The last virtue. Meekness.
Now this is a misunderstood word. Very misunderstood. Most people would say that meekness means humility, or maybe submissiveness. However, meekness is very different from humility and is much more in depth than just submissiveness.
Humility is keeping a modest view of your own importance. A humble person can put aside their own ego, their own needs and desires for others. They know and understand that they are not the most important person at all times. However, one reason that humility and meekness are not the same thing is that a weak person can be humble.
If you are unable to affect a situation to insure your own importance is taken into account, you may be viewed as being humble, when in reality you aren’t humble at all you just can’t change or your view of the situation isn’t considered. Now we can argue if that is true humility or just weakness. However, the fact of the matter is most people would consider this humility.
Now similarly, if you can change a situation but do in fact choose not to, you can take Humility too far. If you are a doormat and never stand up for your own needs. If you always submit to others, even when it is wrong to do so, because they are hurting you, or others, in a needless way that can be changed or avoided but you refuse to speak up do to “humility” that isn’t damaging, and again some might argue well that's false humility, or just weakness—and I might agree, but for this discussion both of these situations, that many people might call humility, are why humility isn’t meekness—so don’t be overly humble, you need to know your own worth and value. Meekness has a component of being humble, however it is a step further as we will see.
So what about submissiveness, another term that comes up when people speak of being meek. Being submissive means submitting your wants, needs, ego, or ideas to another. In other words, it's putting others before yourself, or yielding to someone else. It's very similar to humility—and this is part of meekness—However it is missing a very important component just as humility was.
So, what is that component? They are the same thing in both definitions. What makes Meekness more than submissive, and more than humility is ability and choice.
Meekness means: Those who know how to use their swords but choose not
to.
Do you see the important missing part? It's this: capability. Simply being humble or submissive can be simply because you have to be—you can't do anything else. However, to be Meek you actually have to be capable, ready, and bold enough to do something and yet for the betterment of others, society, or whatever, and against your own wants, ego, or needs you choose not to.
Meekness is that capability to put your own need aside and be humble or
submissive—even when you have the capability, strength, and desire to not be, but know it would only be for your singular benefit and that it would not be good, honorable, or right.
That is what meekness is and why it is more than just humility or submissiveness.