A wise hearer or a babbling fool?

by Rev Dr Noel Due

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The wise of heart will receive commandments, but a babbling fool will come to ruin (Proverbs 10:8).

Read Proverbs 10:1–12

Over the next few days, our devotions will take us to some of the most ancient parts of the Bible.

The Bible contains different types of literature. To name just some of them, there are letters, such as Paul’s letter to the Romans. There are prophetic books, such as Isaiah and Ezekiel. There are books that comment on the history of God’s Old Testament people, like 1 and 2 Kings. There is poetry. And there is wisdom.

Proverbs is chief among a number of Bible books characterised as wisdom literature. But also, some of the psalms are wisdom psalms, and books like Ecclesiastes and Job are also types of wisdom writing.

Why is this important? Because God is not only interested in the big themes of salvation and redemption but also the practical day-to-day issues of how best to make our way in this sometimes confusing world.

Proverbs is a collection of wisdom sayings. They are easy-to-remember, shorthand descriptions of what makes for a good life. Our focal verse contains one of the most important biblical principles: wisdom is found by listening – in having a quiet, humble and submissive spirit, which cedes our sovereignty to God’s.

That is what faith is. Trusting him more than ourselves.

Proverbs 10:8 can also be translated as:

• The wise in heart accept commands, but a chattering fool comes to ruin (Proverbs 10:8 NIB).
• The wise are glad to be instructed, but babbling fools fall flat on their faces (Proverbs 10:8 NLT).

This is good advice. We are too prone to rush headlong. We are apt to trust our own opinions. We often refuse to be told, even when we are clearly in the wrong.

Yet, as we ponder this proverb even more, it becomes clear that the one person who has lived this most fully is Jesus. He was not a babbling fool. He had a listening ear and a humble heart.

Even if we sometimes babble too much, he does not. If we have been foolish, he remains our wise Saviour. If we have fallen flat on our faces, he delights to raise us up and put us on a straight path. Perhaps today is the day for your heart to stop babbling and be still and receive from the hand of God, who knows what we need and what he is doing.

Thank you, Heavenly Father, for your wisdom, which has been most perfectly embodied in Jesus. Thank you for your patience with us and for the humble heart with which Jesus serves you and saves us. Let us be filled with your Spirit so that we can walk with wisdom in this sometimes confusing world. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Noel is currently spending his retirement serving as the Intentional Interim Pastor of the Top End Lutheran Parish. He lives in Darwin with his wife, Kirsten, a medical doctor who mainly works in remote Indigenous communities. He also serves as a professional supervisor for a number of pastors, chaplains and others.

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