The pen is mightier than the sword
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The saying 'The pen is mightier than the sword was coined by Edward Bulwer-Lytton in 1839 for his play Richelieu, about Cardinal Richelieu.
The idea was not a neologism even at the time, and had numerous predecessors:
- Euripides, (died circa 406 B.C.): "The tongue is mightier than the blade."
- Shakespeare, in 1600, in his play Hamlet: "... many wearing rapiers are afraid of goosequills."
- Robert Burton, in 1621, in The Anatomy of Melancholy, stated: "From this it is clear how much more cruel the pen may be than the sword."
- Thomas Jefferson, in 1796, in a letter to Thomas Paine wrote: "Go on doing with your pen what in other times was done with the sword."
In the Christian New Testament, circa 1st century, AD:
- Hebrews 4:12: "Indeed, the word of God is living and effective, sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating even between soul and spirit, joints and marrow, and able to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart."
- Ephesians 6:17, in like fasion: "sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God"
- Revelation 1:16, in describing a vision of God: "A sharp two-edged sword came out of his mouth."
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