Charles Spurgeon Commentary Deuteronomy 8:12-14

"lest, when thou hast eaten and art full, and hast built goodly houses, and dwelt therein; and when thy herds and thy flocks multiply, and thy silver and thy gold is multiplied, and all that thou hast is multiplied; then thy heart be lifted up, and thou forget Jehovah thy God, who brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage;" — Deuteronomy 8:12-14 (ASV)

Lest when you have eaten and are full, and have built goodly houses, and dwelt in them; and when your herds and your flocks multiply, and your silver and your gold is multiplied, and all that you have is multiplied; then your heart be lifted up, and you forget the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage; (Deuteronomy 8:12–14).

The other day, a friend asked me this question, "From where does God get his princes?" and the answer I gave was, "He often picks them off dunghills." Oh, but they sometimes forget the dunghills where they grew, and think themselves wonderfully important individuals! Then there is a time of pulling down for them. We cannot eat and be full without having the temptation of getting our heart lifted up.

It is a great blessing to have the heart lifted up in one way, that is, in God's ways; but to be lifted up by bread, to be lifted up by silver, to be lifted up by flocks and herds, is such a bad way of being lifted up that evil and sorrow must come of it. See, the Lord does not forbid his people to build a house, or to eat and to enjoy what he gives them; but he does charge them not to forget the God who gave them these mercies, nor to forget where they used to be in slavery: Beware that you do not forget the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage.