Listen to the full sermon by clicking here: “Roni! Rejoice!” Message at Desert Hope on August 16, 2026
RONI! REJOICE!
“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!” Philippians 4:4
Rejoicing in The LORD is not about us. It’s all about Him! Biblical rejoicing is not about me trying to be happy. Rejoicing in The LORD is instead knowing God’s goodness and being joyful about Who God Is. Rejoicing can occur when happy things happen. However, rejoicing can also occur in the midst of suffering, hard times, and painful circumstances. [Philippians 4:4 (NIV)] In the book of Philippians, Paul gives us an instruction. He says, “Rejoice in The LORD always, and again, I say “Rejoice!” This instruction to rejoice is not based on what our circumstances are. In fact Paul wrote about rejoicing when he was bound in prison.
In the Sermon on the Mount, Yeshua speaks of being blessed. In Matthew chapter 5 verse 12 Yeshua says, “Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven.” However, it turns out that this verse is surrounded by words about suffering. “Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. ”Rejoicing can come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and flavors, so to speak. During this blog we will look at what God’s WORD says about rejoicing.
Silverman Ministries leads Youth Worship Camps for teenagers and children. The most recent one was during the week of June 16th right here in Tucson. These camps exist to raise up the next generations of worship leaders. Children and teenagers come to the camp for four days, and then all of the youth collectively serve as one big worship team at a service. What a precious time! The title of our camp this past June was “RONI” which is an Old Testament Hebrew word that means “rejoice!” The main Bible passage for the camp was from Zephaniah chapter 3. Months ago, when I first was planning for the camp, God brought that Bible passage to my spirit. I knew that this Hebrew word RONI, meaning rejoice, was in the passage. However, at that time, I did not realize that there are actually four different Old Testament Hebrew root words for “joy” and “rejoice” all within this same Scripture! It was very touching to me when I realized that God had packed all of these different “rejoice” words in the same verses. At the camp, we taught all four of the Hebrew Bible words for rejoice – one per day of the camp.
RANAN
The first Biblical root word for “rejoice” is RANAN. RANAN is the root word from which we get the word RONI. Here is where we find RANAN in Zephaniah chapter 3 verse 17.
“He will delight over you with joy. He will quiet you with His love. He will dance for joy over you with RANAN (singing).” Zephaniah 3:17 (TLV)
This is a “rejoicing” kind of “singing.” To give us a clearer sense for RANAN here’s a verse from Psalm 95 that also uses this particular Hebrew word for rejoice:
“O come, let us RANAN, sing for joy, to ADONAI. Let us RANAN, shout for joy, to the rock of our salvation.” Psalm 95:1 (TLV)
RANAN means to rejoice in a celebration kind of way. Here are some characteristics of this Hebrew word for rejoice:
I’ve experienced RANAN rejoicing. In 1986, the World Series was between the Mets and Red Sox. It was a big surprise that it ever got to Game 7. My father got two tickets to that Game 7 at Shea Stadium, and he took me! The Mets won and there was exuberant rejoicing! People cheering overflowingly in the stadium as well as the parking lot on the way out. I can still picture high-fiving a stranger as we neared our car in the parking lot.
I have also experienced this kind of exuberant rejoicing in praising Yeshua. There have been times when I have been so grateful, and so excited about God’s goodness that I was ready to burst. So, I’ve experienced RANAN rejoicing both in worship as well as baseball. How about you?
Let’s RANAN, RONI, rejoice and give God all the glory – all because of Jesus, Who came and loved and saved us! It’s RONI time! I hope this gives a you a feel for the Hebrew word, RANAN. Let’s move now to our second Old Testament Hebrew word for rejoice. Does this next word also have its own unique character?
GIYL
The Hebrew word GIYL also is used in the Old Testament meaning “rejoice.” Let’s say it together: GIYL. This word means rejoicing in spinning, and dancing, and in leaping. It’s a spontaneous rejoice kind of word. Let’s return to our Zephaniah chapter 3 passage. Here is verse 17. Notice that it includes two of the Hebrew words for rejoice: RANAN and GIYL.
“He will delight over you with joy. He will quiet you with His love. He will GIYL (dance for joy), over you with RANAN (singing).” Zephaniah 3:17 (TLV)
Do you remember when King David danced before The LORD with all his might when the ark of the covenant was being brought to Jerusalem? This is a GIYL type of rejoicing. I have gotten to see people rejoice in a GIYL kind of way. For example, years ago I got to watch Michael Flatley in Lord of the Dance in Philadelphia. Lord of the Dance was full of people spinning, dancing, and rejoicing to Irish music. I’ve also gotten to rejoice in a GIYL kind of way myself. In fact, even at the Youth Worship Camp the other month, I danced and spun and rejoiced before The LORD together with the kids. We danced in a circle to a song called “Mashiach” which translates as “Messiah.”
SIS
Our third “rejoice” word is SIS, pronounced “soos.” Remember, these are all Hebrew words that mean rejoice, even though each has it own characteristics.
“He will SIS (delight), over you with joy. He will quiet you with His love. He will GIYL (dance for joy), over you with RANAN (singing).” Zephaniah 3:17 (TLV)
Mallory, the program manager for the Youth Worship Camp, had a SIS type rejoicing experience recently. Here is part of what she wrote: “I experienced a SIS expression of joy recently. A young woman I had been building a relationship with for three or more years texted to let me know she had surrendered her heart to Yeshua and was now born again! I was overjoyed to the point that I could not speak. I was in awe of God. I marveled how He had orchestrated events…over such a long period of time, against obstacles, and persevering through challenges. I was humbled that I had been allowed, entrusted by God, to play a part in her life story. It still amazes me. He even worked out the details so I could witness her baptism at a local church.”
Mallory experienced SIS rejoicing. Here are some characteristics of SIS – rejoicing:
Have you ever experienced rejoicing through suffering? Yeshua did. In Hebrews 12 verse 2 it speaks of Yeshua’s joy while enduring the cross. In James it speaks of counting it all joy or rejoicing when you encounter trials… Paradoxically, sometimes our greatest rejoicing happens together with our greatest sufferings… There’s something about knowing God is still with you, even when things are at their worst, that can lead to a deep down rejoicing.
SAMACH
The final Hebrew “rejoice” word for found in Zephaniah 3:17 is SAMACH. To get us started with this word, let’s look at Psalm 118:24, “This is the day The LORD has made; I will rejoice and be glad in it.” You may even be familiar with a children’s Bible song to these words! Two of our “rejoicing” Hebrew words are in this verse (and song).
“This is the day that The LORD has made; I will GIYL (rejoice) and SAMACH (be glad) in it.” Psalm 118:24
SAMACH is rejoicing in the return, that is rejoicing when someone comes back home and is restored and reconciled. “Rejoicing in the return” brings the imagery of little footsteps running to the door when they hear Daddy’s car pulling into the driveway. There’s a celebration in being reunited! This is the word SAMACH.
As I was preparing part of this message, I was in the Atlanta airport at gate C49. There was a young boy, perhaps four or five years old. He came out of the plane and into the embrace of his mother’s arms. She was waiting for him at the gate. They reunited, both so glad to be together again, and they headed off together. SAMACH – the reuniting kind of rejoicing.
Here is how this word, SAMACH fits into the Zephaniah 3 verse. Let’s read it together this time:
“He will SIS (delight) over you with SAMACH (joy). He will quiet you with His love. He will GIYL (dance for joy) over you with RANAN (singing).” Zephaniah 3:17
There they are: all four of these Hebrew root words for rejoice.
God longs to SAMACH, rejoice, over you. He eagerly awaits the day when you return to Him. If you feel far from Him today, know that He is waiting with open arms for your return. Your coming home brings Him great joy – SAMACH.
Yeshua is worthy of all worship and praise. We rejoice in Him! We rejoice in His salvation, His greatness, all of His love for us, and the myriad ways in which He has blessed us. Let us continue to consider all of the different ways in which the Bible speaks of rejoicing, and let us be intentional to rejoice in The LORD in all various kinds of ways, and again I say, rejoice. It’s time to rejoice in Yeshua! It’s Rejoice Time! It’s Roni Time!
Thank You Father for Your great goodness to us. We bless You and rejoice in You. We thank You for the richness and all the different ways that You have shown us Your goodness. And thank You Father that You also rejoice over us with singing and dancing and in so many ways. Praise BE to The LORD. HalleluYah in Yeshua’s Name. Amen.