Very Proud

Very Proud

Reading: Ezekiel 25-28; Revelation 10 4 With your wisdom and understanding you have amassed great wealth—gold and silver for your treasuries. 5 Yes, your wisdom has made you very rich, and your riches have made you very proud. (Ezekiel 28:4-5 NLT) In this prophecy to and about the King of the island city-state of Tyre, Ezekiel uses some language that not only addresses the human king of Tyre, but addresses Satan, whose pride and rebellion made him an enemy of God and good. The King of Tyre was a brilliant leader. He had made his small city-state into a center of world trade. Tyre produced quality manufactured goods, but they also bought and sold all kinds of goods—and reaped a handsome profit from their business. The King of Tyre had made his state and himself very wealthy by the application of his “wisdom” and he had consequently become very proud. He had become proud just as Satan became proud before he was cast out of heaven. I’ve known some wealthy people through the years and here’s something I’ve observed—when you are very wealthy, people treat you differently. Some are intimidated, others are impressed, some look for what they can get from you—but people really do treat you differently if you are very wealthy. The big danger that Ezekiel is addressing is that when one has amassed great wealth through wisdom and skill, the next step is often pride. There are many people who have wisdom (and insight, skill, ability, drive, motivation) who don’t amass a lot of wealth. Some servant-hearted people use their wisdom and they work hard and skillfully to serve the poor, to address injustice, to ease suffering, to create art and beauty. That’s a good thing. But in any case, the main issue here is pride, and pride is always destructive! Prayer: Father, I pray for people I know who have wisdom and who use their wisdom to amass wealth, to achieve success, to accomplish goals, and to achieve some degree of fame or recognition. I pray that they will not give in to pride. And I pray that you will protect me and my friends who are reading this from pride. I am your servant and I serve at the pleasure of my Lord Jesus Christ. Amen!