A joyful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit dries up the bones.

Then our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with shouts of joy. Then it was said among the nations, “The LORD has done great things for them.”

He will yet fill your mouth with laughter, and your lips with a shout of joy.

a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance,

Then Sarah said, “God has made me laugh, and everyone who hears of this will laugh with me.”

A joyful heart makes a cheerful countenance, but sorrow of the heart crushes the spirit.

Even in laughter the heart may ache, and joy may end in sorrow.

The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord taunts them.

Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk, or crude joking, which are out of character, but rather thanksgiving.

Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be filled. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh.

but the Lord laughs, seeing that their day is coming.

You have made known to me the path of life; You will fill me with joy in Your presence, with eternal pleasures at Your right hand.

Be glad in the LORD and rejoice, O righteous ones; shout for joy, all you upright in heart.

You have filled my heart with more joy than when grain and new wine abound.

I have set the LORD always before me. Because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will dwell securely. For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol, nor will You let Your Holy One see decay. You have made known to me the path of life; You will fill me with joy in Your presence, with eternal pleasures at Your right hand.

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!

Strength and honor are her clothing, and she can laugh at the days to come.

The LORD your God is among you; He is mighty to save. He will rejoice over you with gladness; He will quiet you with His love; He will rejoice over you with singing.”

Is any one of you suffering? He should pray. Is anyone cheerful? He should sing praises.

For like the crackling of thorns under the pot, so is the laughter of the fool. This too is futile.

Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.

Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, or set foot on the path of sinners, or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the Law of the LORD, and on His law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, yielding its fruit in season, whose leaf does not wither, and who prospers in all he does. Not so the wicked! For they are like chaff driven off by the wind. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. . . .

But You, O LORD, laugh at them; You scoff at all the nations.

Abraham fell facedown. Then he laughed and said to himself, “Can a child be born to a man who is a hundred years old? Can Sarah give birth at the age of ninety?”

Grieve, mourn, and weep. Turn your laughter to mourning, and your joy to gloom.

Sorrow is better than laughter, for a sad countenance is good for the heart.

All the days of the oppressed are bad, but a cheerful heart has a continual feast.

If a wise man goes to court with a fool, there will be raving and laughing with no resolution.

Then I will go to the altar of God, to God, my greatest joy. I will praise You with the harp, O God, my God.

A feast is prepared for laughter, and wine makes life merry, but money is the answer for everything.

yet I will exult in the LORD; I will rejoice in the God of my salvation!

I am a laughingstock to my friends, though I called on God, and He answered. The righteous and upright man is a laughingstock.

I said of laughter, “It is folly,” and of pleasure, “What does it accomplish?”

Then Nehemiah told them, “Go and eat what is rich, drink what is sweet, and send out portions to those who have nothing prepared, since today is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.”

This is the day that the LORD has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.

The wicked scheme against the righteous and gnash their teeth at them, but the Lord laughs, seeing that their day is coming.

Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.

They scoff at kings and make rulers an object of scorn. They laugh at every fortress and build up siege ramps to seize it.

“Go away,” He told them. “The girl is not dead, but asleep.” And they laughed at Him.

So she laughed to herself, saying, “After I am worn out and my master is old, will I now have this pleasure?” And the LORD asked Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Can I really bear a child when I am old?’ Is anything too difficult for the LORD? At the appointed time I will return to you—in about a year—and Sarah will have a son.” But Sarah was afraid, so she denied it and said, “I did not laugh.” “No,” replied the LORD, “but you did laugh.”

And they laughed at Him. After He had put them all outside, He took the child’s father and mother and His own companions, and went in to see the child.

Rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep.

For the choirmaster. A Psalm of the sons of Korah. Clap your hands, all you peoples; shout unto God with a voice of triumph.

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and self-control. So do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, or of me, His prisoner. Instead, join me in suffering for the gospel by the power of God. He has saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works, but by His own purpose and by the grace He granted us in Christ Jesus before time began. And now He has revealed this grace through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has abolished death and illuminated the way to life and immortality through the gospel,

While they are flushed with heat, I will serve them a feast, and I will make them drunk so that they may revel; then they will fall asleep forever and never wake up, declares the LORD.

So she laughed to herself, saying, “After I am worn out and my master is old, will I now have this pleasure?”

Like a gold ring in a pig’s snout is a beautiful woman who lacks discretion.

Love must be sincere. Detest what is evil; cling to what is good.

in turn I will mock your calamity; I will sneer when terror strikes you,

This is the revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants what must soon come to pass. He made it known by sending His angel to His servant John, who testifies to everything he saw. This is the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear and obey what is written in it, because the time is near. John, To the seven churches in the province of Asia: Grace and peace to you from Him who is and was and is to come, and from the seven Spirits before His throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and has released us from our sins by His blood, . . .

Woe to you who are well fed now, for you will hunger. Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep.

At noon Elijah began to taunt them, saying, “Shout louder, for he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or occupied, or on a journey. Perhaps he is sleeping and must be awakened!”

You will laugh at destruction and famine, and need not fear the beasts of the earth.

Whoever heeds instruction will find success, and blessed is he who trusts in the LORD.

A good name is better than fine perfume, and one’s day of death is better than his day of birth. It is better to enter a house of mourning than a house of feasting, since death is the end of every man, and the living should take this to heart. Sorrow is better than laughter, for a sad countenance is good for the heart. The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure. It is better to heed a wise man’s rebuke than to listen to the song of fools. . . .

Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you believe in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

the sounds of joy and gladness, the voices of the bride and bridegroom, and the voices of those bringing thank offerings into the house of the LORD, saying: ‘Give thanks to the LORD of Hosts, for the LORD is good; His loving devotion endures forever.’ For I will restore the land from captivity as in former times, says the LORD.

The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look at this glutton and drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’

But rejoice that you share in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed at the revelation of His glory.

These are the proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel, for gaining wisdom and discipline, for comprehending words of insight, and for receiving instruction in wise living and in righteousness, justice, and equity. To impart prudence to the simple and knowledge and discretion to the young, let the wise listen and gain instruction, and the discerning acquire wise counsel . . .

so is the man who deceives his neighbor and says, “I was only joking!”

This is the revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants what must soon come to pass. He made it known by sending His angel to His servant John,

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. And God saw that the light was good, and He separated the light from the darkness. God called the light “day,” and the darkness He called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day. . . .

But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly and despised things of the world, and the things that are not, to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast in His presence.

Now when the people saw that Moses was delayed in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said, “Come, make us gods who will go before us. As for this Moses who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has happened to him!” So Aaron told them, “Take off the gold earrings that are on your wives and sons and daughters, and bring them to me.” Then all the people took off their gold earrings and brought them to Aaron. He took the gold from their hands, and with an engraving tool he fashioned it into a molten calf. And they said, “These, O Israel, are your gods, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!” When Aaron saw this, he built an altar before the calf and proclaimed: “Tomorrow shall be a feast to the LORD.” . . .

The natural man does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God. For they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. The spiritual man judges all things, but he himself is not subject to anyone’s judgment.

You will keep in perfect peace the steadfast of mind, because he trusts in You.

The good man brings good things out of the good treasure of his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil treasure of his heart. For out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks.

“To what, then, can I compare the men of this generation? What are they like? They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling out to one another: ‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not weep.’ For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon!’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look at this glutton and drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think on these things.

You turned my mourning into dancing; You peeled off my sackcloth and clothed me with joy,

On the third day, Esther put on her royal attire and stood in the inner court of the palace across from the king’s quarters. The king was sitting on his royal throne in the royal courtroom, facing the entrance. As soon as the king saw Queen Esther standing in the court, she found favor in his sight. The king extended the gold scepter in his hand toward Esther, and she approached and touched the tip of the scepter. “What is it, Queen Esther?” the king inquired. “What is your request? Even up to half the kingdom, it will be given to you.” “If it pleases the king,” Esther replied, “may the king and Haman come today to the banquet I have prepared for the king.” “Hurry,” commanded the king, “and bring Haman, so we can do as Esther has requested.” So the king and Haman went to the banquet that Esther had prepared. . . .

And the couriers traveled from city to city through the land of Ephraim and Manasseh as far as Zebulun; but the people scorned and mocked them.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

Behold, God does not reject the blameless, nor will He strengthen the hand of evildoers. He will yet fill your mouth with laughter, and your lips with a shout of joy.

For no word from God will ever fail.”

But when Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite official, and Geshem the Arab heard about this, they mocked us and ridiculed us, saying, “What is this you are doing? Are you rebelling against the king?”

All who see me mock me; they sneer and shake their heads: “He trusts in the LORD, let the LORD deliver him; let the LORD rescue him, since He delights in him.”

Like a madman shooting firebrands and deadly arrows, so is the man who deceives his neighbor and says, “I was only joking!”

Then Sarah said, “God has made me laugh, and everyone who hears of this will laugh with me.” She added, “Who would have told Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.”

For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that everyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.

Seek out the LORD and His strength; seek His face always.

Then the LORD opened the donkey’s mouth, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you that you have beaten me these three times?” Balaam answered the donkey, “You have made a fool of me! If I had a sword in my hand, I would kill you right now!” But the donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not the donkey you have ridden all your life until today? Have I ever treated you this way before?” “No,” he replied.

So then, let us not sleep as the others do, but let us remain awake and sober.

Delight yourself in the LORD, and He will give you the desires of your heart.

And they laughed at Him, knowing that she was dead.

But now you must put aside all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips.

So I commended the enjoyment of life, because there is nothing better for a man under the sun than to eat and drink and be merry. For this joy will accompany him in his labor during the days of his life that God gives him under the sun.

Go, eat your bread with joy, and drink your wine with a cheerful heart, for God has already approved your works:

You will indeed go out with joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands.

And the boy Samuel ministered to the LORD before Eli. Now in those days the word of the LORD was rare and visions were scarce.

I have told you these things so that My joy may be in you and your joy may be complete.

He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice at his birth,

In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

The wise will inherit honor, but fools are held up to shame.

Rather, as it is written: “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no heart has imagined, what God has prepared for those who love Him.”

King Nebuchadnezzar made a golden statue sixty cubits high and six cubits wide, and he set it up on the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon. Then King Nebuchadnezzar sent word to assemble the satraps, prefects, governors, advisers, treasurers, judges, magistrates, and all the other officials of the provinces to attend the dedication of the statue he had set up. So the satraps, prefects, governors, advisers, treasurers, judges, magistrates, and all the rulers of the provinces assembled for the dedication of the statue that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up, and they stood before it. Then the herald loudly proclaimed, “O people of every nation and language, this is what you are commanded: As soon as you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes, and all kinds of music, you must fall down and worship the golden statue that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up. . . .

You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape the sentence of hell?

Understanding is a fountain of life to its possessor, but the discipline of fools is folly.

The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped. Therefore my heart rejoices, and I give thanks to Him with my song.