For Kids · 4 min with a grown-up
God tells Ezekiel a story about a tree — the tallest, most beautiful tree in the whole world.
Today's Story
God gave Ezekiel a word-picture to help the proud king of Egypt understand. It was a story about a tree.
Once there was a tree like no other. It was a tall cedar, taller than all the other trees. Its branches were big and wide and green. Cool streams of water fed its roots, so it grew and grew and grew.
Little birds built their nests in its branches. Animals rested in its shade. People looked up at it and said, “Wow! Have you ever seen a tree so tall and so beautiful?” It really was wonderful.
But the tree forgot something. It forgot WHO made it grow. It forgot that the water and the soil and the sunshine were all gifts. The tree looked down at all the other trees and thought, “I am the greatest. There is no tree as grand as me.”
That proud thought was the problem. God says when something gets so puffed up that it forgets Him, it cannot stand tall forever. And so the great tree fell. Even the tallest tree in the world came down.
God told this story so the king of Egypt would understand: being big and beautiful is fine, but getting proud and forgetting God is not. God is the Gardener. He is the One who makes things grow. And the wise tree — and the wise child — remembers to thank Him.
A Big Word
Memory Verse
Talk About It
- Have you ever stood next to a really, really tall tree? How small did it make you feel — and how big is the God who made it?
- The tree forgot that God made it grow. What helps YOU remember to say thank You to God for growing bigger and stronger?
- What is something you can do that is special — and how can you be glad about it without getting puffed up like the tree?