[I’m publishing this thought but not sharing it on any social platform.
If you reach the end of this thought then you may understand why.]
I’m not one to brag about butchering the “kings English,” but I’m sure I do it all the time and think nothing about it. If Shakespeare can create new words, then so can I…
I’m not even sure what I’m thinking about today could be considered good grammar or just gobbledygook. When someone is constantly spouting words that make no sense, then it’s gibberish. A lot of jabbering about nothing! Gibber Jabber…
Oh, my, I done went gone and done it. I defined it only after researching the internet and finding valid references to the slang words and phrases.
If it’s slang today and survives a few years, it’ll be good grammar tomorrow and show up in some guide or definition book (dictionary) to show it’s proper usage. That’s often how words make it into our everyday conversation.
English has 175,000-250,000 recognized words, but we could easily double that if we included all the made-up words, slang, and such. One of the Arab languages has over 1 million words, and I wonder if they have the same issue with slang as we do. I’m not sure. It’s possible.
From Bing AI, a response to my question about slang, I asked it to write me a poem about it.
“A definition poem is a type of poem that defines a word or a concept, using various poetic devices such as rhyme, rhythm, metaphor, imagery, etc. A definition poem can be written in any form or style, as long as it conveys the meaning and essence of the word or concept being defined. Here is an example of a definition poem about slang:”
Slang
Slang is the language of the streets
The words that break the rules
The expressions that are unique
To different groups and schools
Slang is the spice of speech
The flavor that makes it fun
The creativity that can reach
Beyond the standard run
Slang is the code of culture
The identity that binds
The way to show your nature
And reveal what’s on your mind
Slang is the voice of change
The sign of the times ahead
The innovation that can range
From awesome to zed
Language can be confusing. If you do not know the rules or enough variety of words, then assembling a phrase may be beyond your ability.
As I age, words that I’m sure I know may show up in my reading. I’m taking a step every day to understand words and their meanings. I apply that knowledge to the storyline and then slip on my “thinking cap” to find a spiritual application.
This is my key thought. Words apply to the natural state of living, and the same words can apply to the spiritual strata.
The Apostle Paul wrote in his second known letter to the church in Corinth using a portion of thinking that has been with me for nearly 40 years. When I read it in concert with the verses leading to and from it, then it makes more sense. But as with anything, a phrase or two pierces our minds, hearts, souls, and spirits. There’s a deeper revelation. It’s personal for the reader. Others may never comprehend it.
Oh, that you would bear with me in a little folly—and indeed you do bear with me.
(2 Corinthians 11:1 NKJV)
I WISH you would bear with me while I indulge in a little [so-called] foolishness. Do bear with me!
(2 Corinthians 11:1 AMPC)
This one thought I received from a respected teacher of the Word. While traveling throughout Texas and setting up a display at every sectional conference, I heard the same message a dozen times. Well, maybe only 9 times because of vehicle trouble, but you get the drift.
Bear with me in a little folly…Indulge me in a little foolish thinking. What he’s seeming to say is: help me now, and let me think this through with you.
Pull the verses leading into this phrase and following afterward, and you’ll get the gist, but you may not get past the point of thinking through the phrase that includes the word folly. In my Strong’s Concordance, the Greek word used for “folly” means senseless. Expand it further from the root word; it could even be mindless, stupid, or ignorant.
In other words, put up with me in my mindless thinking about the situation.
This is how we think things through. Discoverers find amazing results when they let their minds go down untrodden paths. We make quantum leaps in understanding when we let our minds roam with all the facts at hand.
Thomas Edison did not put down his own failures when making a light bulb.
He said he found 10,000 ways that wouldn’t work.
But his mind and experimental prowess helped him find a way!
Daydreaming? All the time. I think this is why I enjoy driving in silence. Noise prevents my mind from diving down rabbit trails of thought. It’s a distraction I do not need, even though some say they study better with music blaring. Unless it’s an old favored set of words and notes, then it’s a huge waste of energy! My mind “ditch dives” into the melody and not through the range of thoughts I always have running in the background.
Sometimes, when lost in thought, a light will shine on a particular path, and I’ll follow it. Skipping through the maze of thoughts, I’ll glean understanding. There! That’s something I can use!
Paul describes how we let others (and their perspective) set aside what we just learned and agreed with. James talked about unstable minds (James 1:8). Wishy-washy. Going this way, then that, and never finding a consistent path to stay on. We easily let someone teach us on top of what we believe, and it changes our perspective or beliefs. Charlatans.
Sometimes, we talk aloud, and it’s senseless. It’s hard to put into words all the varied directions of our minds. Clarity is lacking. It sounds mindless. And that’s often what Gibberish consists of – trying to talk about something excitedly, and we get our words all tangled up because we cannot consider all the thoughts to help others understand them.
Not Paul…. Bear with me in a little folly…
A few verses later, perhaps, Paul identifies a personal issue. Others have come in and shared a different gospel, preached a different version of Jesus, and brought a different spirit about the Gospel…you may follow them because they have the words to convince you they are right. Not gibberish. Just a different take on the same words.
How does Paul lay out his personal issue?
For I consider that I am not at all inferior to the most eminent apostles.
Even though I am untrained in speech,
yet I am not in knowledge.
But we have been thoroughly manifested among you in all things.
(2 Corinthians 11:5-6 NKJV)
“I’m not trained in speech, but I am in knowledge.” Moses stumbled with his speech, but God gave him Aaron to speak for him. Who did Paul have? We know he traveled with a host of helpers, but when the rubber meets the road, you need to be the one speaking in front of others.
Paul has what others may not ever obtain. Education. A witness. A personal invitation from Jesus himself to change his direction. (Acts 9:1-18, Philippians 3:1-6, 2 Corinthians 11:18-30) Paul has something most others never accomplish. Skill in writing letters! Handling thought via the written word. Connecting this to the spoken word, let’s say Paul is accomplished.