A kid was mocking his teacher – going through antics and facial expressions that were exaggerations of the teacher’s mannerisms. Then he was surprised to discover that his teacher was standing behind him the whole time – watching everything. O-o-o-h, how embarrassing!
Nobody likes to be mocked, do they? Mockery is making fun of somebody, and no one likes to be ridiculed, right? Well, that is especially true of God. In Psalm 1:1, God says, “Blessed is the man…who does not sit in the seat of the scornful.” To sit in the seat of the scornful is to identify with those who are scorning—actually, to sit in judgment over others in a scornful manner.
The word “scornful” is a word that means “to mock; to treat with contempt; to ridicule and make fun of.” Literally, it means “to make a mouth at,” like making contortions with your face to express an attitude of mockery.
Now the thing about scorn and mockery is that they issue out of an attitude of pride. We make fun of others because in some way they don’t meet our standards. When we mock, we are saying that our way of thinking is better than theirs, or that our way of doing something is superior to their way of doing it. Mockery and scorn are, pure and simple, an expression of pride – and God hates pride more than anything else (Proverbs 6:16-17), which is why God is so down on making fun of others.
There is a story in 2 Kings 2 about a group of young men who mocked the prophet Elisha. They made fun of him and ridiculed how he looked and what he did. Then Elisha turned around and cursed them in the name of the Lord. Immediately two bears came out of the woods and attacked the men who were mocking. It was the judgment of God upon them because of their scornful spirits. God was making it clear that He doesn’t like to be mocked.
So don’t make fun of the things of God, and don’t make fun of other people either. Don’t sit in the seat of the scornful. Now you know the real meaning of the word.
Say — Do something to encourage someone today. Instead of tearing them down – build them up!