King Solomon who wrote the “Book of Proverbs” and Lucius Annaeus Seneca, who is better known by his cognomen Seneca was the author of “The Moral Essays”. Solomon’s “Book of Proverbs” was a guide that told the Hebrew people how to live for over a thousand years. Proverbs addresses many areas that are important to being able to live peacefully with one another such as moral behavior, values of oneself, the family and the community. It also deals with the meaning of life and submission to the will of god. In “the Moral Essays” Seneca like Solomon gave the people of Rome a guideline of how to follow the philosophy of Stoicism, which is the idea that emotions cause weakness in that they make a person act rashly. This results in that person doing something destructive to their cause. Stoics believe that the best way to approach any situation is to remain calm, cool and collected under all circumstances.
Anger
Seneca’s view on anger was that he thought it was madness. He felt that in order to combat one’s anger one must have control of it. Seneca did not believe that anger was useful even in war and is a waste of time and is not productive to the cause. "what use is anger when the same end may be accomplished by reason? Anger is not expedient even in battle or in war; for it is prone to rashness, and while it seeks to bring about danger, does not guard against it." (Seneca and Basore). He rejected the idea that anger could be useful because of its motivating ability saying that just because something negative could be useful does not mean that it is necessary for a person to welcome it into their lives. He says in this regard "there is nothing useful in anger, nor does it kindle the mind to warlike deeds; for virtue, being self-sufficient, never needs the help of vice. (Seneca and Basore)., Of course Seneca was not saying that if someone had violence perpetrated against themselves or someone they were close to that they should not feel anger. He just felt that they should not act in anger. In his opinion a person can better seek justice or revenge if one remains calm rather than acting on emotion.
There are several ways in which Seneca said that one could avoid anger. These include not believing the worse of people and their motivations. For never knows the person who one is angry with may have tried to help them and their failure may be their own fault. He also said that people should not make life too easy for themselves. This is because it results in people thinking things are too difficult when the truth is they have just made themselves weak. He advises that a person never get too comfortable because it one stays uncomfortable they will harden their spirit and will be able to take more decisive action in times of trouble. Seneca believed that the majority of time when someone became angry it was because of some trite inconsequential reason that had no bearing on things of real importance. The only thing that anger accomplishes is ruining one’s day as the person now spends it in agitation and angering others. He advised that when one felt themselves become angry they calm their outer self by slowing their walk and relaxing their face and muscles. Once the outer shell was relaxed the inner self would follow.
In The Book of Proverbs, King Solomon seemed to follow the general Biblical consensus that anger is a sin. Throughout the Bible there are numerous passages referring to anger from the righteous anger of god, which according to biblical texts is always perfectly justified, even when it results in cities being destroyed or the loss of “innocent” lives. This is allowed in humankind too, as long as it is directed towards sin and exacted with the proper control, motivation and result. On the other hand, human anger is frowned upon in the Bible. The Bible calls a person who gets angry and reacts in irritation a fool saying, “A fool gives full vent to his spirit, / but a wise man quietly holds it back” (Proverbs 29:11 ESV). Like Seneca Proverbs identifies an angry person as someone who reacts to every slight against them and is in constant conflict with those around them “A hot-tempered man stirs up strife, / but he who is slow to anger quiets contention” (Proverbs 15:18 ESV)
Firmness
Seneca saw firmness as moral integrity. This was something that according to Seneca could not be taken from a person as it was not given but a virtue that existed in everyone. He felt that a person should “bear adversity with calm and prosperity with moderation, neither yielding to the former nor trusting to the latter,” (Seneca and Basore). A person who is firm in their beliefs is not easily shaken even in times of conflict or if it results in violence against the person. Instead they stand firm in the resolution without taking offense to others behavior against them.
In Proverbs firmness refers to standing strong in one’s faith no matter what tribulations one faces because of it “When the storm has swept by, the wicked are gone, but the righteous stand firm forever” (Proverbs 10:25 ESV). This coincides with Seneca’s view on firmness which conceded that a person who is strong in their beliefs will not easily bend to that of others. This is because a person who sticks to their beliefs will be able to defeat those who would act against them. Proverbs 12:7 addresses this saying, “The wicked are overthrown and are no more, but the house of the righteous stands firm”. (Proverbs 12:7 ESV)
Mercy
Seneca saw mercy as a virtue. He also saw it as being different then pity. Taking pity on a person and pardoning them for their acts against you, was not it Seneca’s view an act of mercy but one of pity. Mercy would be punishing the person in a less extreme manner then originally intended. He also saw mercy given in the wrong circumstance as being a death sentence saying that “mercy often inflicts death” (Seneca and Basore). This seems to indicate that he felt that giving a person mercy in certain cases made one appear weak and would ultimately have a negative effect when one’s enemies came.
Mercy mentioned eight times in Proverbs. In it mercy something that seems to be endorsed as well as warned against. It describes mercy as forgiving someone who is more vulnerable then oneself. It is not done because it is what the person deserves, rather it is done because it may be what they need in order to make a positive change in their life. Mercy is an important part of the human experience as it allows people to live in a world that is not as hard, angry and rough as it could be.
Mercy is also something one is to give those who are less fortunate then oneself. Proverbs speaks against those who oppresses the poor saying “He who oppresses the poor reproaches his Maker, but he who honors Him has mercy upon the poor. / When calamity comes, the wicked are brought down, but the righteous, even when he is brought to death, has hope” (Proverbs 14:31 – 32 ESV). The reason for this according to Proverbs is that one’s wealth does not guarantee their strength when it comes to times of trouble. The poor on the other hand, are already familiar with strife so they still have hope when life goes array.
Providence
In Seneca’s “Moral Essays” did not see providence as a god like Solomon. Instead, he addresses providence in an attempt to reconcile the knowledge of evil with the idea of stoicism. Seneca maintained that evil could not happen to a good person because according to Seneca opposites do not mix. This meant that a truly good person would not be affected by evil. So that if a person was then they were not a truly good person. In his opinion when one faced adversity it was not because they were good or bad but rather an opportunity to defeat one’s tribulations by using one’s virtues. This is because according to Seneca a smart person knows that they are going to face numerous misfortunes throughout their lives and will always fight even if they cannot get up.
Solomon saw providence as God interfering in the lives of humankind. This is the idea that there is a deity that is concerned with the well-being of humankind and who acts to keep everyone living a moral and righteous life. The Hebrews believed that God was the supreme deity and that humankind was to submit to his will in order to live a just and peaceful existence on Earth. This would be accomplished by following the dictates of the New Testament rather than one’s own desires “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6 ESV). It was believed that if one remained faithful and submissive to the rules of God, that God would protect them from evil “Be not afraid of sudden fear, neither of the desolation of the wicked, when it cometh. For the LORD shall be thy confidence, and shall keep thy foot from being taken” (Proverbs 3: 25-26 ESV). This was difference from Seneca’s view which was that a person must depend on themselves when they were facing adversity.
Finally, while Seneca and Solomon had a lot of the same ideas. The motivation behind their ideas was completely different. Solomon’s collection of “rules” was based on the idea that there was a god who had ultimate say in everything and would protect those who were faithful. Seneca’s faith was with humankind and its ability to face its foes through one’s own strength.
Works Cited
"Proverbs ESV - The Beginning of Knowledge - The." Bible Gateway. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 July 2016.
Seneca, Lucius A., and John W. Basore. "Full Text of "Moral Essays. With an English Translation by J.W. Basore"." Internet Archive: Digital Library of Free Books, Movies, Music & Wayback Machine. N.p., 1964. Web. 19 July 2016.
