Proverbs 10:23
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It is as sport to a fool to do mischief: but a man of understanding hath wisdom.
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Sin is a joke to most today. Mischief that harms others is celebrated. Consequences of sin are ignored, and reprovers are despised. Sin is the delight of many. They sin without fear, guilt, or shame. They jest and joke about evil; they mock the righteous. But such men are fools. Those with understanding look at their wicked approach to life and know that judgment is coming. Wise men know there is great reward for sobriety and righteousness.
"Fools make a mock at sin," the wise man teaches (14:9; 15:21). They delight in sin; they use it as entertainment for television and movies. The most mischievous boys in school are the most popular; the bold and flagrant sinner is considered brave and strong; the wildest actors are stars. They rap brutishly about their favorite themes, whoremongering and violence. But hell, both here and hereafter, is coming. See the comments on 14:9.
The segment of society most susceptible to this disease is young men. They still have the full folly of youth bound in their hearts, but they have the abilities and liberties to be out and about in mischief. Solomon feared their draw and influence on his son (1:10-19; 2:10-22; 13:20). Paul warned, "Young men likewise exhort to be sober minded" (Tit 2:6).
Compulsory education, a joke if there ever was one, crams all these young fools into classrooms, where frumpy old women try to teach them ridiculous subjects with no bearing on life. What is the certain result for young men, who should be working a man's day, at a man's job, under a man's rule? Folly, frustration, mischief, rebellion, and sin! They egg each other on in sinful pranks, until society reeks of their noxious insanity!
What happens when these fools get home? They are fed a diet of profane entertainment that is nothing but mischief at the expense of God and others. Consider it, reader. Our nation is mad! Wickedly so! The sitcoms, consuming the nation's evening family time, are straight from hell in their disregard for God, morality, sobriety, and others.
Young fornicators take advantage of girls, without regard for them, their fathers, or their future husbands. They laugh about their exploits. Young gluttons have eating contests, and roar hilariously when one throws his food back out. They put sugar in the gas of the principal's car, and celebrate when he has his engine replaced. But God is not mocked!
Fools think only of the moment; they miss both tomorrow's consequences and God's judgment at death. The magistrate puts them in prison; their public records now include a felony; a bigger fool molests them in a prison shower; they contract a deadly pestilence; and death will bring a reckoning with the infinite God of heaven. What a sport! Ha! Ha!
What kind of a person thinks and acts this way? A fool. There is no fear of God before their eyes (Ps 36:1-4; 53:1; Rom 3:18). They rejoice to do evil, and delight in the perversity of the wicked (2:13). They are the bane of every nation, the calamity and grief of every father, the heaviness and shame of every mother (10:1; 17:25; 19:13; 29:15).
How are they corrected? Easily! "Judgments are prepared for scorners, and stripes for the back of fools" (19:29). "A whip for the horse, a bridle for the ass, and a rod for the fool's back" (26:3). It is only because severe punishment is not executed speedily in this country that we have such a plethora of amoral anarchists (19:25; 21:11; Eccl 8:11).
Solomon, when using death as a means of promoting sobriety, told young men, "Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth; and let thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth, and walk in the ways of thine heart, and in the sight of thine eyes: but know thou, that for all these things God will bring thee into judgment. Therefore remove sorrow from thy heart, and put away evil from thy flesh: for childhood and youth are vanity" (Eccl 11:9-10).
Parent, you must soberly teach your children about life, death, morality, sin, and the right treatment of others. Jokes should not be allowed (26:18-19; Eph 5:3-5), but especially jesting about sin and wickedness, and certainly not at the expense of others. The tender regard for all things, even baby birds in a nest, should be cultivated, but especially doing good to all men (Deut 22:6-7; Gal 6:10; I Tim 4:10).
A man of understanding has wisdom regarding these matters - he sees through the folly of the fool and considers it carefully. He sees the trouble coming tomorrow for today's folly. He sees the judgment coming after death. He sees the great reward of righteousness (21:12; Job 18:5-21; Ps 19:11; 37:34-38; 58:11). Be wise, reader, and understand!
Moses prayed, "So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom" (Ps 90:12). Ah, reader, this ought to be your prayer and pursuit! For the favor of God and life is upon the wise, but the way of transgressors is hard (13:15)!
"For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad. Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men; but we are made manifest unto God; and I trust also are made manifest in your consciences" (II Cor 5:10-11).
Rather than rejoicing and sporting in what this life had to offer, our blessed Lord looked constantly at the joy awaiting Him in heaven (Heb 12:1-2; Ps 16:8-11). He had wisdom and understanding to look beyond the folly here for the joy there. Isaac Watts encouraged us by writing, "The hill of Zion yields, a thousand sacred sweets, before we reach the heavenly fields, or walk the golden streets." Only the wisdom and understanding of faith can find the sacred sweets here and see the golden streets there. Lord, open our eyes!
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