“The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good.”
This wisdom psalm opens with the declaration the fool has said in his heart there is no God, establishing atheism as the ultimate foolishness. The phrase in his heart suggests that the fool's denial might not be explicit but constitutes the practical conviction guiding conduct. The identification of atheism with foolishness frames denial of God not as intellectual sophistication but as fundamental stupidity. This opening establishes the psalm's moral framework where rejection of God represents the worst possible error.
Church Fathers on Psalms 14:1
To the end, a psalm of David himself. 1. What “to the end” means, must not be too often repeated. “For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believes;” Romans 10:4 as the Apostle says. We believe in Him, when we begin to enter on the good road: we shall see Him, when we shall get to the end. And therefore is He the end. 2. “The fool has said in his heart, There is no God” Psalm 13:1. For not even have certain sacrilegious and abominable…
Nicene & Post-Nicene / Ante-Nicene Fathers translations · public domain
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