Solomon begins Ecclesiastes 8:15 by calling his readers to live a joyful life. He says, “And I commend joy, for man has nothing better under the sun but to eat and drink and be joyful, for this will go with him in his toil through the days of his life that God has given him under the sun.” God truly wants us to enjoy this wonderful gift of life that He has given us. Despite the trials and hardships of life, God balances life with many successes and daily pleasures that light up our lives with good things. Ecclesiastes 3 teaches us that there is a time for every purpose under heaven. Ecclesiastes 3:4 says that there is “A time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance.”
Scholars have studied laughter and have recognized several different kinds of laughter. All of them appear in the bible. One of the four is the laughter of superiority. Adults laugh at the foolish antics of kids who don’t know any better. I watched my toddler grandson climb under the coffee table and repeatedly try to stand up. He banged his head every time. But he kept on doing it. Did this make me mad? No! Does the fact that my grandson does not acknowledge the fundamental laws of physics threaten me in the least? No. I just watched it longer than I should have, and I couldn’t help but laugh. I probably let it go on too long because his reactions were really funny! His tears eventually moved me to help him out. I’m not all mean, although his grandmother said I was.
This may very well have been the kind of laughter that God had, as the Psalmist records for us in Psalm 2:4. This Psalm begins with identifying those who reject God and shake their fist in defiance at Him. Does this make God mad? No! Does the rebellion of mighty men threaten God? No! It says, “He who sits in the heavens laughs.” The kings on earth are like the toddler trying to stand up under a coffee table. It is hilarious. They can’t grasp the obvious and won’t stop the foolishness. Unlike the toddler, the kings of the earth, however, should know better. They should stop their rebellion. They should acknowledge the God of heaven, the king of kings. Then, they would find relief. But they won’t! God is so far superior to anyone or anything that might stand against Him that he laughs at their rebellion. Another example of this kind of laughter in the bible is seen in Proverbs 31:25. This woman who fears the Lord has the same sense of humor, especially as she faces an unknown future. Nothing scares her! Nothing threatens her. The passage says, “She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future.” She trusts God to have everything under control. Knowing that God is on her side, she can laugh at the hardships that might come her way.