According to the Encyclopedia of The Bible on Bible Gateway, folly is wrongheadedness; it’s the opposite of wisdom. It has to do with practical insights into the nature of things that lead to success or failure in life.

Wisdom and folly in the Bible rest on the principle of adjustment to a higher law for a practical purpose. Folly involves rejection or disregard of the revealed moral and spiritual values on which life is based. The fool sins against his own best interests and rejects God (Psalm 14:1).

The Bible expresses folly in various ways. The fool is

• hasty (Proverbs 14:29)
• self-sufficient (Proverbs 12:15)
• impervious to instruction (Proverbs 15:5)
• given to unrestrained anger (Proverbs 17:12)
• persistent in evil (Proverbs 26:11)
• overly self-confident that perpetuates ignorance (Ecclesiastes 2:14)
• thoughtless (Proverbs 10:23; 17:24)
• contentious (Proverbs 18:6)
• indolent (Ecclesiastes 4:5)
• brutish (Psalm 49:10)
• disregarding of moral ideals.

A person’s sin nature is so radically wrong in relation to God’s moral world that he or she decries the gospel as foolishness (1 Corinthians 1:21-25). Yet the Bible says the gospel is the only hope of becoming wise.

Forsake foolishness and live, and go in the way of understanding. — Proverbs 9:6 (MEV)

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