Because of pride, the first humans Adam and Eve went far from God and Cain killed his brother with a weapon. Pride brought human beings under the power of Satan.
Jesus Christ showed the example of humility. The Psalmist shouted admiringly, "Gird your sword upon your side, O mighty one; clothe yourself with splendor and majesty. In your majesty ride forth victoriously in behalf of truth, humility and righteousness; let your right hand display awesome deeds. " (Psalm 45: 3-4)
We Christian should be particularly cautious of and reflect on ourselves; whether we have left humility and are walking the proud road.
Here are ten Bible passages mentioning the consequences of pride and warning against it. May we imitate Jesus in being humble and gentle, and work for justice and truth.
Leviticus 26: 14-19
"But if you will not listen to me and carry out all these commands, and if you reject my decrees and abhor my laws and fail to carry out all my commands and so violate my covenant, then I will do this to you: I will bring on you sudden terror, wasting diseases and fever that will destroy your sight and sap your strength. You will plant seed in vain, because your enemies will eat it. I will set my face against you so that you will be defeated by your enemies; those who hate you will rule over you, and you will flee even when no one is pursuing you."'f after all this you will not listen to me, I will punish you for your sins seven times over. I will break down your stubborn pride and make the sky above you like iron and the ground beneath you like bronze."
1 Samuel 2:2-3
"There is no one holy like the Lord; there is no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God.
"Do not keep talking so proudly or let your mouth speak such arrogance,
for the Lord is a God who knows, and by him deeds are weighed."
Psalm 59:9-13
You are my strength, I watch for you;
you, God, are my fortress,
my God on whom I can rely.
God will go before me and will let me gloat over those who slander me.
But do not kill them, Lord our shield, or my people will forget.
In your might uproot them and bring them down.
For the sins of their mouths, for the words of their lips, let them be caught in their pride.
For the curses and lies they utter, consume them in your wrath, consume them till they are no more.
Then it will be known to the ends of the earth that God rules over Jacob.
Psalm 62:7-12
My salvation and my honor depend on God;
he is my mighty rock, my refuge.
Trust in him at all times, you people;
pour out your hearts to him,
for God is our refuge.
Surely the lowborn are but a breath,
the highborn are but a lie.
If weighed on a balance, they are nothing;
together they are only a breath.
Do not trust in extortion
or put vain hope in stolen goods;
though your riches increase,
do not set your heart on them.
One thing God has spoken,
two things I have heard:
"Power belongs to you, God,
and with you, Lord, is unfailing love";
and, "You reward everyone according to what they have done."
Proverbs 8:13
To fear the Lord is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil behavior and perverse speech.
Isaiah 16:6-7
We have heard of Moab's pride-
how great is her arrogance!-
of her conceit, her pride and her insolence;
but her boasts are empty.
Therefore the Moabites wail,
they wail together for Moab.
Lament and grieve for the raisin cakes of Kir Hareseth.
Jeremiah 13:15-18
Hear and pay attention,
do not be arrogant,
for the Lord has spoken.
Give glory to the Lord your God
before he brings the darkness,
before your feet stumble on the darkening hills.
You hope for light,
but he will turn it to utter darkness
and change it to deep gloom.
If you do not listen,
I will weep in secret
because of your pride;
my eyes will weep bitterly,
overflowing with tears,
because the Lord's flock will be taken captive.
Say to the king and to the queen mother,
"Come down from your thrones,
for your glorious crowns
will fall from your heads."
Hosea 5:5-10
Israel's arrogance testifies against them;
the Israelites, even Ephraim, stumble in their sin;
Judah also stumbles with them.
When they go with their flocks and herds
to seek the Lord,
they will not find him;
he has withdrawn himself from them.
They are unfaithful to the Lord;
they give birth to illegitimate children.
When they celebrate their New Moon feasts,
he will devour their fields.
"Sound the trumpet in Gibeah,
the horn in Ramah.
Raise the battle cry in Beth Aven;
lead on, Benjamin.
Ephraim will be laid waste
on the day of reckoning.
Among the tribes of Israel
I proclaim what is certain.
Judah's leaders are like those
who move boundary stones.
I will pour out my wrath on them
like a flood of water.
Mark 7:20-23
He went on: "What comes out of a person is what defiles them. For it is from within, out of a person's heart, that evil thoughts come-sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and defile a person."
James 4:1-7
What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don't they come from your desires that battle within you? You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.
You adulterous people, don't you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. Or do you think Scripture says without reason that he jealously longs for the spirit he has caused to dwell in us? But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says:
"God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble."
Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
Translated by Karen Luo
