Answer not a fool according to his folly,

    lest you be like him yourself.

⁵ Answer a fool according to his folly,

    lest he be wise in his own eyes.

Proverbs 26:4-5

These two verses demonstrate the frustration and complication of dealing with a fool. They also demonstrate the range of meaning of words. Here, the pivotal word is “according to.” The first verse means don’t become like the fool by talking in his ways. This reminds me of the saying, “Don’t get into the mud to wrestle with a pig. First, you will just get muddy. Second, the pig will enjoy it.” Guard yourself so that you don’t become a fool in the process of dealing with a fool.

The second verse demonstrates the pastoral heart of the writer. Here, he means, “Deal with the fool’s ideas, so that he is not mistaken that his ideas are wise.” We should try to never leave a fool under the mistaken notion that their folly is wisdom. But, we must be careful in how we do this.

“Like a lame man’s legs, which hang useless,

  is a proverb in the mouth of fools.”

Proverbs 26:7 ESV

This proverb resonates deeply with me due to a series of recent injuries, including a broken shoulder, 4 broken ribs, and a broken elbow … all on the same side. While my legs have not yet been rendered useless, in so many ways my right side seems useless. Because of the timing of my injury to my shoulder, then to my elbow, I do wonder how much function I will be able to recover. What has been my dominant side, the arm and hand that I once used to throw a baseball, stack boxes at UPS, to write, to hold and provide for my loved ones is now almost unusable. Something that has had so much potential and productivity, seemingly no longer does.

In a similar way, a proverb, a word of wisdom and instruction, appears to offer promise, but simply hangs limp, which is tragic. Perhaps the fool misspeaks the proverb, turning it from wisdom to folly. Perhaps the fool’s life betrays or undermines any wisdom offered in such a proverb. Perhaps the fool intentionally rewords the proverb to support his foolish life. Whatever the reason, here, we are warned that a proverb in the mouth of a fool hangs useless.

A good question to ask ourselves is, To whom do we turn for wisdom? Do we seek wisdom from the world or from God. There is a critical difference. Here’s how Paul makes this point: “For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1 Corinthians 1:18 ESV). Be careful from whom you seek wisdom.

“A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey,

  and a rod for the back of fools.”

Proverbs 26:3

The whip, the bridle, and the rod are three things used to control or guide something. I find it interesting that the fool is mentioned in the same illustration as two animals with no note of distinction.

This is particularly interesting to me because in Genesis much is made of the distinction between man and all other created beings. For example, “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them” (Gen 1:27). Man is made in the image of God.

I’m confident that God doesn’t look at fools as animals, but I wonder if in this verse he is suggesting that the fool behaves as an animal rather than living on the level of a human who has been made in God’s image.