Leadership the Bible Way - Part Fifteen
The Pride of Pharaoh
When we think about Pharaoh, our minds quickly go to the ten plagues and the crossing of the Red Sea. But beneath the story lies a leadership lesson that is as relevant today as it was in the days of Moses: pride destroys leaders.
Why did it take ten plagues before Pharaoh let Israel go? Why not one? Why not two? The answer is simple - pride. And if we are honest, we see the same traits in leaders today.
1. Pride resists until destruction
Every time Moses came with God’s word - “Let my people go” - Pharaoh resisted. After each plague, instead of yielding, he hardened his heart. He thought it was a contest between himself and Moses. He did not realise he was wrestling with the Almighty.
By the time he finally let Israel go, Egypt was devastated. Blood in the rivers, frogs, lice, flies, hail, locusts, darkness, and finally the death of every firstborn. Pride will never allow a quick surrender; it drags a man all the way to ruin.
2. Pride is dogmatic
When Pharaoh first heard Moses, his reply was: “Who is the LORD, that I should obey his voice to let Israel go? I know not the LORD, neither will I let Israel go” (Exodus 5:2).
That is the dogmatism of pride. It refuses to admit there might be another truth, another perspective, another God. Pharaoh’s problem was not lack of evidence; it was that he had already decided what could and could not be true.
Leaders fall into this trap when they cling to pet doctrines, unexamined assumptions, or “the way we’ve always done it.” Pride shuts the door to learning. Humility keeps the heart teachable.
3. Pride tends to assume the worst is past
Pride also carries a false bravado. It says, “The worst is over. If we survived that, we can survive anything else.”
That was Pharaoh’s mistake. After each plague lifted, he believed Egypt could weather the next one too. Frogs, lice, boils, hail - he thought, “We’re still standing. Nothing can break us.”
But pride mistakes survival for victory. Humility hears the warning in every crisis. Jesus said, “Go and sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you” (John 5:14). Each escape is a call to repentance, not a license for arrogance.
Pharaoh’s pride kept him thinking Egypt was invincible - until Egypt was broken.
4. Pride dismisses those sent to bless you
Pharaoh also despised the messengers of God. To him, Moses and Aaron were nobodies - irrelevant voices making demands in the name of an unknown God. He did not realise that Egypt’s survival depended on how he treated them.
Pride still does the same today. It makes pastors despise correction from younger ministers. It makes executives scorn the staff member whose advice could save the company. It makes husbands and wives ignore each other’s counsel, only to regret it later. It makes the wealthy look down on those of lesser means.
God often sends His blessings through people who do not look impressive. Rejecting them is rejecting Him.
5. Pride puts you against God Himself
Finally, the greatest tragedy of pride is this: “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble” (James 4:6).
If a man resists you, you may overcome him. If devils resist you, you may overcome them. But how can anyone succeed when God Himself is resisting them?
That was Pharaoh’s true problem. He thought he was resisting Moses. In reality, he was up against God. And no leader, no matter how powerful, can win a contest against the Almighty.
The lesson for leaders
Pharaoh’s story is not preserved in Scripture to entertain us. It is written for our admonition (1 Corinthians 10:11). Leaders today must examine themselves:
Am I resisting God’s will because of pride?
Am I so dogmatic that I cannot hear fresh truth?
Am I mistaking survival for victory?
Am I dismissing the very people God has sent to bless me?
Worst of all, is God Himself resisting me?
The way of pride leads only to ruin. The way of humility receives grace.
Pharaoh’s name lives on as a warning. Moses’ name lives on as a blessing. The difference between them was not just power, strategy, or history. It was humility versus pride.
May we learn the lesson well: God gives grace to the humble, but He resists the proud.
Continue in grace!