The Mouth of the Wise and the Mouth of the Fool
[Proverbs 18:4, 6-8]
In the Talmud of the Jews, there is a story that goes like this: “All the animals of the world gathered and began to excitedly exchange stories about how they hunt for their food. The lion, living in the African jungle, spoke in a majestic voice: ‘We lions first bring down our prey before we devour it.’ Then the wolf, with bright eyes, said, ‘We wolves first tear our prey apart before we eat it.’ The animals each shared their own method of catching food. At this point, a tiger from India, with a hoarse voice, asked the snake, ‘Snake, why do you swallow your prey whole?’ The snake, coiling itself up, responded to the animals, ‘Well, I think I’m still better than those people who tear others apart. After all, I don’t harm anyone with my tongue.’” (Internet source)
What do you think of this story from the Talmud? Don’t we, as humans, also tear others apart with our tongues? Don’t we harm others with our words?
In today's passage, Proverbs 18:4, 6-8, the author, King Solomon, speaks about the mouth of the wise and the mouth of the fool. As we meditate on these two types of mouths in this passage, let’s receive the lesson God desires to teach us and obey His Word.
First, let’s think about the mouth of the wise.
Look at Proverbs 18:4: "The words of a man's mouth are deep waters; the fountain of wisdom is a bubbling brook." King Solomon says that the words of the wise person are like deep waters. What does this mean? It means that the words of a wise person are fundamental (basic) in nature (Park Yun-seon). In other words, the words that come from the mouth of the wise are knowledge (15:7), and this knowledge is, in fact, truth (8:7). King Solomon also says that the wise person’s words are like the fountain of wisdom, a flowing stream (18:4). This means that the wise person’s words are full of life-giving truth (Park Yun-seon).
As Christians, our mouths should flow with life-giving words of truth. More specifically, our mouths should speak the gospel of Jesus Christ, which gives eternal life. From our mouths should come the knowledge of Jesus Christ and the good news of His death on the cross and resurrection, which offer eternal life to all. We should strive to be like this—wise Christians who proclaim the gospel with our words.
I pray that, like a bubbling stream, the words of Jesus Christ, the truth that gives life, will flow from our mouths, sharing God’s abundant blessings with many others.
Now, let’s consider the mouth of the fool in Proverbs 18:6-8.
First, we see that the fool’s mouth causes conflict.
Look at the first part of Proverbs 18:6: "The lips of a fool bring strife..." If we look back at Proverbs 15:18, the Bible says, "A hot-tempered man stirs up strife." In other words, a person who gets angry easily causes conflict. Such a person cannot control their words in anger and speaks recklessly, using harsh words (v. 1) and hurting others. An interesting thing about the foolish person is that even when they are wrong, they act as though they are right, making a lot of noise and fighting. This is the nature of a fool: even when they are wrong, they think they are right and continue to argue. They easily get angry, speak harshly, and hurt others.
I’ve often seen this kind of behavior while playing soccer. A person commits a foul but still accuses the other team of foul play, shouting and using harsh words. Last week, when one of my teammates fouled, the opposing team was blamed, and I overheard some racial slurs being shouted in anger. The opposing player just ignored it and didn't retaliate. When I thought about this, I remembered Proverbs 17:14: "The beginning of strife is like the releasing of water; therefore stop contention before a quarrel starts."
Brothers and sisters, the fool loves conflict (Proverbs 17:19), but the wise loves peace. We must become wise Christians. As we learned during last week's Wednesday prayer meeting, we should be Christians who love all kinds of true wisdom and live lives of peace, filled with wisdom from above (James 3:18). As peacemakers, we must not only avoid following our own selfish desires, but we must also not be eager to reveal our own will (Proverbs 18:1-2). Instead, our mouths should overflow with the gospel of peace, reconciling people with God and with one another, even those who were once enemies. I pray that both you and I would be peacemakers and not those who stir up disputes.
Secondly, the mouth of the fool destroys themselves.Look at the second part of Proverbs 18:6 and verse 7: "His mouth invites a beating; the mouth of the fool is his ruin, and his lips are a snare to his soul." King Solomon had already said in Proverbs 12:13 that "the wicked are trapped by the sinful words of their mouths." And here, in Proverbs 18:7, he says that the fool's mouth is a snare to their own soul. What does this mean? "Snare" can also be understood as "trap." That is, the fool digs their own trap with their own lips. The phrase "digging their own trap" reminds me of the saying, "digging their own grave." Ultimately, the selfish and proud fool, who loves to express their own will, is digging their own destruction. Moreover, in the second part of Proverbs 18:6, the Bible says that the fool invites a beating by their own mouth. A similar verse can be found in Proverbs 19:29: "Judgments are prepared for the arrogant, and the whip for the back of the fool." Furthermore, the Bible teaches that the fool is destroyed by the words of their own mouth (verse 7) (see also Proverbs 10:14, 13:3).
Brothers and sisters, from the mouth of the wise flows the life-giving truth of God (the gospel), but from the mouth of the fool flows lies and wickedness that lead to self-destruction. Our lips should be like those of the wise, and we should never allow our mouths to be like those of the fool.
Thirdly, the mouth of the fool wounds others.Look at Proverbs 18:8: "The words of a gossip are like choice morsels; they go down to the inmost parts." As we have already meditated on in Proverbs 15:4, the Bible says, "...a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit." The word "deceitful" here refers to words that are not true and cause distress to the listener (Park Yun-seon). In other words, the fool has a deceitful tongue, and with that tongue, they torment others, wounding their spirits. Especially, the fool, in the heat of anger, speaks reckless and harsh words that wound others' hearts. Furthermore, the fool spreads false rumors that are not based on facts, stirring up others and causing turmoil in the church.
Last week, I received an email from a pastor whose church is going through great difficulties. As I read his message, I was reminded of a meditation I had once done on Acts 21:27-36, where I reflected on the strategies of the devil. Those strategies are: turmoil, incitement, rumors, and violence. In the pastor's email, I saw that the cause of the church's troubles was the work of the devil, who was spreading unfounded lies, inciting people, and causing confusion. I also thought about the emotional burden the pastor must have been carrying. Brothers and sisters, we must be careful with our words. We must ensure that no lies without basis come out of our mouths. Moreover, we must strive to avoid speaking words that are critical or provocative. Of course, to do this, we need to control our emotions. No matter how angry we are, we must calm ourselves and deal with situations with a cool head. Only then can we make correct judgments and speak and act wisely. In particular, we must be sensitive and cautious, considering whether our words will hurt others. As we learned in last week's Wednesday prayer meeting, the wise Christian knows how to please others with their words (Proverbs 10:32), and we should make every effort to speak words that bring joy to others.
In Proverbs 18:8, King Solomon says that the fool is a gossip, and that their words are like choice morsels. The gossip enjoys talking about the secret faults of others, but also enjoys listening to them. Like savoring a delicious meal, the fool enjoys both speaking and hearing about the hidden failings of others. As a result, the fool wounds those around them with their words.
Fools, the mouth of a fool hurts others, but the mouth of a wise man is a tongue that heals (15:4). In other words, the lips of a fool hurt others by speaking their secret faults, but the tongue of a wise man heals wounds. How does the tongue of a wise man heal wounds? It heals wounds by speaking the word of God well (v. 2). I hope that you and I can speak the word of God (the gospel of Jesus Christ) well, but with gentle words like the tongue of a wise man, so that we can heal the wounded hearts of others.
I would like to conclude my meditation on the word. The Bible says that if a person does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man (James 3:2). We must become perfect people. In order to become perfect people, we must become Christians of understanding. We must never cause quarrels and hurt others with our mouths like fools, thus ruining ourselves. Rather, we must become people of wisdom, and the fundamental, basic truth must come out of our mouths. I hope that the words of truth, the abundant life, will flow out of my mouth and yours. I pray in the name of Jesus that the gospel of Jesus Christ, who gives eternal life, will flow out of our mouths.