When Pride enters the heart…

Ezekiel 28:1-26

Wednesday, 02 September 2026

“Because your heart is lifted up And you have said, ‘I am a god, I sit in the seat of gods In the heart of the seas’; Yet you are a man and not God, Although you make your heart like the heart of God—“ Ezekiel 28:2

Our reading today deals with a heart that is lifted up with pride.  When we allow our hearts to run away in this direction there is only one way to go- downward!  We see that clearly in this chapter and in several warnings given in the word of God. “Pride leads to conflict,” (Proverbs 13:10), “Pride goes before destruction” (Prov.16:18), “Pride leads to disgrace,” (Prov. 11:2), “Pride ends in humiliation,” (Prov.29:33). God paints a picture in Ezekiel of those who think they are better off than they really are and the consequences that follow.

When Pride entered the heart of the beautiful guardian cherub it led to his downfall and he tempted Eve to become God-like and when this desire grew stronger they both ended up in disobeying God. This ancient but all-too-familiar process confronts each of us daily. We sometimes think that pride and arrogance are only predominant among the rich, the powerful, the successful, but forget that they are very much alive in ordinary people- including each of us. The desire to lift up and exalt ourselves beyond our position as God’s creation lies at the heart of pride. This danger is what led Paul to write in Romans 12:3: “Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us.”  Yet few of us realize how dangerous it is to our souls and how greatly it hinders our intimacy with God and love for others. Humility, on the other hand, is often seen as weakness, and few of us know much about it or how to pursue it. 

Pride in itself is not necessarily evil. We take pride in our children’s accomplishments. We can take pride in our accomplishments for Jesus. When the master says, “Well done, my good and faithful servant,” the servant has a right to be proud. 

Evil pride is that pride that exalts itself in arrogance. The Hebrew word for this type of pride has many meanings. One type is like a surging pride much like an ocean wave that is destructive with each prideful moment becoming greater. The word also refers to tallness, like a lush bush that is growing upward. It grows steadily every day, reaching new heights of self-exaltation. It was this type of pride that nearly cost a mighty warrior his blessing from God.  In 2 Kings 5, Naaman the captain of the army of Aram had leprosy. He went to great lengths to find a cure. He had to forgo his pride and do what he “felt” was unreasonable. Naaman could have decided to allow his pride to overcome him, assuming the Prophet to have snubbed him and could have led to a conflict between the two nations. Naaman’s pride could have led to his own destruction, disgrace, and humiliation. His pride could have stopped him from doing a simple task, but wisely he obeyed God. James 4:6 states, “God opposes the proud but favors the humble.”

Jesus offers a SALVATION that is free! It was paid for at the cross.  All that fallen man is asked to do is something simple- by faith accept the finished work of Christ on the cross for his salvation and confess Him as Lord! Would you let go of your pride to accept this simple offer so that you can be freed from the leprosy of sin and enjoy a new life in Christ?

Meditate: “Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name…” Philippians 2:8-9