pride sin essay

Pride and Humility

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“Pride is your greatest enemy, humility is your greatest friend.” So said the late John R.W. Stott, a remarkably humble man of great abilities and accomplishments who is often said to have made the greatest impact for Christ of anyone in the twentieth century. His succinct statement about pride and humility goes straight to the heart of what the Bible teaches about the deadly root of our sins and sorrows.

How many recent sermons have you heard on pride or humility? Probably not many. One hears surprisingly little from church or parachurch leaders about either of these subjects. In fact, what throughout history has been recognized as the deadliest of vices is now almost celebrated as a virtue in our culture. Pride and arrogance are conspicuous among the rich, the powerful, the successful, the famous, and celebrities of all sorts, and even some religious leaders.

And it is also alive and well in ordinary people, including each of 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 pursue it. For the good of our souls, then, we need to gain a clearer understanding of pride and humility and of how to forsake the one and embrace the other.

There Lewis said, According to Christian teachers, the essential vice, the utmost evil, is Pride. Unchastity, anger, greed, drunkenness, and all that, are mere flea bites in comparison: it was through Pride that the devil became the devil:

Pride leads to every other vice: it is the complete anti-God state of mind…… it is Pride which has been the chief cause of misery in every nation and every family since the world began. 1

If this sounds like exaggeration, it will help us to know that Lewis is not simply giving us his private opinion but summarizing the thinking of great saints through the ages.

Augustine and Aquinas both taught that pride was the root of sin. 2  Likewise Calvin, Luther, and many others. Make no mistake about it: pride is the great sin. It is the devil’s most effective and destructive tool.

Why do the great spiritual leaders, Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and Protestant alike, unite around this conviction? Because it is so clearly and solidly taught in Scripture.

Pride first appears in the Bible in Genesis 3, where we see the devil, that “proud spirit” as John Donne described him, using pride as the avenue by which to seduce our first parents. Taking the form of a serpent, his approach was simple yet deadly. First, he arrogantly contradicted what God had said to Eve about eating the forbidden fruit and charged God with lying.

This shocking rejection of God’s word introduced Eve to the hitherto unknown possibility of unbelief and was intended to arouse doubt in her mind about the truthfulness and reliability of God. In the next breath, the devil drew her into deeper deception by contending that God’s reason for lying was to keep her from enjoying all the possibilities inherent in being Godlike. This clever ploy was aimed at undermining her confidence in the goodness and love of God and arousing the desire to become as God.

The desire to lift up and exalt ourselves beyond our place as God’s creature lies at the heart of pride. As Eve in her now confused and deceived state of mind considered the possibilities, her desire to become Godlike grew stronger. She began to look at the forbidden fruit in a new light, as something attractive to the eyes and pleasant to the touch. Desire increased, giving rise to rationalization and a corresponding erosion of the will to resist and say no.

Finally, weakened by unbelief, enticed by pride, and ensnared by self-deception, she opted for autonomy and disobeyed God’s command. In just a few deft moves, the devil was able to use pride to bring about Eve’s downfall and plunge the human race into spiritual ruin. This ancient but all-too-familiar process confronts each of us daily: “Each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death” (James 1:14–15).

From this point on in the Bible, we see the outworking of pride and unbelief in the affairs of individuals, families, nations, and cultures. As people lose or suppress the knowledge of God, spiritual darkness grows and a psychological inversion occurs: in their thinking God becomes smaller and they become larger. The center of gravity in their mental lives shifts from God to themselves. They become the center of their world, and God is conveniently moved to the periphery, either through denial of his existence or distortion of his character. Self-importance and godless self-confidence grow stronger. The cycle that follows is familiar: people exalt themselves against God and over others. Pride increases, arrogant and/or abusive behavior ensues, and people suffer.

On a national level, this is writ large in the history of Israel and surrounding nations, especially in the indictments delivered by the prophets of the eight and sixth centuries BC. Blinded by power and the unprecedented affluence of the eighth century, prideful leaders in Israel embraced a corrupted view of God, trusted in their own wisdom and power, oppressed their people, ignored his call to repent, and thereby invited his judgment, which fell with disastrous results.

There are also many biblical examples of pride and its consequences in the lives of individuals, and they offer valuable lessons for our own lives. Often their stories are self-contained in one chapter and make for easy reading. One of the more notable examples from the Old Testament is that of Uzziah, who was a believer. When he became king of Judah at age sixteen, he set his heart to seek God and put himself under the spiritual mentorship of Zechariah. And “as long as he sought the Lord, God made him to prosper” (2 Chron. 26:5). As a result, he acquired wealth and also became politically and militarily powerful. Then things changed. “His fame spread far, for he was marvelously helped, till he was strong. But when he was strong, he grew proud, to his destruction” (26:15–16).

What happened? There are hints in the text that at some point on the road to the top, he stopped seeking the Lord and the spiritual mentoring of Zechariah. This suggests a lessening dependence on God and a growing reliance upon himself and his own strength and wisdom. History shows at every point how easy it is for pride to increase as we become stronger, more successful, more prosperous, and more recognized in our endeavors. In fact, anything, real or imagined, that elevates us above others can be a platform for pride. Ironically, this is true even when these things come as a result of God’s blessings.

As a result of all his blessings, Uzziah, rather than humbling himself in thanksgiving to God, began to think more highly of himself than he should have and developed an exaggerated sense of his own importance and abilities. This pride of heart led to presumption before God and brought very serious consequences upon him, illustrating the biblical warnings that pride leads to disgrace (Prov. 11:2) and that “pride goes before destruction” (Prov. 16:18). I encourage you to read and meditate on Uzziah’s full story in 2 Chronicles 26. The stories of Haman (Esther 3–7) and Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 4) also offer valuable insights into pride and are well worth reading.

This is evident today in the dangerous pride in some political and business leaders in the West. We have only to look around us at the current state of political life in America to see examples. Pride and arrogance are obvious in many political leaders, whether liberal or conservative, making matters much worse than they need to be. Or consider the business and financial catastrophes we have experienced in recent years. A thoughtful article in the Wall Street Journal after the WorldCom and Enron debacles attributed them to “pride, greed and lack of accountability.” The recent financial crisis in America is yet another example of the same thing. Clearly pride is very dangerous and can produce widespread suffering in society when people in leadership and power are corrupted by it.

Pride also affects religious people. Few people today seem to be aware of the danger of spiritual pride, but spiritual leaders throughout the history of the church have always seen it as a great plague and tool of the devil. Even in times of revival, it is a danger. Commenting on the revival in Northampton, Massachusetts, in 1737, Jonathan Edwards said:

The first and worst cause of errors that abound in our day and age is spiritual pride. This is the main door by which the devil comes into the hearts of those who are zealous for the advancement of Christ. It is the chief inlet of smoke from the bottomless pit to darken the mind and mislead the judgment. Pride is the main handle by which he has hold of Christian persons and the chief source of all the mischief that he introduces to clog and hinder a work of God. Spiritual pride is the main spring or at least the main support of all other errors. Until this disease is cured, medicines are applied in vain to heal all other diseases. 3

An instructive lesson on religious pride from the New Testament is found in the Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector (Luke18:9–14). It is aimed at those “who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt.” It addresses spiritual pride, an especially subtle and dangerous temptation of religious people and leaders, which has been very much in evidence in recent years.

The well-known story of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector can help us recognize our own spiritual pride. It tells of a much-despised tax collector and a self-righteous Pharisee who went up to the temple to pray. The Pharisee proceeds to commend himself to God because of his careful observance of the law and to look down with scornful contempt on the sinful tax collector. “God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.” Notice in his prayer that his focus is not really on God at all but on how good he is and how bad others are. Here is pride wrapped in the cloak of religion and giving it a bad name. The tax collector is so painfully aware of his sins and unworthiness before God that he cannot even lift his eyes as he stands in the back of the temple, far from the altar. Pounding his breast in sorrowful contrition over his sins, he can manage only the desperate plea, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner.” In the Greek text, it actually reads “ the sinner.” His focus is very much on his own sins, not the sins of others, and especially on his need for God’s mercy. In a surprising reversal of expectation, Jesus says that God answered the tax collector’s prayer, not the Pharisee’s. Then he concludes with his main point: “everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Another lesson on religious pride strikes even closer to home for true believers. If we are inclined to say to ourselves, “Lord, I thank you that I am not like that proud Pharisee,” we should bear in mind that the apostles themselves were infected with pride and disputed with one another about who was the greatest (Luke 22:24–27). Sadly self-promotion, in pursuit of reputation, influence, and “success,” is evident in some ministry leaders even today. But if the apostles had to struggle with it, who are we to think ourselves exempt?

Any neurotic is living a life which in some respects is extreme in its self-centeredness… the region of his misery represents a complete preoccupation with himself. The very nature of the neurotic disorder is tied to pride. If the sufferer is hypersensitive, resentful, captious, he may be indicating a fear that he will not appear to advantage in competitive situations where he wants to show his worth. If he is chronically indecisive, he is showing fear that he may do the wrong thing and be discredited. If he is over-scrupulous and self-critical, he may be endeavoring to show how praiseworthy he really is. Thus, most neuroses, are, from the point of view of religion, mixed with the sin of pride. 4

Much more could be said about pride, but space fails us. Let’s sum up the biblical perspective and move on. Pride can be summarized as an attitude of self-sufficiency, self-importance, and self-exaltation in relation to God. Toward others, it is an attitude of contempt and indifference. As C.S. Lewis observed, “Pride is spiritual cancer: it eats up the very possibility of love, or contentment, or even common sense” 5  The depth of pride can vary from one person to the next and can be obvious or concealed. In the Old and New Testaments it is a truism that God will not suffer the creature to exalt itself against the Creator. Pride provokes God’s displeasure, and he has committed himself to oppose it.

If your pride causes you to exalt yourself, you are painting a target on your back and inviting God to open fire. And he will. For he has declared his determination to bring it low wherever he finds it, whether among angels or humans, believers or unbelievers. It was pride that caused Lucifer to be cast out of heaven and Adam and Eve to be cast out of Eden. And it is pride that will be our undoing if we tolerate it in our lives. The danger of pride is a sobering reality that each of us needs to ponder. Truly, it is our greatest enemy.

However, chances are good that most of us do not see pride in our lives. For while it is easy to see pride in others, it is very difficult to see it in ourselves. C.S. Lewis observed that “there is no fault which makes a man more unpopular and no fault which we are more unconscious of in ourselves. And the more we have it in ourselves, the more we dislike it in others.” 6  But he does suggest a couple of ways to detect its presence. First, Lewis quoted William Law from chapter fifteen of A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life “there can be no surer proof of a confirmed pride than a belief that one is sufficiently humble.” Also, “if you want to find out how proud you are the easiest way is to ask your self, ‘How much do I dislike it when other people snub me, or refuse to take any notice of me, or shove their oar in, or patronise me, or show off?” 7  Because it is so tricky to recognize, we are perhaps best off to earnestly seek God in prayer and ask him to reveal to us any sinful pride in our lives so we can repent and forsake it. Another step we might take is to ask those who live or work with us if they see significant expressions of sinful pride or arrogance in our life.

There is, of course, a good type of pride. Paul, for example, was proud of the churches he had established. But this was not arrogant or self-exalting pride. He made clear that his accomplishments were the fruit of God’s grace to him and through him (Rom. 15:17–19). Occasionally Paul mentions boasting, but this is a matter of highlighting what God has done by his grace, either through Paul or in those in the churches. It is never self-exalting. These days most of us will say that we are proud of our children or our favorite sports team or perhaps something we have accomplished. In cases like this, we are (one hopes) saying that we are really pleased about something good and are not engaging in the sinful type of pride and arrogance the Bible condemns.

Admittedly, humility and the humbling of oneself is out of fashion in today’s world and seems unappealing to most of us. However, as Jonathan Edwards said, “We must view humility as one of the most essential things that characterizes true Christianity.” Our perspective on humility can be radically changed if we will ponder and meditate on the greatest example of humility in history: Jesus Christ. By the very act of leaving heaven, coming to earth, and taking the form of man, he demonstrated an unfathomable humbling of himself. Throughout his life on earth, Jesus demonstrated a spirit of profound humility, saying that he came “not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Matt. 20:28). On his last night with the disciples, he took a towel and basin and washed their dirty feet (John 13:1–11), instructing them to follow his example of servanthood with one another (John 13:12–17). Andrew Murray captures it well, “Christ is the humility of God embodied in human nature; the Eternal Love humbling itself, clothing itself in the garb of meekness and gentleness, to win and serve and save us.” 8

The apostle Paul may well have been thinking of this very scene in the Upper Room when he urged the believers in Philippi:  Have this mind among yourselves which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross (Phil. 2:5–8).

Paul is here encouraging ordinary believers in a local church, who apparently have some measure of sinful pride in their hearts and relationships, to reflect on and adopt the attitude and actions of Jesus their Lord and follow his example of humility.

The consequences of such an attitude may give us pause. Humbling ourselves could be costly in the workplace, in the community, or in other ways. However, that is a shortsighted, worldly perspective. For the passage continues:

Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Phil. 2:9–11).

In Jesus we have the “example of all examples”: those who humble themselves will be exalted! And this is meant to guide our lives in this world. If we will take care of humbling ourselves, we can trust God to take care of exalting us.

How do we gain the mind of Christ and humble ourselves? To put on the mind of Christ, we will need to make a firm decision to ponder, understand, and adopt Jesus’ way of thinking; his values and attitudes must become ours. His strong emphasis on humility and meekness and his example of it must take hold of our thinking, our desires and our conduct. We must admire his humility and want it for ourselves. For this to happen, we need to earnestly and regularly pray for the Holy Spirit to change our hearts, for it is impossible to do it in our own strength. We will also need to understand what Jesus meant when he called men and women to humble themselves. We discover that from the Greek word Jesus and the apostles used, tapeinos, which conveys the idea of having a right view of ourselves before God and others. 9  If pride is an exalted sense of who we are in relation to God and others, humility is having a realistic sense of who we are before God and others. We must not think too highly (or too lowly) of ourselves. Rather, we must be honest and realistic about who and what we are.

What is a right view of ourselves? Specifics will vary from person to person, but certain things are common to us all. We are God’s creatures: small, finite, dependent, limited in intelligence and ability, prone to sin, and soon to die and face God’s judgment (Heb. 9:27). But we are also God’s children: created, loved, and redeemed by God’s grace alone, not by anything in or of ourselves; and gifted by God with certain unique gifts, abilities, resources, and advantages, which are to be used for his glory. As Paul reminds the Corinthians, “What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it?” (1 Cor. 4:7). Frequently reminding ourselves of these things is important.

Having a right view of God and ourselves has a profound effect on our relationships with others. As Paul goes on to say in Romans, “Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly.” (Rom. 12:16). And as he said to the Philippians, “Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others” (Phil. 2:3–4). As we refuse to be preoccupied with ourselves and our own importance and seek to love and serve others, it will reorient us from self-centeredness to other-centeredness—to serving and caring for others just as Jesus did for us. In the narcissistic culture of contemporary America, this is a particularly powerful countercultural witness of Christ’s presence and lordship in our lives.

Truly, humility is our greatest friend. It increases our hunger for God’s word and opens our hearts to his Spirit. It leads to intimacy with God, who knows the proud from afar, but dwells with him “who is of a contrite and lowly spirit” (Isa. 57:15). It imparts the aroma of Christ to all whom we encounter. It is a sign of greatness in the kingdom of God (Luke 22:24–27).

Developing the identity, attitude, and conduct of a humble servant does not happen over night. It is rather like peeling an onion: you cut away one layer only to find another beneath it. But it does happen. As we forsake pride and seek to humble ourselves by daily deliberate choices in dependence on the Holy Spirit, humility grows in our souls. Fenelon said it well, “Humility is not a grace that can be acquired in a few months: it is the work of a lifetime.” And it is a grace that is precious in the sight of God, who in due course will exalt all who embrace it.

Notes 1. C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity (New York: Simon & Schuster Touchstone edition, 1996), 109, 111. 2. See Augustine, The City of God 14.13; Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica, ques. 84. 3. Jonathan Edwards, The Works of Jonathan Edwards (Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1974), 1:398–404. 4. Gordon Allport, quoted in Solomon Schimmel, The Seven Deadly Sins (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1997), 28. 5. Lewis, Mere Christianity, 112. 6. Lewis, Mere Christianity, 109. 7. Lewis, Mere Christianity, 110. 8. Andrew Murray, Humility (Old Tappan, NJ: Fleming H. Revell, nd), 17. 9. Colin Brown, The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1967), 2:259 .

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Why Did C.S. Lewis Say that Pride Is the Greatest Sin?

• Chris Bolinger Crosswalk.com Contributing Writer
• Published Dec 18, 2023

It was early 1941. England had survived the Blitz, a series of massive German air attacks that included a systematic bombing of London for 57 days and nights. The cost had been great, with tens of thousands of civilians killed and a million houses destroyed or damaged. While the threat of an invasion of the United Kingdom seemed unlikely, the rattled British population faced the likelihood of a long and bloody war.

To reassure people, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) decide to expand its religious broadcasting to include some short, 10- to 15-minute talks by an Oxford fellow named C.S. Lewis.

The BBC’s director of religious broadcasting had been impressed by Lewis’s apologetic work The Problem of Pain and figured that Lewis could share his quality of thinking, and depth of conviction, over the airwaves. Lewis agreed. And, in August of 1941, he started the first of four series of weekly radio addresses.

Because had been an atheist for many years and had become a Christian fairly recently, Lewis could empathize with those who struggled with the Christian faith or some aspects of it. So, his first two sets of talks focused on apologetics , or reasoned arguments in support of Christianity, and were later published in the U.S. as The Case for Christianity . 

In the fall of 1942, his third series of talks covered Christian behavior, including morality, sexual morality, forgiveness, faith, and “The Great Sin.”

What is the great sin? What sin is worse than any other?

C.S. Lewis replied to this question with clarity:

According to Christian teachers, the essential vice, the utmost evil, is Pride . Unchastity, anger, greed, drunkenness, and all that, are mere fleabites in comparison. It was through pride that the Devil became the Devil: Pride leads to every other vice. It is the complete anti-God state of mind.

1. A proud person has to be “better” than everyone else.

Do you struggle with pride? Lewis started with a simple test: the more pride you have, the more you dislike it in others.

How do you feel when you are snubbed, or unnoticed, or patronized, or shown up by someone else? If you are proud, then you get very upset when someone else “wins.” Says, C.S. Lewis:

Pride gets no pleasure out of having something, only out of having more of it than the next man. We say that people are proud of being rich, or clever, or good-looking, but they are not. They are proud of being richer, or cleverer, or better-looking than others. If someone else became equally rich, or clever, or good-looking there would be nothing to be proud about. It is the comparison that makes you proud: the pleasure of being above the rest.

2. A proud person is never satisfied.

Competing with others is not always a sign of pride. For example, when resources are scarce, people often compete with each other for those resources. A proud person, however, will try to get more, even when he already has more than he needs. Many sins, such as greed and selfishness, are the result of pride, explains Lewis. Lewis says:

Take it with money. Greed will certainly make a man want money, for the sake of a better house, better holidays, better things to eat and drink. But only up to a point. What is it that makes a man with $10,000 a year anxious to get $20,000 a year? It is not the greed for more pleasure. $10,000 will give all the luxuries that any man can really enjoy. It is Pride—the wish to be richer than some other rich man, and (still more) the wish for power.

3. A proud person craves power.

The pride-fueled quest for power leads to enmity between people. Says Lewis:

If I am a proud man, then as long as there in one man in the whole world more powerful, or richer or cleverer than I, he is my rival and my enemy.

Lewis characterized pride as the chief cause of misery in every nation and every family since the world began. While other vices, such as drunkenness, sometimes brings people together, pride never does. It drives people apart.

4. Pride makes you God’s enemy.

Pride not only makes people enemies with each other – it also makes people enemies with God. Says Lewis:

In God you come up against something which is in every respect immeasurably superior to yourself. Unless you know God as that—and, therefore, know yourself as nothing in comparison—you do not know God at all.

As long as you are proud you cannot know God. A proud man is always looking down on things and people: and, of course, as long as you are looking down, you cannot see something that is above you.

That raises a terrible question. How is it that people who are quite obviously eaten up with pride can say they believe in God and appear to themselves very religious? I am afraid it means they are worshiping an imaginary God. They theoretically admit themselves to be nothing in the presence of this phantom God, but are really all the time imagining how He approves of them and thinks them far better than ordinary people: that is, they pay a pennyworth of imaginary humility to Him and get out of it a pound's worth of pride towards their fellow-men.

I suppose it was of those people Christ was thinking when He said that some would preach about Him and cast out devils in His name, only to be told at the end of the world that He had never known them. And any of us may at any moment be in this death-trap.

5. Pride makes you vulnerable to the Devil.

Vices other than pride, says Lewis, come from the Devil working on us through our animal nature. Pride, on the other hand, is purely spiritual and, consequently, far more subtle and deadly.

One way to fall into the Devil’s trap is to use pride to overcome simpler vices. Says Lewis:

6. You can be blind to your own pride.

In his talk, Lewis emphasizes that pleasure in being praised is not pride. In many situations, there is nothing wrong with trying (and succeeding) in pleasing someone. Lewis characterizes vanity, or seeing and reveling in praise from others, as the least bad type of pride because it demonstrates that “you are not yet completely contented with your own admiration.”

Problems begin, however, when you begin to delight less in the praise and more in yourself:

The real black, diabolical pride, comes when you look down on others so much that you do not care what they think of you. Of course, it is very right, and often our duty, not to care what people think of us, if we do so for the right reason; namely, because we care so incomparably more what God thinks.

But the proud man has a different reason for not caring. He says ‘…All I have done has been done to satisfy my own ideals—or my artistic conscience—or the traditions of my family—or, in a word, because I'm That Kind of Chap. If the mob like it, let them. They're nothing to me.'”

How does one acquire humility?

The first step, Lewis says, is to realize that you are proud. If you don’t think you are conceited, then you are very conceited indeed.

According to Lewis, a humble person will strike you as “a cheerful, intelligent chap who took a real interest in what you said to him. If you do dislike him it will be because you feel a little envious of anyone who seems to enjoy life so easily. He will not be thinking about humility: he will not be thinking about himself at all.”

For more on C.S. Lewis, visit the C.S. Lewis website ( www.cslewis.com ) and read George Marsden’s book C.S. Lewis’s “Mere Christianity”: A Biography . (Both were sources for this piece.) To read C.S. Lewis’s radio addresses, get a copy of the book Mere Christianity .

Article first published September 5, 2019.

Photo Credit: ©Unsplash/Peter Forster

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The Sin of Pride According to the Bible

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The sin of pride is a heart attitude expressed in an unhealthy, exaggerated attention to self and an elevated view of one’s abilities, accomplishments, position, or possessions. Pride has been called “the cancer of the soul, “the beginning of all sin,” and “sin in its final form.” Ten Hebrew words and two Greek words are generally used in the Bible to refer to it. Pride, in its sinful form, is the direct opposite of humility, a trait that is highly praised and rewarded by God.

The Sin of Pride

• The sin of pride is an excessive preoccupation with self and one’s own importance, achievements, status, or possessions.
• This sin is considered rebellion against God because it attributes to one’s self the honor and glory that only God is due.
• Pride is the opposite of humility, a character quality that greatly pleases God, and one He rewards.
• The Bible frequently talks of God humbling the proud.

What Is Pride?

Pride is not always expressed as a negative quality in the Bible. It can carry a positive connotation of self-worth, self-respect, and self-confidence. The apostle Paul communicated a positive sense of pride when speaking to the believers in Corinth:

“I have the highest confidence in you, and I take great pride in you. You have greatly encouraged me and made me happy despite all our troubles” (2 Corinthians 7:4, NLT ).

Pride becomes sinful when it is excessively self-focused and self-elevating. This kind of pride is what most often appears in the Bible. The biblical sin of pride refers to a high or exalted attitude—the opposite of the virtue of humility, which is the appropriate posture people ought to have with God.

Charles H. Spurgeon described pride as “an all-pervading sin.” He said, “Pride is so natural to fallen man that it springs up in his heart like weeds in a well-watered garden … its every touch is evil. You may hunt down this fox, and think you have destroyed it, and lo! Your very exultation is pride. None have more pride than those who dream that they have none. Pride is a sin with a thousand lives; it seems impossible to kill it.”

Synonyms for pride in the Bible are “insolence,” “presumptuousness,” “arrogance,” “conceit,” “high-mindedness,” “haughtiness,” and “egotism.”

In Hebrew, the concept of pride is often expressed figuratively with words that suggest height. An interesting expression in Greek refers to a person being “puffed up” or inflated with pride. Rather than having substance, the prideful person is filled only with air:

“He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil” (1 Timothy 3:6, ESV ; see also 1 Corinthians 5:2; 8:1; 13:4; Colossians 2:18).

Why Is Pride a Sin?

Pride is viewed as a great sin and rebellion against God because it presumes to possess excellence and glory that belong to God alone. The danger of pride is that most people are unaware of their pridefulness: “You have been deceived by your own pride” (Obadiah 3, NLT). 

Pride is perilously deceptive: “Pride leads to disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom” (Proverbs 11:2, NLT). It gives way to conflicts and quarreling (Proverbs 13:10). Pride adversely affects one’s speech (Malachi 3:13; Proverbs 6:17).

Proud people do not think they need to ask forgiveness from God because they can’t admit or even recognize their sinful condition. As a result, pride also affects a person’s attitude toward others, often causing them to look down on others as less worthy or less able. Prideful people treat others with contempt and cruelty: “Mockers are proud and haughty; they act with boundless arrogance” (Proverbs 21:24, NLT). Pride is at the heart of prejudice.

The greatest danger in the sin of pride is that it keeps our eyes on ourselves instead of on God Almighty . In essence, pride causes spiritual blindness and eventual death.

Pride in the Bible

Pride is cited among some of the most glaring sins in the Bible. In Romans 1:30, Paul describes unrighteous people who will incur the wrath of God as “backstabbers, haters of God, insolent, proud, and boastful. They invent new ways of sinning.”

The Pharisees and other Jewish leaders were some of the most prideful people in the Bible, noted for how they mistreated and spoke down to those beneath their social level. Jesus said of them:

“And they love to sit at the head table at banquets and in the seats of honor in the synagogues. They love to receive respectful greetings as they walk in the marketplaces, and to be called ‘Rabbi.’ … But those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted” (Matthew 23:6–12, NLT).

Pride caused the downfall of King Uzziah, who dared to burn incense on the altar of incense and was struck with leprosy as his punishment from God (2 Chronicles 26:16). Hezekiah became proud of heart after the Lord healed him. His pride brought God’s wrath not only against him, but also against all of Judah, and Jerusalem (2 Chronicles 32:25-26).

King Herod ’s pride in accepting the people’s worship and refusing to give God the glory for his greatness brought judgment. God struck him with sickness, and he was eaten by worms and died (Acts 12:21–23).

Of the Prince of Tyre, the Lord said, “In your great pride you claim, ‘I am a god! I sit on a divine throne in the heart of the sea.’ But you are only a man and not a god, though you boast that you are a god” (Ezekiel 28:2, NLT). Many Bible scholars believe this passage refers to the original fall of Satan , which is also mentioned in Isaiah 14:12–15:

How you have fallen from heaven, morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations! You said in your heart, “I will ascend to the heavens; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of Mount Zaphon. I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.” But you are brought down to the realm of the dead, to the depths of the pit. ( NIV )

King Solomon said, “Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall” (Proverbs 16:18, NIV). In the Bible, pride not only caused the ruin of individuals but also of nations. Israel became proud and forgot God. Ultimately, it was the sin of pride that caused the people of Israel and Judah to be cut off from the promised land of Canaan ( Isaiah 3:16; Ezekiel 16:50; Hosea 13:6; Zephaniah 3:11). James 4:6 tells us that God opposes the proud but shows grace to the humble.

Pride is one of the sins that will be widespread among people in the last days :

“For people will love only themselves and their money. They will be boastful and proud, scoffing at God, disobedient to their parents, and ungrateful. They will consider nothing sacred. They will be unloving and unforgiving; they will slander others and have no self-control. They will be cruel and hate what is good. They will betray their friends, be reckless, be puffed up with pride, and love pleasure rather than God” (2 Timothy 3:2–4, NLT).

The Bible says that pride is one of seven things that God hates:

“There are six things the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a person who stirs up conflict in the community” (Proverbs 6:16–19, NIV).

People who love God and godliness reject pride:

All who fear the LORD will hate evil. Therefore, I hate pride and arrogance, corruption and perverse speech” (Proverbs 8:13, NLT).

“I will not tolerate people who slander their neighbors. I will not endure conceit and pride” (Psalm 101:5, NLT).

The Bible warns people to evaluate themselves honestly for the sin of pride:

“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” (Romans 12:3, NLT).

• The Altar Of Sexual Idolatry (p. 126).
• Tyndale Bible Dictionary (p. 1072, 1752).
• Humility, Pride. New Dictionary of Biblical Theology (electronic ed., p. 567).
• Pride. Lexham Theological Wordbook.
• Pride. Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary (p. 1327).
• Dictionary of Bible Themes: The Accessible and Comprehensive Tool for Topical Studies.
• Holman Treasury of Key Bible words: 200 Greek and 200 Hebrew Words Defined and Explained (p. 140).
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How Pride Poisons the Soul

More By Sam Storms

This article was originally published on Sam Storms’s blog, Enjoying God .

The most important thing we need to understand about pride is that God hates it. Lest you think I should soften my language, consider these texts:

There are six things that the LORD hates, seven that are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, a false witness who breathes out lies, and one who sows discord among brothers. (Prov. 6:16-19)

Everyone who is arrogant in heart is an abomination to the LORD; be assured, he will not go unpunished. (Prov. 16:5)

Observe in Proverbs 16:5 that it is not merely arrogance itself that is an abomination to the Lord; the arrogant person is an abomination as well.

If you would take the time to excavate your sin, beneath it all you would discover the rotting bones of pride and arrogance.

Of all that God hates, of all that is an abomination to him, what is first on the list? Haughty eyes, which is to say, prideful, arrogant eyes. Haughty eyes does not refer to how a person’s eyes look to others but how a person views himself and others. He views them as less than himself, as essentially worthless. He is arrogant and puffed up with his own sense of value.

The word hate  is an unpleasant one that we typically instruct our children to avoid. It’s vicious, venomous, and destructive. When we experience “hatred” it usually means we loathe certain things, we seek to avoid them, we desire to destroy them, we speak ill of them, and we vote against them. We do everything possible to forget them. Hatred in the heart of God is righteous hatred, pure, unalloyed, unmitigated disgust and revulsion. For something to be an “abomination” to God means that it is a stench in his nostrils. Such is what God feels about pride: he hates it; it is an utter abomination.

Think about James 4:6—“God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” James doesn’t say that God simply ignores the proud or avoids them or keeps his distance from them. No, he resists them. He works in open opposition to them. He wages war against them and thwarts them. Pride provokes God to wrath and indignation; it irritates him, agitates him, and displeases him beyond words.

Taproot of All Sin 

Scripture also teaches that pride is a precursor to all other forms of sin. Pride is the soil in which all manner of sin germinates and grows. Consider Proverbs 16:18-19—“Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall. It is better to be of a lowly spirit with the poor than to divide the spoil with the proud.” I could mulitiply verses many times that say essentially the same thing about pride. First comes pride, then destruction of the proud person.

Pride is that ugly part of your heart that causes you to be more concerned about yourself and your own reputation than you are about Christ and his.

Is it an exaggeration to say that pride is the underlying cause of all sin? I don’t think so. If you would take the time to excavate your sin, beneath it all you would discover the rotting bones of pride and arrogance. Numerous sins are the direct fallout of pride:

Envy . Envy is the resentful awareness of an advantage enjoyed by another, an advantage that you are convinced ought rightfully to be yours. But why should someone else’s success or promotion or praise provoke envy in our hearts? Why not joy, instead? The answer is because we don’t want others to appear better than ourselves; we are convinced that we are more worthy and more deserving of the advantage.

Bitterness . Bitterness is that sour feeling in our souls when someone has offended us or defrauded us or failed to deliver on what we thought they owed us. But why should that provoke bitterness? Because it makes us look bad in the eyes of others, or it deprives us of something we think we deserve.

Strife . Strife flows out of a competitive desire to be number one, the desire to be acknowledged by others, the desire for power and authority and praise.

Deceit . Why do we lie and mislead others and speak in fuzzy rather than forthright terms? Typically, it is because we hope to gain something for ourselves that we think we deserve, or we do it to hide something from others that we fear might make us look bad.

Hypocrisy.  We are motivated to pretend to be something we are not because we fear being seen and known for what we really are.

Slander.  Why do we speak negatively of others? Why do we slander them? Perhaps because we’ve been hurt ourselves, and we want revenge, or we want to gain acceptance with others, and the only way is to diminish them in the minds of those people whose favor or respect we must have.

Greed.  Greed at its core is the desire to make more of and for ourselves than God wishes or permits. And pride is the poker that stokes the fires of materialism. We can’t stand the thought of people thinking we aren’t as rich and successful and talented and deserving and sophisticated as others.

The proud heart is impervious to rebuke and insensitive to conviction.

Every one of these sins grows from the same deadly taproot: pride. Simply put, pride is that ugly part of your heart that causes you to be more concerned about yourself and your own reputation than you are about Christ and his.

Grace Uproots Pride

Perhaps the most sobering summary of pride is found in Proverbs 26:12—“Do you see a man who is wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him” (Prov. 26:12). Why is there little hope for him? Because pride puts a person beyond the perceived need for instruction. The proud heart is impervious to rebuke and insensitive to conviction. That’s why he’s more hopeless than the fool.

So how do we uproot pride from our hearts? How do we overcome its insidious influence? There are many answers, but none more helpful than the principle we find in 1 Corinthians 4:7. Paul asks the arrogant Corinthians, “For who sees anything different in you? What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it?”

It is difficult for the person who understands the sovereignty of God’s grace to be prideful, unless of course he takes credit for understanding it. Pride is taking credit for what God has done. To know that all we have is a gift, that all we experience and enjoy is an expression of God’s goodness and not ours, to know that everything in our possession—especially our salvation—comes from the hand of God is to take the first step in defeating and dethroning pride from our hearts.

Is there enough evidence for us to believe the Gospels?

Sam Storms (ThM, Dallas Theological Seminary; PhD, The University of Texas at Dallas) is pastor emeritus at Bridgeway Church in Oklahoma City, founder of Enjoying God Ministries , and a Council member of The Gospel Coalition. He has written numerous books, including Packer on the Christian Life and Practicing the Power . He and his wife, Ann, have two children.

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What Does the Bible Say about Pride?

“I’m proud of you.”  It’s a notion we dish out and long to hear daily. But when is it sin? The Bible is clear that it’s ok to encourage and admonish each other and to take pride in the good works of God and His creation. We can be proud to be children of God. But we cross into sin when it revolves around ourselves.

John Piper reminds us, that pride is universal; we all deal with it.  Philippians 4:6a says, "Do not be anxious about anything.” Paul is describing self-centered anxieties and counterproductive worries unconcerned with the spread of the Gospel. Pride filters down into the core of worry and anxiety, exposing a lack of trust in God. It is an over-concern with ourselves , a disposition to exalt self, to get above others, to hide our defects, and to pass for more than we are.

Pride is a high or inordinate opinion of one’s own dignity, importance, merit, or superiority, whether as cherished in the mind or as displayed in conduct. Whether craving compliments, fearing our own image, or entertaining an overly critical view of ourselves, pride can be both glaringly obvious and deceptively sneaky.

“To fear the LORD is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, even behavior and perverse speech.” Proverbs 8:13

Hannah prayed, “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”  (1 Samuel 2:3) . 

Proverbs 16:18 says, “Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.” God’s word assures us pride is the root of the rubble in our lives. 1 Corinthians 10:12 warns, “So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!” Psalm 10:2-11 describes the oppressive result of pride, and a plea to God for justice and defense for those caught in its tailspin.

Pride is at the heart of bullying and entitlement. It’s deceptive tendency leaves a wake of destruction. The very nature of human conflict is rooted in elements of pride. Proverbs 13:10 says, “Pride only breeds quarrels, but wisdom is found in those who take advice.”

For more verses on pride, click here.

What Causes Pride?

Adam and Eve fell for the temptation to believe they could be like God. Ever since, people have an innate problem relinquishing control of life and circumstance into the capable hands of God, our Creator and Father.

Our sinful nature manifests itself in three ways: self-reliance, self-centeredness, and self-condemnation. Witnesses to Jesus’ miracles led to people believing He was who He said He was, but “But Jesus would not entrust himself to them, for he knew all men. He did not need man’s testimony about man, for he knew what was in a man” ( John 2:24-25 ).

“There is a giant difference between being ‘proud’ of someone else and having ‘pride’ in yourself …” wrote Pastor Roger Barrier , “and it’s a spiritual difference worth studying.”

Types of Pride in the Bible

“In God we make our boast all day long, and we will praise your name forever” ( Psalm 44:11 ).

There are two basic types of pride in the Bible, legitimate and sinful.

The first swells from an appreciation of God’s character and faithful action in our lives. Many of the Psalms praise God for His protection, provision, answer to prayer ( Psalm 34:1-7 ), and unfailing love. When all else falters and fades away, He remains. Galatians 6:14 says, “May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Paul credited his integrity to Christ, boasting in a clear, Christ-led conscience . We can boast about what God, through Christ and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, is doing through us with what He put in and activated in His time according to His will. Philippians 2:16 says, “as you hold firmly to the word of life. And then I will be able to boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor in vain.” Legitimate, godly pride has nothing to do with ourselves. ( Romans 15:17 )

Sinful pride attempts to be God. Genesis 3:5 says, “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” The devil’s greatest lie: that we could possess the ability to rightfully judge good and evil in ourselves, and each other. Pride hijacks our focus from loving our neighbor to competing and comparing. When we let sinful pride take over, we forget God created us equally, and subsequently gifts, purposes, views and treats us justly. We start to credit ourselves with our accomplishments.

1 Corinthians 4:7 states, “For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?” Our sinful pride tempts us to be self-sufficient rather than God reliant.

Why is Pride Such an Important Issue in the Bible?

Pride is disobedience to God’s most important command to love Him above all else, and love our neighbors as ourselves. Our faithful Father, as He sanctifies our hearts, disciplines us as any good Father would. Isaiah 13:11 says, “I will punish the world for its evil, the wicked for their sins. I will put an end to the arrogance of the haughty and will humble the pride of the ruthless.” We don’t often identify these tendencies in ourselves, but we are very good at detecting them in the lives of others. Beware, for when we can see it in someone else it’s often reflecting a piece of our own pride.

Isaiah 2:18 , after three different warnings in the same chapter about prideful humanity being humbled in judgement on the day of the LORD, says “and all the idols will totally disappear.” This is the true danger in pride. It seeks to set idols, anything we loft in importance over God, on the throne of our hearts. Tangible things, worldly accomplishments, an unhealthy dependance on and/or admiration of another person/people will all be stripped away …and we will stand humbled before God who will undoubtably remain. He is all we will ever need.

Prides seeks to convince us otherwise, sending us on a wild and never-ending goose chase that steals the peace that Christ died to wash our lives clean in.

Bible Characters Who Struggled with Pride

Adam and Eve’s struggle with pride led to the fall of humanity when they entertained the devil’s deceitful promise that the apple would give them the same ability to discern good from evil as God. ( Genesis 3:5-6 )

King David struggled with pride when he called for an unnecessary census of Israel’s army. “He seemed inclined to trust in a strong army rather than in an all-powerful God.”

King Uzziah presumed himself worthy of priestly duties, and was cursed with leprosy. ( 2 Chronicles 26:16 ) King Hezekiah’s pride prompted disobedience ( 2 Chronicles 32:25 ), Nebuchadnezzar was driven from his kingdom for taking credit for building Babylon ( Daniel 4:30 ), and Herod was struck dead and eaten by worms because he assumed the status of a god rather than praising the One True God.

5 Ways Christians Can Recognize Pride in Their Lives

“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” ( Philippians 4:4-7 ). 

“We know the disease,” Jaquelle Crowe writes, “but we don’t recognize the symptoms. And that’s why we need the insight of our Great Physician and to reveal its symptoms and release us from it’s grip.” She warns of the following signs: fear, entitlement, ingratitude, people-pleasing, prayerlessness, hypocrisy and rebellion. Faith, a gift from God, kills pride. Faith, by nature, looks away from ourselves. We can recognize pride by staying connected to Christ. Through prayer and study of God’s word, the Holy Spirit will alert and convict us to the chains of sin in our lives, and walk us through the steps of sanctification to breaks us free. But we have to have ears to hear, and the gumption to follow His lead.

• Pray. Ask God to reveal and remove pride in our hearts, minds, and lives.
• Read the Word . In order to hear God, we have to listen. This happens through the reading of His word.
• Do what it says . Obedience ushers blessing into our lives. Gratefulness and generosity keep pride at bay.
• Look for connection s. God faithfully connects His Word to our lives daily to prepare and sanctify our hearts. He places people purposefully in our lives.
• Repent and repeat . Repetition can build strong habits and healthy life practices. Faith is a daily discipline. To thwart off pride in our lives, we must continually confess and repent of our sin.

Healing Pride by Praying for Humility: A Devotion

“Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up” ( James 4:10 ).

Humility is the antidote to pride. James admonishes, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says” ( James 1:22 ). We walk a humble path when we follow Christ. His life is our example. He was confident in God’s purpose for His life. The Word made flesh, Jesus chose humility.

How can we take our prideful thoughts captive and steer them into humble obedience? Paul gives us a major tool in Philippians 4:8 : “Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable- if anything is excellent or praiseworthy- think about such things.” Faith takes focus. Keeping our hearts locked in focus on Christ is paramount to winning the war on pride.

A Prayer to Submit Our Pride to God

In You, and Your character alone, we take pride! Praise You for giving us an example in Christ to follow and a way through Him to submit our prideful ways to you. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, we pray your truth over our lives today. Hold us accountable, cause us to remember, and lead us to lean in and learn from and depend on you daily. Protect us from the destructive ramifications of pride, Father. May we boast only in what You are doing in our redeemed circumstances.

In Jesus’ Name,

Meg writes about everyday life within the love of Christ. She stepped out of her comfort zone, and her marketing career, to obey God’s call to stay home and be “Mom” in 2011. From that step of obedience her blog, Sunny&80 , was born, a way to retain the funny everyday moments of motherhood. Meg is also a freelance writer and author of “Friends with Everyone.”  She loves teaching God’s Word and leading her Monday morning Bible study, being a mom, distance running and photography. Meg resides in Northern Ohio with her husband, two daughters, and Golden-Doodle … all avid Cleveland Browns fans. 

Photo credit: Unsplash/Nathan Dumlao

What Makes Pride a Sin?

Everything we have, we have received from God. It is not wrong to feel good about something you have accomplished as long as you recognize, and admit, that you could not have done so without Him.

Proverbs 16:18 says, “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.” There are many other biblical warnings about the sin of pride.

But why is pride so strongly warned against? Why is pride a sin? Is it always a sin to feel proud of something you have accomplished?

It is very important to understand what precisely is the pride that God hates ( Proverbs 8:13 ).

Several years ago, when my first book was published, I had the opportunity to meet Beth Moore and have her sign it. I stood in line just beaming as I held my precious book.

It smelled of freshly printed pages and the cover was a beautiful glossy green. I was so immensely proud of fulfilling my calling. I was even more proud that I could call myself an author.

When it was my turn to meet Beth, I showed her my book and we chatted for a bit. Then, she turned to her assistant and asked her to hold the line because apparently, I was in serious need of an eye-opening, come-to-Jesus-moment.

She pulled me aside and grabbed both of my shoulders. She made sure I was looking her square in the eye when she said, “Heather, keep seeking Jesus far more than your calling.” She went on to tell me, time spent  with Christ was far more important than the things I do for Christ or any title I hold. 

Because if I wasn’t careful, it would be my downfall. She even shared personal examples in her own life. I walked away that day filled with conviction and humility because she cared enough to keep my pride in check.

There wasn’t anything wrong with being proud of all my hard work. Just like there isn’t anything wrong with being proud of your children, or your home, or getting a promotion.

In fact, we’re supposed to take pride in these things — to an extent. The Bible encourages us to work hard so we’ll be satisfied with the results. It says, “The diligent man prizes his possessions” ( Proverbs 12:27 ).

When Pride Becomes a Sin

But even this kind of pride can be a slippery slope — if we end up taking credit for what we’ve done instead of thanking God for helping us. Pride is the deadliest of all sins because it leads to all other sins. Pride is delusional, spiteful, and bitter. At its root, it declares, “I don’t want God to be God. I want to be God!”

Sinful pride is refusing to recognize God’s sovereign role in everything. “Good pride” is recognizing that apart from God, you can do nothing ( John 15:5 ), and, therefore, giving God the glory for the things you accomplish.

In other words, anything that dethrones God from your heart is deadly. Anything that makes us sit on the throne of our hearts is definitely an issue.

It was the sin of pride, which first led Eve to eat of the forbidden fruit. In Genesis, we read,

Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave it to her husband who was with her and ate it  ( Genesis 3:4-6 ).

Who do you think the serpent really was? It was the enemy himself, Satan. In fact, pride led to his downfall too. Pride transformed Lucifer, an anointed cherub of God, the very “seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty,” into Satan, the devil, the father of lies, the one for whom Hell itself was created. ( Isaiah 14:12-15 ; John 8:44 ; Matthew 25:41 )

Despite the fact that God had created Satan and gave him all of the power and beauty he possessed, Satan wanted all of the glory. He turned into the enemy of God when he chose not to worship God in response to the gifts he was given.

5 Things the Bible Says About Questioning God

Instead, he wanted all of God’s power, glory, and the throne. He viewed himself as better than God instead of choosing to embrace his reflection of God himself.

In the Book of Matthew, we see an example of pride in the Pharisees . They were self-righteous ( Matthew 6:1-2 ). Jesus tells them, “You are like whitewashed tombs, which appear beautiful on the outside, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and every impurity” ( Matthew 23:27 ). Their goal was to impress others with external materials and performance.

The main reason why each of us is on this earth is that our mission is to reflect God in all that we say and do. It is our goal to be image-bearers of Christ! But this is what pride does, it sets you before a very haughty fall.

1 Corinthians 4:7 summarizes this nicely: “What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?” St. Mariam Baouardy describes pride this way:

The proud person is like a grain of wheat thrown into water: it swells, it gets big. Expose that grain to the fire: it dries up, it burns. The humble soul is like a grain of wheat thrown into the earth: it descends, it hides itself, it disappears, it dies; but to revive in heaven.

Everything we have, we have received from God. Therefore, we should not act as if we have accomplished anything on our own. It is not wrong to feel good about something you have accomplished as long as you recognize, and admit, that you could not have done so without him.

We need to make it a goal to live for Christ every day. The Bible says, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” ( 1 Peter 5:5 ).

Scripture to Help Us Keep Our Pride in Check

We would do well to check our spirits when it comes to pride. While God opposes the proud, he gives immense grace to the humble. Humility comes when we internalize the truth that nothing in the life of a Christian is to be about us.

It is all about Jesus Christ and Him only. Here are four reminders to help you eliminate pride:

1.  But he gives more grace. Therefore, it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble”  ( James 4:6 ).

2.  Pride comes before destruction, and an arrogant spirit before a fall. Better to be lowly of spirit with the humble than to divide plunder with the proud  ( Proverbs 16:18-19 ).

3.  For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted  ( Luke 14:11 ).

4.  And all of you clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, “God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, so that He may lift you up at the proper time, casting all your care on Him, because He cares about you  ( 1 Peter 5:5-7 ).

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What Does The Bible Say About Pride? A Christian Study

P ride is an infectious and dangerous attitude affecting so many people in this day and age.  Where does pride come from?  How does this kind of attitude affect you and your walk with God?  How does it affect others around you every day?  Let us search the scriptures together for knowledge, wisdom and truth that comes only from God, Himself.

Pride is a Sin

“For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness.  All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.” (Mark 7:21-23)  Pride is indeed a sin and as the passage says, it “defiles a person.”  Pride makes you unclean and impure.  The sin of pride must be handled consciously.  If you don’t take it seriously, you won’t even recognize your prideful attitude.  It will infect many of the decisions you make.

What Does God Think About Pride?

“Pride and arrogance and the way of evil and perverted speech I hate.” (Proverbs 8:13b)  “Everyone who is arrogant in heart is an abomination to the Lord.  Be assured, he will not go unpunished.” (Proverbs 16:5)  These verses really gripped me.  God hates it when we are proud.  Why does God hate pride ?  God hates it because it comes from inside of the heart.  A proud man thinks of himself as higher than someone else.  Are you too busy to hold the door for someone?  Is your circle of friends too classy to go and help feed the homeless?  Is your car too clean to give someone a ride somewhere?  Do you avoid people that you don’t want to associate with?  Believers in Christ are called to be servants (Mark 9:35) and if our lifestyle prevents us from serving in any capacity then repentance must be made with God.  You may have to give up some things in order to really fight the temptation of pride.

Pride Started the Train-wreck of Sin

Pride is a device that can be so easily woven into anyone’s life.

The Old Testament is filled with two-fold stories, where a present story is told, while a different story is also portrayed (usually in the form of prophesy).  Ezekiel 28:11-19 is one of those passages.  It is being written presently to the King of Tyre, but it is also prophetic about Satan’s end because of his pride while he dwelt in heaven as an angel of God.  “You were an anointed guardian cherubim.” (vs. 14a)  “You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created, till unrighteousness was found in you.” (vs. 15)  “Your heart was PROUD because of your beauty; you corrupted your wisdom for the sake of splendor.  I cast you to the ground.” (vs. 17a) That verse also refers to Genesis where Satan was literally cast to the ground, “on your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life.” (Gen 3:14b)   “By the multitude of your iniquities, in the unrighteousness of your trade you profaned your sanctuaries.” (vs. 18a)  “All who know you among the peoples (God’s children) are appalled at you; you have come to a dreadful end and shall be no more forever.” (vs. 19)  It is because of Satan’s pride that sin started.  Satan wanted to be God.  God cannot be in the presence of sin, which is why He cast Satan into his own realm where he could be king, in hell.  Satan is coming to a dreadful end, indeed, because his fate in the lake of fire is approaching quickly.

Other Verses About Pride

“In arrogance the wicked hotly pursue the poor; let them be caught in the schemes that they have devised, for the wicked boasts of the desires of his soul, and the one greedy for gain curses and renounces the Lord.  In the pride of his face the wicked does not seek him; all his thoughts are, ‘There is no God.’” (Psalm 10:3-4)

“One’s pride will bring him low, but he who is lowly in spirit will obtain honor.” (Proverbs 29:23)

“For all that is in the world – the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride in possessions – is not from the Father but is from the world.  And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.” (1 John 2:16-17)

Pride is a device that can be so easily woven into anyone’s life .  It is an abomination to God and it must be kept in check.  We all fall prey to it and we need to repent when we do fall.  God bless you as you live out a life worthy of the calling.

Here are some more Bible studies that might interest you: Bible study on joy Bible study on friendship Study on repentence

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version

“Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version ®  (ESV ® ), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.”

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A Primer on Pride

Why does Lewis see Pride as the greatest sin, “the utmost evil,” in comparison with which “unchastity, anger, greed, drunkenness, and all that are mere fleabites”? (p. 110). How does he define Pride and its opposite, Humility? What effect does Pride have on one’s relation to other people, to oneself, and to God? What is the relationship between Pride and the other vices? Lewis cites other Christian teachers who share his perspective but does not name them. Who might he be thinking of?

Fleabites? Yes, fleabites. Other vices including unchastity, anger, greed, drunkenness, and so on, are mere “fleabites” – tiny, little offenses in comparison to pride. Why? Lewis gives three reasons for labeling pride as the supreme defect. First, because the devil became the devil by pride. Second, because pride is the cause of every other vice. Third, because pride is the complete anti-God (and anti-others) state of mind. Pride is severely disordered love for self. Think Rabadash in The Horse and His Boy . When it comes to the vices, then, pride is at the very center. As Lewis says, it is “the essential vice, the utmost evil.”

I’m pretty sure Lewis says somewhere that pride is like bad breath: everyone knows you have it except yourself. I know for a fact he says in Mere Christianity that there is “no fault which makes a man more unpopular, and no fault which we are more unconscious of in ourselves.”

Pride is always competitive; it always enjoys power; it always fosters enmity between us and others and between us and God. Indeed, “as long as you are proud, you cannot know God. A proud man is always looking down on things and people.” Pride can even “smuggle” its way into our religious life. The devil might even erect within us a “dictatorship of pride.” It’s demonic, a “spiritual cancer.” Of course, Lewis is careful to say that taking pleasure in being praised is not pride; nor is one sinful if he or she is properly proud of his or her son, father, mother, or school, and so on. Pride is not something God forbids because his dignity is offended by it, nor is its antonym a greasy, smarmy humility.

Though we may take exception to Lewis’s views on pride, he’s in good company. As he notes other “Christian teachers” affirm what he has basically said. I bet Lewis has at least Saint Augustine and William Law in mind. Indeed, the former once confessed in his Confessions : “I scorned to be a little one and, swollen with pride, I looked upon myself as fully grown (5.9).” And the latter once wrote in his Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life : “For you can have no greater sign of a more confirmed pride, than when you think that you are humble enough” (Chapter xvi).

Indeed! People who are truly humble do not recognize it. They are not thinking of themselves or others at all. They are too busy enjoying life to do so, says Lewis.

If we would cultivate this kind of genuine humility, we must first recognize our pride. That’s the first step. We must take off that “fancy-dress.” On the other hand, as Lewis affirmed, if we think we are not conceited, we are very conceited indeed. This reminds me of 1 John 1:8 – “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.”

Lord, help us to know ourselves.

Dr. David K. Naugle is chair and professor of philosophy at Dallas Baptist University where he has worked for 21 years in both administrative and academic capacities. He earned a Th.D. in systematic theology, and a Ph.D. in humanities with concentrations in philosophy and English literature. Dr. Naugle is the author of  Worldview: The History of a Concept  (Eerdmans 2002), which was selected by Christianity Today magazine as the 2003 book of the year in the theology and ethics. He is on the “Creative Council” (Board) of Art House, Dallas, and has a forthcoming volume titled  Philosophy: A Student’s Guide  due out Sept. 2012 (Crossway).

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Pride as Father of all Sin - Sermons, Bible Studies, Articles, and Essays

The Case Against Pride

Three symptoms of pride include (1) lying to protect our self-image; (2) competitiveness; (3) believing our personal ideas are more valuable than God's Truth.

Pride, Humility, and Fasting

The intent of fasting is to deflate our pride—the major taproot of sin—the biggest deterrent to a positive relationship with God. Humility heals the breach.

From Pride to Humility

Two tests to reveal the presence of pride are the way we treat others (especially our own family) and the way we receive instruction or correction.

Pride, Contention, and Unity

The sin of pride underlies many of our other sins, and it is often the reason for the contentions we get into as brethren.

Living By Faith and Human Pride

God wants us to walk—live our lives—by faith, but our pride and vanity frequently get in the way. Critically, pride causes us to reject God and His Word.

Living by Faith: Human Pride

Our human nature is pure vanity with a heart that is desperately deceitful and wicked, motivated by self-centeredness, a deadly combination for producing sin.

Pride, Humility, and the Day of Atonement

Atonement, when we are commanded to afflict our souls, is a time of self-evaluation and repentance. This is the only way to have real unity with God.

Thou Shall Not Covet

Because virtually every sin begins as a desire in the mind, the command against coveting (lustful cravings) could be the key to keeping the other commandments.

Ecclesiastes and Christian Living (Part Nine): Wisdom as a Defense

The type of wisdom Ecclesiastes teaches is not of the purely philosophical variety, but is a spiritual sagacity combined with practical skill in living.

What Does God Really Want? (Part 3)

The Good Samaritan parable teaches that unless one practices doing good rather than just knowing good, his faith will be severely compromised.

Job, Self-Righteousness, and Humility

The story of Job reveals a man whom God forced to see himself as he really was, and his true self-image paved the way to a leap forward in spiritual growth.

New Covenant Priesthood (Part Seven)

Pride is the basis of resisting God, while humility is the key to a relationship with Him. We recognize it in others but we seldom see it in ourselves.

Psalm 8: What Is Man?

Psalm 8 declares that the Creator of the universe has our backs, keeping us under close observation and unfailing protection throughout our sanctification.

New Covenant Priesthood (Part Eight)

Pride leads to destruction, tricking us into thinking we deserve better than we have. Paradoxically, pride is a mark of inferiority, causing overcompensation.

Faith (Part Seven)

Pride is a perverted comparison that elevates one above another. Because of its arrogant self-sufficiency, it hinders our faith. Faith depends on humility.

New Covenant Priesthood (Part Nine)

Pride elevates one above God, denigrating any dependence upon God, replacing it with self-idolatry. We ought to boast or glory in the Lord instead of ourselves.

Vanity (Part 2)

Solomon's statement that all of life is vanity is only true if one is not privy to God's ultimate purpose for mankind. Paul describes what God is doing.

Faith (Part Six)

The hallmark of Christian character is humility, which comes about only when one sees himself in comparison to God. Pride makes distorted comparisons.

Satan, Division, and Humility

Competition is the root cause of war, business takeovers, and marital discord. Solomon describes man's rivalry with one another as a striving after wind.

Checklist for Overcoming

Romans 12-16 provide a checklist for overcoming and promoting positive relationships, developing tender affection. We are mutually dependent upon one another.

James and Unleavened Bread (Part Two)

The epistle of James stresses both faith and works, emphasizing those factors necessary for growth, enabling us to produce a bountiful harvest of fruit.

All About Edom (Part Three): Obadiah

The Bible's most comprehensive prophecy about Edom appears in Obadiah. This "minor" prophet foretells the future for the descendants of Esau.

The Heart's Self-Absorption

II Timothy 3:1-5 contains 19 characteristics of carnality. The common denominator is self-absorption and pride, placing the self above others.

Honor Before Love

Agape love will not occur unless we first learn to honor, esteem, and cherish God and the preciousness of Christ's sacrifice for us.

Money Is Power

If we are untrustworthy with a paltry sum of money, we will be untrustworthy with the vast resources of God's creative power.

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By BGEA Admin   •   August 5, 2019   •   Topics: Pride , Sin

My mother used to tell me that pride was probably the chief sin committed against God. Does the Bible support this theory?

From the writings of the Rev. Billy Graham

Pride is associated with failure, not success. The Bible says: “For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world” (1 John 2:16). No wonder we find the “i” at the center of this word that carries with it an emptiness aching to be filled with something more than ourselves.

Pride consists not in wanting to be rich, but in wanting to be richer than our neighbor. It is not in wanting to be noticed but in wanting to be the most noticed. It is not in wanting to have things but in wanting more things than others. We must never build ourselves up at the expense of others.

A famous Swiss psychiatrist and psychoanalyst once said that “the central neurosis of our time is emptiness.” It is still the same today. Everywhere people are searching for something that makes them feel good about themselves. We want to save ourselves from whatever besets us and we want to do life our way and in our power, for this feeds our egos and our pride. It nourishes our self-esteem to believe that we can manage independently of God. “In his pride the wicked man does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God” (Psalm 10:4, NIV).

Like Lucifer (Satan), we find ourselves saying, “I will be like the Most High” (Isaiah 14:14). Pride is a destructive power. Because of this inherent fault in our nature, which is sin, man’s bias is on the side of error.

How do we counter pride? Humble ourselves before God and submit wholly to Him (James 4:6-10).

(This column is based on the words and writings of the late Rev. Billy Graham.)

Surrender your heart and life to Christ. Pray now .

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Christ is our comforter.

25 Important Examples of Pride in the Bible

According to the Bible, pride is when you think too highly of yourself. Sinful pride usually involves you thinking and acting in a way that shows you think you are better than God and/or the people around you.

Since not all pride is sin, let’s look at 25 important examples of pride in the Bible to learn exactly what sinful pride is so we can examine our own pride in our lives.

1. Jesus is Beat and Mocked by the Guards

“Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the governor’s headquarters, and they gathered the whole battalion before him. And they stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, and twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on his head and put a reed in his right hand. And kneeling before him, they mocked him, saying, ‘Hail, King of the Jews!’ And they spit on him and took the reed and struck him on the head.” (Matthew 27:27-30 ESV)

C.S. Lewis said, “the essential vice, the utmost evil, is Pride.” We see pride, the utmost evil, in action as the guards take the King of the Universe, Jesus Christ, and treat Him as if He were no better than dirt. They beat and mock Jesus before sending Him to the cross, treating Jesus as though He were inferior to them.

2. Naaman’s Refusal to Get into the Water

“And Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, ‘Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored, and you shall be clean.’ But Naaman was angry and went away, saying, ‘Behold, I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call upon the name of the Lord his God, and wave his hand over the place and cure the leper.'” (2nd Kings 5:10-11 ESV)

Naaman had a severe disease called leprosy, which would eventually kill him if nothing was done about it. Elisha told Naaman that God would heal him if Naaman would go wash in the Jordan River, which was a very gross body of water. Naaman was too proud of a man to do so, but eventually, he changed his mind and was healed.

3. Simon the Magician Tries to Buy the Holy Spirit

“Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money, saying, ‘Give me this power also, so that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.'” (Acts 8:18-19 ESV)

Simon saw the Holy Spirit work through the Apostles, and he wanted the same gift. In an ultimate act of pride, Simon tried to buy the gift of the Holy Spirit with money. He tried to take a gift that came from God’s grace and buy it for his prideful pleasure.

4. The Pride in All of Our Hearts

“Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.” (Romans 1:24-25 ESV)

There are points in all of our lives where we sin by doing what God does not want us to do.  We choose to use the good things that God has given us for selfish pleasure. We are being prideful people by doing what we want instead of what the Creator has called us to do.

5. Adam and Eve Eat the Forbidden Fruit

“So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.” (Genesis 3:6 ESV)

When God made the universe, He gave the first humans, Adam and Eve, one rule. That was not to eat the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Due to their pride, they thought they knew more than God and ate the fruit anyway.

6. Saul Persecutes the Church

“And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. Devout men buried Stephen and made great lamentation over him. But Saul was ravaging the church, and entering house after house, he dragged off men and women and committed them to prison.” (Acts 8:1-3 ESV)

Saul, who would later become the apostle Paul, who wrote most of the New Testament, persecuted the early church. Before Saul met Jesus, he was a prideful person who thought he was better than the Jewish Christians. Saul thought he had the right to beat, imprison, and kill them.

7. Goliath Judgment of David

“And the Philistine moved forward and came near to David, with his shield-bearer in front of him. And when the Philistine looked and saw David, he disdained him, for he was but a youth, ruddy and handsome in appearance.” (1 Samuel 17:41-42 ESV)

The Philistine, who is Goliath, looks at the young man David and thinks David is not a worthy opponent to fight. Goliath’s sinful pride only allows him to look at the outside of David, not his heart. It is a good thing that God judges our hearts and not by our physical appearances.

8. The Golden Statue of Nebuchadnezzar

“King Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold, whose height was sixty cubits and its breadth six cubits. He set it up on the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon. And the herald proclaimed aloud, ‘You are commanded, O peoples, nations, and languages, that when you hear the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, you are to fall down and worship the golden image that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up.'” (Daniel 3:1&4-5 ESV)

In the book of Daniel, King Nebuchadnezzar makes a giant gold statue of himself and forces everyone to bow to it. The sin of pride is seen here by Nebuchadnezzar making much of himself instead of God. Later in the book of Daniel, Nebuchadnezzar’s pride leads to him having a very hard time in his life.

9. The Pharisee Judges the Sinner Woman

“One of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him, and he went into the Pharisee’s house and reclined at table. And behold, a woman of the city, who was a sinner, when she learned that he was reclining at table in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster flask of ointment, and standing behind him at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head and kissed his feet and anointed them with the ointment. Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, ‘If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a sinner.'” (Luke 7:36-39 ESV)

The sinner woman, who was probably a prostitute, cleans Jesus’ feet and puts a lovely smelling perfume on Him. The Pharisee, instead of seeing a woman who needs the love of Christ Jesus, judges her and sees a woman who he thinks is the scum of society (as someone fulfilling mens’ lust of the flesh). This prideful person judges the woman because he views himself as better than her.

10. The Pride of the Haughty Spirit

“Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.” (Proverbs 16:18 ESV)

The book of Proverbs is full of teaching on pride. “Haughty” means that you think you are superior or that you have an exalted sense of yourself. People who have a haughty spirit are full of pride because they believe they are better than those around them.

11. Opposition of the Proud

“But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, ‘God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.'” (James 4:6 ESV)

There is such a thing as good pride in the Bible. However, most of the time that pride is mentioned in Scripture, it is something we want to oppose. Often, people whose life is marked by this pride do not understand their need for grace or humility.

12. Judas Sells Jesus for 30 Pieces of Silver

“Then one of the twelve, whose name was Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, ‘What will you give me if I deliver him over to you?’ And they paid him thirty pieces of silver. And from that moment he sought an opportunity to betray him.” (Matthew 26:14-17 ESV)

Even though Judas traveled with Jesus for three years, hearing Him teach God’s word, he sold Jesus for 30 pieces of silver. In a prideful moment of defiance, Judas thought he was better than Jesus and was willing to trade Jesus to those that wanted to kill Him.

13. The Pharisee Who Thinks He Is Better than a Tax Collector

“He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: ‘Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.'” (Luke 18:9-14 ESV)

Pride can be seen in the Pharisee because he thinks he is better than the tax collector because of his good works. However, we see the tax collector crying out for God’s mercy because of his sin. Wise men boast in the Lord and not the good things they do.

14. Pride in Your Possessions

“For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride in possessions—is not from the Father but is from the world.” (1st John 2:16 ESV)

The world will teach us to find our worth in what we look like and own. However, this is the perspective of the proud person who is of this world. We have worth in God because He is the Creator of the world.

15. Pride in the Good Gifts God Has Gave Us

“Thus says the Lord: “‘Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the Lord.'” (Jeremiah 9:23-24 ESV)

It would be easy for us to boast about the things that we are good at or have a lot of. However, that comes from pride because everything we have comes from God. Instead, we should boast in God because we get everything from Him!

16. Pride Prevents Us from Serving Others

“Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.” (Philippians 2:3-4 ESV)

Humility is the exact opposite of pride. Pride tells us to put ourselves at the center of the universe. However, humility actually calls us to love and serve the people around us by looking out for their interests.

17. Hidden Pride in the Disciples

“An argument arose among them as to which of them was the greatest. But Jesus, knowing the reasoning of their hearts, took a child and put him by his side and said to them, ‘”Whoever receives this child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me receives him who sent me. For he who is least among you all is the one who is great.”‘ (Luke 9:46-48 ESV)

People often have pride and do not even know it is hiding in their hearts. For example, when the disciples are fighting over who will be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven, Jesus shows them that those who are greatest have nothing to do with position but has to do with those who are willing to serve.

Jonathan Edwards, who was one of America’s most important theologians and died in 1758, wrote an essay called Undetected Spiritual Pride. He listed seven sneaky (or subtle) symptoms of pride. They are:

• This is when we criticize other people or note how they don’t measure up.
• This is when we are unkind to others, even other Christians, and do not treat them as Christ treats them.
• This is when we act differently than we are, because we want to please others.
• This is when we act mean or bitterly when we have been offended, instead of being quiet and letting God be the Judge.
• This is when we are too bold or confident before God, instead of treating him with the awe and reverence He deserves.
• This is when we do things because we want to be noticed, or we think everyone needs our help.
• This is when we avoid others, especially those who we view to be sinful or unteachable. Instead, as Christ came down to our level, so should we with others who need spiritual guidance.

Reading and understanding these symptoms of spiritual pride show us “the main door by which the devil comes into the hearts of those who are zealous for the advancement of Christ.” (Jonathan Edwards) He says that spiritual pride is so important because from it comes all the other bad behaviors that lead us astray.

18. Pride in Building a Tower to Reach God

“Then they said, ‘Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth.'” (Genesis 11:4 ESV)

At this point in history, there was one language. In this Bible verse, the proud people think that they can build a tower to God and be better than Him. Since God hates pride, He humbles the people by changing their languages and spreading them worldwide.

19. Herod Tries to Be God

“On an appointed day Herod put on his royal robes, took his seat upon the throne, and delivered an oration to them. And the people were shouting, “The voice of a god, and not of a man!” Immediately an angel of the Lord struck him down, because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and breathed his last.” (Acts 12:21-23 ESV)

Herod puts himself in the place of God by allowing people to worship him as a god. The ultimate sign of pride is thinking and allowing others to believe that you are God.

20. Pharaoh Refuses to Listen to God

“Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘Go in to Pharaoh and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord, ‘Let my people go, that they may serve me’…But when Pharaoh saw that there was a respite, he hardened his heart and would not listen to them, as the Lord had said.” (Exodus 8:1 & 15 ESV)

God tells Pharoah by the mouth of Moses to let His people, the Israelites, go from slavery under the Egyptians so that they may serve the Lord. In a sign of his pride, Pharaoh tells God “no” multiple times, is plagued, repents, and then tells God “no” again.

God plagued Pharoah a total of ten different times:

• Water turned to blood
• Frogs from the Nile River
• Lice arising out of dust
• Swarms of flies
• Death of the livestock
• Boils and sores
• Hail of fire
• Three days of darkness
• Death of all firstborn

God continued to give Pharoah chances to obey Him, and began the plagues with the least harm to increasing harm as Pharoah continued to renege on his promises in his displays of self-righteous pride.

21. The Pride of Haughty Eyes

“Haughty eyes and a proud heart, the lamp of the wicked, are sin.” (Proverbs 21:4 ESV)

Haughty eyes are often associated with looking down at others. This shows that your heart is full of pride because you think you are better than others. Instead of looking down on others, we should be looking up to God and praying to Him for humble hearts because God gives grace to the humble.

Jesus did not look down on people based on intellect, wealthy, social status, education, criminal background, or based on any of the ways we so often sadly see in this world today. We are called to love and walk in the image of Christ.

22. The Deception of Pride

“For if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself.” (Galatians 6:3 ESV)

Prideful people think that they are something special, when none of us can compare to God. The good news is that even though we are not something, our God is. We get to know the one who created it all.

23. Uzziah’s Pride Leads to Death of Many

“But when he was strong, he grew proud, to his destruction. For he was unfaithful to the Lord his God and entered the temple of the Lord to burn incense on the altar of incense.” (2nd Chronicles 26:16 ESV)

Uzziah is leading Israel successfully as their king, which leads him to go into the temple and give an offering that was not his job. While this may seem like a little thing, he did not listen to the rules God put in place. The consequences of pride led to the death of many.

24. Jonah Flees From God

“Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, ‘Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it, for their evil has come up before me.’ But Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish. So he paid the fare and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the Lord.” (Jonah 1:1-3 ESV)

The Lord tells Jonah to go and preach about His grace in Nineveh, but Jonah does not want to because he does not want those in Nineveh to get a second chance. Jonah’s pride led him to run in the opposite direction from God. He had so much pride that he thought he could outrun God.

25. Loving Yourself More Than God

“But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God.” (2nd Timothy 3:1-4 ESV)

The last days are the period of time from the resurrection of Jesus to His second coming. During these last times, people will choose to love themselves over loving God by giving in to all the sin mentioned in these Bible verses. They will be swollen with conceit (pride) because they will put other people and things above their love for God.

The Hebrew word for “pride” can literally be translated as “high.” The Hebrew word for “pride” can also be translated as “haughtiness,” “boastfulness,” “arrogance,” or “conceit.” As we see from every one of these 25 great examples above, sinful pride is when you choose to love yourself more than God and the people around you.

Pride is the opposite of humility or being a humble person with a humble spirit and a humble heart. People full of pride choose to use God and others to lift themselves up. Where do you see yourself lifting up yourself or making yourself the center of attention over God and other people?

Pride Is The Worst Of The Seven Sinful Sins Essay Example

Everyone has heard of the 7 deadly sins: pride, greed, lust, envy, gluttony, wrath, and sloth. Amongst these sins, the one that has been recognized and considered as the “deadliest sin” is pride. This is because pride is the base from which all the other sins originate. While pride is indeed considered a deadly sin, having pride can also be beneficial as well. There are two sides of this human flaw: hubris and authentic. Hubris pride can be described as a person who has too much pride and it conveys their personality as arrogant and conceited.  Authentic pride can be considered genuine pride and is often related to a feeling of accomplishment and the reaching of one’s goals. Pride is the greatest human flaw because it can lead someone to have a feeling of superiority over others. Pride is the greatest human asset because it can bring someone great self accomplishment or worth. 

An example of hubris pride can be found in the article, Why Pride Is Poison for Your Soul.  It explains, “Arrogant people tend to score high on narcissism. Excessive pride diminishes self-awareness. Like an arrogant leader who’s always exaggerating his achievements to denigrate his rivals. Excessive pride is an exaggerated appreciation of oneself by devaluating others .” Some may consider Donald Trump as someone having hubristic pride. He routinely boasts about himself and what he has accomplished to make himself look and feel important. He tends to be self-centered, above the law and regularly expects special treatment in all aspects of life. His inflated self-image exemplifies the definition of narcissism when he makes everything about himself and belittles those who challenge him. “Donald Trump as an example of someone with hubris, in part because he brags about things he hasn’t actually done and acts aggressively toward anyone who tries to question his accomplishments” (Suttie).  This flawed character trait can also lead to a division of people and social inequality rather than a leadership style that supports inclusion and can bring opposing sides together. 

Examples of pride as a character flaw can be commonly found in literature. For example, in Aesop’s fable The Tortoise and the Hare, the hare exhibits hubris before and during the race with the tortoise. The hare is excessively proud of his speed and has inflated self-confidence that he will win against the tortoise. This leads him to decide to take a nap during the race, while the tortoise moves slowly but steadily and crosses the finish line first. The hare is subsequently humiliated at being beaten by the tortoise, which is the consequence of his hubris.

Even going as far back as Greek mythology and the gods, hubris has played a role in their character traits. Icarus is given a pair of wings made of feathers held together by wax by his father to escape the island they’ve been banished to. His father warns him not to fly too low to the ocean or too high to the sun as the water and heat will destroy the wings. Icarus ignores his father’s warning and over confidently flies as high as he can. As a result, the sun’s heat melts the wax holding the feathers together and Icarus crashes into the ocean and drowns. 

From many different sources, it has been shown that excessive pride has led to the downfall or ultimate demise of a person. Whether due to one’s vanity or foolish belief that they are better than everyone else, hubris is something everyone experiences during their lifetime. It is how one deals with it, that is most important. If left unchecked, hubris pride causes people to be self-centered which results in someone to have a magnified self-image.  They’re irrational pride causes them to become narcissistic and behave in a presumptuous and disdainful manner.

On the other hand, Pride is one of those character traits that can also be considered a good thing to have.  Pride can build self-esteem and self-confidence. This is called authentic pride. It is based on a feeling of satisfaction and self-respect. Accomplishing a task or conquering a challenge is a big moral booster and an important virtue. A person may feel proud of themselves for hitting a home run or getting a good grade on a test when they’ve studied hard for it. Pride can be a positive internal reinforcement.

In literature, authentic pride is commonly shown through perseverance and dignity. In the Old Man and the Sea, it is Santiago’s perseverance that he relies on to go back out into the ocean on a daily basis for 84 days straight only to return without any fish. Manolin’s empathy supports Santiago and keeps him alive. Although Santiago never asks for any help, his dignity won’t allow it, he is grateful to Manolin’s friendship. Despite the enormous strain his body has endured, Santiago takes pride in landing the giant marlin. He is proud of his accomplishment. 

Even though Santiago was way past his glory days and he was being criticized by the other fishermen in his village because he wasn’t able to bring in any fish, his pride wouldn’t allow him to be blinded by the feeling of needing to be respected by everyone in the village.  Santiago’s hardstuck pride that he built up over the years of fishing has allowed him to change and understand that pride and humility can coexist. 

We experience authentic pride throughout our lifetime. This type of pride is a moral booster that is important to a human’s healthy development in life. Being proud of oneself is a key character trait. It allows us to experience appreciation and gives us confidence in trying new things. As a teenager, you can experience the feeling of authentic pride when you get accepted into your dream college or when you finally get your driver's license. Adults also feel this sense of accomplishment when they get into their first/new job. 

Having pride in what you do helps a person to enjoy life. If someone is constantly belittled or bullied, it causes them to internalize their emotions for fear of embarrassment. Internalizing these emotions can lead to a destructive action or deolute behavior which in extreme situations can lead to self-harm or even suicide. When a person has a sense of pride in themselves, it gives them the confidence and support to overcome harmful feelings of exclusion and self-pity. Focusing on something one is good at is positive reinforcement for a healthy attitude.  These people tend to be self-confident, outgoing, calm, creative, and agreeable.  They also have empathy and show compassion and kindness to others. Being understanding and empathetic to another person’s cause can bring different groups of people together to achieve a desired result. For example, when a governing body is inclusive of all of its people, treats those as equals and provides assistance and a feeling of inclusivity to all, great things can be accomplished to the satisfaction of everyone. People can then be proud of what they have accomplished. 

A person can experience both types of pride throughout life. As a child, learning to ride a bicycle can invoke great feelings of pride. Often that child will boast and brag about what they have accomplished to other kids and adults. They are demonstrating both authentic pride and hubristic pride at the same time. The sense of accomplishment and excitement that they gained by conquering this feat can boost their confidence in trying new things. They may also experience illusions of grandeur and express a desire to try something a little more daring, like riding their bike across a tightrope or some other dangerous activity.  In their immaturity, they may experience a feeling of superiority over their friends or siblings who have not yet been able to master the same task. By displaying this grandiose behavior, it can negatively affect another child’s emotions and lower their feeling of self-worth and cause anxiety. As the child grows older and matures, she or he learns the harmful effects this type of pride can have on others and its negative impacts. Once acknowledged, a person can consciously try to change their arrogant behavior or on the other hand, if left unchecked, their ego can grow out of control until they truly believe they are more important than everyone else, are superior to others and are entitled to the best of everything.

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