Have you ever gotten bored or restless and found yourself going down the wrong path? That’s the idea behind the popular saying, “An idle mind is the devil’s workshop.”
Think about it—kids, left to their own plans and without much responsibility, will often turn to mischief “just because.” Adults with too much time on their hands often overindulge with food, drink, and other fleshly pleasures. Think about that bowl of popcorn next to you at a movie—we often mindlessly snack when we’re not really paying attention to our actions or their consequences.
An “idle mind” is a mind that is without work, purposeless, perhaps lazy. The Bible has much to say about a mind left to rot, unattended, and without purpose or direction. The notion of a “devil’s workshop” is a place that is a haven for evil, where Satan and his demons can work and play, stirring up trouble and damaging what God holds dear.
The essence of this saying is a warning: we must work to keep our minds focused and active in things of God to avoid being susceptible to the wily plans of the evil one.
But where did the saying, “an idle mind is the devil’s workshop,” come from? Is it in the Bible?
Let’s look at its origins and what it means for Christians today.
While this exact phrase is not in the Bible, there are a number of passages that reflect this truth. However, one personal paraphrased version of the Bible, The Living Bible (TLB), authored by Kenneth N. Taylor and published in 1971, does contain this phrase verbatim. A paraphrased Bible is more of a commentary on the text of Scripture than an accurate translation of what the text says. However, these paraphrased versions are still considered helpful for Christians, especially when understanding complicated passages. (The Message Bible, authored by Eugene Petersen, is another example of a paraphrased Bible.) Proverbs 16:27, according to The Living Bible, warns,
“Idle hands are the devil’s workshop; idle lips are his mouthpiece.”
Other versions of the Bible have that proverb as noting, “An ungodly man digs up evil, And it is on his lips like a burning fire” (NKJV) or “A worthless man plots evil, and his speech is like a scorching fire” (ESV).
The general meaning, however, the exact wording, is the same: one who is ungodly or worthless, who has an idle and purposeless mind, plans and speaks things that evoke destructive fire—things of the fiery pits of hell.
Other passages in the Bible, while not stating this in exactly these words, reflect the same idea. For example, Proverbs 18:9 tells us, “Whoever is slack in his work is a brother to him who destroys” (ESV).
In his letter to the church in Thessalonica, the apostle Paul criticizes those who cultivate idleness, telling them,
“For we hear that some among you walk in idleness, not busy at work, but busybodies.” - 2 Thessalonians 3:11
Paul says much the same in his letter to Timothy, calling out people with too much time on their hands and not enough godly work to do. He notes, “Besides that, they learn to be idlers, going about from house to house, and not only idlers but also gossips and busybodies, saying what they should not” (1 Timothy 5:13).
Other examples include Proverbs 6:12, which says, “A worthless person, a wicked man, goes about with crooked speech.”
Ecclesiastes 10:18 warns, “Through sloth the roof sinks in, and through indolence the house leaks.”
And the prophet Ezekiel describes the evil ways of the Sodomites, whom God destroyed: “She and her daughters had pride, excess of food, and prosperous ease, but did not aid the poor and needy” (Ezekiel 16:49).
The point is clear: Those whose minds are not occupied, particularly by things of the Lord, will be filled with the things of the evil one, namely selfishness and destruction.
The notion that laziness and an occupied mind can lead to evil is found in other writings beyond the Bible. St. Jerome, an early Christian priest, theologian, and Bible translator who established a monastery in Bethlehem in the fourth century, famously penned the advice, “Engage in some occupation so that the devil may always find you busy.”
Later, around 1405, the English poet Geoffrey Chaucer included the saying in “The Tale of Melibee,” part of The Canterbury Tales, noting, “And therefore says Saint Jerome, `Do some good deeds that the devil, which is our enemy, not find you unoccupied.’”
We know that Satan is always looking for ways to be on the attack and tempt us away from the Lord. In 1 Peter 5:8, the apostle Peter urges us to be sober-minded and watchful: "Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”
We are open to attack when we are not actively protecting our minds. For instance, when we hold onto anger and grudges and refuse to offer forgiveness to someone else, we’re allowing the devil to get a foothold in our hearts and harden us (Ephesians 4:26-27). When we surround ourselves not with other Christians but with people who deceive, mislead, and negatively influence us, we’re not effectively safeguarding our hearts. The Bible encourages us to avoid “bad company,” which can potentially ruin our morals (1 Corinthians 15:33).
Or perhaps we are inadvertently leading to the corruption of someone else. For instance, perhaps we can find God’s goodness and truth in secular music or movies, but a friend who is not as spiritually mature might not be quite there yet and, therefore, susceptible to going astray. As 1 Corinthians 8:9 urges, let us not become “a stumbling block to the weak.”
Sin often begins within our own minds. We must work to safeguard ourselves as Jesus urges in Matthew 18:7-9, “Woe to the world for temptations to sin! For it is necessary that temptations come, but woe to the one by whom the temptation comes! And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire. And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the hell of fire.” We must train our hearts and minds to focus on the Lord and his path. As urged in Philippians 4:8, let’s think about
“whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise.”
We should train ourselves to stay diligent in the Lord’s work. As Paul urges in 2 Thessalonians 3:6-10, “Now we command you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us. For you, yourselves, know how you ought to imitate us because we were not idle when we were with you, nor did we eat anyone's bread without paying for it, but with toil and labor we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you. It was not because we do not have that right, but to give you in ourselves an example to imitate. Even when we were with you, we would give you this command: If anyone is unwilling to work, let him not eat.”
Other Scriptures urge us to devote ourselves to prayer (Ephesians 6:18) and to put on the armor of God as protection against the evil one (Ephesians 6:11)—God’s truth, faith, Word, and more.
As we’re reminded in Proverbs 4:23,
“Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.”
Not all bad things occur because someone’s mind is idle. Sometimes, evil is intentional. But other times, it does occur because we are not vigilant enough to protect our tender souls from corruption.
So let’s remain occupied in the Lord so God can use us as his instrument and for his purpose—not the devil.
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