I was asked to speak on a couple of passages in Luke 6 (in August), and while it is on my mind I would like to share with you some thoughts about the 21st and 25th verses. In the latter part of verse 21, our Lord says, “Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh.” In the last part of verse 25 the thought is reversed, “Woe to you who laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep.”
The initial thought I had is that these two principles are very clearly demonstrated in Luke 16. There, we have a contrast between the lives, deaths, and afterlives of a rich man, and a beggar named Lazarus. “There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day. But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate, desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover the dogs came and licked his sores” (Luke 16:19-21).
So, here is demonstrated one who weeps now: Lazarus, a beggar whose life was miserable. In fact, his life was so meager that it seems he was neglected even in his death. The Bible does not record his burial. In contrast is the rich man whose life was sumptuous. It was obvious that he was both rich and important (or at least he was able to afford the trappings of importance), as he was “clothed in purple and fine linen.” Thus he fits the description of one who laughs now. When he died, he was buried.
However, at death their fortunes changed. The one who laughed during life, we are told, “And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. “Then he cried and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame” (Luke 16:23-24). “Woe to you who laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep.”
Lazarus, however, a man who had a miserable life on earth, “was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom.” (vs. 22). Abraham commented on this to the rich man, “But Abraham said, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and you are tormented” (Luke 16:25).
Now what should be evident in both the example of the rich man and Lazarus, and in the teaching of Jesus in Luke 6, the weeping or laughing is not what guarantees the opposite in eternity. Rather, it is a consequence of the life one determines to live while on earth.
The one who lives for the Lord often suffers in response to his faith. Jesus said, “If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, a servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also” (John 15:18-20). So, it is not surprising that the one who weeps now (as he lives upon the earth, his sorrow caused by tribulation and suffering) will laugh in eternity, as his life is rewarded with a place in heaven.
The one who is evil often is prosperous in this world. It is natural for us to wonder why! The prophet Habakkuk did, and asked God, “You are of purer eyes than to behold evil, And cannot look on wickedness. Why do You look on those who deal treacherously, And hold Your tongue when the wicked devours a person more righteous than he? Why do You make men like fish of the sea, Like creeping things that have no ruler over them?” (Habakkuk 1:13-14). The Lord answered his question, pronouncing woes upon the ungodly. They think their prosperity will continue, “Because you have plundered many nations, all the remnant of the people shall plunder you” (Habakkuk 2:8). Ultimately all is summed up in these words, “But the LORD is in His holy temple. Let all the earth keep silence before Him” (Habakkuk 2:20).
God is preeminent. The prophet recognized this truth, and knew that ultimately God’s will would be done, and the wicked would be punished. In the meantime, though the righteous suffer, there is the knowledge of salvation which brings comfort. “Though the fig tree may not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines; though the labor of the olive may fail, and the fields yield no food; though the flock may be cut off from the fold, and there be no herd in the stalls— Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation. The LORD God is my strength; He will make my feet like deer’s feet, and He will make me walk on my high hills” (Habakkuk 3:17-19).
The question is, where are your priorities? When do you want to laugh? Is happiness here on earth your priority, or eternal bliss in eternity? We must ask this for ourselves, and those we love. Jesus clearly showed that His coming would bring division on earth, but reconciliation with God. Ultimately we have to make a choice — Now or Later! Remember Jesus’ words to the suffering brethren in Smyrna, “Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life” (Revelation 2:10).
The blessed are those who weep now, and laugh later! Please consider these truths.
