English Revised Version "scorner," the American Standard Revised Version "scoffer"; for "the mockers" (Jeremiah 15:17), "them that made merry"; for "scorneth" (Proverbs 19:28), "mocketh at"; for "As one man mocketh another, do ye so mock him?" (Job 13:9), "As one deceiveth a man will ye deceive him?" (margin, "mocketh," "mock"); "mock" for "laugh" (Job 9:23); for "There shall come in the last days scoffers" (2 Peter 3:3), "In the last days (margin, "Greek in the last of the days") mockers shall come with mockery" (empaigmone empaiktai).

W. L. Walker

1703. empaiktes -- a mocker, ie by impl. a false teacher
... 1702, 1703. empaiktes. 1704 . a mocker, ie by impl. a false ... mocker,
scoffer. Cognate: 1703 -- a scoffer (mocker). See 1702 (). ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/1703.htm - 6k3887. luts -- ambassador, have in derision, interpreter, make a ...
... luts. 3888 . ambassador, have in derision, interpreter, make a mock, mocker.
Transliteration: luts Phonetic Spelling: (loots) Short Definition: ambassador. ...
/hebrew/3887.htm - 6k

3934. laeg -- mocking
... buffoon, mocker, stammerer. From la'ag; a buffoon; also a foreigner -- mocker,
stammering. see HEBREW la'ag. 3933, 3934. laeg. 3935 . Strong's Numbers.
/hebrew/3934.htm - 6k

2049. hathulim -- mockery
... mocker. From hathal (only in plural collectively); a derision -- mocker. see HEBREW
hathal. 2048, 2049. hathulim. 2050 . Strong's Numbers.
/hebrew/2049.htm - 6k

7832. sachaq -- to laugh
... smiles (1), sport (1). deride, have in derision, laugh, make merry, mocker,
play, rejoice, laugh to scorn,. A primitive root; to ...
/hebrew/7832.htm - 6k

3917b. lits -- to scorn
... to scorn NASB Word Usage carry on as scoffers (1), deride (1), envoys (1), interpreter
(1), makes a mockery (1), mediator (1), mock (1), mocker (1), scoff (1 ...
/hebrew/3917b.htm - 5k

Sin the Mocker
... THE PROVERBS SIN THE MOCKER. 'Fools make a mock at sin; but among the
righteous there is favour.'"Proverbs 14, 9. The wisdom of ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture g/sin the mocker.htm

A String of Pearls
... THE PROVERBS A STRING OF PEARLS. 'Wine is a mocker, strong drink is ... 'Wine is a mocker.'
Intemperance delights in scoffing at all pure, lofty, sacred things. ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture g/a string of pearls.htm

On Admonition and Repentance.
... And if thou shouldst hear a mocker by chance, when thou art not desiring it, sign
thyself with the cross of light, and hasten from thence like an antelope. ...
/.../hymns and homilies of ephraim the syrian/on admonition and repentance.htm

Whether the Sacrament of Penance May be Repeated?
... Penance consists in deploring past sins, and in not committing again those we have
deplored": and Isidore says (De Summo Bono ii): "He is a mocker and no ...
/.../aquinas/summa theologica/whether the sacrament of penance.htm

Putting on the Armour
... The old Egyptians had no need to put a skeleton at their tables, nor the Romans
to set a mocker behind the hero as he rode in triumph up to the Capitol. ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture f/putting on the armour.htm

Expositions of Holy Scripture
... FOLLY. THE POOR RICH AND THE RICH POOR. THE TILLAGE OF THE POOR. SIN THE MOCKER.
HOLLOW LAUGHTER, SOLID JOY. SATISFIED FROM SELF. WHAT ...
//christianbookshelf.org/maclaren/expositions of holy scripture g/

Resignation
... He shrank from the rude scenes that opened before him,"from the mocker's sneer and
the ruler's scourge; from the glare of impatient revenge, and the weeping ...
//christianbookshelf.org/chapin/the crown of thorns/resignation.htm

Of the Method in which Grammarians and Professional Speakers are ...
... For thus they will not act the mocker if they happen to observe any of the prelates
and ministers of the Church either calling upon God in language marked by ...
/.../augustine/on the catechising of the uninstructed/chapter 9 of the method in.htm

Right Eating and Drinking
... Wine is a mocker, strong drink makes one quarrelsome, And whoever is misled by it
is not wise. Who cries, "Woe"? who, "Alas"? Who has quarrels? Who complains? ...
/.../sherman/the childrens bible/right eating and drinking.htm

March the Thirty-First at the Cross!
... From the seat of the mocker, deliver me, good Lord! And let me stand near the
cross while that awful voice of desolation rends the heavens. ...
/.../my daily meditation for the circling year/march the thirty-first at the.htm

Mocker (11 Occurrences)
... 3. (n.) A mocking bird. Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia. MOCK; MOCKER; MOCKING. ...
WL Walker. Multi-Version Concordance Mocker (11 Occurrences). ...
/m/mocker.htm - 14k

Mocking (25 Occurrences)
... & vb. n.) of Mock. 2. (a.) Imitating, esp. in derision, or so as to cause derision;
mimicking; derisive. Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia. MOCK; MOCKER; MOCKING ...
/m/mocking.htm - 18k

Mock (43 Occurrences)
... 6. (n.) Imitation; mimicry. 7. (a.) Imitating reality, but not real; false; counterfeit;
assumed; sham. Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia. MOCK; MOCKER; MOCKING. ...
/m/mock.htm - 23k

Mocked (40 Occurrences)

/m/mocked.htm - 18k

Quarrels (10 Occurrences)
... dripping. (WEB NIV). Proverbs 22:10 Drive out the mocker, and strife will
go out; yes, quarrels and insults will stop. (WEB NIV). ...
/q/quarrels.htm - 9k

Gains (19 Occurrences)
... (See RSV NIV). Proverbs 21:11 When the mocker is punished, the simple gains wisdom.
When the wise is instructed, he receives knowledge. (WEB RSV). ...
/g/gains.htm - 11k

Invites (7 Occurrences)
... See RSV). Proverbs 9:7 He who corrects a mocker invites insult. He who reproves
a wicked man invites abuse. (WEB NIV). Proverbs 10 ...
/i/invites.htm - 8k

Raging (26 Occurrences)
... (See NAS RSV NIV). Proverbs 20:1 Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and
whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise. (KJV DBY WBS). Isaiah 17:12 Ah! ...
/r/raging.htm - 13k

Riotous (10 Occurrences)
... nothing. (See JPS). Proverbs 20:1 Wine is a mocker, strong drink a brawler;
And whosoever erreth thereby is not wise. (See JPS). Proverbs ...
/r/riotous.htm - 9k

Reeleth (2 Occurrences)
... Multi-Version Concordance Reeleth (2 Occurrences). Proverbs 20:1 Wine is a mocker,
strong drink a brawler; And whosoever erreth thereby is not wise. (See JPS). ...
/r/reeleth.htm - 6k

What does it mean that God is not mocked? | GotQuestions.org

What does the Bible say about scoffers? | GotQuestions.org

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Mocker: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.com

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