Lexical Summary laab: To burn, to kindle Original Word: לָעַב Strong's Exhaustive Concordance mock A primitive root; to deride -- mock. NAS Exhaustive Concordance Word Origina prim. root Definition to jest NASB Translation mocked (1). Brown-Driver-Briggs [לָעַב] verb jest (Late Hebrew Hiph`il id.; ᵑ7 לְעַב Ethpa`al id.; Syriac  Ethpa`al mock, delight oneself, be greedy; Arabic  play, sport, jest); — only Hiph`il Participle ׳וַיִּהְיוּ מַלְעִבִים בְּ2Chronicles 36:16 and they were (continually) making jest at the messengers of God. Topical Lexicon Biblical Occurrence 2 Chronicles 36:16 records the sole appearance of the verb, describing Judah just before the Babylonian exile: “But they mocked God’s messengers, despising His words and scoffing at His prophets, until the wrath of the LORD against His people was stirred up beyond remedy.” Context and Setting The Chronicler is recounting the final decades of the kingdom of Judah. Despite repeated warnings from prophets such as Jeremiah, the leaders and people persisted in idolatry and moral collapse. Mockery of the prophetic word becomes the final symptom of a terminal spiritual disease; the exile that follows is presented as the inevitable covenant sanction for treating the Lord’s voice with contempt (Leviticus 26; Deuteronomy 28). Nature of the Sin The term paints more than casual ridicule; it is active, willful derision directed toward representatives of God and thus toward God Himself. Such contempt moves beyond unbelief to open hostility, signaling a hardened heart no longer receptive to repentance. Psalm 1:1 contrasts the blessed man who avoids the “seat of mockers,” highlighting the danger of settling into entrenched scorn. Patterns of Mockery in Scripture • Elisha is jeered by the youths of Bethel (2 Kings 2:23–24). Theological Significance 1. Covenant Accountability: Mockery of God’s messengers displays covenant rebellion. The exile demonstrates that divine patience has limits when derision replaces repentance. Eschatological Perspective 2 Peter 3:3 foresees “scoffers” in the last days who deny the Lord’s return. The unique verb from 2 Chronicles foreshadows a recurring end-time attitude; contempt for prophetic warning will again precede climactic judgment. Ministry Applications • Fidelity in Preaching: God’s servants should expect derision yet remain steadfast, knowing that truth is ultimately vindicated. Summary Strong’s Hebrew 3931 depicts an aggressive scorn that arises when people despise the voice of God. In 2 Chronicles 36:16 it serves as the narrative tipping point toward exile, illustrating the peril of belittling divine revelation. Scripture consistently portrays such mockery as a marker of hardened rebellion, a precursor to judgment, and a challenge to every generation to honor, not deride, the Word of the Lord. Forms and Transliterations מַלְעִבִים֙ מלעבים mal‘iḇîm mal·‘i·ḇîm maliVimLinks Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel TextsEnglishman's Concordance 2 Chronicles 36:16 HEB: וַיִּֽהְי֤וּ מַלְעִבִים֙ בְּמַלְאֲכֵ֣י הָאֱלֹהִ֔ים NAS: but they [continually] mocked the messengers KJV: But they mocked the messengers of God, INT: become they mocked the messengers of God 1 Occurrence |
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