64 Bible Verses about Fools, Characteristics Of

We are fools for Christ’s sake, but you are prudent in Christ; we are weak, but you are strong; you are distinguished, but we are without honor.

For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are,read more.
so that no man may boast before God. But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, so that, just as it is written, “Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord.”

For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was well-pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. For indeed Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom;read more.
but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

For the choir director; according to Mahalath. A Maskil of David.
The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God,”
They are corrupt, and have committed abominable injustice;
There is no one who does good.

For the choir director. A Psalm of David.
The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.”
They are corrupt, they have committed abominable deeds;
There is no one who does good.

For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened.

So Ephraim has become like a silly dove, without sense;
They call to Egypt, they go to Assyria.

At that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah and said to him, “Because you have relied on the king of Aram and have not relied on the Lord your God, therefore the army of the king of Aram has escaped out of your hand. Were not the Ethiopians and the Lubim an immense army with very many chariots and horsemen? Yet because you relied on the Lord, He delivered them into your hand. For the eyes of the Lord move to and fro throughout the earth that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His. You have acted foolishly in this. Indeed, from now on you will surely have wars.”

The princes of Zoan are mere fools;
The advice of Pharaoh’s wisest advisers has become stupid.
How can you men say to Pharaoh,
“I am a son of the wise, a son of ancient kings”?
Well then, where are your wise men?
Please let them tell you,
And let them understand what the Lord of hosts
Has purposed against Egypt.
The princes of Zoan have acted foolishly,
The princes of Memphis are deluded;
Those who are the cornerstone of her tribes
Have led Egypt astray.

“Woe to the rebellious children,” declares the Lord,
“Who execute a plan, but not Mine,
And make an alliance, but not of My Spirit,
In order to add sin to sin;

“For My people are foolish,
They know Me not;
They are stupid children
And have no understanding.
They are shrewd to do evil,
But to do good they do not know.”

Then I said, “They are only the poor,
They are foolish;
For they do not know the way of the Lord
Or the ordinance of their God.

A senseless man has no knowledge,
Nor does a stupid man understand this:

And He said to them, “O foolish men and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken!

Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil. So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.

But they are altogether stupid and foolish
In their discipline of delusion—their idol is wood!

Every man is stupid, devoid of knowledge;
Every goldsmith is put to shame by his idols;
For his molten images are deceitful,
And there is no breath in them.

All mankind is stupid, devoid of knowledge;
Every goldsmith is put to shame by his idols,
For his molten images are deceitful,
And there is no breath in them.

Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures.

For a fool speaks nonsense,
And his heart inclines toward wickedness:
To practice ungodliness and to speak error against the Lord,
To keep the hungry person unsatisfied
And to withhold drink from the thirsty.

They crush Your people, O Lord,
And afflict Your heritage.
They slay the widow and the stranger
And murder the orphans.
They have said, “The Lord does not see,
Nor does the God of Jacob pay heed.”
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Pay heed, you senseless among the people;
And when will you understand, stupid ones?

Doing wickedness is like sport to a fool,
And so is wisdom to a man of understanding.

“As a partridge that hatches eggs which it has not laid,
So is he who makes a fortune, but unjustly;
In the midst of his days it will forsake him,
And in the end he will be a fool.”

A fool always loses his temper,
But a wise man holds it back.

Samuel said to Saul, “You have acted foolishly; you have not kept the commandment of the Lord your God, which He commanded you, for now the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever.

Now David’s heart troubled him after he had numbered the people. So David said to the Lord, “I have sinned greatly in what I have done. But now, O Lord, please take away the iniquity of Your servant, for I have acted very foolishly.”

David said to God, “I have sinned greatly, in that I have done this thing. But now, please take away the iniquity of Your servant, for I have done very foolishly.”

Fools, because of their rebellious way,
And because of their iniquities, were afflicted.

The wise of heart will receive commands,
But a babbling fool will be ruined.

“How long, O naive ones, will you love being simple-minded?
And scoffers delight themselves in scoffing
And fools hate knowledge?

“Then they will call on me, but I will not answer;
They will seek me diligently but they will not find me,
Because they hated knowledge
And did not choose the fear of the Lord.
“They would not accept my counsel,
They spurned all my reproof.
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“So they shall eat of the fruit of their own way
And be satiated with their own devices.
“For the waywardness of the naive will kill them,
And the complacency of fools will destroy them.
“But he who listens to me shall live securely
And will be at ease from the dread of evil.”

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

The way of a fool is right in his own eyes,
But a wise man is he who listens to counsel.

“I have spread out My hands all day long to a rebellious people,
Who walk in the way which is not good, following their own thoughts,

But they will say, ‘It’s hopeless! For we are going to follow our own plans, and each of us will act according to the stubbornness of his evil heart.’

yet the house of Israel will not be willing to listen to you, since they are not willing to listen to Me. Surely the whole house of Israel is stubborn and obstinate.

A fool’s lips bring strife,
And his mouth calls for blows.
A fool’s mouth is his ruin,
And his lips are the snare of his soul.

and there must be no filthiness and silly talk, or coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks.

He who conceals hatred has lying lips,
And he who spreads slander is a fool.

forsaking the right way, they have gone astray, having followed the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness;

Fools mock at sin,
But among the upright there is good will.

A scoffer seeks wisdom and finds none,
But knowledge is easy to one who has understanding.

Do not speak in the hearing of a fool,
For he will despise the wisdom of your words.

The devising of folly is sin,
And the scoffer is an abomination to men.

Keeping away from strife is an honor for a man,
But any fool will quarrel.

Better is a poor man who walks in his integrity
Than he who is perverse in speech and is a fool.

nor to pay attention to myths and endless genealogies, which give rise to mere speculation rather than furthering the administration of God which is by faith.

he is conceited and understands nothing; but he has a morbid interest in controversial questions and disputes about words, out of which arise envy, strife, abusive language, evil suspicions,

But refuse foolish and ignorant speculations, knowing that they produce quarrels.

But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and strife and disputes about the Law, for they are unprofitable and worthless.

The tongue of the wise makes knowledge acceptable,
But the mouth of fools spouts folly.

Leave the presence of a fool,
Or you will not discern words of knowledge.

Like the legs which are useless to the lame,
So is a proverb in the mouth of fools.

There is a way which seems right to a man,
But its end is the way of death.

He who trusts in his own heart is a fool,
But he who walks wisely will be delivered.

But are you willing to recognize, you foolish fellow, that faith without works is useless?

But the Lord said to him, “Now you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and of the platter; but inside of you, you are full of robbery and wickedness. You foolish ones, did not He who made the outside make the inside also?

Professing to be wise, they became fools,

A wise man is cautious and turns away from evil,
But a fool is arrogant and careless.

The wisdom of the sensible is to understand his way,
But the foolishness of fools is deceit.

A fool’s lips bring strife,
And his mouth calls for blows.

A foolish son is a grief to his father
And bitterness to her who bore him.

A foolish son is destruction to his father,
And the contentions of a wife are a constant dripping.