Promotion

Promotion in Scripture is the lifting of one person above his former station — out of the sheepfold to the throne, out of the dungeon to the court, out of the dust to the company of princes. It is named as God's own work, distinguished from human striving, and treated as a reversible appointment that can fall on the unworthy as easily as on the upright. The figures who illustrate it most plainly are those who began with nothing — Joseph, David, Jeroboam, Baasha, Daniel, and his three companions in Babylon — together with their counterparts who exalted themselves and were brought down.

Lifting up does not come from human direction

The starting point is a denial. "For neither from the east, nor from the west, nor yet from the south, [comes] lifting up" (Ps 75:6). The next verse names the agent: "But God is the judge: He puts down one, and lifts up another" (Ps 75:7). The same claim runs through Hannah's song — "Yahweh makes poor, and makes rich: He brings low, he also lifts up" (1Sa 2:7) — and through Daniel's blessing: "he changes the times and the seasons; he removes kings, and sets up kings; he gives wisdom to the wise, and knowledge to those who have understanding" (Da 2:21). Sirach states the same axiom in compressed form: "Do not despise a common man who is in bitterness of spirit; Remember that there is one who lifts up and brings low" (Sir 7:11).

Out of the dust, out of the dunghill

The pattern is described programmatically in Psalm 113. "He raises up the poor out of the dust, and lifts up the needy from the dunghill; that he may set him with princes, even with the princes of his people" (Ps 113:7-8). The same language is used of David — "He chose David also his slave, and took him from the sheepfolds: from following the ewes that have their young he brought him, to be the shepherd of Jacob his people, and Israel his inheritance" (Ps 78:70-71) — and is repeated in the divine word to David through Nathan: "I took you from the sheepcote, from following the sheep, that you should be leader over my people, over Israel" (2Sa 7:8). Sirach varies the image but keeps the shape: "The wisdom of the needy will lift up his head and will seat him among nobles" (Sir 11:1); "Many who were contrite have sat on a throne; and [those] not on anyone's mind have worn a turban" (Sir 11:5); "The throne of the proud, God has overthrown; And he seated the poor in their place" (Sir 10:14).

As a reward of merit

A second strand presents promotion as the reward earned by particular action. David announces the rule before the assault on Jebus: "Whoever strikes the Jebusites first will be chief and captain. And Joab the son of Zeruiah went up first, and was made chief" (1Ch 11:6). Solomon noticed Jeroboam by the same standard — "the man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valor; and Solomon saw the young man that he was industrious, and he gave him charge over all the labor of the house of Joseph" (1Ki 11:28). Sirach generalizes the pattern to vocational competence: "The skill of the physician lifts up his head, So that he stands in the presence of princes" (Sir 38:3). Wisdom literature joins the claim to character: "The pride of man will bring him low; But he who is of a lowly spirit will obtain honor" (Pr 29:23). The reward of the upright threads through the Psalms and Proverbs in this same idiom — "the upright will have dominion over them in the morning" (Ps 49:14); "the upright will stay in the land, and the perfect will be left in it" (Pr 2:21); "The house of the wicked will be overthrown; But the tent of the upright will flourish" (Pr 14:11). Sirach says of Samuel that "to the time of his end he was found upright In the eyes of Yahweh, and in the eyes of all living" (Sir 46:19).

Abraham

To Abraham the promise is made directly: "I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great; and you will be a blessing" (Ge 12:2). The making-great here is divine speech, not the patriarch's striving — and Abraham himself, summoned to argue with God over Sodom, holds his standing as "but dust and ashes" (Ge 18:27).

Joseph, from imprisoned slave to prince

Joseph's case is the longest narrative example. While in service in Potiphar's house, "from the time that he made him overseer in his house, and over all that he had, that Yahweh blessed the Egyptian's house for Joseph's sake; and the blessing of Yahweh was on all that he had, in the house and in the field" (Ge 39:5). The hinge comes after years in confinement: "Then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph, and they brought him hastily out of the dungeon: and he shaved himself, and changed his raiment, and came in to Pharaoh" (Ge 41:14). The investiture follows. "Since God has shown you all of this, there is none so discreet and wise as you: you will be over my house, and according to your mouth will all my people be ruled: I will be greater than you only in the throne" (Ge 41:39-40). Pharaoh "took off his signet ring from his hand, and put it on Joseph's hand, and arrayed him in vestures of fine linen, and put a gold chain about his neck; and he made him to ride in the second chariot which he had; and they cried before him, Bow the knee: and he set him over all the land of Egypt" (Ge 41:42-43). Joseph names the agent of his promotion plainly to his brothers: "it wasn't you⁺ who sent me here, but God: and he has made me 'Father of Pharaoh,' and 'Lord of All His House,' and 'Ruler Over All The Land of Egypt'" (Ge 45:8).

Jeroboam, from a slave to the throne

Jeroboam was first promoted by Solomon for industry (1Ki 11:28) — "a slave of Solomon" (1Ki 11:26) given charge over the labor of the house of Joseph. The further promotion comes by prophetic word. "And the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him in the way; now [Ahijah] had clad himself with a new garment; and both of them were alone in the field. And Ahijah laid hold of the new garment that was on him, and rent it in twelve pieces. And he said to Jeroboam, Take for yourself ten pieces; for this is what Yahweh, the God of Israel, says, Look, I will rend the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to you" (1Ki 11:29-31). The promotion is later declared in retrospect through Ahijah a second time: "Since I exalted you from among the people, and made you leader over my people Israel" (1Ki 14:7).

Baasha, "out of the dust" to the throne

Of Baasha the prophetic word uses the dust-image directly. "And the word of Yahweh came to Jehu the son of Hanani against Baasha, saying, Since I exalted you out of the dust, and made you leader over my people Israel, and you have walked in the way of Jeroboam, and have made my people Israel to sin, to provoke me to anger with their sins" (1Ki 16:1-2). Baasha receives the same promotion language as Jeroboam — and the same pattern of judgment when the promoted man turns to sin.

Daniel, from a captive to premier

In Babylon the captive is set over the wisdom of the empire. "Then the king made Daniel great, and gave him many great gifts, and made him to rule over the whole province of Babylon, and to be chief governor over all the wise men of Babylon" (Da 2:48). Under Belshazzar the elevation is repeated: "Then Belshazzar commanded, and they clothed Daniel with purple, and put a chain of gold about his neck, and made proclamation concerning him, that he should be the third ruler in the kingdom" (Da 5:29). Under Darius, "over them three presidents, of whom Daniel was one" (Da 6:2).

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego

After the furnace the same king who had threatened them performs the promotion: "Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego in the province of Babylon" (Da 3:30).

Promotion of unworthy men

The same agency that lifts the lowly can also raise the unworthy, and Scripture reports this with a steady eye. "After these things King Ahasuerus promoted Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, and advanced him, and set his seat above all the princes who were with him" (Es 3:1). Haman recounts to his household "the glory of his riches, and the multitude of his sons, and all the things in which the king had promoted him, and how he had advanced him above the princes and slaves of the king" (Es 5:11). The reversal arrives through Mordecai (Es 6:11) and ends on the gallows Haman had built (Es 7:9-10). Proverbs registers the same observation on a smaller scale: "The wise will inherit glory; But shame will be the promotion of fools" (Pr 3:35); "Delicate living is not seemly for a fool; Much less for a slave to have rule over princes" (Pr 19:10); "For a slave when he is king; And a fool when he is filled with food" (Pr 30:22); "I have seen slaves on horses, and princes walking like slaves on the earth" (Ec 10:7). Sirach states the volatility of such elevation directly: "'A king today — tomorrow will fall'" (Sir 10:10); "Many who were lifted up have been dishonored greatly; And the honored were given into the hand of the lesser" (Sir 11:6); "[Sometimes] there is humiliation through honor, And [sometimes] a man from humiliation comes to honor" (Sir 20:11).

The abasement of the proud

The same strand that names lifting-up as God's prerogative names also the bringing-down. "There will be a day of Yahweh of hosts on all that is proud and haughty, and on all that is lifted up; and it will be brought low" (Is 2:12). "I will punish the world for [its] evil, and the wicked for their iniquity: and I will cause the arrogance of the proud to cease, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible" (Is 13:11). "Yahweh will root up the house of the proud; But he will establish the border of the widow" (Pr 15:25). Of Sennacherib's pretension God says, "I will thrust you from your office; and from your station he will pull you down" (Is 22:19), and through Isaiah: "Because of your raging against me [my Speech], and because your arrogance has come up into my ears, therefore I will put my hook in your nose, and my bridle in your lips, and I will turn you back by the way by which you came" (2Ki 19:28). Of Nebuchadnezzar's pride: "he was driven from men, and ate grass as oxen" (Da 4:33). Job's God answers, "Look at everyone who is proud, [and] bring him low; And tread down the wicked where they stand" (Job 40:12). The prophets level the same word at city after city — Babylon (Is 14:11), Tyre (Eze 28:8), Edom (Ob 1:4), Moab (Je 48:39), Nineveh-Assyria (Zep 2:15) — each a proud height brought low. Sirach states the rule for individuals: "Do not exalt yourself lest you fall And bring upon your soul disgrace" (Sir 1:30).

Worldly ambition reaches and is brought down

The men who tried to seize promotion supply a consistent counter-instance. The builders of Babel — "let us make us a name; or else we will be scattered abroad on the face of the whole earth" (Ge 11:4). Adonijah — "Then Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, I will be king: and he prepared himself chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him" (1Ki 1:5). Absalom by the gate, courting the people for his own sake (2Sa 15:1-4). Amaziah, warned by Jehoash that "your heart has lifted you up: glory of it, and remain at home; for why should you meddle to [your] hurt, that you should fall, even you, and Judah with you?" (2Ki 14:10). The Pharisees who "love the chief seats in the synagogues, and the salutations in the marketplaces" (Lu 11:43). The disciples in their contention "which of them was accounted to be greatest" (Lu 22:24). The man of lawlessness "who opposes and exalts himself against all that is called God or that is worshiped; so that he sits in the temple of God, setting himself forth as God" (2Th 2:4). Their archetype is named in Isaiah's taunt: "I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; and I will sit on the mount of congregation, in the uttermost parts of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High" (Is 14:13-14). To the leader of Tyre Yahweh says, "Because your heart is lifted up, and you have said, I am a god, I sit in the seat of God, in the midst of the seas; yet you are man, and not God" (Eze 28:2). To Edom: "Though you mount on high as the eagle, and though your nest is set among the stars, [by my Speech] I will bring you down from there, says Yahweh" (Ob 1:4). Proverbs warns the courtier in advance: "Don't put yourself forward in the presence of the king, And don't stand in the place of great men: For it is better that it is said to you, Come up here, Than that you should be put lower in the presence of the prince" (Pr 25:6-7). And Sirach: "He who loves transgression loves strife: He who raises his gate high seeks destruction" (Pr 17:19).

Self-abasement of those whom God promotes

The figures who actually were lifted up in Scripture spoke of themselves in the opposite key. Abraham, before pleading for Sodom: "I have taken on myself to speak to the Lord, who am but dust and ashes" (Ge 18:27). Moses: "Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the sons of Israel out of Egypt?" (Ex 3:11) — and "I am not eloquent, neither before, nor since you have spoken to your slave; for I am slow of mouth, and slow of tongue" (Ex 4:10). Saul, when Samuel found him: "Am I not a Benjamite, of the smallest of the tribes of Israel? And my family the least of all the families of the tribe of Benjamin? Why then did you speak to me after this manner?" (1Sa 9:21). John the baptizer of Jesus: "There comes after me he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and unloose" (Mr 1:7). Paul: "I am the least of the apostles, who am not meet to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God" (1Co 15:9). Diognetus reports the same paradox of the Christians under persecution: "They are dishonored, and glorified in their dishonor; they are spoken evil of, and yet justified" (Gr 5:14).

The greatness that is God's

Behind every instance the highest exaltation is God's own. "Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; [Let] your glory [be] above all the earth" (Ps 57:11; cf. Ps 108:5). "For Yahweh is a great God, And a great King above all gods" (Ps 95:3). "Great is Yahweh, and greatly to be praised; And his greatness is unsearchable" (Ps 145:3). "Yahweh is exalted; for he stays on high: he has filled Zion with justice and righteousness" (Is 33:5). Sirach: "We will still magnify, though we cannot fathom, For greater is he than all his works" (Sir 43:28). The summons that follows is to acclaim — "Exalt⁺ Yahweh our God, And worship at his footstool: He is holy" (Ps 99:5); "You⁺ who magnify Yahweh, lift up your voice, As much as you⁺ are able, for there is yet more!" (Sir 43:30).

The exaltation of Christ

In the New Testament the same exaltation-language is applied to Jesus. "Therefore God also highly exalted him, and gave to him the name which is above every name; that in the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of [those] in heaven and [those] on earth and [those] under the earth" (Php 2:9-10). "I will divide him a portion with the great, and he will divide the spoil with the strong; because he poured out his soul to death, and was numbered with the transgressors: yet he bore the sins of many, and made intercession for their sins" (Is 53:12). "Look, a greater than Solomon is here" (Lu 11:31). The pattern is the same one set out in the Psalms — the one brought low is lifted up by God.

The promotion of the saints

Promotion is finally extended to those who follow him. "Well done, you good slave: because you were found faithful in a very little, have authority over ten cities" (Lu 19:17). "Don't you⁺ know that the saints will judge the world?" (1Co 6:2). "He who overcomes, I will give to him to sit down with me in my throne, as I also overcame, and sat down with my Father in his throne" (Re 3:21). "He made us [to be] a kingdom, [to be] priests to his God and Father" (Re 1:6). "If we endure, we will also reign with him" (2Ti 2:12). "They will reign forever and ever" (Re 22:5). The promised promotion runs along the same axis the Psalms named at the start: "I will set him on high, because he has known my name" (Ps 91:14); "I will make you to ride on the high places of the earth" (Is 58:14); "those who are wise will shine as the brightness of the firmament; and those who turn many to righteousness as the stars forever and ever" (Da 12:3).