Pastor Josh Fields teaches that on the path to folly, we start out as Simple Men.

We believe everything (Proverbs 14:15). We inherit folly (Proverbs 14:18). And we are killed by turning away from wisdom (Proverbs 1:32).

Then devolve into Fools (Proverbs 12:16; 29:11; 17:10; 18:2; 17:24)

And finally into Scoffers (Proverbs 21:24; 29:8; 24:9; 22:10)

In the Screwtape Letters, by C.S. Lewis, there is a senior demon, Screwtape, who is teaching his nephew, Wormwood, how to keep Christians away from God. Their main strategy is to incrementally separate us from God, but sometimes encouraging the Simple’s Man folly is sufficient for their purposes.