Bible Dictionary
JESTING
Jesting in Ephesians 5:4 refers not to harmless wit but to coarse, degrading, or morally improper joking. Believers are warned to replace such speech with thanksgiving.
Definition
Jesting, in its biblical use, refers to speech that has become coarse, licentious, or morally improper rather than merely clever or humorous conversation. The term describes degraded wit that is unsuitable for Christian conduct.
Biblical Usage
In Ephesians 5:4, believers are warned against this kind of corrupt joking. The context gives the word a flavor of coarse or licentious speech.
Historical Background
The underlying Greek word could describe quick wit or something easily turned. Because excessive jesting was common, it came to be used in a degraded sense.
Historical Bible Dictionaries
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (ISBE)
<p>jest'-ing: Used from Tyndale down as the translation of eutrapelia (Eph 5:4). Aristotle uses the original in his Ethics iv.14 as an equivalent of "quick-witted," from its root meaning "something easily turned," adding that, since the majority of people love excessive jesting, the word is apt to be degraded. This is the case here, where it clearly has a flavor of the coarse or licentious.</p>