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@TheosTrek, Blogging from A to Z April Challenge, Jumpin' Jehosaphat, the letter "J", words and language
I recently covered “J” words in a WW&P post, so I will dispense with my standard Wednesday form. However, I am obligated by the “A to Z Blogging Challenge for April” to regale you all today with something concerning that illustrious letter. So, to satisfy my own curiosity, I present you with the following:
Jumpin’ Jehosaphat!
Where on earth did that come from? That phrase has puzzled me, on and off, for years, although not enough to look it up. Now that I have, I’m sort of glad I didn’t waste a lot of my time, because no one really knows. The origins of most colloquialisms are difficult to pin down even in the easiest of circumstances. But if you are interested in some speculation, (and I decided that I was – at least as far as today’s post goes), here is some of that:
Most folks tend to agree that the phrase is one of many used as alliterative euphemisms – phrases to replace profane swearing or cussing. Instead of crying out, “Jesus!” or “Jesus Christ!” different words were substituted that had the same initial consonants. So for “Jesus!” folks might shout out “Jeepers!” or, for “Jesus Christ”, “Jiminy Cricket! and Jeepers Creepers!” are common substitutes. The list is endless. One of my favorites I first heard when we lived in the northwest corner of Vermont, in St. Albans. The favorite JC phrase there is “Jeesum Crow!”
As far as the name, “Jehosaphat” (also spelled Jehoshaphat, Jehosephat, and about as many different ways as you can think of) goes, he was a prominent King of Judah, the son of Asa. There are a number of stories concerning this mostly righteous and God-fearing king that can be found in scripture. Possibly the best known of the stories is found in 2 Chronicles, Chapter 20. It is a rather fun read – especially using “The Message” translation, which you can find here. What you won’t find there, or anywhere else in scripture is a reference to Jehosaphat doing any jumping. So, go figure.
I read an interesting suggestion of an origin for the phrase from a Jewish scholar, who seems to think that its origin is based on Midrashic commentary. According to Midrash most of the Kings of Judea and Israel were pretty rotten and evil (practiced idolatry and so forth). Jehosaphat was an exception and is praised as being one of the few Kings of Judea who was close to Hashem (Lord). One of the ways this was illustrated was (according to Midrash) when he would see or encounter a great Torah scholar or sage he would “jump” off his throne to greet and honor the wise man; ergo – “Jumpin’ Jehosaphat!” – a phrase connoting joyful surprise.
While that sounds good, I failed to find any corroborative research. The phrase ‘Jumpin’ Jehosaphat!’ originated in the United States as a mild expletive or oath. Some sources say Jehoshaphat is a less-blasphemous euphemism for Jesus. Others say it substitutes for Moses. I searched for the first recorded use of that mystery expletive. The Dictionary of American Regional English cites S.A. Hammett’s “Sam Slick in Texas,” (1858) with the following:
“Jehosaphat!… Easy over the stones, Joe.”
So, there we see the name as an expletive in print for the first time, but he isn’t doing any jumpin’. Jehosaphat doesn’t start doing that, (in print anyway), until in a story by the Irish-American writer, Capt. Thomas Mayne Reid, called “The Headless Horseman,” in 1866:
“By the jumpin’ Geehosofat, what a gurl she air sure enuf!”
You will notice that “Jehosaphat” is given another spelling, (there are several!) but the alliterative sound is the same, so, it counts.
In the Jewish tradition, primarily Orthodox, it is considered blasphemous to write the name of the Almighty. Our word “God,” is written “G_d” or substituted with “Hashem” (Lord). It has also been suggested that “Jehosaphat” is a euphemism for “Jehovah,” which in turn is an Anglicization of יהוה , the name of God (YHWH, or Yahweh) in the Hebrew Bible.
I think you get the idea. I bet that many of you have your own alliterative euphemisms. A favorite of my husband’s family, as a substitute for “Good Gracious God!” is “Good Granny Grunt!” My maternal grandmother’s substitute for “For God’s sake!” was “For garden seed!”
How about you, my Gentle Readers? Do you have some favorite profanity euphemisms to share? I’d love to read them. Until tomorrow, however, I’ll close in Mayne Reid style, with:
“By the jumpin’ Geehosofat, what a frase she air sure enuf!”
Jack said:
For You are my lamp, O Lord;
The Lord shall enlighten my darkness.
For by You I can run against a troop;
By my God I can leap over a wall.
(2 Samuel 22:29,30.)
Walter Schminky said:
Good golly Miss Molly! I ran across your comments while researching Great Jumping Jehoshaphat. Great discussion but I seem to detect a smidgen of legalism in some of the comments. I think it is pretty simple: Trust and love God and do good. God knows our heart and sees the intent of the exclamation. But I am still a work in progress. Good golly Miss Polly and a good day and night to all.
Justin Pope said:
Paula,
Thank you for an entertaining and informative post. It has just the right balance of detailed investigation and lightness of touch, if I may say so. I also admire your considerable, considered and indeed considerate replies. There are far too few such places on the internet.
Now, as this stream covers the conventions of various groups of the faithful in respect of being able to write His name or preferring / having to use a substitute, I should like to ask you what is the accepted practise regarding words appertaining to the Lord? I see that you have not “capitalised” the initial letter of such words. Here in the UK I am pleased to say that all such are routinely given the respect of an upper case first letter~even in the gutter press which holds a candle for no-one! Even. H. M. the Q. isn’t afforded the honour, despite being queen of the country, head of the Church of England and indeed defender of the faith.
Andrew said:
I always thought it referred to the Valley of Josaphat as the place of judgement in Joel. I have no reason for the belief except when I read Dante’s Inferno he mentioned Josaphat in this context.
Paula Tohline Calhoun said:
That is as good am idea as any, but it still doesn’r explain the “jumping” aspect. we shall likely never know for sure. . .on this side of heaven, anyway! 😆
Minorkle said:
I concur
Pingback: Jumpin' Jehosaphat—NOT
Ron Meckler said:
One my favorites was uttered by Colonel Blake in the movie “M*A*S*H”. Instead of Jesus Christ, he said “Cheese and Crackers.”
Paula Tohline Calhoun said:
Yep! That one has been around a longtime. Thanks for the visit!
Joseph N Stonbely, Se said:
Well, not quite .
Col. Blake must’ve gotten it from
the famous Burlesque comedian, BILLY
“Cheese N Crackers”.Fagen who lived and
performed in the old Troc Theatre for many
years, up until the late 50’s
Jim Miller said:
A recently popularized euphemism is “Shut the front door!”, replacing “Shut the f–k up!”
Paula Tohline Calhoun said:
I am hearing that one quite frequently these days, especially on TV.
Jesse said:
I heard it yelled out by Walter Brennan in an old western.
Paula Tohline Calhoun said:
It is probably one of the most frequently used euphemisms in the world today. I posted this article ever two years ago, and I still receive a least 3 or 4 views every day. What can I say but, “Jumpin’ Jehosaphat!” 😆 Thanks for dropping by!
Stephen Weir said:
In the old Looney tunes cartoons was a character called Yosemite Sam, he used to say that sometimes, “Jumping Jehoshaphat”
Robert A. Pawling said:
Paula, Thanks for as thorough an explanation of “Jump Jehoshaphat” as I have ever read. As I was researching this particular King of Judah for a Sunday school lesson I came to realize that Scripture gave no insights into this phrase, but that, as you have said, its origin probably comes from an American expletive that need not be deleted. I can remember my Grandmother Emily, in Pennsylvania, saying “My good glory” when confronted with frustrating circumstances, rather than invoking the Glory of the Almighty. That got me thinking about the earliest evidence of this phrase in Thomas Mayne Reid’s “The Headless Horseman.” Is it possible that “By the Jumpin (of) Geehosofat” is really a veiling of “By the Glory of Jehovah,” with the letters G and J transposed in the spelling of glory and Jehovah to further mask the blasphemous intent? Just a thought. If only we could get in a time machine and hear some good, old, colonial to Civil War era cussing we might get to the bottom of this.
With regards, Bob Pawling
Paula Tohline Calhoun said:
Hello Bob! So glad you enjoyed this. Interestingly enough I recently found that this particular post of mine is the most “clicked on” post of my three years of blogging, so you and I are not alone in our curiosity! It really was one that I wrote “on the fly,” as admittedly, most of my postings are, still, this one more than others. I seem to recall that I simply went to the old UNreliable Wikipedia! I don’t think I ever rely solely on them as a source but they are often a good place to start, and sometimes lead me in other more fruitful directions. I am more a writer of poetry, memoir, and prose than a researcher or reporter, so I do hope you have not depended solely on me for your information! 😳 Do hope your lesson goes well. (Let me know!)This one word (name) Jehosaphat – has yielded quite a bit of interest. God must be pleased to have so many seekers! I wish you enough. . .
Mike law said:
Thank you! I am one of Jehovah’s Witnesess and
You are correct. It is disrespectful in our belief to
Use God’s name in just as you quoted.Jehosaphat
Was just as you said, was basically the only Israellite kig Appointed by Jehovah that brought back
True worship. Jehovah blessed him with success
And peace. He fortified his cities under God’s
Dirrection. He reigned from the age 35 for 25
Years.as long as the isrealite kings kept true worship they had peace.
If they strayed, they fell flat on their face thus having the “jumping
Jehosaphat” sydrome and went crying to Jehovah and he would
He would bail them out by appointing a king and made it simple.
Leave the foreighn women alone, keep true worship, and you will
Suceed.
mikelaw1@cox.net
Guy said:
Paula, I have come to understand just how much you like a challenge. So. I’m not sure if this will count as a profanity or not, but it is a peculiarity at the very least. At one time, a long time ago, I worked in a shop that was equipped with some excellent bench tools. D.R. was the king of the drill press, and after the successful completion of a difficult task, would announce it with a satisfied sounding, ‘Yup, got it to within a c.h.’ To what was he referring, and what is it’s origin?
Paula Tohline Calhoun said:
Hate to tell you Guy, but this one was too easy. It qualifies as profanity in my book, so I’ll send you a private message answer, seeing as I try to keep MOST of my blog PG-13. Actually, I had heard it once a long time ago, but had not thought of it since. It does refer to a rather precise measurement, though. BUT – after reading the “Urban Dictionary” – you got me going, thanks a heap! Check your GR message.
Shepp said:
Lol, I’m witcha onnatun!! Good post and God Bless. And may you have enough and a bit extree to share! 😉
Tammy said:
I just watched a great film which suggested that YHVH was original the sound of breath.
Paula Tohline Calhoun said:
There are no letters for vowels in Hebrew (basically), and they are implied by the consonants. When YHWH (or VH) is pronounced, it sounds sort of like an exhaled breath. It’s origins are sort of lost in time, but it is also believed to mean “I AM that I AM,” or essentially, to be, or being. The beginning of all things – GOD. The Aramaic word for spirit is Ruach pronounced, (Rooaahckh), which also has the sound of breath – again, meaning spirit of being. It is a wonderful thought, is it not? God breathing into us God’s Being – that brings us to life, and then Christ breathing into us the Holy Spirit, bringing us into a newness of life.
One of the things about scripture that fascinates me is that in spite of the thousands of years over which it was written and compiled – all by fallible human beings – that somehow despite all the apparent inconsistencies and controversie,s translations and paraphrases, and huge errors of translation as well, God remains consistent as s/he reveals his/her true nature over the course of humanity’s growing awareness of God. God always moves from darkness into light. God is always moving us in that direction, and if you study the scriptures for any length of time, you can see that, very clearly. From the creation of the heavens and earth, even as the “days” are described, it says “there was night and morning, a day. Don’t you think of a day as beginning with morning and ending with night? Not God (at least as God inspired those who recorded the story-myth). It started as without form and void, and darkness and the first thing God created was Light!
And even for those of us who call ourselves Christians, we see Christ as the Light of God, being brought to our darkness of spirit and heart. God is Being and Light. Makes me happy just to think of it!
Thank you for commenting, so I could think of it all again! Have a wonderful day, blessed with the abundance of enough. . .
Ashley M. Calhoun said:
Made me think of the Vermonters saying “Jeezum Crow”. Thanks for the detailed etymology.
Hubs
Jeremy said:
I feel ashamed of us.. sinful humans and the pain we cause our great God as he watches us fumble through his word and completely miss his purpose. We cant even seem to figure out who/what he is. From your comments above Paula, you aren’t even clear if God is a he/she…? The Bible is so Crystal Clear on this! It could not have been any clearer unless it was written down in plain text… wait… it is…. What pain we cause him… as we defame him by removing his name from modern bibles and slander him by spreading lies about him – such as that he would TORTURE someone for all eternity, that He and his (lower) son are equal, human souls don’t die (the original lie promoted by the devil), and so on….
He deserves SO much more from us, and he will get it soon.
Good news is that SOON, all this reproach on our great God will be done away with, and his name will be ‘sanctified’ or ‘made holy’ – as his son Jesus prayed for in the model prayer Matthew 6:9.
Paula Tohline Calhoun said:
Dear Jeremy:
I apologize for taking so long in getting back to you in reference to your comment. I know you spent time and thought on it, and I truly appreciate your responding and reading this rather trivial (and incomplete) discussion on Jumpin’ Jehosaphat!
I love discussing scripture with anyone who cares to read or listen, and your comment is no exception. I first want to state that I am not in the least confused as to God’s gender. God is neither He, She, nor It. It is just that I prefer to call my God neither a “he”n or a “she” nor an “it;” Our language is completely inadequate to express God’s name, and for me, using any of those pronouns diminishes God’s name to one that is far too low and inadequate for the God I am learning to know. I believe that for many, many people their God is far too small. If I could define God precisely, then I would have no God. A God I can understand completely would bring God down to my level and that would be a very poor substitute indeed.
What distresses you most about my comment, is that I believe that the Bible is both an divine and a human document. The wonder, miracle, and mystery of the Gospel is that it has not been utterly destroyed over the years by earnest humans who are in fact human, and do make mistakes in translation, and also, I think, in understanding. However, that does not make me right and others wrong. It makes us all imperfect, and therefore requires a constant study and devotion to scripture through which God reveals God’s Self more clearly each day as we seek to understand this sublime Creator or all things and the nature of our blessed Savior Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit of Christ blesses me daily as the paraclete who walks beside me and opens up the Gospel in new and inspired ways that are intended for my needs, as the Holy Spirit does the same for you and all who seek to deepen their personal relationship with our Savior. I am most humble and proud to call myself a Christian, and I pray more humbly each day that my life with Christ will grow deeper, as I know that God also wishes for me.
Also, by the way, I read a large number of translations and paraphrases of the Bible. I believe that God spoke and speaks through those scriptures as openly and genuinely as he did in the KJV or NKJV – or whatever version you prefer. There is wonder and mystery in all of them because it has as much to do with the reading of the Word as it does with the writing/translating/paraphrasing. Somewhere earlier in this reply or in the original post I mentioned Eugene Pederson’s paraphrase,
The Message,” as a translation. That was unintentional, and it is indeed a paraphrase, and a marvelous one it is. God led him as he shared his own understanding of God’s Word, and through reading it I have had my eyes opened and my mind expanded, just to read the beautiful words of the Gospel in a fresh new way. I hope you would be willing to try it, as well as J. B. Phillips’ paraphrase of the New Testament, which he wrote out in short study sections, giving the reader ample opportunity to pray, ponder, and consider God’s plan for us each as individuals and as the complete body of Christ.
It must be apparent to you that we differ in our understandings of God’s Holy Word, which it indeed is, but I hope also that you will know that I believe we worship the same marvelous God Who loves us so very much that s/he humbled him/herself to become one of us and to lay down his very life for our redemption.
With the marvelous and amazing Grace of God,
may you always be blessed –
Paula
P.S. I also want to acknowledge that Jesus referred to God as “Father,” and “Abba,” (often translated as “Daddy”) because of their intimate relationship, but it is not the only way in the scriptures to which God is referred.
Jeremy said:
Thanks for taking the time to respond Paula. I appreciate it. I know you put precious time and effort into your comments. I also apologize for the tone I used in my original post. As I read it now, I realize I was emotionally caught up in the moment and should have taken more time to compose myself/post 🙂
As far as your comments, I cant help feel your distrust in the Bible to some degree. Am I right..? I hear that all the time from people who state that the bible is like the game of ‘telephone’, where you tell one person one thing, then they tell someone, then they tell someone… The message gets distorted…
In response I wanted to tell you that I FIRMLY believe in the Bible’s inspiration and accuracy! It is simply NOT the work of imperfect humans. Period. Granted, some translation committee’s have put a slant on the original writings to fit their own views, as their own ‘foreword’ usually points out. Today, thousands upon thousands of copies of the original manuscripts are in existence, to compare for reference. A cross examination of each verse, easily points out errors made in copying, therefore making it easy to remove the discrepancies.
Some say the bible contradicts itself.. This is simply NOT the case. Granted there are a few instances where it does appear that way. In each and every case though, there is a simple explanation. To clarify, the there are a couple standard methods to use. First, God is absolutely perfect! He is powerful and wise enough to ensure his own word is not contradictory. That being the case, a satisfying and accurate explanation according to the perfect ‘standard’ of the bible is guaranteed in each case. Second, the context surrounding the verse is usually able to clear it. Third, the original language wording usually helps to add clarification in each case.
Do you feel this way? If so please post where you find fault with the Bible and I would be happy to spend some time and to do my best to assist you in finding a satisfying answer/explanation.
I too love discussing the bible and typically don’t do it via the internet, but when/if I see sincere interest, I am happy to give of my time. 🙂
P.S. I mean NO disrespect to you, and sincerely hope you take no offense to the following. You and I do not worship the same God. I do not worship a “mystery”, a ‘trinity’ of god-heads. I personally worship the Sovereign Lord – the Almighty God, who’s name is Jehovah. In no way do I worship his son, Jesus.
John 20:17 – Jesus words – ‘worship only his Father’
Matthew 4:10 – Jesus words – ‘Jesus Father is HIS God’
Have a great day – Jeremy.
Paula Tohline Calhoun said:
Hi Jeremy!
Thanks again for your thoughtful comment. (And never in your words have I found any meanness or harshness of spirit – only passion for your subject – and what a wondrous subject it is! And there is nothing more passionate about which to speak.)
First of all, let me make clear: I have absolutely NO distrust in the Bible as God’s revelation of God’s self through time. I do, however, often dispute with other people (“distrust” doesn’t seem the right word), because I put my faith and trust in God and not in people – people are imperfect, God, however is not! (On that I am certain we agree!) But because God revealed God’s self through imperfect humans, humans often misunderstand what God was and is saying which creates what some people may refer to as “discrepancies” in the Bible. The truth of the hermeneutic perspective is never more clear than when studying God’s Word.) I don’t believe that God ever contradicts God’s self, but I do believe that humans continue to find discrepancies because they have not yet reached a fuller understanding of God’s revelation. As a matter of fact, one of the beautiful mysteries of the Gospel is the absolute continuity of God’s revelation throughout the time of God’s revelation, and onward through the present – day, the “8th day of creation.” (By that I mean that I do not believe that God has ceased revealing and creating , and is always reaching out to us through the Word and by the power of the Holy Spirit.) You rightly quoted Jesus in verses from John, but I also think, when I read those words, of other verses of the 5th and 6th chapters of John. In them, Jesus repeatedly defines his relationship to the Father, and it is more than a subservient one, more like a partnership. We read this in the very first verses of John: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness and the darkness does not overcome it.”
The Trinity (a human word not found scripturally, per se), is a truly divine and biblical expression of the intertwining of all the aspects of God’s nature – therefore, I can worship Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in the same breath, because they are in all and through all, and while their actions might be experienced separately, they are nevertheless One. the same God. Because you (from my inference of what I understand in what you have written so far) do not understand it in that fashion makes neither of us right or wrong, but makes us fellow seekers of the truth of God, as God continues to reveal God’s self through the Word (the Logos). That is my reasoning behind saying that you and I worship the same God, We are, I believe – whether you do or not – brother and sister through Christ the Lord, God’s present expression of God’s Power here on earth.by and through the Power of the Holy Spirit.
God continue to blesss you, Jeremy, with the abundance of enough. . .