Do not rejoice at another's fall
Read in your Bible: Ezekiel 24–26.
A painful sign involving Ezekiel's bereavement accompanies the approaching fall of Jerusalem. Oracles then confront neighbouring peoples for their contempt and delight in Judah's ruin. The chapters expose the moral danger of treating someone else's disaster as an opportunity for scorn.
Ezekiel's unique prophetic sign is not a general command to suppress grief. The rebuke of surrounding nations is equally searching: another person's failure does not make gloating righteous. Faithful conduct can recognise accountability while remaining compassionate toward those suffering its consequences.
Notice your response to bad news about someone you dislike. Refuse ridicule and check whether a public reaction would deepen their humiliation. If grief is your own, receive support rather than believing faithful people must remain outwardly unmoved.
Related reading and source notes.
Read the Bible passage first. These notes identify related Ellen G. White chapters; a related reading is not a claim that she wrote this interpretation. Any direct quotations are marked separately. The explanations and applications are The Earl Project’s own.
1Steps to Christ · Chapter 7—The Test of DiscipleshipSC, chapter 7
White's chapter on the test of discipleship is thematic related reading on character expressed in our treatment of others, including those we find difficult.
Read alongside: Ezekiel 24–26
Read the original chapter on EGW Writings ↗A question to sit with
Whose misfortune am I tempted to enjoy or share for amusement?
Stop one mocking response and offer appropriate kindness to someone facing loss.
Let us pray
Compassionate God, guard me from delighting in another person's ruin. Give me honest sorrow, wise boundaries and courage to receive care when grief is my own rather than hiding it behind an appearance of strength. Amen.
Your quiet reflection
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An original interpretation from The Earl Project, written from an Adventist understanding of Scripture. It is not an official church publication. Read alongside the beliefs that inform these reflections. Scripture quoted from the King James Version. Ellen G. White sources are cited separately from The Earl Project’s original interpretation.