The concept of pride is prevalent in the Bible and is frequently depicted as a perilous mindset that results in demise and estrangement from God. The world may praise pride as self-assurance or independence, but Scripture cautions that unbridled pride can blind us to the truth and harden our hearts. A proud heart frequently keeps us from the very support and insight we require, as the Bible emphasizes when it says that God opposes the arrogant but extends grace to the humble.
The Bible verses about being proud is replete with warning stories about people who let pride grow in their hearts, from the fall of Lucifer to the overthrow of monarchs. Pride can take many different forms, such as spiritual haughtiness, self-righteousness, or a resistance to change or listening. It subtly shifts our focus from God to ourselves, making us believe we are in control or above correction. The risk resides in its propensity to delude and alienate, both from others and from God.
At the same time, the Bible distinguishes between destructive pride and healthy confidence. Being proud of God’s work in our lives or of a job well done isn’t intrinsically incorrect. When pride turns from glorifying God to glorifying oneself, it becomes problematic. Humility—the understanding that every talent, accomplishment, and gift originates from the Lord—is the foundation of true confidence.
These Bible verses about being proud will assist you in assessing the state of your heart. Whether you are battling pride or trying to comprehend God’s perspective on it, these verses provide insight, guidance, and hope. They remind us that humility is the path to honor and that letting go of pride leads to a closer relationship with God and more wholesome relationships with others.
30 Powerful Bible Verses About Being Proud in 2025
1. Proverbs 16:18
“Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.”
This classic warning reveals the inevitable downfall that follows unchecked pride. Arrogance blinds individuals to their vulnerabilities, often leading them into failure. God’s wisdom teaches that humility offers safety, while pride invites ruin. This verse urges us to examine our hearts and stay humble before God and others.
2. James 4:6
“God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.”
James emphasizes God’s active resistance to pride. Pride isn’t just a flaw—it places us in opposition to God’s grace. However, humility opens the door to divine favor. This verse reminds believers to cultivate a lowly spirit if they want to walk under God’s blessing.
3. Proverbs 11:2
“When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.”
Pride attracts disgrace, not honor. In contrast, humility brings insight and clarity. This proverb reveals the moral and practical consequences of both attitudes. A proud heart isolates itself from truth, while humility is the foundation of lasting wisdom.
4. 1 Peter 5:5
“All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, ‘God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.’”
Peter urges the early church to adopt a posture of humility in their relationships. Just as clothes cover the body, humility should cover our interactions. Pride breeds division and strife, but humility draws God’s favor and creates unity among believers.
5. Isaiah 2:12
“The Lord Almighty has a day in store for all the proud and lofty, for all that is exalted—and they will be humbled.”
This prophecy declares a day of reckoning for the proud. God sees every heart lifted up in arrogance and promises that no haughty person will escape His judgment. The verse reveals God’s deep displeasure with pride and assures us that humility will ultimately triumph.
6. Luke 18:14
“For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
Spoken by Jesus in the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector, this verse highlights a divine reversal. God resists self-promotion but honors those who lower themselves in repentance and humility. Pride leads to a fall, but humility leads to God’s elevation.
7. Proverbs 8:13
“To fear the Lord is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil behavior and perverse speech.”
Pride is listed among the traits God personally despises. The fear of the Lord is incompatible with arrogance. Those who revere God are called to reject pride as a form of rebellion. This verse challenges believers to align their character with God’s values.
8. Romans 12:3
“Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment…”
Paul warns the Roman believers to maintain a balanced self-view. Pride inflates one’s worth unrealistically, while humility grounds us in truth. God calls us to evaluate ourselves not through ego or insecurity, but through faith and honest introspection.
9. Obadiah 1:3
“The pride of your heart has deceived you…”
This short but piercing rebuke in Obadiah addresses Edom’s false security. Pride had blinded the nation to its vulnerabilities. The verse teaches that pride is not just offensive to God—it’s also deceptive. It gives a false sense of safety and invincibility.
10. 1 Corinthians 13:4
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.”
Paul’s definition of love excludes pride. Genuine love makes no room for arrogance or self-centeredness. This verse reminds us that pride undermines relationships, while love is rooted in humility and grace.
11. Jeremiah 9:23-24
“Let not the wise boast of their wisdom or the strong boast of their strength… but let the one who boasts boast about this: that they have the understanding to know me.”
God redirects our human tendency to boast. Instead of glorying in knowledge, power, or riches, He urges us to take pride only in our relationship with Him. This verse redefines what true greatness and worth look like in God’s eyes.
12. Psalm 10:4
“In his pride the wicked man does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God.”
Pride shuts out God. The proud heart becomes self-sufficient, leaving no space for divine presence. This verse highlights pride as the root of godlessness and spiritual blindness. When we exalt ourselves, we naturally diminish our need for God.
13. Daniel 4:37
“Those who walk in pride he is able to humble.”
Spoken by King Nebuchadnezzar after his humiliation, this testimony acknowledges God’s sovereignty in humbling the proud. The once-arrogant king learned through divine discipline that pride has no place before the Most High. God alone deserves exaltation.
14. Galatians 6:3
“If anyone thinks they are something when they are not, they deceive themselves.”
Paul exposes the self-deception of pride. Thinking more of ourselves than is true distorts reality and leads us away from honest self-assessment. True spiritual maturity begins with humility and accurate self-perception in the light of God’s truth.
15. Matthew 23:12
“For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
Jesus reiterates this profound spiritual principle: God reverses human pride. Earthly self-promotion may gain temporary status, but divine justice always prevails. The kingdom of heaven honors humility and brings down arrogance.
16. Proverbs 29:23
“Pride brings a person low, but the lowly in spirit gain honor.”
This proverb presents a paradox: what seems like self-elevation leads to demotion, while humility leads to true recognition. Pride alienates and diminishes us, but a lowly heart draws respect and honor from both God and people.
17. 2 Chronicles 26:16
“But after Uzziah became powerful, his pride led to his downfall.”
King Uzziah’s success turned into a spiritual trap. His pride made him overstep his boundaries, which ultimately led to his ruin. This verse is a sobering reminder that pride can follow even godly success, and unchecked ego can quickly become our undoing.
18. Isaiah 13:11
“I will put an end to the arrogance of the haughty and will humble the pride of the ruthless.”
God declares His intention to judge the proud and ruthless. Pride is not just a personal issue—it often leads to injustice and oppression. This verse affirms that God will bring low all who exalt themselves at the expense of others.
19. Deuteronomy 8:14
“Then your heart will become proud and you will forget the Lord your God…”
Moses warns Israel not to let prosperity breed pride. When life becomes comfortable, pride tempts us to forget our dependence on God. This verse encourages continual gratitude and awareness of God’s sustaining presence.
20. Proverbs 21:4
“Haughty eyes and a proud heart— the unplowed field of the wicked—produce sin.”
This proverb poetically describes pride as the fertile ground for sin. Pride is not neutral—it actively cultivates disobedience. To avoid sin’s roots, one must plow the soil of pride and plant the seeds of humility.
21. Psalm 138:6
“Though the Lord is exalted, he looks kindly on the lowly; though lofty, he sees them from afar.”
Though God is high above all, He draws near to the humble and distances Himself from the proud. Pride creates spiritual distance from God, while humility attracts divine closeness and care.
22. 1 Samuel 2:3
“Do not keep talking so proudly or let your mouth speak such arrogance, for the Lord is a God who knows…”
In Hannah’s prayer, she warns against arrogant speech. Prideful talk reflects a deeper heart condition. God, who knows all things, sees through boasting and evaluates us with divine justice.
23. Ezekiel 28:17
“Your heart became proud on account of your beauty, and you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor.”
Addressed to the King of Tyre, this verse reveals how pride can twist even God-given gifts. When appearance or status leads to arrogance, it distorts wisdom and invites downfall. Pride perverts blessings into curses.
24. Habakkuk 2:4
“See, the enemy is puffed up; his desires are not upright— but the righteous person will live by his faithfulness.”
This contrast shows the difference between prideful self-reliance and humble faith. The proud trust in their own strength, but the righteous lean on God. This verse reminds us that faith, not pride, is the true source of life.
25. Mark 7:22
“…greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly.”
Jesus lists arrogance among the evils that defile a person. Pride is not merely a character flaw—it is a spiritual impurity. This verse teaches that pride comes from the heart and must be dealt with at the root.
26. Proverbs 27:2
“Let someone else praise you, and not your own mouth; an outsider, and not your own lips.”
Self-promotion is a hallmark of pride, but wisdom advises restraint. True honor comes from others, not self-praise. This verse encourages modesty and trust that our deeds will speak louder than our words.
27. Isaiah 5:21
“Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight.”
This prophetic “woe” targets intellectual arrogance. When people elevate their own wisdom above God’s, they fall into deception. The verse warns that spiritual pride often masks itself as cleverness or self-assurance.
28. Psalm 31:23
“The Lord preserves those who are true to him, but the proud he pays back in full.”
God is both protector and judge. While He safeguards the faithful, He repays the proud according to their deeds. This verse reinforces that pride invites divine judgment, not blessing.
29. Zephaniah 3:11
“Never again will you be haughty on my holy hill.”
God promises to purge pride from His people. True worship requires humility. This verse envisions a purified community where pride no longer exists, only reverence and submission before God.
30. 2 Timothy 3:2
“People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud…”
In this warning about the last days, Paul lists pride among the characteristics of a godless generation. Pride is not just a personal struggle—it is a societal disease that reflects spiritual decay.
Conclusion
One of the subtlest and most damaging attitudes that Scripture addresses is pride. It infiltrates our relationships, decisions, and thoughts, frequently without our full awareness. However, the Bible makes it abundantly evident that humility brings respect, while pride brings spiritual destruction. We run the risk of elevating ourselves above God’s knowledge, correction, and grace when we let pride rule our hearts. Scripture thus exhorts us to examine ourselves and choose humility over self-exaltation on several occasions.
God warns against the kind of pride that forgets its source, yet He does not condemn success, strength, or confidence. In the end, every skill, accomplishment, and chance we possess is a gift from God. In God’s view, true greatness is determined by how low we are willing to stoop rather than how high we ascend. While pride drives God away, humility draws Him in and bestows His blessings. Walking modestly is a sign of spiritual strength and maturity rather than weakness.
Ask God to show you any hidden areas of pride in your heart as you consider these Bible scriptures regarding pride. Ask Him to help you develop a humble spirit that acknowledges Him, serves others, and demonstrates wisdom. By letting go of our pride, we allow God’s transformative grace to mold our lives and bring us closer to Him.
