Meditationen am Gnadenstuhl: Avoiding Fools & Foolishness II Proverbs 18:7-12

Thursday, December 15, 2022

Proverbs 18:7–12

[7] A fool’s mouth is his ruin,

and his lips are a snare to his soul.

[8] The words of a whisperer are like delicious morsels;

they go down into the inner parts of the body.

[9] Whoever is slack in his work

is a brother to him who destroys.

[10] The name of the Lord is a strong tower;

the righteous man runs into it and is safe.

[11] A rich man’s wealth is his strong city,

and like a high wall in his imagination.

[12] Before destruction a man’s heart is haughty,

but humility comes before honor. (ESV)

Avoiding Fools & Foolishness Pt.2

v.7 This proverbs builds on verse six, but probes deeper. The words of a fool are like a trap. Too many, and they corrode Wisdom over time. The focus here is less on the temporal and more on the eternal. Continued foolish talk builds up into unbelief and eternal damnation. See Matthew 12:37 & Luke 19:22.

v.8 This is another proverb about gossip and violation of the eighth commandment. Both the gossiper and the fool who listens to him break this commandment. Going down into the innermost parts of the body speaks to the long-lasting corruption of the gossip both fro the speaker and listener. Those that continually gossip or continually listen to it as factual develop a bias against the person being gossiped about, harming his reputation irreparably. Solomon repeats this in Proverbs 26:22.

v.9 There is no such thing as “harmless” slacking off. The one who is lazy may not think his laziness is destructive, but it destroys nonetheless. It is more subtle than the vandal who destroys on purpose for fun, but causes equal damage.

v.10 This proverb shows us the opposite of taking the name of the Lord in vain. “Since God gives us His name, He is pleased when we use it properly” (Large Catechism I 63-74). Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved (Joel 3:5; Acts 2:21; Romans 10:13).

v.11 This proverb is connected to the previous one by the images of “strong tower” and “strong city.” Here it is not the name of the Lord which protects, but a rich man putting his trust in his wealth. His high city wall is his imagination, and affords him imaginary protection.

v.12 This verse recalls to us Proverbs 15:33 & 16:18. Before tragedy or hardship strikes a man’s heart is arrogant. After, he has no honor when his trust has been placed in foolishness. Humility, that it admitting foolishness and repenting of misplaced trust must precede the honor which is found in confession/absolution.