The book of Proverbs contains a disturbing declaration attributed to Wisdom personified: "I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear comes."1 This statement appears in a passage where Wisdom is closely identified with God, speaking with divine authority and making divine pronouncements.2 The image is stark: when disaster strikes those who have rejected Wisdom's counsel, the response is laughter and mockery. This is not an isolated passage. The Psalms repeatedly depict God laughing at the wicked, holding them in derision, and scoffing at their plans.3, 4 These texts raise fundamental questions about the biblical portrayal of God's character, particularly regarding compassion, mercy, and the divine response to human suffering.
The Proverbs passage
Proverbs 1:20-33 presents a speech by personified Wisdom, depicted as a woman calling out in the public square.5 The passage begins with Wisdom crying aloud in the streets, at the city gates, and in the market squares, calling to the simple, the scoffers, and the fools to turn from their ways and listen to her counsel.1 When her call is rejected, Wisdom pronounces judgment:
"Because I have called and you refused to listen, have stretched out my hand and no one has heeded, because you have ignored all my counsel and would have none of my reproof, I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when terror strikes you, when terror strikes you like a storm and your calamity comes like a whirlwind, when distress and anguish come upon you." Proverbs 1:24-27 (English Standard Version)1
The Hebrew text uses two distinct verbs for scornful response. The word translated "laugh" is "sachaq" (שָׂחַק), which can mean to laugh, play, or mock.6 The word translated "mock" is "la'ag" (לָעַג), meaning to deride, scoff at, or mock.7 Both terms carry connotations of contempt and ridicule. The passage continues with Wisdom declaring that when those who rejected her finally call out in their distress, she will not answer: "Then they will call upon me, but I will not answer; they will seek me diligently but will not find me."8
Lady Wisdom and God
In Proverbs, Wisdom is personified as a woman, referred to by scholars as "Lady Wisdom."2 The Hebrew word for wisdom, "chokhmah" (חָכְמָה), is grammatically feminine, which provides the linguistic basis for this personification.9 However, Lady Wisdom is far more than a literary device or abstract concept. Throughout Proverbs, she speaks with divine authority, claims to have been present at creation, and describes herself in ways that closely identify her with God himself.10
In Proverbs 8, Lady Wisdom declares: "The LORD possessed me at the beginning of his work, the first of his acts of old. Ages ago I was set up, at the first, before the beginning of the earth."11 She describes herself as being present with God during creation, as "a master workman" or "daily delight" at God's side.11 Scholarly commentary notes that "Lady Wisdom personifies God's wisdom, and she stands for God Himself."12
This close identification between Wisdom and God means that when Wisdom speaks in Proverbs 1:26, declaring "I also will laugh at your calamity," this is understood within the theological framework of Proverbs as representing God's own response.12 While some interpreters attempt to distance God from these statements by emphasizing the personification, the text itself presents Wisdom's pronouncements as authoritative divine declarations about how God responds to those who reject his counsel.2
Divine laughter in the Psalms
The theme of God laughing at the wicked appears multiple times in the Psalms, using similar terminology and presenting comparable images of divine scorn and mockery. Psalm 2 describes the nations conspiring against the Lord and his anointed, followed by God's response:
"He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision. Then he will speak to them in his wrath, and terrify them in his fury." Psalm 2:4-5 (English Standard Version)3
The word translated "laughs" here is "sachaq" (שָׂחַק), the same Hebrew root used in Proverbs 1:26.6 The phrase "holds them in derision" uses the verb "la'ag" (לָעַג), again the same word translated "mock" in Proverbs.7 The parallelism is exact: God laughs and mocks those who oppose him, and this laughter precedes terrifying them in his fury.3
Psalm 37 presents another instance of divine laughter directed at the wicked:
"The wicked plots against the righteous and gnashes his teeth at him, but the Lord laughs at the wicked, for he sees that his day is coming." Psalm 37:12-13 (English Standard Version)4
Again, the verb is "sachaq."6 The Lord's laughter is connected to his foreknowledge of judgment: he laughs because he knows the wicked person's day of reckoning is approaching.13 Psalm 59:8 uses identical language: "But you, O LORD, laugh at them; you hold all the nations in derision."14
Biblical passages depicting divine laughter at human suffering1, 3, 4, 14
| Passage | Hebrew verb | Context |
|---|---|---|
| Proverbs 1:26 | sachaq, la'ag | Wisdom laughs at calamity of the foolish |
| Psalm 2:4 | sachaq, la'ag | God laughs at nations conspiring against him |
| Psalm 37:13 | sachaq | The Lord laughs at the wicked |
| Psalm 59:8 | sachaq, la'ag | God laughs at and derides the nations |
Interpreting divine laughter
Biblical interpreters have offered various explanations for these passages, attempting to reconcile the image of God laughing at human calamity with theological commitments to divine compassion and love. These defenses merit careful examination.
The "irony and poetic justice" defense
Some commentators argue that the language of laughing and mocking is meant to convey irony and poetic justice rather than literal cruelty.15 On this reading, the passages use vivid poetic imagery to warn against foolishness and illustrate the principle that those who reject wisdom will face natural consequences. The laughter represents the fitting nature of the outcome: those who scorned wisdom are themselves scorned when their folly leads to disaster.16
However, this interpretation encounters difficulties with the text itself. The passages do not present laughter as metaphorical or symbolic; they describe it as God's actual response. Proverbs 1:26 states "I also will laugh," using the same grammatical structure as other straightforward declarations in the passage.1 The Psalms use identical language to describe God's laughter as they use to describe his other actions and emotions. If the laughter is merely symbolic of poetic justice, it is unclear why other divine actions in the same passages should be taken as literal.
Moreover, the defense does not address the moral question: even if the laughter represents irony rather than malice, is it morally appropriate for a compassionate God to respond to human suffering with laughter and mockery, regardless of what led to that suffering? The text does not say God sadly permits the natural consequences of folly; it says he laughs and mocks when calamity strikes.1
The "this is Wisdom speaking, not God" defense
Another interpretive strategy emphasizes that in Proverbs 1:26, it is Lady Wisdom who speaks, not God directly. On this view, the personification of Wisdom creates some distance between the statement and God's actual character.17 Wisdom, as a literary figure representing a principle or attribute, might speak in ways that should not be directly attributed to God himself.
This defense cannot be sustained from the text and scholarly consensus. Biblical scholars consistently identify Lady Wisdom in Proverbs as representing God himself, not merely an abstract principle.12 Wisdom speaks with divine authority, makes claims that only God could make, and her words are presented as authoritative revelation about God's ways.10 The theological framework of Proverbs does not support treating Wisdom's declarations as potentially contrary to God's character; rather, Wisdom reveals God's character and ways.2
Furthermore, the identical language appears in the Psalms, where it is unambiguously God himself who laughs and mocks.3, 4 Psalm 2:4 states directly "He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision," with no personification or intermediary figure.3 The pattern is consistent across multiple biblical books: God is depicted as laughing at and mocking the wicked and those who reject him.
The "this is righteous judgment, not cruelty" defense
A third interpretive approach argues that God's laughter represents righteous judgment rather than cruelty or lack of compassion.18 On this view, God laughs at the wicked not because he delights in their suffering per se, but because their foolish schemes against him and their stubborn rejection of wisdom are so absurd as to warrant scorn.13 The laughter expresses God's supremacy and the futility of opposing him, serving as both judgment on the wicked and reassurance to the righteous.19
This defense acknowledges that the text does attribute laughter and mockery to God but attempts to present these as compatible with divine justice. However, several problems remain. First, Proverbs 1:26 does not describe God laughing at the absurdity of schemes against him; it describes Wisdom laughing at people's calamity and terror.1 The object of laughter is their suffering, not merely their folly. The passage specifies: "I will laugh at your calamity... when terror strikes you like a storm and your calamity comes like a whirlwind, when distress and anguish come upon you."1
Second, the New Testament presents God's character quite differently. Second Peter 3:9 states that God "is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance."20 First Timothy 2:4 says God "desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth."21 Ezekiel 33:11 records God saying, "I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live."22 These passages present a God who desires the repentance and salvation of the wicked, not one who laughs and mocks when they suffer the consequences of their rejection.
Third, the defense must explain why laughter and mockery are appropriate expressions of righteous judgment. Human judges who laugh at convicted criminals or mock them as sentence is pronounced would be considered cruel and unprofessional. The defense seems to rely on a principle that actions inappropriate for humans become appropriate when God performs them, but this principle requires theological justification beyond mere assertion.23
The broader biblical context
The passages depicting God laughing at human suffering must be considered alongside other biblical texts that present God's character differently. The tension is particularly acute when comparing the divine laughter passages with texts emphasizing God's compassion, mercy, and desire to save.
The book of Jonah presents God as deeply concerned with the fate of Nineveh, a wicked city. When Jonah is angry that God spared Nineveh after it repented, God asks: "Should not I pity Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know their right hand from their left?"24 This God pities even those who are ignorant and wicked, showing concern for their salvation rather than delight in their potential destruction.
The gospels present Jesus weeping over Jerusalem: "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!"25 Jesus weeps over the city's impending judgment and laments their rejection of him. This is the opposite of laughing and mocking when calamity strikes those who refused to listen.
Paul writes in Romans 11:22, "Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God's kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness."26 While acknowledging divine severity, Paul emphasizes kindness as the primary characteristic believers should note. The passage does not suggest God laughs at those who have fallen but rather that believers should fear and continue in God's kindness.
Theological development
One way to understand the tension is through the lens of theological development within the biblical canon. The Hebrew Bible contains diverse perspectives from different time periods, authors, and theological contexts.27 The image of God laughing at the wicked may reflect earlier theological understandings that were later modified or supplemented by texts emphasizing divine compassion and desire for universal salvation.
Biblical scholar Walter Brueggemann notes that the Old Testament contains multiple "theological trajectories" that are sometimes in tension with one another.28 The divine laughter texts might represent one trajectory, emphasizing God's sovereignty, justice, and the consequences of rejecting wisdom. Other texts represent different trajectories, emphasizing God's mercy, patience, and redemptive purposes. Both exist within the canon, creating theological tension that readers must grapple with rather than resolve through harmonization.28
This perspective allows for taking the texts seriously as representing authentic theological perspectives from their authors and communities, while recognizing that later biblical texts may present God's character in ways that modify, supplement, or even challenge earlier depictions. The New Testament emphasis on God's love, Jesus weeping over Jerusalem, and God desiring all people to be saved represents theological development beyond the image of divine laughter at human calamity.29
Moral questions
Beyond questions of textual interpretation and theological development, the passages raise fundamental moral questions about the character of God. If we encountered a human being who laughed at others' calamities and mocked people in distress, we would judge that person as cruel and lacking compassion. The question becomes whether divine laughter at human suffering is morally different from human laughter at human suffering, and if so, why.23
Some theological traditions appeal to divine sovereignty: God is the creator and sustainer of all things, the ultimate judge, and therefore his actions are not subject to the same moral evaluation as human actions.30 On this view, God has the right to laugh at the wicked, mock those who reject wisdom, and respond to human calamity in ways that would be inappropriate for humans. Divine prerogatives include modes of response that creatures may not employ.
However, this raises a deeper question: if God's character includes laughing at human suffering and mocking people in distress, and if these actions are morally appropriate when God performs them, then in what sense is God perfectly good? If "goodness" when applied to God means something fundamentally different from goodness as we understand it, such that actions we would call cruel become good when God does them, then calling God "good" becomes vacuous or merely stipulative.31
Alternatively, if God is good in a sense recognizable to us, such that we can meaningfully say God is compassionate, loving, and just, then divine laughter at human calamity and mockery of people in distress seems incompatible with that goodness. A truly compassionate being does not laugh at suffering. A truly loving being does not mock those in terror and anguish, even if their own choices led to their situation.32
Implications for understanding God
The passages depicting God laughing at human calamity and mocking the afflicted present a portrait of divine character that conflicts with common theological claims. According to these texts, God does not merely permit the natural consequences of foolish choices; he actively laughs and mocks when disaster strikes those who rejected his wisdom.1 This laughter is not presented as reluctant or sorrowful but as an appropriate response to the rejection of divine counsel.
Readers must decide how to integrate this portrait into their understanding of God. Some will accept it at face value, acknowledging that the biblical God includes mockery and laughter at human suffering as part of his character and actions. Others will employ interpretive strategies to distance God from these statements, though such strategies must reckon with the straightforward language of the texts and their repetition across multiple biblical books.3, 4 Still others will conclude that these texts reflect ancient theological perspectives that should be recognized as such rather than affirmed as eternal truth about God's character.
What the texts do not support is the claim that the biblical God never laughs at human calamity, never mocks those in distress, or responds to all suffering with compassion and grief. The language is too explicit, the repetition too consistent, and the Hebrew terminology too clear for these passages to be dismissed as metaphorical or misunderstood. Proverbs says Wisdom will laugh at your calamity and mock when terror strikes. The Psalms say the Lord laughs at the wicked and holds the nations in derision. Whether these depictions are accurate, whether they should be affirmed or critiqued, and what they imply about God's character are questions each reader must answer for themselves.