Willful Ignorance and Speedy Salvation
By Jeremy Bell
This is my personal study on Psalm 14 using groupings from my motif analysis. I have taken these groupings of the Psalm and put them together. So, the entirety of the Psalm will be written out, but these groupings will present the text in a different order. Expansion and description of these are found in my book, Psalms in Motif Visualization. It is not through willful ignorance I regroup. I encourage a reading of the Psalm as is for proper understanding.
Jesters have been around for hundreds, perhaps thousands of years. When the word ‘jester’ is used, most Europeans and Americans likely think of medieval times in England. Indeed, the earliest manuscripts that use this word are from that era. There were kings and queens and the idea of a free society had not yet given birth. People could not openly mock the sovereign. So, it was that the sovereign would employ a Jester to entertain and give permission for mockery. This was not an act of willful ignorance, it was planned and very educated as to the boundaries of acceptability.
The Jester is no Fool
A jester was an entertainer, a musician, a storyteller, and many more theatrical positions. A jester had to be clever to know the boundaries with which they could mock and stay employable. In the modern era it is said that good humor is an exchange in which the comedian and the target laugh together. When the situation becomes one where the target is laughed at, the lines of acceptable mockery begin to fall. In fact, willful ignorance in comedy has produced hate and anger in the very audience it wishes to entertain. Jesters became known as professional fools. It was known they mocked royalty, with royalty, which in fact could only be accomplished by clever means. Though the royal fool had privileges, those privileges were dispensed by the sovereign. A fool who exercised royal mockery without those privileges, was a fool indeed.
In my analysis, Psalm 14 is in written in Verse form. A verse is one idea that still has a breakdown of pattern, but those patterns are contained in one idea. When I write for visualization, my goal is to highlight the patterns and intent over strict translation. I hope it gives fresh encouragement, but I strongly recommend the Psalm to be read as is for proper understanding.
[ Psalm 14 ]
Regrouped and modified for clarification
For the Chief Musician. By David.
The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.”
They are corrupt.
They have done abominable deeds.
There is no one who does good.
They have all gone aside.
They have together become corrupt.
There is no one who does good, no, not one.
There they were in great fear,
for God is in the generation of the righteous.
You frustrate the plan of the poor,
because Yahweh is his refuge.
Yahweh looked down from heaven on the children of men,
to see if there were any who understood,
who sought after God.
Have all the workers of iniquity no knowledge,
who eat up my people as they eat bread,
and don’t call on Yahweh?
Oh that the salvation of Israel would come out of Zion!
When Yahweh restores the fortunes of his people,
then Jacob shall rejoice, and Israel shall be glad.
All are Fools, God has a Plan
As a musician and storyteller, I would be honored to be considered a jester, or royal fool, as a professional. The reverse is not true. As a professional, being called a fool would cause me to pause at the very least. That is a blow to my ego. I would hope that I live not in willful ignorance, but rather growing in knowledge and application. I could stand to be a jester, but I want to avoid being a fool. A jester knows the guidelines, they are clever. A fool is not clever. Often, that person is self-righteous and delusional. Ridiculing the poor, the oppressed, and helpless is an evil thing. Additionally, freely mocking those who have some authority over your life, lifestyle, and even death, is foolish. A jester is no jester when that person is a fool.
Good News
The good news is that from a God point of view, all human beings hold equal status. We are all steeped in willful ignorance, which is bad news. But God, the sovereign of sovereigns, the essence of grace, has a plan to magnify His glory through all His good creation through His people. That means He has a way to change fools into wise citizens. He accomplished this plan through Jesus, who became the way, 2,000 years ago. He existed before that and lives now. Today, now, we are wise to consider this and consider our speech, our actions, our thoughts. People are brought to the Father in Jesus, the son, through the power of the holy spirit. This is not a one-time event; it is daily transformation. The fool lives in frustration, anger, and restlessness. The Fathers sons and daughters live in peace, living in The Nature of Joy.
Resources and Notes
All scripture in this article is from the WORLD ENGLISH BIBLE (WEB). The World English Bible (WEB) is a Public Domain (no copyright) Modern English translation of the Holy Bible. The World English Bible is based on the American Standard Version of the Holy Bible first published in 1901, the Biblia Hebraica Stutgartensa Old Testament, and the Greek Majority Text New Testament.
For more related to this blog, check out my post on Truth Basics for Christian Living with Strategic Options.
This is a reliable translation, but it is always good to read other translations as well. Biblegateway.com has a multitude of translations to read from. It is a great resource.
Another great resource is Biblehub.com. There are multiple translations, commentaries, and so much more. Great research can be done on this platform.
One more I use regularly is Gotquestions.org. This is a great site to answer questions and find threads of related questions.
There are many resources. The key is that God wants relationship directly with you, the individual. His primary source for revealing who He is and growing in intimacy is His word, the scriptures. Don’t just read for instruction. Analyze and read for understanding. Explore, ask questions, and be transformed in Jesus every moment you possibly can. There is no dispute this is a key desire of God. People are brough to the Father, in the Son, by the power of the Holy Spirit. This… This is the Nature of Joy.
Jeremy is an author, musician, and business intelligence manager. His mission is to equip and encourage those in Christ, to equip and encourage others in Christ. Jesus, Christ, is the Nature of Joy and melody of the heart. Jeremy unites business analytics (business intelligence), songs, and Scripture for Christian living in the power of the Holy Spirit.