Portraits of Folly

Chapter 26 paints three portraits. First, the fool. Like snow in summer, and as rain in harvest, so honor is not fitting for a fool. Verses 4 and 5 appear to contradict each other: Don't answer a fool according to his folly, lest you also be like him. Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own eyes. Together they teach that wisdom means judging each situation, not following a single rule. As a dog that returns to his vomit, so is a fool who repeats his folly. Do you see a man wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.

Second, the sluggard. The sluggard says, There is a lion in the road! As the door turns on its hinges, so does the sluggard on his bed. The sluggard is wiser in his own eyes than seven men who answer with discretion. Laziness often hides behind clever excuses.

Third, the troublemaker. Like one who grabs a dog's ears is one who passes by and meddles in a quarrel not his own. For lack of wood a fire goes out. Without gossip, a quarrel dies down. A malicious man disguises himself with his lips, but he harbors evil in his heart. Whoever digs a pit shall fall into it. In the New Testament, James writes that a small fire can spread to a large forest (James 3:5).