Solomon describes a common scenario here and instructs us with wisdom. The basic teaching is that it is foolish to pledge yourself to someone else’s debt. It is very easy to respond to someone with a perceived need in haste and let our compassion turn us into fools. I want to be clear here, this verse does not say that it is foolish to be charitable or generous in giving to others. The man who is void of understanding will pledge himself to something that he is unable to pay. There are many areas in which understanding is lacking in this scenario. It is a basic misunderstanding of human nature to believe that any of us are trustworthy enough to be entrusted with something in which we may not be able to pay. It is also a misunderstanding of God’s will for us to believe that God is calling us to essentially lie, and say that we will pay for something which we can’t afford. Again, I want to stress that God is not taking a stand against cheerful giving here; He is exposing the foolishness of pledging ourselves to something we know we can’t pay.