In this verse, Jesus is speaking to His disciples about the emotional turmoil they will experience after His crucifixion. He acknowledges that they will weep and mourn while the world celebrates, highlighting the contrast between their sorrow and the world's joy.
Explain John 16:20Bible Verses About Sorrow
What does the Bible say about sorrow?
Sorrow is taken seriously in Scripture, never brushed aside. Isaiah 53:3-4 calls the Messiah a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief, who has carried our sorrows himself, and Psalm 126:5-6 promises that those who sow in tears shall reap in joy. Grief is real, but for God's people it is not final.
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Psalm 126:5-6Those who sow in tears shall reap in joy.
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What the Bible teaches
Scripture gives sorrow honest words
Psalm 6:6-7 does not tidy up grief: "Every night I make my bed swim; I water my couch with my tears. My eye is consumed with grief." This is inside the Bible's own prayer book, which means God invites this kind of speech rather than correcting it. Sorrow that is spoken to God is already a form of faith.
God's own Servant is described as a man of sorrows
Isaiah 53:3-4 calls him "a man of sorrows, familiar with grief" — someone people looked away from. The passage then says he was "carrying our griefs and bearing our sorrows." Christians read this as fulfilled in Jesus, which means the God of the Bible is not distant from grief but has carried it personally.
There are two very different kinds of sorrow
2 Corinthians 7:10 separates "godly sorrow," which leads to repentance and salvation and is never regretted, from "the sorrow of the world," which leads to death. The difference is not intensity but direction: one turns a person toward God and change, the other collapses inward. Paul is writing to a church that had been genuinely grieved by a hard letter and had come out better for it.
Sorrow is not the final condition
In John 16:20 Jesus tells his disciples they will weep and mourn while the world rejoices, then adds that their "sorrow will be turned into joy." He does not say the sorrow will be canceled or explained away; he says it will be transformed. He spoke this on the night before the crucifixion, about a grief that lasted days before it turned.
Weeping and sowing belong together
Psalm 126:5-6 pictures someone carrying seed and weeping as he goes, then returning with sheaves and rejoicing. It is a song of people restored after exile, so the metaphor comes from real loss followed by real return. The image lets grief and useful work happen at the same time instead of demanding one wait for the other.
God himself ends the crying
Revelation 7:17 says the Lamb will lead his people to "living fountains of waters, and God will wipe away all tears from their eyes." The gesture is personal and specific rather than a general improvement in conditions. Scripture's answer to sorrow is finally a person, not a philosophy.
More verses about sorrow
Isaiah 53:3 describes a figure who is deeply rejected and looked down upon by people. This person is characterized as someone who experiences profound sorrow and is well-acquainted with grief, indicating a life filled with suffering.
Explain Isaiah 53:3-4In this verse, the psalmist expresses deep sorrow and exhaustion from constant crying and lamentation. The imagery of a bed swimming and a couch soaked with tears illustrates the intensity of his emotional pain.
Explain Psalm 6:6-7In this verse, the Lamb, representing Jesus Christ, is depicted as a caring shepherd who provides for and guides His followers. The imagery of 'living fountains of waters' symbolizes spiritual nourishment and eternal life, suggesting that those who follow Him will find true sa...
Explain Revelation 7:17Feeling sorrow is a part of being human, but not all sorrow is the same. Godly sorrow is a deep, heartfelt regret that pushes us to change our ways and seek a better path.
Explain 2 Corinthians 7:10Keep studying sorrow
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Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between godly sorrow and worldly sorrow?
2 Corinthians 7:10 says godly sorrow "leads to repentance and salvation, which is not to be regretted," while worldly sorrow "leads to death." Godly sorrow grieves the wrong itself and moves toward God and change. Worldly sorrow is often grief over consequences, shame, or being caught, and it circles back on itself with no way out.
Does the Bible say Christians shouldn't grieve?
No. Psalm 6:6-7 records unfiltered weeping, Jesus wept at Lazarus' tomb (John 11:35), and Isaiah 53 describes the Messiah as familiar with grief. Paul's instruction in 1 Thessalonians 4:13 is that believers not grieve "as others who have no hope" — the contrast is hope, not the absence of grieving.
Why is Jesus called a man of sorrows?
The phrase comes from Isaiah 53:3, describing a servant who was despised, rejected, and not valued by the people around him. Verse 4 goes further: the sorrows he carried were ours. Christians see this fulfilled in Jesus' rejection and death, which is why the New Testament can say he sympathizes with our weaknesses rather than observing them from a distance.
Will sorrow ever actually end?
Revelation 7:17 promises that God will wipe away all tears from the eyes of his people, and Revelation 21:4 adds that death, sorrow, crying, and pain will be gone. Jesus' words in John 16:20 point the same direction: sorrow turned into joy. Scripture places the complete end of grief in the future, which is honest about the present while refusing to call it permanent.
How do I pray when I am in deep sorrow?
Psalm 6 shows the pattern: describe the actual state — the weariness, the tears, the sleepless nights — and address it to God rather than about him. The psalms of lament rarely open with resolution; they get there, if they get there, at the end. Psalm 126:5-6 lets you keep sowing while you weep, which means prayer during grief does not require you to feel better first.
How can I help someone who is grieving?
Romans 12:15 gives the shortest instruction: "weep with them that weep." Job's friends did this well for seven days by simply sitting with him in silence and badly afterward when they started explaining his suffering. Psalm 6 suggests that letting a grieving person speak plainly, without rushing them to a conclusion, is closer to the biblical model than offering reasons.
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