--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think if Eternity held torment, its…" description: "\"“I think if Eternity held torment, its form would not be fiery rack, nor its nature, despair. I think that on a certain day amongst those days which ne..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc5/charlotte-bronte-144_despair_i-think-if-eternity-held-torment-its-for_347753.jpg" --- # I think if Eternity held torment, its form would not be… ![“I think if Eternity held torment, its form would not be fiery rack, nor its nature, despair. I think that on a certain day amongst those days which never dawned, and will not set, an angel entered Hades — stood, shone, smiled, delivered a prophecy of conditional pardon, kindled a doubtful hope of…” quote by Charlotte Brontë](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc5/charlotte-bronte-144_despair_i-think-if-eternity-held-torment-its-for_347753.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc5/charlotte-bronte-144_despair_i-think-if-eternity-held-torment-its-for_347753.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc5/charlotte-bronte-144_despair_i-think-if-eternity-held-torment-its-for_347753.jpg) > ““I think if Eternity held torment, its form would not be fiery rack, nor its nature, despair. I think that on a certain day amongst those days which never dawned, and will not set, an angel entered Hades — stood, shone, smiled, delivered a prophecy of conditional pardon, kindled a doubtful hope of bliss to come, not now, but at a day and hour unlooked for, revealed in his own glory and grandeur the height and compass of his promise: spoke thus — then towering, became a star, and vanished into his own Heaven. His legacy was suspense — a worse boon than despair.”” [Charlotte Brontë](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote imagines eternity as a place of torment transformed into hope through an angelic prophecy, suggesting that even in despair, a future promise can arise. **In simple terms:** Even in torment, hope can appear unexpectedly. Key Takeaway Seek unexpected hope in bleak times. Themes hope despair eternity prophecy transformation Mood reflective hopeful melancholic Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - grief counseling - spiritual reflection - creative writing - philosophical debate Key Concepts theology existentialism redemption Questions to Reflect On - What unexpected hope have you found in a dark period? - How does envisioning a future promise change present suffering? A Different Perspective The notion of a conditional pardon may be overly optimistic, ignoring the complexity of suffering. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Despair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/despair/) [Eternity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eternity/) [Eternity Held](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eternity-held-3218322/) [Hades Stood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hades-stood-3218323/) [Hell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hell/) [Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hope/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Suffering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffering/) [Suspense](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suspense/) [Think Eternity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think-eternity-324888/) [Torment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/torment/) ## Related quotes > [“When I say that I am convinced of these things I speak with too much pride. Far off, like a perfect pearl, one can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/when-i-say-that-i-am-convinced-of-these-things-i-speak-with-too-much/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [“Reader one moment stop and think, That I am in eternity and you are on the brink.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/reader-one-moment-stop-and-think-that-i-am-in-eternity-and-you-are-on/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If I would have been in a different world Like I frequently am when I see you Oh I might have missed All the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ric-ocasek/if-i-would-have-been-in-a-different-world-like-i-frequently-am-when-i/) [Ric Ocasek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ric-ocasek/) > [And, sir, when we think of eternity, and of the future consequences of all human conduct, what is there in this life that should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wilberforce/and-sir-when-we-think-of-eternity-and-of-the-future-consequences-of/) [William Wilberforce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wilberforce/) > [I shudder to think of an eternity spend without books. I have hopes that every book that was ever lost is somewhere waiting for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-odom/i-shudder-to-think-of-an-eternity-spend-without-books-i-have-hopes/) [Mel Odom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-odom/) > [Most people are completely oblivious to eternity. They look at the sky at night and they think that's eternity; it is just the senses…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/most-people-are-completely-oblivious-to-eternity-they-look-at-the-sky/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [“So, apart from casting runes, what other hobbies do you have? Forbidden rituals, human sacrifices, torturing? –”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simona-panova/so-apart-from-casting-runes-what-other-hobbies-do-you-have-forbidden/) [Simona Panova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simona-panova/) > [“I had seen that errible look on a man's face before, on the faces of those being dragged to the gallows. Some scream and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-maitland/i-had-seen-that-errible-look-on-a-man-s-face-before-on-the-faces-of/) [Karen Maitland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-maitland/) > [The dove descending breaks the air With flame of incandescent terror Of which the tongues declare The one discharge from sin and error. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-dove-descending-breaks-the-air-with-flame-of-incandescent-terror/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The music enchanted the air. It was like the south wind, like a warm night, like swelling sails beneath the stars, completely and utterly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/the-music-enchanted-the-air-it-was-like-the-south-wind-like-a-warm/) [Erich Maria Remarque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-maria-remarque/) > [Teenage girls are extremists who see the world in black-and- white terms, missing shades of gray. Life is either marvelous or notworth living. School…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pipher/teenage-girls-are-extremists-who-see-the-world-in-black-and-white/) [Mary Pipher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pipher/) > [When people are suicidal, their thinking is paralyzed, their options appear spare or nonexistent, their mood is despairing, and hopelessness permeates their entire mental…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/when-people-are-suicidal-their-thinking-is-paralyzed-their-options/) [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) > [...Gratitude transforms the torment of memory of good things now gone into silent joy. One bears what was lovely in the past not as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/gratitude-transforms-the-torment-of-memory-of-good-things-now-gone/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [Many individuals spend a considerable portion of their lifetimes in terror of one imagined catastrophe or another. The classic is that your immortal soul…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-neil-smith/many-individuals-spend-a-considerable-portion-of-their-lifetimes-in/) [L. Neil Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-neil-smith/) > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Charlotte Brontë > [When we are struck at without a reason, we should strike back again very hard; I am sure we should - so hard as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/when-we-are-struck-at-without-a-reason-we-should-strike-back-again/) [Charlotte Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [My God, whose son, as on this night, took on Him the form of man, and for man vouchsafed to suffer and bleed, controls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/my-god-whose-son-as-on-this-night-took-on-him-the-form-of-man-and-for/) [Charlotte Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [“A deal of people, Miss, are for trusting all to Providence; but I say Providence will not dispense with the means, though He often…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/a-deal-of-people-miss-are-for-trusting-all-to-providence-but-i-say/) [Charlotte Brontë](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [“This night is not calm; the equinox still struggles in its storms. The wild rains of the day are abated; the great single cloud…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/this-night-is-not-calm-the-equinox-still-struggles-in-its-storms-the/) [Charlotte Brontë](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [“How dare I, Mrs Reed? How dare I? Because it is the truth. You think I have no feelings, and that I can do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/how-dare-i-mrs-reed-how-dare-i-because-it-is-the-truth-you-think-i/) [Charlotte Brontë](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [“If men could see us as we really are, they would be a little amazed; but the cleverest, the acutest men are often under…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/if-men-could-see-us-as-we-really-are-they-would-be-a-little-amazed/) [Charlotte Brontë](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [If all the world hated you and believed you wicked, while your own conscience approved of you and absolved you from guilt, you would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/if-all-the-world-hated-you-and-believed-you-wicked-while-your-own/) [Charlotte Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [Life appears to me too short to be spent in nursing animosity, or registering wrongs. With this creed, revenge never worries my heart, degradation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/life-appears-to-me-too-short-to-be-spent-in-nursing-animosity-or/) [Charlotte Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [Poverty, for me, is synonymous with degradation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/poverty-for-me-is-synonymous-with-degradation/) [Charlotte Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [When his first-born was put into his arms, he could see that the boy had inherited his own eyes, as they once were -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/when-his-first-born-was-put-into-his-arms-he-could-see-that-the-boy/) [Charlotte Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [Talented people almost always know full well the excellence that is in them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/talented-people-almost-always-know-full-well-the-excellence-that-is/) [Charlotte Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [“Not one spark of spirit, not one symptom of resistance, would they have shown till the hand of the Corsican bandit had grasped that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/not-one-spark-of-spirit-not-one-symptom-of-resistance-would-they-have/) [Charlotte Brontë](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [“Love can excuse anything except meanness; but meanness kills love, cripples even natural affection; without esteem true love cannot exist.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/love-can-excuse-anything-except-meanness-but-meanness-kills-love/) [Charlotte Brontë](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [I think you will learn to be natural with me, as I find it impossible to be conventional with you](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/i-think-you-will-learn-to-be-natural-with-me-as-i-find-it-impossible/) [Charlotte Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [“You are no ruin sir--no lighting-struck tree: you are green and vigorous. Plants will grow about your roots, whether you ask them or not,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/you-are-no-ruin-sir-no-lighting-struck-tree-you-are-green-and/) [Charlotte Brontë](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) [Explore all 1,082 Charlotte Brontë quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) ## More Despair quotes > [“As ofttimes as it rains on my little spot of earth, you'd think I'd grow accustomed to the gloom.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-e-goodrich/as-ofttimes-as-it-rains-on-my-little-spot-of-earth-you-d-think-i-d/) [Richelle E. Goodrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-e-goodrich/) > [“She searched her mind for a single day when it had felt good to be alive. There must have been one, surely?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-abbott/she-searched-her-mind-for-a-single-day-when-it-had-felt-good-to-be/) [Rachel Abbott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-abbott/) > [“Men circle like bees around honey, buzzing to communicate their sexual despair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carla-h-krueger/men-circle-like-bees-around-honey-buzzing-to-communicate-their-sexual/) [Carla H Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carla-h-krueger/) > [I think what was special about 'Music by Prudence' was the classic story of the title subject's life path - from being an outcast…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-think-what-was-special-about-music-by-prudence-was-the-classic/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [Your spirit is the part of you that seeks meaning and purpose. It's the part drawn to hope, that will not give in to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-myss/your-spirit-is-the-part-of-you-that-seeks-meaning-and-purpose-it-s/) [Caroline Myss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-myss/) > [My God, whose son, as on this night, took on Him the form of man, and for man vouchsafed to suffer and bleed, controls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/my-god-whose-son-as-on-this-night-took-on-him-the-form-of-man-and-for/) [Charlotte Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [The modernist writers found despair inspirational.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/the-modernist-writers-found-despair-inspirational/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [The skin and shell of things Though fair are not Thy wish nor prayer but got My meer despair of wings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-vaughan/the-skin-and-shell-of-things-though-fair-are-not-thy-wish-nor-prayer/) [Henry Vaughan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-vaughan/) > [“A fine setting for a fit of despair,” it occurred to him, “if I were only standing here by accident instead of design.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/a-fine-setting-for-a-fit-of-despair-it-occurred-to-him-if-i-were-only/) [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) > [Enough for this bow & arrow. It caused me nothing but sorrow. No need for another tomorrow. In your heart, I will never be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louaiq8/enough-for-this-bow-arrow-it-caused-me-nothing-but-sorrow-no-need-for/) [Louaiq8](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louaiq8/) > [True repentance never leads to despair. Its leads home. It leads to grace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg/true-repentance-never-leads-to-despair-its-leads-home-it-leads-to/) [John Ortberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg/) > [Do not consider despair as a thick and high wall standing on your way; it is just a darkness and you can still walk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/do-not-consider-despair-as-a-thick-and-high-wall-standing-on-your-way/) [Mehmet Murat ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [Despair is the price one pays for setting oneself an impossible aim. It is, one is told, the unforgivable sin, but it is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/despair-is-the-price-one-pays-for-setting-oneself-an-impossible-aim/) [Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/) > [A speculative despair is unpardonable where it our duty to act.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/a-speculative-despair-is-unpardonable-where-it-our-duty-to-act/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [I have noticed that there is no dissatisfaction like that of the rich. Feed a man, clothe him, put him in a good house,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/i-have-noticed-that-there-is-no-dissatisfaction-like-that-of-the-rich/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) [Browse all 3,181 Despair quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/despair/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I think if Eternity held torment, its form would not be fiery rack, nor its nature, despair. I think that on a certain day amongst those days which never dawned, and will not set, an angel entered Hades — stood, shone, smiled, delivered a prophecy of conditional pardon, kindled a doubtful hope of bliss to come, not now, but at a day and hour unlooked for, revealed in his own glory and grandeur the height and compass of his promise: spoke thus — then towering, became a star, and vanished into his own Heaven. His legacy was suspense — a worse boon than despair.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Charlotte Brontë" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/i-think-if-eternity-held-torment-its-form-would-not-be-fiery-rack-nor/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Despair" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/i-think-if-eternity-held-torment-its-form-would-not-be-fiery-rack-nor/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc5/charlotte-bronte-144_despair_i-think-if-eternity-held-torment-its-for_347753.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc5/charlotte-bronte-144_despair_i-think-if-eternity-held-torment-its-for_347753.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc5/charlotte-bronte-144_despair_i-think-if-eternity-held-torment-its-for_347753.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I think if Eternity held torment, its form would not be fiery rack, nor its nature, despair. I think that on…” — Charlotte Brontë", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Charlotte Brontë", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“I think if Eternity held torment,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/i-think-if-eternity-held-torment-its-form-would-not-be-fiery-rack-nor/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/i-think-if-eternity-held-torment-its-form-would-not-be-fiery-rack-nor/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```