What other scriptures warn against gloating over others' misfortunes? Tracing the Thread from Ezekiel 26:2 Ezekiel 26:2 records Tyre’s smugness at Jerusalem’s downfall: “Son of man, because Tyre has said of Jerusalem, ‘Aha! The gateway of the peoples is broken; it has swung open to me. I will be filled now that she lies in ruins,’ ” The Lord condemns Tyre’s gloating and promises judgment. Scripture repeats this warning—celebrating another’s calamity invites God’s discipline. Echoes in Wisdom Literature • Proverbs 17:5 – “He who mocks the poor insults their Maker; whoever gloats over calamity will not go unpunished.” • Proverbs 24:17-18 – “Do not gloat when your enemy falls, and do not let your heart rejoice when he stumbles, lest the LORD see and disapprove, and turn His wrath away from him.” • Proverbs 25:21-22 – Rather than rejoice at an enemy’s pain, we are told: “If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat… for in so doing, you will heap burning coals on his head, and the LORD will reward you.” The proverbs move us from passive restraint (“do not gloat”) to active kindness (“give him food”). Prophetic Warnings Beyond Ezekiel • Obadiah 12 – “But you should not gloat over your brother in the day of his disaster…” Edom’s triumphalism over Judah brings God’s ire. • Micah 7:8 – “Do not gloat over me, my enemy! Though I have fallen, I will rise.” God pledges vindication; the enemy’s boasting is short-lived. • Lamentations 1:21 – Jerusalem laments: “All my enemies have heard of my distress; they rejoice at what You have done. May You bring the day You have announced, so they may become like me.” The prophet highlights God’s eventual reversal for those who revel in others’ pain. Personal Integrity Modeled by Job Job 31:29-30 – “Have I rejoiced at my enemy’s ruin or exulted when evil befell him? I have not allowed my mouth to sin by asking for his life with a curse.” Job, under severe testing, still refuses to gloat—proof that righteous living includes compassion even toward foes. New Testament Heart Check • Romans 12:15 – “Rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep.” A Christ-shaped heart shares sorrow, not mockery. • 1 Corinthians 13:6 – “Love takes no pleasure in evil, but rejoices in the truth.” • Luke 6:27-28 – “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.” The New Covenant deepens the Old Testament ethic: we actively seek our enemy’s good, mirroring God’s mercy toward us. Living the Lesson Today • Guard your heart in conversations, social media, and private thoughts; refuse the subtle thrill when someone “gets what’s coming.” • Replace gloating with intercession—pray that adversity drives people toward repentance and blessing. • Practice tangible kindness; meet a rival’s need as Proverbs 25 urges, demonstrating the gospel’s power. • Cultivate empathy by remembering the cross: Christ bore our disaster so we could receive His mercy. Rehearsing that truth starves any appetite for triumphalism. Scripture speaks with one voice—from Tyre’s example in Ezekiel to Christ’s instruction in Luke—gloating is foreign to a redeemed heart. Compassion, not celebration, marks those who walk in the fear of the Lord. |
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