On Humility: True and False

The Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature (4:403–404) has an excellent and brief article on the subject of humility (click here to read).

Regarding false humility, the article states:

To consider this grace a little more particularly, it may be observed, 1. That humility does not oblige a man to wrong the truth or himself by entertaining a meaner or worse opinion of himself than he deserves. 2. Nor does it oblige a man, right or wrong, to give everybody else the preference to himself. A wise man cannot believe himself inferior to the ignorant multitude, nor the virtuous man that he is not so good as those whose lives are vicious. 3. Nor does it oblige a man to treat himself with contempt in his words or actions: it looks more like affectation than humility when a man says such things in his own dispraise as others know, or he himself believes, to be false; and it is plain also that this is often done merely as a bait to catch the praises of others.

I also liked this part of the article:

5. That the greatest promises of good are made to the humble (Isa. lvii, 15; lvi, 2; 1 Pet. v, 5; Psa. cxlvii, 6; Matt. v, 5)... It has been deemed a great paradox in Christianity that it makes humility the avenue to glory. Yet what other avenue is there to wisdom, or even to knowledge? Would you pick up precious truths, you must bend down to look for them. Everywhere the pearl of great price lies bedded in a shell which has no form or comeliness.