“How long will you fools love your folly, and the scoffers covet their derision?” (Mishlei, 1:22) A fool is a man whose mind is easily enticed. This is said even about words of Torah, where a man fools himself into being satisfied with a simple meaning, and does not enter further into their profundity. Relative to this it is said, “and the scoffers covet their derision,” where the meaning is the opposite, for when a man does not even consider the simple meaning of the verses in the Torah he is called a “scoffer.” This is the way of scoffers who covet their derision (of the simple meaning).
עַד מָתַי פְּתָיִם תְּאֵהֲבוּ פֶתִי וְלֵצִים לָצוֹן חָמְדוּ לָהֶם. פֶּתִי מוֹרֶה עַל אִישׁ שֶׁהוּא נָקֵל בְּדַעְתּוֹ לְהִתְפַּתּוֹת, וְהִנֵּה זֶה נֶאֱמַר אַף בְּדִבְרֵי תּוֹרָה שֶׁהֵם נִתְפַּתִּים כְּפִי הֵרָאוֹת לָהֶם לָעַיִן וְלֹא יִרְצוּ לַעֲמוֹק יוֹתֵר, וְלָזֶה נֶאֱמַר "וְלֵצִים לָצוֹן חָמְדוּ לָהֶם" הַיְינוּ בְּאִם הָאָדָם לֹא יַשְׁגִּיחַ כְּלָל עַל הַמִּקְרָא כְּפִי פְּשׁוּטוֹ אָז יִקָּרֵא לֵץ, כִּי זֶה דֶּרֶךְ לֵצִים אֲשֶׁר לָצוֹן חָמְדוּ לָהֶם.
“How long will you fools love your folly, and the scoffers covet their derision?” (Mishlei, 1:22)
A fool is a man whose mind is easily enticed. This is said even about words of Torah, where a man fools himself into being satisfied with a simple meaning, and does not enter further into their profundity. Relative to this it is said, “and the scoffers covet their derision,” where the meaning is the opposite, for when a man does not even consider the simple meaning of the verses in the Torah he is called a “scoffer.” This is the way of scoffers who covet their derision (of the simple meaning).