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Bible verses about pride and humility

Proverbs 16:18 — pride goes before destruction — is where most lists start, and it is below in full, along with the half of it the English saying leaves out. So are the verse James and Peter both quote, which reads differently in the Hebrew, and the passages on humility that answer it. This page is about pride in the sense these texts mean: putting yourself above God and other people.

12 passages · World English Bible & King James · public domain

  1. Pride goes before destruction, and an arrogant spirit before a fall.Proverbs 16:18 · World English Bible

    Pride goes before destruction. The 'fall' belongs to the second half, and the word occurs only here.

    King James

    Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.

  2. When pride comes, then comes shame, but with humility comes wisdom.Proverbs 11:2 · World English Bible

    When pride comes, then comes shame — but with humility comes wisdom.

    King James

    When pride cometh, then cometh shame: but with the lowly is wisdom.

  3. A man’s pride brings him low, but one of lowly spirit gains honour.Proverbs 29:23 · World English Bible

    Pride brings a person low. The translations disagree about who holds whom.

    King James

    A man’s pride shall bring him low: but honour shall uphold the humble in spirit.

  4. Surely he mocks the mockers, but he gives grace to the humble.Proverbs 3:34 · World English Bible

    The Hebrew behind 'God resists the proud': he mocks the mockers.

    King James

    Surely he scorneth the scorners: but he giveth grace unto the lowly.

  5. But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”James 4:6 · World English Bible

    God resists the proud — quoted from the Greek Septuagint, not the Hebrew.

    King James

    But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.

  6. Likewise, you younger ones, be subject to the elder. Yes, all of you clothe yourselves with humility and subject yourselves to one another; for “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”1 Peter 5:5 · World English Bible

    The same quotation, word for word, after 'clothe yourselves with humility'.

    King James

    Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.

  7. doing nothing through rivalry or through conceit, but in humility, each counting others better than himself; each of you not just looking to his own things, but each of you also to the things of others.Philippians 2:3-4 · World English Bible

    Counting others better than yourself, and looking to their things as well as your own.

    King James

    Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.

  8. He has shown you, O man, what is good. What does the LORD require of you, but to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?Micah 6:8 · World English Bible

    Act justly, love mercy, walk humbly. Three things, and the last is a way of walking.

    King James

    He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?

  9. “Two men went up into the temple to pray; one was a Pharisee, and the other was a tax collector. The Pharisee stood and prayed by himself like this: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of men: extortionists, unrighteous, 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 away, wouldn’t 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 he who humbles himself will be exalted.”Luke 18:10-14 · World English Bible

    Two men in the temple. The proud man's prayer is a thank-you.

    King James

    Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon 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 every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.

  10. Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honour the King of heaven; for all his works are truth, and his ways justice; and those who walk in pride he is able to abase.Daniel 4:37 · World English Bible

    Written by the proud king himself: those who walk in pride he is able to abase.

    King James

    Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honour the King of heaven, all whose works are truth, and his ways judgment: and those that walk in pride he is able to abase.

  11. For I say through the grace that was given me, to everyone who is amongst you, not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think; but to think reasonably, as God has apportioned to each person a measure of faith.Romans 12:3 · World English Bible

    Think soberly — one verb used four times in one sentence.

    King James

    For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.

  12. For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—isn’t the Father’s, but is the world’s.1 John 2:16 · World English Bible

    The pride of life: empty boasting, a word used only twice.

    King James

    For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

“Pride comes before a fall” is half a verse

Pride goes before destruction, and an arrogant spirit before a fall.Proverbs 16:18 · World English Bible

The English saying is “pride comes before a fall”. The verse has two halves, and the saying joins the front of one to the end of the other. In Hebrew the first half’s destruction is shever (7667), a breaking, and the second half’s fall is kishshalon (3783), a word that occurs only here in the Bible. The lexicon gives it as “properly, a tottering”. So the picture is less a drop from a height than a stumble.

When pride comes, then comes shame, but with humility comes wisdom.Proverbs 11:2 · World English Bible
A man’s pride brings him low, but one of lowly spirit gains honour.Proverbs 29:23 · World English Bible

Open the King James on Proverbs 29:23 in the list above and the two translations disagree about who takes hold of whom. The verb is tamak (8551), to grasp or hold: the modern rendering has the lowly one who gains honour, the King James has honour shall uphold the humble. Either way the humble end up held.

The verse James and Peter both quote

But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”James 4:6 · World English Bible
Likewise, you younger ones, be subject to the elder. Yes, all of you clothe yourselves with humility and subject yourselves to one another; for “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”1 Peter 5:5 · World English Bible
Surely he mocks the mockers, but he gives grace to the humble.Proverbs 3:34 · World English Bible

James and Peter are quoting Proverbs 3:34, and not from the Hebrew. Their words match the Greek translation of the Old Testament, the Septuagint, exactly, except that they write “God” where it has “Lord” — Ellicott, Meyer and the Pulpit Commentary all say so. The Hebrew, which both our translations follow, says something sharper: he mocks the mockers, a verb, luts (3887), for scorn. You can see the two side by side on this page. The second half is the part every version agrees on: grace to the humble.

For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—isn’t the Father’s, but is the world’s.1 John 2:16 · World English Bible

The pride of life is alazoneia (212), which the lexicon glosses “empty boasting, mere bragging”. It occurs twice in the New Testament, and the other is ten verses after “God resists the proud”, at James 4:16.

Humility, described

doing nothing through rivalry or through conceit, but in humility, each counting others better than himself; each of you not just looking to his own things, but each of you also to the things of others.Philippians 2:3-4 · World English Bible
He has shown you, O man, what is good. What does the LORD require of you, but to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?Micah 6:8 · World English Bible
For I say through the grace that was given me, to everyone who is amongst you, not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think; but to think reasonably, as God has apportioned to each person a measure of faith.Romans 12:3 · World English Bible

Romans 12:3 is a sentence built out of one verb. Not to think more highly (hyperphronein) than you ought to think (phronein), but to think (phronein) so as to think soberly (sophronein) — three forms of the same verb, four times over, which you can see on the interlinear. What it asks for is accuracy, not thinking badly of yourself.

Two men in the temple

“Two men went up into the temple to pray; one was a Pharisee, and the other was a tax collector. The Pharisee stood and prayed by himself like this: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of men: extortionists, unrighteous, 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 away, wouldn’t 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 he who humbles himself will be exalted.”Luke 18:10-14 · World English Bible

The Pharisee’s prayer is a thank-you. That is what makes the story uncomfortable: nothing in it is a lie about his fasting or his giving. The line it ends on, everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, is one Luke gives twice, the first time at a dinner where guests were choosing the best seats (Luke 14:11).

A king who learned it

Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honour the King of heaven; for all his works are truth, and his ways justice; and those who walk in pride he is able to abase.Daniel 4:37 · World English Bible

Daniel 4 is told in Nebuchadnezzar’s own voice, as a letter to all the peoples, nations, and languages (Daniel 4:1). The lesson about pride is written down by the proud man himself, at the end, after the fall.

What this page is not

It is a set of passages with their context, not counsel. The warnings here are about putting yourself above God and other people. They are not an instruction to think little of yourself, and Romans 12:3 asks for sober judgment, not self-contempt. If what you are carrying is shame rather than pride, our page on shame is the closer fit, and our pages on jealousy and envy and anger cover the neighboring ground.

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Questions

What does the Bible say about pride?

Proverbs 16:18 says pride goes before destruction, Proverbs 11:2 that pride brings shame while humility brings wisdom, and James 4:6 and 1 Peter 5:5 that God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. Luke 18 sets a proud man's prayer beside a humble one, and Micah 6:8 asks people to walk humbly with God.

Does the Bible say 'pride comes before a fall'?

Not quite. Proverbs 16:18 reads 'Pride goes before destruction, and an arrogant spirit before a fall' — the English saying joins the two halves. The Hebrew word for 'fall' there occurs nowhere else in the Bible.

Where does 'God resists the proud' come from?

James 4:6 and 1 Peter 5:5 quote Proverbs 3:34 from the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament, with 'God' for 'Lord'. The Hebrew of Proverbs 3:34, which our translations follow, reads 'he mocks the mockers, but he gives grace to the humble'.

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