Not one book bears more warnings for the fool than Proverbs.

The fool is not a person who is uneducated, or has a low IQ, or doesn’t know things.  It’s all in the attitude:  fools despise wisdom and instruction (1:7); fools hate knowledge (1:22).

Their reckless, devil-may-care approach to life inspires (or dismays), because they don’t care about things others seem to obsess over.  But Proverbs says, “the complacency of fools destroys them” (1:32).

If crises strike, they chalk them up to bad luck.  However, Proverbs says, “fools die for lack of sense” (10:21).

The louder they talk, the larger the illusion of knowledge they generate, but “the heart of fools proclaims folly” (12:23).

“Let it all hang out!” they say, and Proverbs agrees with them– “to turn away from evil is an abomination to fools” (13:19).

Hanging out with them makes you feel like one of the in-crowd.  But Proverbs says, “the companion of fools will suffer harm” (13:20).

The more they continue in their status, the less they know their own stupidity– “the folly of fools is deceiving” (14:8).

They dine on the foolishness others offer, as though it were the finest steak:  “the mouths of fools feed on folly” (15:14).

They’re also on the lookout to dispense their ridiculous brand of advice, but “the instruction of fools is folly” (16:22). 

 And how about all those political and ideological one-liners they recycle on social media:  “Like a lame man’s legs, which hang useless, is a proverb in the mouth of fools” (26:7).

There is, however, a time when a fool discerns what they think is objectionable foolishness:

“For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing” (1 Cor. 1:25).

When they finally manage to figure something out in life, it won’t be to debunk fuzzy Bigfoot photos, get rich quick schemes, or infomercials selling garbage gimmicks.  No.  They won’t penetrate political wastelands, suss out the illogic of secular existentialism, or even finally make peace with common sense. 

Nope.

Instead, when they finally claim victory, they plant their flag on a doozie of a subject—the cross of Christ.  And as the Bible says, their official position is that the cross is just another backward, illogical, folk tale.  

That’s not because they’re onto anything real, though.  It’s because they’re spiritually dead and dying—perishing.    Their decaying inward state warps their ability to evaluate truth.  

“The Fool” of Proverbs strikes again.   

Pray for those people, because while they’re still on this side of the grave, there’s still hope for them.

Meanwhile, remember, we’re not stronger, smarter, or better than they are.  God’s work within us, has aided our poor, sin-addled brains to arrive at a better conclusion about the cross:  “to us who are being saved it is the power of God”  (1 Cor. 1:25).