Birthday celebrations, though they look harmless, are cast in an evil light by Scripture and are contrary to God's way. The only two birthday celebrations recorded in the Bible, Pharaoh's (Genesis 40) and Herod's (Matthew 14; Mark 6), end in a hanging, Joseph's continued imprisonment, and the beheading of John the Baptist. Godly people marked their ages but never celebrated their birthdays, and Ecclesiastes 7:1 says the day of death is better than the day of one's birth, since God has more joy when a person overcomes this world and leaves it than when he enters it. The governing principle is I Corinthians 10:31, doing all to the glory of God. Birthday parties glorify the self, rob the Creator of credit for the gift of life, and amount to a form of idolatry (Romans 1:25). Gifts given to the creation rather than the Creator feed self-centeredness, pride, and the "get" way Satan promotes, and they undermine humility (Romans 12:3; Philippians 2:3). Giving gifts is not wrong in itself, and a card, call, or visit to let a loved one know he is remembered can be appropriate. Christians look ahead to a new birth into God's Kingdom, not back at an imperfect physical life. God even asks us to observe the death of His Son at Passover rather than His birth.