On Envy and Slander
Those Who Malign Others Are Projecting Their Own Insecurities and Limitations Upon Those They Envy
There is a distinction between confidence and pride, as well as between sharing accomplishments and boasting. When confidence and the sharing of achievements provoke hostility, it is often a manifestation of envy. Conversely, when revulsion arises from witnessing prideful boasting, a reaction of disgust is well deserved. We should be disgusted by pride, arrogance, boasting, and false humility. True intentions can always be discerned through the humility displayed in the presentation of one's achievements. If you pay close attention, your adversaries will reveal their deepest fears cloaked in their arrogance. When they puff out their chest and boast, it's not confidence—it's a facade of superiority born from their own insecurities. This bravado is a defense mechanism, a desperate attempt to conceal their vulnerabilities. In truth, they are laying bare their weaknesses for all to see. I've yet to encounter a truly secure individual who feels the need to act in such a manner; as intelligence grows, so too does humility. Those who speak ill of others are merely projecting their own insecurities onto those they envy. As Seneca (1889) vividly illustrates in his Minor Dialogues, De Tranquillitate Animi (On the Tranquility of the Mind):
hence comes the State of Mind of those who loathe their idleness, complain that they have nothing to do, and view the progress of others with the bitterest jealousy: for an unhappy sloth favours the growth of envy, and those who cannot succeed themselves wish everyone else to be ruined” (p. 257).
As Greek philosopher Socrates once stated, “When the debate is lost, slander becomes the tool of the losers.” Christ was the target of such vicious jealousy and depraved ignorance, that it culminated in his arrest (Matt. 27:18 NLT). So, I conclude that Jealousy teaches a loser to twist a man’s achievements against him. As Werner von Braun (1971), the father of space science, once articulated:
When God became a man Himself, the experience proved to be nothing short of pure agony. In man’s time-honored fashion, they would unleash the whole arsenal of weapons against Him: misrepresentation, slander, and accusation of treason. The stage was set for a situation without parallel in the history of the earth. God would visit creatures and they would nail Him to the cross!
Consider this a warning to those who continue in the way of strife:
There are six things which Yahweh hates, Even seven which are an abomination to Him: Haughty eyes, a lying tongue, And hands that shed innocent blood, A heart that devises wicked thoughts, Feet that hasten to run to evil, A false witness who breathes out lies, And one who spreads strife among brothers (Legacy Standard Bible, 2021, Prov. 6:16-19).
- Those who hate fellow Christians are false Christians (1Jn. 3:15 ESV; 1Jn. 4:20).
- With their words, the godless destroy their friends (Prov. 11:9 NLT).
- Rebuke that person even if they believe (Lk. 17:3-4).
- Don’t eat with such a person. Remove the evil person from among you (1Cor. 5:11-13 NLT).
- Give them warnings, after that, have nothing more to do with them (Titus 3:10 NLT).
- Do not associate with the slanderer (Prov. 20:19).
- Put away all hypocrisy, envy, and all slander (1Pet. 2:1).
- God will destroy the slanderer (Psa. 101:5).
- Whoever utters slander is a fool (Prov. 10:18).
- By gossip a troublemaker separates the best of friends (Prov. 16:28 NLT).
- Every careless word will be judged (Matt. 12:36).
- By speaking evil of others, you judge God’s law (Jas. 4:11-12).
- Evil words come from an evil heart (Lk. 6:45 NLT; Heb. 3:12).
- Those who endure persecution will receive the crown of life (Jas. 1:12).
- You are in danger of the fires of hell (Matt. 5:22).
- An admonition to false teachers (Jer. 23:1-3 KJV).
- Legacy Standard Bible. (2021). The Lockman Foundation.
- New Living Translation. (2015). Tyndale House Publishers.
- Seneca, L. A. (1889). Minor dialogues together with the dialogue on Clemency (A. Stewart, Trans.). George Bell and Sons. (Original work published AD 62)
- von Braun, W. (1971, November 22). Religious Implications of Space Exploration: A Personal View [Lecture]. Belmont Abbey College, North Carolina.
Together in action, united in spirit, aligned in purpose.