Proverbs 10:1 The proverbs of Solomon: A wise son makes a glad father, But a foolish son is the grief of his mother.
When we start getting into this one for the gals out there, the term "son" here is generically used. So it doesn't matter if you are the son or the daughter in this situation. Any child who on a "consistent" basis does foolish things will bring grief, anxiety, distress, and a number of other negatives to their parents. Likewise, a son or daughter that continues making wise choices and practicing wisdom brings joy to the mother and the father. We can even break this out to the idea that foolishness brings grief to everyone around us over time. So not having parents doesn't excuse us from seeking to be wise and act that way.
Proverbs are short snippets of truth about the way God works, life, and the world around us. They are written in Hebrew poetic style and typically compare a principle to an ordinary human experience to illustrate the truth of the principle. In this situation, we have a child who continually acts like a fool compared to one that doesn't. This can also be extended to others. Foolish things can be funny, they can even be uplifting or make us smile. However, when you are around foolish things on an ongoing basis it can and will eventually distress you and cause anxiety if you have any kind of wisdom at all. The Hebrew word used for foolish is כְּסִיל kciyl kes-eel' which has the figurative idea of silly or stupid. Silly here having the idea of stupid or idiotic, not humorous. Foolishness on an elevated level can be extremely dangerous leading to injury and death, so as parents and just citizens in general of the world around us, we not only want to make our parents glad but also just avoid general stupidity. If you say something really dumb online I will probably laugh, but if you are continually foolish, it's no laughing matter. As time goes on it seems out society has stepped away from wisdom and moved into perpetual foolishness. Ask yourself if you would rather be on a subway with a bunch of foolish people or a bunch of wise people?
Application: I think as I have gotten older unlike a lot of people my age I have actually grown in giving out grace rather than expecting certain behaviors. However, as a father, I always prefer when things are going well for my son and when he is making wise choices. He is autistic, but can still understand how his behavior affects those around him and he works very hard to comfort, spread joy and let his concerns be known before he acts out or starts to spiral into a bad day. It's a constant challenge. I remember even my own childhood and my mom still says to this day that I wasn't the one that was hard on her because of my decisions, but I still never really felt like I couldn't have done better with what I know even to this day. We combat the darkness and foolishness of the world by seeking wisdom ourselves. Not everyone is going to have a good parental example, guardian example, teacher example, etc. to look up to. We need to strive to be that.
Questions: If your parents or guardians or friends and co-workers look at you, do they see a wise person or a foolish one? How do you think that impacts them? Are you acting in such a way that moves people to foolishness or wisdom?
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