Beautiful Word Devotional #94

“Though you soar like the eagle and make your nest among the stars, from there I will bring you down,” declares the LORD.

OBADIAH V. 4

To better understand this Old Testament verse, we need to know who is speaking and to whom.

The speaker is Obadiah, and here he was talking about the demise of Edom, an enemy of Israel. Verse 3 of Obadiah says, “The pride of your heart has deceived you . . . you who say to yourself, ‘Who can bring me down to the ground?’ ”

Although verses 3–4 of Obadiah are about Edom, they can serve as a warning to all of us. Pride cannot only deceive our hearts, but it also renders us vulnerable to God’s judgment.

So no matter what we build or how important we try to become, we must remember that God is not impressed when we choose actions that feed our pride. Instead, God upholds those who depend on him, who see him as big and themselves as small. Pride is, essentially, thinking we’re bigger—smarter, better, more important—than God. And pride will bring us down.

Lord, every day I have many opportunities to humble myself. In those moments, may I choose to acknowledge your bigness, amen.