Fall of Tyre’s Ruler
1 The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, say to the ruler of Tyre: This is what the Lord God says: Your heart is proud, and you have said, ‘I am a god; I sit in the seat of gods in the heart of the sea.’ Yet you are a man and not a god, though you have regarded your heart as that of a god. 3 Yes, you are wiser than Daniel; no secret is hidden from you! 4 By your wisdom and understanding you have acquired wealth for yourself. You have acquired gold and silver for your treasuries. 5 By your great skill in trading you have increased your wealth, but your heart has become proud because of your wealth.” 6 Therefore this is what the Lord God says: Because you regard your heart as that of a god, 7 I am about to bring strangers against you, ruthless men from the nations. They will draw their swords against your magnificent wisdom and will defile your splendor. 8 They will bring you down to the Pit, and you will die a violent death in the heart of the sea. 9 Will you still say, ‘I am a god,’ in the presence of those who kill you? Yet you will be only a man, not a god, in the hands of those who kill you. 10 You will die the death of the uncircumcised at the hands of strangers. For I have spoken. This is the declaration of the Lord God.
Ezekiel 28:1-10 HCSB
Pride comes before destruction, and an arrogant spirit before a fall (Proverbs 16:18 HCSB).
Wisdom and understanding will make you good at what you do, and can help you create great wealth. However, wealth can make you prideful, and think that you are greater than you really are. The wealth of Tyre's ruler made him feel invincible and think he was a god, but as we know there's only one true God; and as the Tyre ruler discovered, no amount of wealth can protect anyone from Him.
Let's seek to guard our hearts against the temptation of pride.