Comparing Wisdom and Folly with Laziness and Diligence

Comparing Wisdom and Folly with Laziness and Diligence

Jonathan Collier

Bible 105: Old Testament Survey

June 27, 2016

We are only on this earth, in this life, for a finite amount of time. None of us knows if we will, in fact, wake up tomorrow; and, there is no guarantee of any amount of time beyond the here and now. Because of this, we are called to be diligent and wise in all that we do. As described by the KJV Dictionary diligence is described as exhibiting traits such as “Care; heed; heedfulness.”^[1]2 When used, they aid us in building a productive, prosperous, Godly lifestyle. Luckily, there is a wealth if practical information on diligence, wisdom, and the consequences of laziness and committing a folly in the book of Proverbs. Ed Hindson states in his book The Essence of the Old Testament, that, “Within the Old Testament there is perhaps no better example of the practical side of godly living and success than what is found in the book of Proverbs.” ^[2]1

God wants us to be wealthy, not necessarily in material riches alone, more importantly he desires us to be wealthy in our relationship with Him, as well as our Godly lifestyle. To achieve Gods idea of wealth in our lives we are called to be diligent in our pursuit of Him and not lazy in our quest. HINDSON states that “Lazy behavior results in poverty while diligence results in wealth.”^[3]1 Being successful requires a substantial amount personal, or discipline and also to keep tabs on our behavioral tendencies so that we do not backslide into lazy habits. Lazy habits often result in hoping for something to happen but not putting forth the effort to make what we desire, happen which sets us further apart from God. Proverbs 13:4 provides an excellent example by stating, “The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied.” This proverb provides an excellent example of how Gods desire for humanity is to be diligent in our pursuit of Godliness rather than lazy. I understand Proverbs 13:4 to mean that the soul of the lazy person craves a better relationship with God, yet does not pursue a better relationship; whereas, the soul of the person who diligently seeks God will be greatly rewarded.

Folly and wisdom are antonyms of one another similar to diligence and laziness. Persons who do not possess wisdom are called “fools”; their behavior is described as “folly.” The picture, which emerges from the biblical material, is quite simple: folly is the opposite of wisdom, and a fool is the opposite of a wise person.”^[4]3 Essentially committing a folly is “making wrong decisions even if the right decision is known by the person.”^[5] To further compare, pursuing something diligently, or with diligence, will ultimately lead a person to prosperity which makes folly almost the complete opposite of diligence; because repeatedly committing a folly will almost certainly lead a person to a state of failure and poverty. Furthermore, laziness and folly are very similar in that they share similar character traits; for example, continually neglecting to attend church regularly could be seen as lazy, and committing a folly. Sadly, individuals committing a folly often fail to realize they are doing so. Proverbs 10:23 speaks to this by telling us that “Doing wrong is like a joke to a fool, but wisdom is pleasure to a man of understanding.”

Wisdom is much more than just acquiring knowledge and adhering to a set of standards that are learned over time. Wisdom at its core, comes from God. The Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary defines wisdom in this manner,” the real essence of wisdom is spiritual, for life is more than just living by a set of rules and being rewarded in some physical manner. Undoubtedly in this sense wisdom comes from God.”^[6]3 The entire Bible is filled to the brim with words of wisdom. So much so, that it would be impossible to fan the pages and land on a random verse and not be edified in some way. Some of the greatest words of Hebrew wisdom are in the book of Proverbs. This should not be a big surprise since Solomon, who God blessed with great wisdom, (1: Kings 4:29-34), provided us with a great number of the Proverbs. “Hebrew wisdom tends to be practical and was meant to be applied to the many aspects of everyday secular life.” ^[7] If we hold fast to these simple truths and trust wisdom and not folly, many of life’s decisions will be easier to make, and with a lot less struggle. The practical nature of the Proverbs allows for easy application into our everyday life which in turn leads to living not just a successful life by our standards but a great life in Gods' eyes. Proverbs 4:7 eloquently sums up the need for wisdom, “The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom, and whatever you get, get insight.”