Mon, 25 September, 2006: Today’s Bible readings.
1 The word of the LORD came to me: 2 “Son of man, say to the prince of Tyre, Thus says the Lord GOD:
“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,
though you make your heart like the heart of a god–
3 you are indeed wiser than Daniel;
no secret is hidden from you;
4 by your wisdom and your understanding
you have made wealth for yourself,
and have gathered gold and silver
into your treasuries;
5 by your great wisdom in your trade
you have increased your wealth,
and your heart has become proud in your wealth–
6 therefore thus says the Lord GOD:
Because you make your heart
like the heart of a god,
7 therefore, behold, I will bring foreigners upon you,
the most ruthless of the nations;
and they shall draw their swords against the beauty of your wisdom
and defile your splendor.
8 They shall thrust you down into the pit,
and you shall die the death of the slain
in the heart of the seas.
9 Will you still say, ‘I am a god,’
in the presence of those who kill you,
though you are but a man, and no god,
in the hands of those who slay you?
10 You shall die the death of the uncircumcised
by the hand of foreigners;
for I have spoken, declares the Lord GOD.”
Tyre was a wealthy and powerful city built upon its shipping trade throughout the Mediterranean. The king of Tyre became quite proud of the influence he had earned through the mastery of the sea. In fact, he apparently thought of himself as a god in his control over the sea. Because of this pride, God says He will destroy Tyre.
What do we learn from this?
God hates pride. God tells us He will oppose the proud but show grace to the humble. So as we are prideful, God sets Himself in opposition to us. God is against Tyre and says He will destroy it because of their pride.
He will do the same to us. If we are proud of ourselves and what we have done, God will oppose us. If we are proud of our gifts and abilities, our wealth and our power, God will destroy us.
Where is Christ in this passage?
The salvation we have in Jesus Christ is the exact opposite of pride. Instead of looking at ourselves, what we have done or can do, we are to look to Jesus Christ and what He has done for us. We don’t claim any merit or ability for our salvation. Just the opposite. When we are trusting in Jesus Christ savingly, we recognize there is noting of merit in us. We have nothing to be proud of, but instead look only to Jesus Christ and what He has done for our salvation.
