796_God Brings the Proud Low (Ezekiel 25-32)
Ezekiel 29:1-6 In the tenth year, in the tenth month, on the twelfth day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, set your face against Pharaoh king of Egypt, and prophesy against him and against all Egypt; 3 speak, and say, Thus says the Lord God:
“Behold, I am against you,
Pharaoh king of Egypt,
the great dragon that lies
in the midst of his streams,
that says, ‘My Nile is my own;
I made it for myself.’
4 I will put hooks in your jaws,
and make the fish of your streams stick to your scales;
and I will draw you up out of the midst of your streams,
with all the fish of your streams
that stick to your scales.
5 And I will cast you out into the wilderness,
you and all the fish of your streams;
you shall fall on the open field,
and not be brought together or gathered.
To the beasts of the earth and to the birds of the heavens
I give you as food.
6 Then all the inhabitants of Egypt shall know that I am the Lord.
There is an old saying, “The higher the tree, the harder it falls.” A person may become powerful, wealthy, respected, and influential, and begin to think that he is invincible. But history repeatedly reminds us that human greatness is fragile. Kingdoms rise and disappear. Empires eventually lie in ruins. Names that commanded fear become footnotes in history.
Ezekiel chapters 25 to 32 take us through such a landscape. One after another, God’s judgment is uttered against the nations surrounding Judah—Ammon, Moab, Edom, Philistia, Tyre, Sidon, and Egypt. These were powerful nations, and some had prospered while Judah was being brought low. But they gloated over the suffering of God’s people and took it as their chance to rise still greater on the ashes of Judah. They began to exalt themselves. But they lost sight of the greatness of God. He who judges His own people also rules over the nations.
For example, when Ammon saw Jerusalem fall, the sanctuary of God profaned, the desolation of Israel, and the exile of Judah, they rejoiced. God said to them, “Because you have clapped your hands and stamped your feet and rejoiced with all the malice within your soul against the land of Israel, therefore, behold, I have stretched out my hand against you” (Ezekiel 25:6–7). It wasn’t merely that they had witnessed Israel’s judgment. Their problem was that they celebrated it with malicious delight.
And this gives us an important warning. There is a difference between recognizing God’s justice and rejoicing in another person’s downfall. It is tempting to say to ourselves, “Well, they deserved it!” when someone who has hurt us fails, or when someone who once opposed us gets into trouble. But Proverbs 24:17 says, “Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, and let not your heart be glad when he stumbles.” Another person’s fall is never an invitation for our pride to rise.
When we come to Tyre, the picture becomes even more striking. When Jerusalem fell, Tyre saw an opportunity for herself. She said, “Aha, the gateway of the peoples is broken; it has swung open to me. I shall be replenished, now that she is laid waste” (Ezekiel 26:2). Tyre looked at another person’s disaster and saw only gain for herself. She was blind to the suffering of Israel.
And Tyre was brought down. Ezekiel 26 describes its destruction in detail. “They will plunder your riches and loot your merchandise. They will break down your walls and destroy your pleasant houses. Your stones and timber and soil they will cast into the midst of the waters” (Ezekiel 26:12). Centuries later, Alexander the Great constructed a causeway to the island city using material from the old mainland city, including stones and timber thrown into the sea.
But Ezekiel’s message goes deeper than the fall of a city. In chapter 28, the prophet speaks to the prince of Tyre, whose heart had become proud. He says, “Because your heart is proud, and you have said, ‘I am a god, I sit in the seat of the gods, in the heart of the seas,’ yet you are but a man, and no god” (Ezekiel 28:2).
What a dangerous transformation pride can produce. Enjoying the gifts of wisdom, attractiveness, wealth, and influence, a man may begin to think that he is self-made and self-sufficient. He forgets the One who gave him everything. He moves from gratitude to self-glory.
But the language moves beyond ordinary pride. Describing the pride of Tyre’s king, it goes back to speak of Eden, a cherub, beauty, wisdom, and a fall through corruption and pride. Christian tradition has often interpreted this passage as revealing, at least typologically, the spiritual reality behind human pride—the rebellion of Satan himself. Whether we focus on the earthly ruler or the spiritual power represented through him, the principle remains the same: pride takes what God has given and turns it into a challenge to God Himself.
Then Ezekiel turns to Egypt, capturing Pharaoh’s pride in one astonishing sentence: “My Nile is my own; I made it for myself” (Ezekiel 29:3). Beyond enjoying the prosperity of Egypt, Pharaoh now suffered from delusions of grandeur. But God was about to demonstrate that the Nile did not belong to Pharaoh, Egypt did not belong to Pharaoh, and neither did history. All of it belonged to God.
This is where Ezekiel’s message comes close to our own lives. We are not kings or emperors, but we have our own “Nile.” We take pride in the abilities we were born with and have developed, our education, our careers, possessions, social status, reputation, family, or ministry. In our hearts we gloat over them, saying to ourselves, “I made this. I achieved this. This is mine.” Yet Deuteronomy 8:17–18 warns us, “Beware lest you say in your heart, ‘My power and the might of my hand have gotten me this wealth.’ You shall remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth.”
Then, in Ezekiel 31, God gives Pharaoh another picture. He points to Assyria as a mighty cedar tree. It was tall, beautiful, fruitful, and watered by abundant rivers. Birds nested in its branches, and other nations lived under its shade. But then God says, “Because it was great in height, and set its top among the clouds, and its heart was proud of its height, therefore I gave it into the hand of a mighty one” (Ezekiel 31:10–11).
Notice what brought the tree down. Neither its weakness nor its height, but its greatness led to pride, and its pride led to its downfall.
That is a sobering thought for all of us. The problem is not success, knowledge, influence, or prosperity. The danger is when we allow them to hide the underlying fact that they come from God’s hand. What ought to make us humble and grateful can make us proud and doomed.
Finally, in chapter 32, Ezekiel pictures Pharaoh as a great sea monster whom God drags from the waters, kills, and casts down. The nations tremble at his fall. And Pharaoh finds himself among other fallen powers—Assyria, Elam, Edom, and others. Those who once seemed mighty are now together in the place of the dead.
The message is unmistakable. No throne or empire is eternal. No human achievement is ultimate. Pride may reign for a season, but God remains sovereign over history. Psalm 2:10–12 says, “Now therefore, O kings, be wise; be warned, O rulers of the earth. Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.”
And yet there is something beautiful in the middle of all these judgments. God was not finished with His people. Israel was disciplined but not abandoned. The surrounding nations failed to understand this. They saw Judah’s humiliation and assumed that God was done with them. Yet he had promised restoration and security for His people.
That gives us hope. Sometimes God allows us to be brought low because He is disciplining, refining, or redirecting us. While human kingdoms rise and fall, God’s purposes endure. First Peter 5:5–6 reveals the truth: “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” And therefore, “Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you.”
The question for us today is not how God is pulling down the proud. It goes deeper. Where is pride growing in my heart? What is my “Nile”? What blessing have I begun to regard as my own achievement and not what God gave me? Whose failure am I tempted to celebrate? Why do I trust myself and not in God’s grace?
The nations of Ezekiel’s day thought their greatness would protect them. But history witnesses to the truth of God’s word. Let us not wait until God brings us low to learn humility. Let us willingly bow before Him today.
For his hands bring low but also exalt at the right time. Let us therefore humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God, trust His sovereignty, receive His gifts thankfully, and use them to do his will. God bless
Take a few moments to reflect on these questions
What are some areas of your life where God’s blessings, abilities, or achievements could gradually become sources of pride, and why?
How should you respond when you see someone who has opposed you experiencing failure or difficulty, and what does Ezekiel 25–32 teach you about that response?
How can you practically humble yourself under God’s mighty hand while continuing to faithfully use the gifts, opportunities, and responsibilities He has entrusted to you?
Let us pray
Heavenly Father, You are sovereign over our lives, over nations, and over all creation. I recognize that I often become proud of my “Nile”, of the blessings you created and gave me. I humble myself before you and give you thanks. I pray with compassion for those who have fallen. I trust your purposes even when I am brought low. I want to use all that You have entrusted to me to do only what you want me to do. In Jesus Christ’s name. Amen.
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