Pride brings a man low, while a humble spirit gathers honor.
Ordinary expectations about pride and humility are reversed in Proverbs 29:23: A man's pride will bring him low, but a humble spirit will obtain honor (v. 23). The pattern is striking and reliable.
A man's pride will bring him low because it elevates the man in his own eyes and, in time, lowers him in the world's eyes. He outpaces his competence. He alienates his allies. He misses warnings that humility would have heard. Eventually he falls.
Humility does the opposite work: But a humble spirit will obtain honor. The humble man does not chase honor, and so honor finds him. He gains the trust of others by his refusal to demand it. He rises in the world's estimation precisely because he was not pursuing the rise. This can be compared to the message of 1 Peter 5:6: "Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time."
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Proverbs 29:23 meaning
Ordinary expectations about pride and humility are reversed in Proverbs 29:23: A man's pride will bring him low, but a humble spirit will obtain honor (v. 23). The pattern is striking and reliable.
A man's pride will bring him low because it elevates the man in his own eyes and, in time, lowers him in the world's eyes. He outpaces his competence. He alienates his allies. He misses warnings that humility would have heard. Eventually he falls.
Humility does the opposite work: But a humble spirit will obtain honor. The humble man does not chase honor, and so honor finds him. He gains the trust of others by his refusal to demand it. He rises in the world's estimation precisely because he was not pursuing the rise. This can be compared to the message of 1 Peter 5:6: "Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time."