"Doing wickedness is like sport to a fool (Proverbs 10:23), and "he who spreads slander is a fool." (Proverbs 10:18) Wanton pursuit of the "lusts of deceit" and a lying tongue are the trademarks of the kesil fool. This episode unpacks this deadly combination, particularly focusing on a tongue commandeered by wickedness. This fool's mind is consumed by lusts (Ecclesiastes 7:4), and the lust for reputation ("the boastful pride of life") produces many casualties via lying, slander, gossip and dissention. In the dog-eat-dog world of the fool, slander and destructive gossip are counter-intuitively the means of preserving reputation: incited negative attention on competitors deflects from the plots of the fool. So the Proverbs connects slander with concealment: "He who conceals hatred has lying lips, and he who spreads slander is a fool." (Proverbs 10:18) No one is safe, for even "the companion of fools will suffer harm." (Proverbs 13:20) The episode notes that believers, as recovering fools, have an advantage. We know the dynamics of fooldom since all of us are still being delivered from the "lusts of deceit." The program admonishes believers to challenge residing sympathy with the deeds of the flesh, particularly sins of the mouth that often get a pass, in light of the usual suspects of immorality and sensuality.
The Fool Trusts a Sick and Deceitful Heart
"He who trusts in his own heart is a fool." (Proverbs 28:26) This episode spells out the distinguishing traits of the kesil fool, particularly where he differs from the eviyl fool Whereas the eviyl fool trusts that his WAY is right (Proverbs 12:15), the kesil fool "trusts in his own heart." (Proverbs 28:26) And this confidence breaches the dam holding back wickedness. "The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick." (Jeremiah 17:9) The kesil fool pursues his own lusts without restraint, "for his mind is in the house of pleasure." (Ecclesiastes 7:4) The "lusts of deceit" consume him as the objectives of life, and God "turns him over" to "degrading passions" and a "depraved mind." (Romans 1:26, 28) The episode marks a transition in the correctability of fools. The previous fools, though ignorant and close-minded, are reachable, for they have not committed themselves to wickedness. They are potentially receptive to the wisdom of correction. Kesil fools however are committed to wickedness, and God Himself at one point no longer pursues them. This of course anticipates the limited response of believers to kesil fools.
Subtly Correcting the Uncorrectable
This episode finishes up the discussion of the eviyl fool and describes the salient characteristics of the kesil fool, the third level fool. Both the simple minded fool (pethey) and the eviyl fool are reachable. Though the eviyl fool is quarrelsome and close-minded, he hasn't "graduated" to full blown wickedness. The best strategy to reach the eviyl fool is dialogue that takes the winner/loser dynamic completely off the table. Eviyl fools want to be right all the time, so what would happen if they met a believer who doesn't contradict them, but humbly acknowledges that he is a wayward soul, always in need of correction? When believers communicate that they are often "wrong" based on God's standard, the only one that really matters, they are essentially tilling the soil of the eviyl's mind, where seeds of correction might germinate. The latter part of the program introduces the "kesil" fool, who, adds wickedness and deceit to the fool package, for "the mind of fools ("kesilim") is in the house of pleasure."
The Unhindered Descent of a Fool
homosexuality, degrading passions, depraved mind