Understanding is a fountain of life to one who has it, But the discipline of fools is folly. Proverbs 16:22

There is an artery that carries the blood from our hearts to the rest of our bodies. We know it as the aorta. The passage for today from proverbs uses a phrase, "fountain of life" which is "mekor chaiyim" in the Hebrew. This was the phrase used often as an allusion to this artery which carries the blood from the heart to distribute it to all the extremities of our bodies. It is used here though in reference to the one who has "understanding." As the aorta is the life-giving channel to the whole body phsyically - so understanding is the life-giving vehicle to our moral and spiritual well-being. Therefore it is pretty important that we know what it means to have understanding in our lives.

The word "understanding" here is the Hebrew word "sekel." This word means, "having intelligence and good sense." But the intelligence mentioned here is more than just book learning about various subjects. It means to have understanding and insight into things that comes from more than just mere educational learning. The Bible says in 1 Chronicles 22:12 that only the Lord can give us insight and understanding. This is given so that we can obey God and please Him - which is the greatest understanding of things in light of eternity. Job 17:14 reminds us that God can give this understanding and insight - or - take it away whenever He so chooses. The result of having this kind of godly, God-given insight and understanding is that it helps us to be patient and forgiving (Proverbs 19:11). Those who have such insight will be praised - and will turn from perversity in their lives (Proverbs 12:8). You come away from the definition of this word seeing that God grants this insight as we get into His Word - understand it - and gain insight into both His character and the character of mankind. The knowledge of both of these things is what grants us patience to deal with the failings of others patiently. We grasp the power of forgiveness as we experience it from God at levels that will infinitely dwarf any forgiveness that we will ever have to give others for their trangressions against us. We will also find that such biblical insight gained from our heavenly Father will turn us to godly, holy lives - and turn us from lies, deceit, and anything which perverts and twists our path from God's ways and plans. In this end - this is a conduit for life - God's life in its fullness.

The discipline of fools is folly. The general agreement on the scholars is that "musar" which is the word here for "discipline" has the idea of instruction. It is how we use the word discipline when refering to a field of study. We are in the discipline of Mathmatics. That means that we are studying this field - and intentionally harnessing ourselves to a disciplined practice of doing math every day - so that we learn the field of study - or in this cast the discipline of Mathmatics. The passage says that the learning or instruction of the fool is folly. This is why a fool is such a pathetic figure in Proverbs. He remains a fool because that is all he disciplines himself to be - a fool. He so delights in his folly that is it all that he ever learns and pursues. In the end - he only becomes a bigger and bigger fool. Since folly is his life-blood, the flow of his choices, attitudes, and actions only solidify the result that he will be a bigger fool tomorrow than he is today. His only real hope is that the grace of God rescues him from his foolishness - and brings him to the place where he values wisdom and understanding. There must be a heart change for him to begin to experience an "aortic-change" in what flows through him as his life-blood. Honestly - this is the gospel - God reaching into the hearts of fools - changing them by His grace. Taking out their heart of stone (the heart of a fool). Granting them by His mercy and infinte kindness a new heart of flesh. This heart values wisdom and understading . . . and then, seeing the change as this new heart values understanding - which then becomes the new life-blood that flows throughout him. Only that kind of change - changes the hearts of fools. Otherwise, their discipline of study remains folly - which confirms them as lifelong fools. Their end is the ultimate place of all fools - next to the ultimate fool of all eternity - in a lake of fire that is wholly popluated by all the fools who said in their hearts, "There is no God."

Better to have life - and to have a heart that because of grace and the gospel pumps out understanding - insight - biblical knowledge - and discretion. Thanks be to God for the "aortic-change" that brings life to us - and causes life to flow into every apsect of our entire moral and spiritual being!

Folly is joy to him who lacks sense, But a man of understanding walks straight.   Proverbs 15:21

All it takes is watching a normal evening of television to know that folly and fools are exalted in our entertainment.  We see them every evening, ignoring the warnings of God's Word.  Yet night by night we also sit and watch them and laugh at their antics.  We laugh even though there are times when the direction of the program and its heros is absolutely contrary to Scripture.  What happens in a nation when this is the case?

Ours used to be a culture that confirmed our values in our entertainment.  Shows like, "Leave it to Beaver" and "The Andy Griffith Show" tended to confirm our values and beliefs about righteousness and godliness.  They did not proclaim Christ, but they at least held to a certain standard on what was right and wrong.  Then something started to happen in the 60's.  Those in the entertainment industry abandoned godly values and things like strong families and morals.  We exalted the anti-hero and began to plumb the depths of the depravity of man and call it entertainment.  Then shows like "All in the Family" arose which allowed only hypocrites to be those who spoke of what had been known as family values.  From there things continued to descend into the pit - as sexuality became a consistent theme.  Now just about any and every vice is portrayed for us in dramas and sitcoms - and often they are extolled as main characters hold to these sins.  All the while our culture sits and laughs and finds a false joy in all these parading fools and their folly. 

When we read this proverb it might be easy to think that it refers to others, but I fear that it comes much closer to home.  The devil has used this medium well to give us ample opportunity to sit and actually mock our own values.  This is why it is so dangerous to have unfiltered viewing habits as to television and movies. 

We read of another kind of person in this passage though.  He is a man of understanding.  This word speaks of someone who sees as he ought to see.  He grasps the Word of God - understands it and grasps what it teaches.  As a result he does not get off the path that God has for him - and indeed for all who desire to know and love Him.  He walks straight - and does not turn his eyes or gaze to the right or to the left.  He fixes his eyes on the goal - which is conformity to the character and the way of Jesus Christ.  Even though the world may seek to get his attention and turn it from the Lord Jesus Christ - he does not listen.  He deafens his ears to the siren call of the world which will only land a man on the rocks of destruction in the end.  He has tuned his ears to hearing the voice of God.  He has learned to be a sheep who hears the Great Shepherd - and follow Him.  Wise indeed is the man who sets his heart and mind in this way.  

He who troubles his own house will inherit wind, And the foolish will be servant to the wisehearted.   Proverbs 11:29

There is a foolishness that harms our homes.  It is not a foolishness though from outside of our homes - it is one that is perpetrated within them.  We are warned in today's proverb about a person who troubles his own house.  We are warned against such behavior because we will not be blessed in the end.

What does it mean to "trouble" ones own house?  The word here means to trouble, to stir up, to disturb, or to bring calamity.  Someone can trouble their own home by being a constant source of fighting and conflict within it.  When there is a member of a household that constantly fights with the others - the home is troubled and continually disturbed.  But other things can trouble a home.  Anyone guilty of disboedience to God, rebellion, selfishness, carelessness, covetousness, or cruelty - will bring serious problems to their family.  It is well known that a home can be a harmonious place to live - or a torturous one.  Those who act in this way will inherit wind in the end.  This is a picture of nothingness - of an empty inheritance at the end of life.

One biblical example of this is the home of Issac and Rebekkah.  These two had ways that they troubled their own home.  They both had their favorites which eventually led to a home divided.  Rebekkah eventually allowed her feelings for Jacob to bring her to a point where she involved him in a plot to deceive her husband.  Jacob complied and wound up with the blessing - but later had to flee the home because his older brother harbored thoughts of killing him.  This led to Jacob leaving the home to find a wife.  Rebekkah did not know that this would not be a short trip - and never saw her son again.  She troubled her home with her plot, and inherited the wind in never seeing her son again. Jacob's deceit came back on his own head when he went to work for Laban - who deceived him multiple times. 

The second half of this proverb also warns that the foolish will be servant to the wisehearted.  The fool will continue to walk according to his folly - and will waste his wealth and his opportunities to lead effectively.  As a result someone who is wise in heart will eventually be the one in charge.  The fool will then have to take his place as a servant.  Saul and David are an example of this proverb.  Saul began his life well - serving the Lord and being His instrument of deliverance for Israel.  But soon Saul began to do foolish things.  In time Saul and his family wound up being servants to David, who was wise in his choices and way of living.  How this warns us against living for ourselves and our own desires, rather than living as a servant to others - a love slave to God - and finding His favor blessing us in every area of life. 

He will die for lack of instruction, And in the greatness of his folly he will go astray.  Proverbs 5:23

Moral and sexual sanity has as its ultimate goal that we experience the fullness of God's life - and that we stay on a path that will bless and keep us safe.  The father reminds his son of these things as he closes his teaching time with him. 

The sexually and morally insane will not listen to instruction.  They will walk into things that will eventually kill them because they will not listen to those who seek to teach them God's way in life.  I know that some roll their eyes when I reiterate this, but to be sexually promiscuous in our day is to roll the dice as to your health in the future.  Our world is unfortunately a cesspool of sexually transmitted diseases.  The one sure way to be safe in regard to these infections is to abstain from sexual activity before marriage, and then be sexually pure and faithful in marriage.  Anything other than these two choices will place us in aposition of danger when it comes to getting a sexually transmitted disease.  Not listening to this kind of advice and teaching will put us as risk of dying because we lack instruction, or rebel against it.  One of the very real problems that we have in this area is the fact that a large number of parents do not take the time to instruct their children with God's Word in these areas.  But to leave such instruction to the public - or private schools is an abdication of our biblical responsibility as fathers!  Dad, are you really willing to leave the moral instruction of your children in the hands of the world system - that is steadily opposing the morals and principles of Scripture?  It is our responsibility to teach our children the truth and the way of God - and that includes their sexuality and how they interact with the opposite sex.

The second thing the father has to say to his son is that there will also be some who will go astray from the teaching and instruction of the Lord because they are fools.  We read that some will go astray due to the "greatness" of their folly.  It is not that they are in danger of being fools - it is that they are grand fools!  In the West some speak of the Playboy lifestle drawing reference to empire of immorality that has thrived under the leadership of Hugh Hefner and his family.  This man and his daughter lead a company of fools into all kinds of immorality, disease, and destruction because of how they urge men and women to abandon moral sanity and live for their unbridled sexual desires.  The idea here is to cause someone to go astray, to err, to wander, to make a mistake - and to do so under the deception of arguments that are contrary to the Law of God.  That is what the father desires to deliver his son from with all this teaching.  He is presenting the truth to his son about his - and other's sexuality.  He wants him to know that this is a gift from God - but that this gift is to be preserved and guarded until he can give it to his wife for a lifetime.  Anything other than this is a lie - it is THE lie - and it will draw his son away - deceiving him and bringing him into an errant lifestyle, an errant sexuality, and a way of walking that will eventually bind him hand and foot and keep him from following the Lord with all his heart. 

Dear brothers and sisters, this is why we need to instruct our sons and daughters with the truth - with the Word of God.  Because to do anything less - is to leave our children completely unprotected and liable to an attack from the enemy that will devastate them, their marriages, and many generations that will unfortunately follow in their footsteps - just like ours has since the 1960's when free love was advocated.  Unfortunately for us we are learning the hard way that their "free love" was anything but free.  It has cost us for 4-5 generations - paying the same price we were warned it would make us pay by a father who tried to instruct his son thousands of years ago.  May we see these things - may we heed these things - and may God give us grace to teach our current generation the way of moral and sexual sanity.  May we return to the Word - to the Lord - and to a life lived not forour unbridled lusts - but for His glory and an honorable sexuality.

Your eyes will see strange things And your mind will utter perverse things. Proverbs 23:33

In our look at the life and times of the drunken fool we next encounter the physical effects of alcohol on our eyes and mouth.  It is a proven fact medically that alcohol will affect our minds - and through that our ability to think and respond to things clearly.

Our brains control both of these functions and since the brain has a large blood supply going to them, they are more quickly influenced by the alcohol levels rising in our blood due to drinking.  Within less than an hour two major problems develop for the drunken fool.  First the
brain itself is hindered from its ability to have nerves function normally.  Alcohol in the blood supply depresses our nerve conductivity - thus it also results in a slow down of our ability to think and react to things.  Next as the blood alcohol level reaches muscles - our eye muscles will lose their full ability to function and we will begin to have blurred vision.  As these things are multiplied by the drunken fool - the brain may begin to misinterpret information and won't react properly to stimuli that are coming to it.  The more acute the situation the more that things become distorted with some even having hallucingenic conditions in their comprehension of what is happening to them.  One thing I learned while researching these things on the internet is that this is why we should never drink and drive.  The more drunk someone is - the more their ability to react to stimuli is impaired - making them very dangerous on the road.  One test involved giving goggles to drivers that simulated various stages of drunkenness.  At lower blood alcohol levels the failure level of drivers to pass even simple tests was frightening to see.  Things only got worse as the person's blood alcohol levels rose. 

The second statement here is that not only will the drunken fool see strange things - but he will also say "perverse things."  When the brain is filled with higher and higher levels of blood alcohol - the brains ability to filter things is severely hampered.  Things that would normally be supressed flow freely.  The fact that perversity flows more at these blood alcohol levels should be of little shock to us since we know that the Bible says that we are fallen and sinful.  I've been around people who said the most horrible things when they were drunk.  There are people who are the nicest most discreet folks until they get some liquor into them.  Suddenly their mouths are transformed as they begin to curse and say sexually perverse things to the opposite sex.  Some were horrified to learn how they spoke the next day as they recovered from their drunken state.  Yet a simple reading of Romans chatper 3 should remind us that one of the traits of the sinful nature is its horrific effect on the mouth and the tongue.  Romans 3:13-14 tells us that sinful man's throat is, "an open grave."  We are also told, "With their tongues they keep deceiving.  The poison of asps is under their lips."  Finally we are reminded there that their mouths are, "full of cursing and bitterness."  Oh how the mouth of fallen man is loosed without any discernment when alcohol numbs their thinking and their conscience.  Unfortunately, I've known of relationships that were ended because of things that were said in a drunken stupor. 

The wise man knows that the last thing he needs is a relaxation of his ability to discern and discreetly chose how he speaks and lives.  Since alcohol deadens these things, wisdom tells us to steer clear of all abuse of alcohol.  Wisdom warns us against drinking any level of alcoholic beverages because it may deaden our heart's ability to hold our tongues from saying truly stupid and foolish things.  Such passages as these in Proverbs should warn even the novice that taking up an alcoholic drink can be dangerous indeed - especially if we want to see things clearly and speak those things that honor and glorify God.

The mind of the intelligent seeks knowledge, But the mouth of fools feeds on folly. Proverbs 15:14

Here we have a comparison between the mind and thinking of the intelligent and the mouth of fools.  One thinks and comtemplates on things while the other is far more interested in what he will say than what fills his mind.  Let's take a few moments then today to see what the intelligent man as well as the fool can offer as far as instruction.

Who is this intelligent man?  He is the thinker for he wants to discern.  He is observing and paying attention to what is before him, what is said to him, and what he sees in others.  He considers things diligently because in the end he desires the knowledge that only God can give him.  We read here that he is seeking knowledge.  "Daath" which is the Hebrew word for knowledge here means that he seeks to have knowledge by experience, relationship, and encounter.  He is not content with a knowing that is in his head alone.  That is why this particular statement is interesting to me.  It is the mind of this man that wants knowledge.  In other words, even though he is a thinker, thinking is not all that he wants to do.  He wants a thinking that results in action.  Some refer to "daath" kind of knowledge as a path or a way that one walks - thus a lifestyle.  So our thinker is contemplating and discerning a way to walk out his life. 

The fool here is living for a much more sensuous journey.  We know this because he is not contemplating or thinking - but merely feeding on something.  The word "feeding" means to graze in a pasture.  The fool is not using his mind - he is using his mouth.  He is spending his time grazing on folly.  Since folly (ivoleth) means to be one who hates wisdom and who chooses instead to walk in folly - we see here a man who despises the wisdom and knowledge that God offers.  This word also has a sense in which it also hates the morality that comes from a contemplated life.  He doesn't want to think - he just wants to graze on the contemporary philsophies of the day.  He is content to just feed on what is fed to him by the world system. 

Two paths are taken here - one toward disernment and knowledge - the other toward folly and whatever the world is slopping on his mental plate.  One thinks and considers his path - wanting to experience all that God has for him.  The other is hardly interested in God - unless the common talk is of him, her, or whatever mankind decides is god for the season.  One lifts his head and stops to discern and deeply consider his path - his very lifestyle.  The other pretty much takes the lifestyle that the world dishes out to him daily.  In the end one lives a life of purpose while the other is driven by the spirit of the age.  Consider well reader - for if you live only to consume what the world offers, a fool you will be.  If you think well and often about where you walk and what you do, a rich reward of wisdom will be yours - and that from God Himself.

But he does not know that the dead are there, That her guests are in the depths of Sheol. Proverbs 9:18

We now come to the closing verse of the this passage.  We have been warned of the dangers of listening to Folly and her call to live foolishly.  We've seen where she dwells and from where she is callling us.  We've also seen that she is calling us with deception and lies.  But the final warning that is given to us has to do with where those who listen to her wind up going. 

One of the reasons we listen to the call of foolishness is because we do not realize where we will wind up spending eternity if we follow her counsel.  We are told that we do not know, as we foolishly listen and follow her counsel that we will end up dead.  We will go to the dead - because that is where all her guests find themselves in the end.  What an interesting picture this paints for us.  She invites guests to come and partake of what she offers to them.  Yet what she feeds them, though appetizing at first - winds up killing them spiritually.  What a hostess she is to us - lying to us and deceiving us into eating what will bring us death.  This gives us another clue to where she is from.  The other one who did this did it in the garden - with the offer of food to Adam and Eve.  Satan offered them what seemed to be food that was delightful to the eye and that also looked good for food.  But when they partook of it all they received was death.  The same lie that was offered in the garden is the same lie that is still being offered to people by Folly today.  And it has the same consequences - it yields death for us instead of life.

A wise man will learn how to discern when foolishness is calling.  It is not an easy thing to do because we are fallen - and our tendencies are to walk in such things.  It is only as we renew our minds with God's Word that we will be able to detect the lies of the evil one, the calls of foolishness to us, and the deception that is involved.  But no matter what the cost for us - to discern foolishness' call is vitally important for us.  It is also vital that we take the time to instruct and advise our sons and daughters to do the same.  May God bring up a generation that learns to reject Folly's call - and instead - have our ears and spirits in tune with the voice of God's Spirit instead.

"Whoever is naive, let him turn in here," And to him who lacks understanding she says, "Stolen water is sweet; And bread eaten in secret is pleasant." Proverbs 9:16-17

Up to this point we have only had limited information upon which to examine Folly's call to us.  We have had to use our understanding and insight to see that such a call is detrimental to us.  But when we come to verse 16 of this passage we no longer have the slightest doubt that the call to foolishness is a call to wicked, sinful choices and to a life embracing deception and lies.

"Stolen water is sweet."  This is the statement that Folly offers to us.  This is her advice to those seeking to make their paths straight in life.  This phrase is actually saying to us that stolen water is sweeter than water that you have by normal legal means.  We are being told that there is something about immoral, illegal behavior that makes the water taste just better than it normally does.  The quest of stealing it adds something - maybe a sense of adventure and risk - that just drinking your own water does not provide. 

There is a biblical allusion here that Keil and Delitzsch offer that is fascinating to me.  A passage in Proverbs chapter 5 is mentioned where we are told to "Drink water from your own cistern and fresh water from your own well." (Proverbs 5:15).  What is counselled here is that drinking stolen water or water that is NOT from your own spring or well - is compared to adultery.  If that is the case here in Proverbs chapter 9, then this passage explodes with meaning - and warning.  Folly will encourge you to drink sexually from a fountain other than that of your own marriage.  Adultery and fornication are being encouraged.  Steal a drink from your neighbor's marriage - or from an unmarried woman's life - that kind of sex is far more sweet than being faithful to your own marriage.  This is wicked counsel of the worst order!  Whether or not this refers to stealing water - or adultery and fornication - either way, Folly is out to destroy us.

The second thing she says to us is that ". . . bread eaten in secret is pleasant."  Here again Follly is saying to us that we need to be deceptive.  Simply eating bread with family or friends is not enough.  We need to be eating bread in secret - which intimates that we are doing something that necessitates hiding from others.  Anyone with an eating or drinking problem will tell you that when you begin to hide your eating or drinking from others and do it secretly - you've got a serious problem.  When I sneak a cookie - or buy some kind of food I know I shouldn't be eating - it is amazing how often I eat this food away from the sight of family - who lovingly would warn me that eating that way is not the healthiest choice for me. 

The sad thing is that Folly is lying to us.  She is saying to us that even the water and the food taste different when we sin in eating and drinking it.  Normal living, holy living - is a drag - and only people who are boring live that way all the time.  Live on the edge - do something out of the ordinary - live for yourself a little.  These are the messages of the fool - and they are heard and heeded by other fools. 

Amazingly - the truth is that God sees you even when you drink your stolen water - when you commit adultery in secret - or when you eat your bread hidden from the sight of others.  God sees - and He will eventually expose you and show your folly.  It is far better to live in open obedience - than to listen to lies that secret sin is better.  This, though, is something about which we must absolutely warn our children.  These lies WILL come to them and it would be much to their benefit to be able to recognize them as lies when they arrive.  A wise father will take these things to heart and will take the time to faithfully teach his children to avoid them.

"Whoever is naive, let him turn in here," And to him who lacks understanding she says, Proverbs 9:16

We continue to look at the call of foolishness and how to discern it.  So far we've primarily looked at the place where foolishness dwells - the company that she keeps, and the way that she is sitting on the spiritual sidelines calling out to those who desire to live godly lives - being a dangerous distraction to them.  Today, we see what she says - we see the actual call of Folly to those who will make the mistake of listening to her. 

There are two things that foolishness says to us as she attempts to get us to turn our gaze from the path in front of us.  The first is a simple call to come to where she is.  "Whoever is naive, let him turn in here."  We have seen this word "naive" (which is the Hebrew word "pethi") before.  The thing that we need to see here is that the simple or naive is one who does not yet fully understand God's Word.  They are deficient in seeing the world from God's perspective - and as a result their moral maturity is lacking.  The call of foolishness to such a person would most likely involve a call to be open-minded to seeing things other than how God sees them.  Foolishness does not usually say this outright - but the call nevertheless is for someone to listen to "another" view of morals and righteousness. 

Foolishness calls out to those who are lacking "understanding."  The word here is "leb" and it means heart.  The reason foolishness calls to such a one is because they lack a fundamental growth in their inner man.  They are lacking a heart for God - and as a result - they lack a true devotion to the Lord and to what He teaches.  This is why they are a prime target for the evil one.  He knows that they have yet to fully embrace God's ways and God's Word - therefore they can be picked off easily by a call to be broad or open minded. 

This call for an open mind is one of the most dangerous things in the arsenal of the wicked one.  It is not that God does not want us to think - but that He desires for us to first submit ourselves to His Lordship and His Word.  The original sin in the garden was a rebellion that was centered in wanting to make up our own minds concerning the knowledge of good and evil.  When Adam and Eve partook of that fruit - far more than just a new taste was in their mouths.  God desired for them to partake of the tree of life and live according to the life that God would grant them in Him.  But because they listened to the devil and believed his lie - they decided to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.  They wanted to decide for themselves what "living" was about - and it yielded to them and their posterity - death. 

This lie continues to this day - and is still effective among the sons of men.  God has given us His Word - which shows us the way of life.  It reveals to us all that we need to know to develop morally and spiritually.  We can know life and life abundantly!  The problem is that we hear another call - the call of foolishness.  "Come on!" Folly says to us.  "Have an open mind about these things."  Folly would have us think that morality - righteousness - holiness is not just what God says.  We should think for ourselves - determine our own right and wrong.  God even knows that in the day that we determine these things for ourselves - we will be like Him knowing good and evil!  But the lie kills - it killed in the past - and it will kill today.  Hold fast to God's Word - and hold fast to how God defines life.  Do not listen to the call of foolishness.  Remember that the man is blessed who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, stand in the path of sinners, or sit in the seat of the scoffers.  The man is blessed who meditates on the Word of the Lord - day and night - so that he may do all that is according to that Word.  If we want to know Who to listen to in life - we should listen to God as He speaks by His Spirit through His Word.  That is the way of life - and those who partake of this fruit will know life indeed.

Calling to those who pass by, Who are making their paths straight: Proverbs 9:15

So far we've seen that Folly as personified in this passage is someone we do not want to heed.  Yet still foolishness calls to us every day.  Here in this verse we find that Folly is calling to us.  The word "call" here has the idea of inviting, summoning, or calling by name.  One thing we need to grasp in life is that while we live in a fallen world, sin is going to be calling out to us.  A couple of insights from this passage, though, will be very profitable for our consideration today.

First of all we see that Folly is calling to those who are passing by.  Thus, we see that if we listen to a call to foolish living it will be a distraction from us following the way that God has us going in our lives.  Elsewhere in the book of Proverbs we are warned to keep our eyes directly ahead - focusing on the next step - focusing on the direction that we are going as we follow the Lord.  Thus the best thing we can do is to stay focused on the way the lord is leading us and ignore distractions immediately.  Let what the Lord is saying and doing presently in your life consume your vision - and be quick to ignore or put away other voices and other messages that try to pull you away from a singular pursuit of His ways and His paths.

Second, we see that the call of Folly comes as we are "making our paths straight."  This speaks of someone who is actively wanting to walk in God's ways - in holiness and righteousness.  This is when we can almost expect distractions and interruptions that try to call our attention away from a life dedicated to holy and godly living.  It should be no real shock to us to remember that our lives are littered with signs, with noise, with everything that is trying to get our attention.  Probably no other time in history had as many distractions as ours.  This is why it is so important to learn to disregard the vast majority of them - and to disregard them altogether if they are interrupting your devotion to the Lord.

The desire of Folly is to first get our attention.  Then as we hear what she has to say we find not just our eyes, but our minds becoming distracted from God's Word and ways.  If our attetion is successfully maintained, then our reasoning will be challenged - which can lead to sin if we continue focusing upon ahd listening to the wrong things.  A wise man learns to maintain his focus and to push distractions and disturbances out of his mind.  In doing this, he does much to protect himself from the pitfalls and traps set by the world, the flesh, and the devil.