A Proud Man

“There is more hope of a fool than for him.”
Solomon, in Proverbs 26:12

Anything good a proud man does, does him no good at all. If he reads the Bible, he just becomes prouder because of the fact that he has read the Bible. This was a terrifying lesson to me when I first learned it, for it taught me not to take credit for anything good I might do.

If a proud man worships God, he only becomes prouder because of the fact he has worshiped God. If he falls on his face and cries out to God, he only becomes prouder of how much he has prayed. If he helps the poor, the sees himself as better than the poor man. If he brings God his tithes and offerings, the larger the amount he brings, the prouder he grows. If he ceases from doing evil deeds, he becomes proud of his goodness.

Pride is a horrible trap. For if a proud man does good, he becomes more evil because of it. This is why Solomon said that there was more hope for a fool than for a proud man.