The Fool
Category: Failure of wisdom & discipline
Could endure: Listen to wisdom and instruction.
“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge.” (Proverbs 1:7)
Cross-Refs: Psalm 111:10; Proverbs 9:10.
Chose wrongly: Despised wisdom and discipline.
“Fools despise wisdom and instruction.” (Proverbs 1:7)
Cross-Refs: Proverbs 12:15; Romans 1:22.
Endured (negatively): Ruin, destruction, disgrace.
“The complacency of fools will destroy them.” (Proverbs 1:32)
Cross-Refs: Proverbs 10:21; Matthew 7:26–27.
Why (wrong motive): Pride, self-sufficiency.
“A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion.” (Proverbs 18:2)
Cross-Refs: Ecclesiastes 10:14; James 1:19.
Result: Cut off from God’s blessing.
“Fools die for lack of sense.” (Proverbs 10:21)
Cross-Refs: Proverbs 14:12; Romans 6:23.
The Sluggard
Category: Failure of diligence
Could endure: Work hard and prosper.
“Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise!” (Proverbs 6:6)
Cross-Refs: Proverbs 10:4; Colossians 3:23.
Chose wrongly: Loved sleep, avoided work.
“How long will you lie there, you sluggard? When will you get up from your sleep?” (Proverbs 6:9)
Cross-Refs: Proverbs 19:15; Ecclesiastes 10:18.
Endured (negatively): Poverty and shame.
“A little sleep, a little slumber… and poverty will come on you like a thief.” (Proverbs 6:10–11)
Cross-Refs: Proverbs 20:4; 2 Thessalonians 3:10.
Why (wrong motive): Laziness, excuses.
“The sluggard says, ‘There’s a lion outside! I’ll be killed in the public square!’” (Proverbs 22:13)
Cross-Refs: Proverbs 26:13–16; Matthew 25:26.
Result: Lives in want, despised by others.
“Sluggards do not plow in season; so at harvest time they look but find nothing.” (Proverbs 20:4)
Cross-Refs: Proverbs 24:30–34; Hebrews 6:12.
The Adulteress / Immoral Woman
Category: Failure of purity & covenant loyalty
Could endure: Rejoice in covenant faithfulness.
“May you rejoice in the wife of your youth.” (Proverbs 5:18)
Cross-Refs: Malachi 2:15; Hebrews 13:4.
Chose wrongly: Seduced others into immorality.
“For the lips of the adulterous woman drip honey, and her speech is smoother than oil.” (Proverbs 5:3)
Cross-Refs: Proverbs 7:21–23; Revelation 2:20.
Endured (negatively): Ends in death and destruction.
“Her house is a highway to the grave, leading down to the chambers of death.” (Proverbs 7:27)
Cross-Refs: Proverbs 2:18–19; Romans 6:21.
Why (wrong motive): Lust, deception, disregard for God’s law.
“She ignores the covenant she made before God.” (Proverbs 2:17)
Cross-Refs: Jeremiah 3:9; James 1:14–15.
Result: Ruins lives of those who follow her.
“Many are the victims she has brought down.” (Proverbs 7:26)
Cross-Refs: Proverbs 22:14; 1 Corinthians 6:9–10.
The Mocker / Scoffer
Category: Failure of humility & teachability
Could endure: Accept rebuke and grow in wisdom.
“Rebuke the wise and they will love you.” (Proverbs 9:8)
Cross-Refs: Proverbs 12:1; Hebrews 12:11.
Chose wrongly: Rejected correction, stirred up strife.
“The mocker seeks wisdom and finds none, but knowledge comes easily to the discerning.” (Proverbs 14:6)
Cross-Refs: Proverbs 15:12; Isaiah 28:22.
Endured (negatively): Ends in disgrace and judgment.
“The proud and arrogant person—‘Mocker’ is his name—behaves with insolent fury.” (Proverbs 21:24)
Cross-Refs: Proverbs 19:29; Psalm 1:1.
Why (wrong motive): Pride, arrogance, disdain for truth.
“Fools mock at making amends for sin.” (Proverbs 14:9)
Cross-Refs: Proverbs 3:34; James 4:6.
Result: Cut off from the assembly of the wise.
“Drive out the mocker, and out goes strife; quarrels and insults are ended.” (Proverbs 22:10)
Cross-Refs: Proverbs 24:9; Jude 18.
The Oppressor / Unjust
Category: Failure of justice & compassion
Could endure: Defend the poor and needy.
“Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves.” (Proverbs 31:8)
Cross-Refs: Isaiah 1:17; James 1:27.
Chose wrongly: Exploited the weak for gain.
“Whoever oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker.” (Proverbs 14:31)
Cross-Refs: Proverbs 22:16; Ezekiel 22:29.
Endured (negatively): Will face God’s judgment.
“Do not exploit the poor because they are poor and do not crush the needy in court, for the LORD will take up their case.” (Proverbs 22:22–23)
Cross-Refs: Isaiah 10:1–3; Malachi 3:5.
Why (wrong motive): Greed, disregard for God’s justice.
“A ruler who oppresses the poor is like a driving rain that leaves no crops.” (Proverbs 28:3)
Cross-Refs: Amos 5:11–12; Luke 12:15.
Result: Their lamp will be snuffed out.
“The wealth of the wicked will be stored up for the righteous.” (Proverbs 13:22)
Cross-Refs: Proverbs 24:20; James 5:1–5.