The book of Proverbs deals almost exclusively with the concepts of wisdom and foolishness. While the book discusses numerous challenges of life, the decision reached in these challenges always reflects whether one is pursuing the course of wisdom or folly.
With its numerous warnings against foolishness, an important question to ask is who is the fool of Proverbs? At its most basic level, the question is simply answered as the one who rejects wisdom. As he views the situations of life, he faces the conundrum of having no idea what to do, yet thinking he has all of the answers. Concerning this, Solomon wrote “whoever trusts in his own mind is a fool, but he who walks in wisdom will be delivered (28:26). Inevitably, this leads him to seek answers from earthly sources rather than the wisdom of God. Again, Solomon stated “the discerning sets his face toward wisdom, but the eyes of the fool are on the ends of the earth” (17:24). Sadly, though this line of reasoning continually brings him to unhappy endings, he does not have the sense to pursue a better course. Such is described in 27:22 – “crush a fool in a mortar with a pestle along with crushed grain, yet his folly will not depart from him (27:22).
The foolishness of such a man becomes readily apparent when he speaks. With no discretion, he never misses an opportunity to run down others by his words – “the one who conceals hatred has lying lips, and whoever utters slander is a fool” (10:18). When situations call for a solution, the fool is the first to speak and believes his opinion to be the best of all – “a fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion” (18:2). Though he thinks highly of his words, their foolishness only brings him to physical and spiritual ruin. Consider Solomon’s admonition when he wrote “a fool’s lips walk into a fight, and his mouth invites a beating. A fool’s mouth is his ruin, and his lips are a snare to his soul” (18:6,7). The book of Proverbs makes it crystal clear that such words are void of any value and the wise man will place no heed in them – “leave the presence of a fool, for there you do not meet words of knowledge” (14:7).
Another characteristic of the fool made clear within the book is his inability to learn from his own mistakes or a wise man’s condemnation. Much of this is caused by his refusal to listen – “when a man’s folly brings his way to ruin, his heart rages against the Lord” (19:3). An interesting proverb states “strike a scoffer, and the simple will learn prudence; reprove a man of understanding, and he will gain knowledge” (19:25). Such is the contrast between three different groups. A simple man will learn not to go in the same direction as the punished fool, the wise man will be better for reproof, and the fool will learn nothing from the experience. Thus, the fool will come to punishment due to his failure to learn – “condemnation is ready for scoffers, and beating for the backs of fools” (19:29).
Because of his refusal to gain wisdom, the fool will show no sense in his dealing with God or man. Sadly, God views such a one as devoid of understanding – “the lips of the righteous feed many, but fools die for lack of sense” (10:21). This is primarily due to the fool’s refusal to seriously consider his relationship with the Lord – “fools mock at the guilt offering, but the upright enjoy acceptance” (14:9). His lack of a relationship with God translates into poor relationships with his fellow-man – “it is an honor for a man to keep aloof from strife, but every fool will be quarreling” (20:3).
Sadly, the fool has nothing good to offer anyone. The only example he sets is one who is in constant trouble because of his lack of sobriety concerning his relationship with the Lord. His words often land him in fights, his actions often lead to his demise, and honor is something he will never experience – “like snow in summer or rain in harvest, so honor is not fitting for a fool” (26:1). The fool will come to no good end!
What is the point of Solomon’s numerous proverbs concerning the fool? Everyone should look diligently into these passages in order to reflect on the state of one’s own life. Are the qualities of a fool apparent to others when words are spoken? Are the actions of the fool descriptive of one’s own actions? Is there little regard given to a relationship with the Lord? Should any of the qualities of the fool emerge, it is important to quickly rid one’s self of these things and put on the Lord’s wisdom.
This is the way of life – “the lips of the righteous feed many, but fools die for lack of sense” (10:21)
Greg Chandler