A Story for Shabbat: When a Joke Turned Deadly: The Price of Mockery

Korach used the weapon of mockery against Moshe Rabbeinu, and the Torah reveals just how dangerous that path is. To help us understand the severity of this negative trait, Rabbi Yosef Chaim of Baghdad, known as the Ben Ish Chai, told a powerful and terrifying story.

There was once a Jewish entertainer in Turkey who made his living going from wedding to wedding and simchahs (happy occasions), bringing laughter to the community. But unfortunately, he didn’t stop at innocent jokes. His humor often crossed the line into inappropriate speech and disrespectful topics.

One day, a wealthy member of the community invited this jokester to a Sheva Brachot meal (a traditional celebration held during the week after a Jewish wedding) for his son. The jester arrived and began his usual performance, making the guests laugh with his sharp and silly remarks. At one point, he grabbed a piece of fried fish and made a comical face as he stuffed it into his mouth. But suddenly, the mood shifted. A bone from the fish got stuck in his throat, and he began to choke.

The host, horrified, quickly lifted the jester and ran with him to the upper floor of the building where a doctor lived. He rang the bell, left the man at the door, and ran off, hoping the doctor could save him.

The doctor, hearing the bell, opened the door and unable to see clearly in the dark rushed out and bumped straight into the jester. The collision sent both of them tumbling down the stairs. When the doctor got up, he realized the jester was dead. Fearing he would be blamed for his death, the doctor panicked. He dragged the body to a dark street corner and left it there.

Not far from this spot was a tailor’s workshop, where the tailor and his young apprentice were still working late into the night. The apprentice stepped outside for a moment, stretching his legs, when he spotted the jester slumped against the wall. In the dim light, the boy thought it was a thief.

Terrified, he ran back inside and grabbed the heavy coal iron used for pressing fabric. With the hot iron in his hands, he crept back outside and whispered, “Get out of here, or I’ll iron your face!” But the figure didn’t move. In a panic, the boy pressed the burning iron against the man’s face. The smell and sound were horrible, and the jester collapsed again to the ground.

The tailor came out just as the iron struck and stood frozen in shock. “You’ve killed someone!” he gasped. Fearing they would both be accused of murder, the tailor and his apprentice dragged the body to another dark alley, laying it there and slipping away.

Not long after, a drunk man wandered by, singing loudly and wildly off-key with an empty glass bottle in his hand. As he passed, he tripped over the jester’s body and landed hard on the ground. Furious that someone had “played a trick” on him, he yelled at the body lying there. “Get up or I’ll smash your head!” he shouted. When there was no response, he raised the bottle and struck the jester on the head, shattering the glass.

Right at that moment, a policeman happened to be passing by. He saw the drunk standing over a body, holding the broken bottle. The man was arrested and brought to court, where he was sentenced to death for murder.

The next day, announcements went up around the city: the drunkard would be hanged. But something incredible happened. One by one, the wealthy man, the doctor, the tailor, and the apprentice all came forward to the governor. Without knowing the others had also come, each confessed and said that he, not the drunk had caused the jester’s death.

The governor listened to each man’s account, pieced the events together, and made a ruling that left everyone stunned.

“This jester,” he said, “was punished from Heaven for using mockery and disrespect. He received the four types of capital punishment taught in the Torah: choking from the fish bone, stoning when he fell down the stairs, burning from the hot iron, and death by the bottle, a form of striking. You are all innocent of guilt. Go in peace.”

The story ends here, but the message is clear. Words are powerful. Humor is a gift, but when it crosses into mockery especially of things that are holy, it can carry spiritual consequences. Let this be a reminder of the importance of respect, humility, and the weight our words can hold.