A Fool and His Anger

“A stone is heavy, and the sand weighty;
but a fool’s wrath is heavier than them both” (Prov 27:3).

Have you ever shoveled gravel or sand? That’s hard work! When you first start, you can make big scoops of rocks and dirt fly, but it’s not long until you’re huffing and puffing! It just wears you out!
This proverb compares “a fool’s wrath,” or when a foolish person gets angry with you, to something heavy and burdensome. (A “fool” in the Bible isn’t someone who is mentally deficient; it is a person who lives life without God.) Even a Christian can act “foolishly” or in a sinful way. Foolish anger is one way that many Christians act like unbelievers and not like Jesus Christ.
We get angry about things we care about. We get mad when things don’t go our way, demonstrating our selfishness. We get angry over things that shouldn’t be important, demonstrating wrong priorities. When we get angry, we often do or say things we regret later. This kind of anger is not pleasing to God.
A fool gets angry fast and it doesn’t take much to make him mad. Proverbs 12:16 says, “The vexation of a fool is known at once, but the prudent ignores an insult.” Are you a hothead or have a quick temper? That is not a godly characteristic, but a sign of foolish anger. When a fool gets angry, the scene is not a pretty one. Harsh words are hurled, people are hurt, and many times property is damaged. Proverbs 17:12 says, “Let a man meet a she-bear robbed of her cubs rather than a fool in his folly.” In other words, when a fool gets mad, get out of the way!
What about you? Do you demonstrate foolish anger that is hard for people to put up with? Or do you demonstrate a patience and gentleness that comes from the work of Jesus Christ in your life? Do you act like a follower of Jesus Christ or a fool?