English Through Jokes II: Lost in the Flood

Since there was an overwhelming (large) majority who voted in favor of (for) including jokes on the blog, I am going to try another one today.  I’ll give the joke, then explain it briefly below.

There was an old man sitting on his porch (an area outside the house, usually in the front, on the first level), watching the rain fall. Pretty (very) soon the water was coming over (getting so high that it entered) the porch and into the house.

The old man was still sitting there when a rescue (someone who saves you in an emergency) boat came and the people on board (in the boat) said, “You can’t stay (remain) here! You have to come with us.” The old man replied, “No, God will save me.” So the boat left.

A little while (a short time) later, the water was up to (had reached; was as high as) the second floor (level), and another rescue boat came, and again told the old man he had to come with them.The old man again replied, “God will save me.” So the boat left him again.

An hour later the water was up to the roof (top of the house) and a third rescue boat approached (came near) the old man, and tried to get him to come with them. Again the old man refused to leave, saying, “God will save me.” So the boat left him again.

Soon after, the man drowned (died in the water) and went to Heaven (paradise), and when he saw God, he asked him, “Why didn’t you save me?”

God replied, “You dummy (idiot; stupid person)! I tried. I sent three boats after (for; to get) you!!”

The man thinks God will save him from the flood (when there is too much water in an area, making it dangerous to be there). But he doesn’t realize or understand that the rescue boats that come to help him are really sent by God, so the man doesn’t accept their help. God tells him this after he dies and goes to Heaven.

There are probably some good theological (theology = study of God) points (conclusions) you could make from this joke, but I’ll let you decide that for yourself.

~Jeff

Joke credit: CleanJoke.com; Photo credit: Pittsburgh Flood, 1936, Wikipedia PD

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24 Responses to English Through Jokes II: Lost in the Flood

  1. VAGNER says:

    Very interesting.
    I’ve heard this joke before in the movie “Pursuit of Happiness”.
    Nice to hear again though.

  2. Rasoul says:

    Hi Dr. Jeff and

    Hello to all of ESLPOD listener,

    God do his work through the natural way and all events, people… are just instrument to do that.

    Take care

    Rasoul

    Persia

  3. ziya says:

    Well, it was a good joke. i liked it >
    we are all have to thank to the God for his helping in every step of us

  4. Peter says:

    That was a witty joke!!
    A refreshing kind if joke
    It is funny,
    Well done Jeff
    I like it funny!!

    The joke is pretty much famouse
    I mean I had heard it before in several occasions.
    It was God-works for sure to send some rescue team to help him out of flooding area.
    Well ,the punch line was cool!!
    The moral message of the joke is: you can’t sit around and ask for God bounties ,then expect a special delivery from God almighty! It doesnt work That way. you should do sth about it first!!

    Yours ,

    The rube:))

  5. Kurumi says:

    Hi everyone,

    I this joke is kind of a big hit! I like it. “Heaven helps those who help themselves.”
    Let’s not just sit down and wait for something good happens.
    And I think the good thing about this topic is that I can imagine the scene very clearly,so it helps me a lot to remember new vocabularlies.

    Thank you for the great work Dr.Jeff. I am looking forward to the next one.

    Kurumi

  6. Betty says:

    Dear Jeff

    Thank you for this nice joke and thank you for pointing us to the CleanJoke.com in your article.

    This article has come in very good time for me because I need to deliver a humorous speech soon but did not have much humorous cells in me.

    All the blog messages above come to the conclusion that Kurumi quoted “Heaven helps those who help themselves.”

    I can’t help but think that all teachers including Jeff help those who help themselves.

    I think we ESLPOD.com learners are smart and will not sit around waiting to be fed with “English”.

    We come here to learn something which inspire us to explore a lot more ourselves.

    By the way, I would like to thank ed for your sentence “It’s really true, Jeff & his staffs are natural born English killers!!”

    I wanted to find out what is “English killer” and I found a very good article with a title “English: The Killer Language? Or a Passing Phase?”
    By Joshua A. Fishman

    Unfortunately I could not found the phrase “English killer”.  Might be another time.

    Thanks again everyone.

    Betty 🙂

  7. Betty says:

    Oops, I forgot to thank God for helping me find this website.

    Thank you God. Thank you for sending us good people like all the excellent teachers and all the wonderful blog friends here.

  8. wendy says:

    thX it was very funny and intersting i think we shoud care about points around ourselves

  9. Yvonne says:

    hey jeff,

    this is another way to preach, i personal have been learn from this joke and have been touched.
    so, may God bless you as you continue to bless us through this kind of jokes.

    Yvonne

  10. laton says:

    Hey Jeff! I’ve already told you that I quite liked the idea. This time the joke turned out to be even wittier and more sophisticated. This is of course for the better!
    What concerns the content of the new joke I have to admit that it has a deep meaning. It is funny how people sometimes turning a deaf ear to something positive and fail to recognize it.
    There has been quite a few cases in my country lately when people refused from blood transfusion (supposedly because of their religious believes). But can it be that it is God who let us have such a tool by using which we can fight our deseases, weaknesses and survive?

  11. Ziba says:

    Hi,

    Thank you Jeff, the joke is very funny.

    Although it is a joke, it hints us an important point that God helps his creatures especially people everywhere in every situations.

    Here in my country Iran people believe that God says: “move till I help you”. If you sit down and wait or expect God to help you it’s in vain.

    Thank you again,

    Ziba, Iran

  12. tania says:

    Hi!
    We say “God gives you but he doesn’t put in your bag.””
    So take any opportunity, any chance… it’s your ability to choose the right way.

    Good joke. Thank you.

    Tania

  13. tania says:

    Hi!
    “My harvest home is ended; and I spy
    September drawing nigh
    With the first thought of Autumn in her eye,
    And the first sigh
    Of Autumn wind among her locks that fly.”

    Christina Rossetti, August

  14. tania says:

    Hi!
    The great absent : Myo ko ko.
    Where are you?

  15. el gatufo says:

    Hi Jeff, nice and instructive joke.
    I do think every country has some saying more or less similar.
    Here in Spain we have some sayings too, one of the most popular is:
    “A Dios rogando y con el mazo dándo”………..
    Pray to Good but be working on it at the same time.

    Thanks a lot Jeff, we need humor every moment in our life.

    emiliano

  16. Rafael says:

    What big post!

    I’ve started following your blog.

    Thank you.

  17. tania says:

    Hi! Dear Rafael, be one of our blog friends, and you will not regret.
    Just a line sometimes is enough.

  18. sanaz says:

    Thanks Jeff,
    I believe that God always shows us signs but most of the time we don’t notice them.

  19. tania says:

    Hi! I have met some limericks in my English books. Humorous, indeed.
    May I write some limericks?

    “There once was a man from Nantucket
    Who kept all his cash in a bucket.
    But his daughter, named Nan,
    Ran away with a man
    And as for the bucket, Nantucket.”

  20. tania says:

    Hi!
    “There once was a man from the sticks
    Who liked to compose limericks.
    But he failed at the sport,
    For he wrote ’em too short.”

  21. tania says:

    Hi!
    A flea and a fly in a flue,
    Were trapped and knew not what to do.
    ”Let us flee”, said the fly.
    ”Let us fly’, said the flea.
    So they flew through a flaw in the flue.

  22. tania says:

    Hi! I was curious to know why Bruce Springsteen was your favorite singer. I have started to listen to his top tracks. Thank you for this new word “track” for song.
    I like very much the songs : Born to Run, American Land, Shackled and Drawn and of course Hungry Heart.

    “Everybody’s got a hungry heart.”

  23. George Louis says:

    Hahaha ,
    🙂 very funny , thanks Jeff and Lucy. You are great !!!!!!!

  24. tania says:

    Hi!
    Listening to a part from his 2012 concert, yes, people cried Bruce so you pronounced in the English Cafe 357.
    Thank you.

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