Job 40:10-12

40:10 Adorn yourself, then, with majesty and excellency,

and clothe yourself with glory and honor!

40:11 Scatter abroad ¹  the abundance ²  of your anger.

Look at every proud man ³  and bring him low;

40:12 Look at every proud man and abase him;

crush the wicked on the spot! ⁴ 

Psalms 138:6

138:6 Though the Lord is exalted, he takes note of the lowly,

and recognizes the proud from far away.

Proverbs 18:12

18:12 Before destruction the heart ⁵  of a person is proud,

but humility comes ⁶  before honor. ⁷ 

Proverbs 30:13

30:13 There is a generation whose eyes are so lofty, ⁸ 

and whose eyelids are lifted up disdainfully. ⁹ 

Isaiah 2:11-12

2:11 Proud men will be brought low,

arrogant men will be humiliated; ¹⁰ 

the Lord alone will be exalted ¹¹ 

in that day.

2:12 Indeed, the Lord who commands armies has planned a day of judgment, ¹² 

for ¹³  all the high and mighty,

for all who are proud – they will be humiliated;

Daniel 4:37

4:37 Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven, for all his deeds are right and his ways are just. He is able to bring down those who live ¹⁴  in pride.

Luke 14:11

14:11 For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but ¹⁵  the one who humbles ¹⁶  himself will be exalted.”

James 4:6

4:6 But he gives greater grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but he gives grace to the humble.” ¹⁷ 

¹ tn The verb was used for scattering lightning (Job 37:11). God is challenging Job to unleash his power and judge wickedness in the world.

² tn Heb “the overflowings.”

³ tn The word was just used in the positive sense of excellence or majesty; now the exalted nature of the person refers to self-exaltation, or pride.

⁴ tn The expression translated “on the spot” is the prepositional phrase תַּחְתָּם (takhtam, “under them”). “Under them” means in their place. But it can also mean “where someone stands, on the spot” (see Exod 16:29; Jos 6:5; Judg 7:21, etc.).

⁵ sn The term “heart” is a metonymy of subject, referring to the seat of the spiritual and intellectual capacities – the mind, the will, the motivations and intentions. Proud ambitions and intentions will lead to a fall.

⁶ tn Heb “[is] before honor”; cf. CEV “humility leads to honor.”

⁷ sn The way to honor is through humility (e.g., Prov 11:2; 15:33; 16:18). The humility and exaltation of Jesus provides the classic example (Phil 2:1-10).

⁸ tn Heb “how high are its eyes!” This is a use of the interrogative pronoun in exclamatory sentences (R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 25, §127).

⁹ tn Heb “its eyelids are lifted up,” a gesture indicating arrogance and contempt or disdain for others. To make this clear, the present translation supplies the adverb “disdainfully” at the end of the verse.

¹⁰ tn Heb “and the eyes of the pride of men will be brought low, and the arrogance of men will be brought down.” The repetition of the verbs שָׁפַל (shafal) and שָׁחָח (shakhakh) from v. 9 draws attention to the appropriate nature of the judgment. Those proud men who “bow low” before idols will be forced to “bow low” before God when he judges their sin.

¹¹ tn Or “elevated”; CEV “honored.”

¹² tn Heb “indeed [or “for”] the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts] has a day.”

¹³ tn Or “against” (NAB, NASB, NRSV).

¹⁴ tn Aram “walk.”

¹⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context, which involves the reversal of expected roles.

¹⁶ sn The point of the statement the one who humbles himself will be exalted is humility and the reversal imagery used to underline it is common: Luke 1:52-53; 6:21; 10:15; 18:14.

¹⁷ sn A quotation from Prov 3:34.