The nineteenth passage of the Sefer Yeshua is based on Mt 23:12 and Lk 14:11, 18.14b. Its likely origin is therefore the Q-Gospel.
19. 1Yeshua said, ‘Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, 2and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.’
Overview
This pericope ends the section on pride and humility in the first scroll of the Sefer Yeshua. This saying is tagged onto a couple of other sections in Luke, which suggests that the content of its teaching stands as a principle that Yeshua expounded in its own right.
We see examples of this tenet in Yeshua’s teaching elsewhere in the gospels, for example in the parable of the dinner guests (Lk 14:7-11). There, someone takes the best seat at the banquet, and is told that the seat is taken, and then in disgrace, they have to go and take a lower seat at the other end of the table. It seems to have been a notable principle of Yeshua that he valued as a teacher.
Yeshua also taught that, ‘the first will be last, and the last will be first’ (Mt 20:16). Yeshua was not enamoured of those who revelled in their own self-importance, who raised themselves up to the detriment of their fellow human beings. In his view of the Kingdom, it was normal to expect such reversals of human expectations.
Yeshua was not however the originator of such values, but rather they reflect concepts from several verses in the Bible, ‘YHVH raises up the humble, but casts the wicked to the ground’ (Psalm 147:6) and, ‘You save the humble, but Your gaze is on the haughty to bring them low.’ (2Sam 22:28); ‘
Yeshua also taught, ‘Whoever humbles themselves like a child will be the greatest in the kingdom of God.’ (Mt 18:4). The word talya, which normally means ‘child’ in Aramaic, also means ‘servant’. It was this aspect of the word that Yeshua was referring to, when he spoke of becoming a ‘child’ for the sake of the kingdom of God. A child of YHVH is therefore called, not to become naïve, simple or childish, but to the service of their Sovereign, and thus of their fellow human beings. The leader who serves God in humility by serving their people, instead of lording their authority over their people, is a great leader – ‘The greatest among you will be your servant’ (Mt 23:11).
Humility in Israelite culture
Some people see humility as a form of weakness – that a humble person is an introvert and an ineffective person, someone who everyone else walks over and exploits. They view such people as being akin to those who are unable to stand up for themselves, and just do what everyone else tells them to do.
This is not what Israelite culture understood by the word, ‘humility’ at all.
One thing that anthropologists have noted in hunter-gatherer societies, is that they were egalitarian and did not look highly on those who were boastful or self-congratulatory. A hunter did not boast of his catch, and someone who defended the community from wild animals did not brag of their accomplishments. This egalitarianism and humility are two things that were also valued in Israelite culture. Far from being standards that humans evolved into, it was something that the earliest humans already had.
This stands in stark contrast to modern life, where people are expected to talk up their achievements, and even lie about them to make themselves look greater than everyone else. Modern society is so competitive and contentious, that anyone who does not engage in this alpha-competition of self-pride is perceived as weak and unsuccessful. However, in earliest human societies, anthropologists have theorised that it was the greatest within their community who were perceived as humble, because they did not boast in front of their peers or elders; they did not puff up their chests and prance around to impress their fellow tribespeople in order to win praise. Their strength, courage and ability were admired and given greater worth, precisely because they were not conceited, and did not brag about what they had done.
I also recall learning about brave people in wartime, especially in the inhuman brutality of the First World War. The greatest war heroes did not boast about how many enemies they had killed, or how many of their comrades they had saved. The heroes were those who maintained the dignified attitude that they had simply done their duty, and anyone would have done the same in the same circumstances.
In the Israelite mindset, the humble person was not weak; the humble person was the person who did not boast or brag; they did not parade their achievements in front of others in order to be admired and worshipped by hordes of swooning fans. In Hebrew culture, humility was somewhere higher than self-effacement, but lower than self-aggrandisement. A humble person realised their place before God, and that their ideals came not from their own selfish desires and human biases, but from One higher than themselves.
The humble person does not make people listen to them by quoting all their qualifications and accomplishments, or justify their arguments using some privileged position before God; the humble person gets people to listen, simply by the power of their words themselves. Someone who relies heavily on who they are to get people to listen, is probably someone who has a weak argument. The exclamation, ‘Do you know who I am!’ meant nothing in biblical Hebrew culture.
An equal stake in society
Ezek 21:26 says, ‘Remove the turban, take off the crown; things shall not remain as they are. Exalt that which is low; humble that which is high.’
In some countries, their society instils and encourages a sense of entitlement in the character of their citizens, so that such entitled individuals are admired for being ruthless go-getters who always get what they want. Such a sense of entitlement was frowned upon by those who upheld YHVH’s values.
In much of the western world, we have oligarchies instead of democracies. This is where the needs of the richest and most influential 5% get their needs accommodated in their countries’ laws and governance, even if their needs are in complete opposition to the needs of the other 95% of their fellow citizens.
Unfortunately, it was the same in Yeshua’s day. The needs of the wealthiest and most powerful mattered far more than even the most basic needs of everyone else. However, in contrast, the coming of the reign of God’s Kingdom would mean that such people would be shown their true place by God, while the oppressed and exploited would be raised up by God.
This was also the teaching of James (1:9-11, 5:1-3):
“Let our brothers and sisters in humble positions boast of their high estate, and the rich of their low estate, because they will pass away like flowers in the grass. For the sun rises with the hot wind and dries the grass, and its flowers fall away, and the beauty of its appearance perishes. So also the rich in their business dealings will fade away to nothing.
So come now you rich people, weep and wail over the hardships coming your way! Your wealth will rot away, and your fine cloaks will become moth-eaten. Your gold and silver will corrode; their rust will testify against you, and eat your flesh like fire – such is the treasure you have put aside for yourselves in the last days!”
The poor have something valuable that the obscenely rich and wealthy have lost – a realisation of the innate, God-given worth of every human being; that everyone matters, regardless of your job or station in life. The great forget God, but God is remembered and honoured by the humble – Sirach 3:20 says, ‘Great is the might of Adonai, but by the humble God is glorified.’
While a rich person might fight tooth and nail to hang on to every penny they have, claiming that they earned it and that they have a right to keep hold of it, a humble person will remember their own struggles, and realise that others are going through the same, and are thus moved to help others in a similar predicament.
I remember once during my stay in Sri Lanka in 1977 with my mother, we were returning from a trip in the arid north of the island near Anuradhapura. We had been waiting hours at a village bus-stop for the one, lone bus that would come by all day, and we were hungry and thirsty, My mum got chatting to a local woman waiting at the bus stop with us, and she realised our state. So she invited us back to her dwelling, a few minutes’ walk away. Her ‘dwelling’ was just four poles in the dusty ground, with a roof made of palm leaves – there weren’t even any walls. Their beds were simple pallets of straw raised a few inches off the ground. We were given water from a plain, clay water-jar, and then she and her family shared their food with us – we each got a small piece of fish-steak, maybe two or three inches across and an inch thick, along with a handful of rice and some curry gravy. In their poverty, it was all they had to offer us, but in my hunger, it was the richest and most lavish meal I ever had in my entire life!
The wealth of the poor is what they have built up in the generosity of their hearts, a treasure which the rich have lost, and so become abjectly poor. In God’s Kingdom, the poor are wealthy, and the rich are considered poor. God’s Kingdom values those whom others put last, while bringing down those who put themselves first.
God’s Promises to the Humble in God’s Kingdom
The prophet Isaiah says, ‘This is the one I esteem: the one who is humble and contrite in spirit, and trembles at my word’. (Isaiah 66:2b)
The psalmist says, ‘The meek will inherit the Land, and enjoy great peace.’ (Psalm 37:11). This sentiment is echoed by the prophet Yeshua` in the Beatitudes: ‘Blessed are the meek, because they shall inherit the Land’ (Mt 5:5).
The psalmist says, ‘God guides the humble in what is right, and teaches them God’s Way.’ (Psalm 25:9); ‘YHVH takes delight in God’s people; God crowns the humble with salvation.’ (Psalm 149:4)
Someone who is humble in spirit is someone who acknowledges that God is in charge – YHVH is their Sovereign. Someone who thinks that their beliefs alone are right, and seeks forced justification for their beliefs in the bible, reading things that are not there, is one who is haughty and proud; but one who seeks God’s will directly, and accepts God’s guidance to lead them, that person is humble. Such a person has a living relationship with YHVH, and will prosper:
‘Humility and the reverent awe of YHVH bring wealth and honour and life.’ (Prov 22:4)
The Israelite people, and indeed all who follow YHVH, are called to be a people humble before God, who are able to achieve great things; but so that the reputation of YHVH may be spread throughout the earth, the nations will see that it is YHVH who causes those great things to be done, not human beings:
“Unless YHVH build the house, its builders labour in vain.”(Ps127:1).
‘The practice of religion with humility and compassion’
Because of the teaching of Yeshua, and because of the principle of YHVH in the Hebrew Bible, ‘the practice of religion with humility’ is a common maxim to describe the spirit of Talmidaism.
In practising religion with humility, we admit that God is in charge; that we do not have all the answers ourselves, but that if we trust in YHVH’s ways, we will prosper and succeed in what we do. It reflects the Yahwist belief that putting our complete and total trust in anyone and anything else (i.e. in other value-systems) will cause our endeavours to end in failure.
A humble spirituality does not make religion offensive or officious; a humble spirituality guides and encourages others. The prideful make themselves their own authority, cherry-picking only those things that will justify their haughtiness and their prejudices, but a humble person will listen to God’s high ideals, and spend their time pursuing spiritual growth, and in making God’s values something that ordinary people want to follow.
Personal thoughts
Someone who exalts themselves is someone who believes that only their needs and interests matter, and that everyone else serves them. A person who exalts themselves believes that the world revolves around their needs, and that the world exists only to serve them.
Being a servant of God does not mean becoming servile; it does not mean lowering your human dignity, putting yourself down or pushing yourself into the background. A competitive person will kick others to the kerbside, and trample over others to get ahead; a humble person will realise that in life, other people’s needs are just as important as their own – that everyone matters, regardless of your station in life, and everyone gets ahead when we work together in service of God’s values and principles. It is the difference between one person winning the game of life while kicking everyone else aside, and everyone cooperating and encouraging one another, so that everyone wins.
Natural law is kill or be killed, and only the strong survive. Natural law means that only one person can get to the top of the stairs, while everyone else stays on the ground floor. Kingdom law is that we help one another, value one another, so that eventually over time, everyone gets to the top of the stairs. Under natural law, you use your hands to push others aside; in Kingdom law, you use your hands to lift each other up.