Proverbs 18:12 (NIV) Before a downfall the heart is haughty, but humility comes before honor.

God warns us that a person about to “fall,” is a person with a haughty heart.

Synonyms for haughty include proud, arrogant, and self-willed. A person who is haughty is someone who walks around arrogantly believing themselves to be superior to others, even than God. They may not admit the latter, but the haughty person does not seek God, or acknowledge God, or submit to His revelation of right and wrong. In this haughty condition, it’s sad but true…his or her downfall/destruction is right around the corner.  

On the flip-side, he who is humble, realizes their desperate need for Jesus, and that person will be honored by God Himself (see Luke 18:13-14).