--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If Earth was such unworthy soil for God's…" description: "\"“If Earth was such unworthy soil for God's best specimens, why did he perversely plant them there?”\" — Emma Donoghue" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bd3/emma-donoghue-1499_soil_if-earth-was-such-unworthy-soil-for-god_1801687.png" --- # If Earth was such unworthy soil for God's best specimens… ![“If Earth was such unworthy soil for God's best specimens, why did he perversely plant them there?” quote by Emma Donoghue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bd3/emma-donoghue-1499_soil_if-earth-was-such-unworthy-soil-for-god_1801687.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bd3/emma-donoghue-1499_soil_if-earth-was-such-unworthy-soil-for-god_1801687.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bd3/emma-donoghue-1499_soil_if-earth-was-such-unworthy-soil-for-god_1801687.png) > ““If Earth was such unworthy soil for God's best specimens, why did he perversely plant them there?”” [Emma Donoghue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-donoghue/) ## 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 questions why a seemingly hostile world would host humanity’s best creations. **In simple terms:** Why are the best placed in a harsh world? Key Takeaway Reflect on purpose amid adversity. Themes existence purpose divine plan human condition Mood thoughtful questioning Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - personal crisis - social injustice - spiritual doubt Key Concepts theodicy philosophical inquiry environmental metaphor Questions to Reflect On - What does “best specimens” mean to you? - Can hardship be a test or a flaw? A Different Perspective It assumes a singular divine intent, ignoring random chance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Earth Unworthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/earth-unworthy-2037479/) [God's Best](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gods-best/) [Perversely Plant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perversely-plant-2037481/) [Soil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soil/) [Soil God](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soil-god-2037480/) [Unworthy Soil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unworthy-soil-2037478/) ## Related quotes > [“what both Jesus and Paul were saying is this: If you want to have a bountiful harvest, you have to plant. And if you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-c-heath/what-both-jesus-and-paul-were-saying-is-this-if-you-want-to-have-a/) [Emily C. 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We don't realize how close we are to victory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/many-times-we-miss-out-on-god-s-best-because-we-give-up-too-soon-we/) [Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/) > [Blessed are they who have the gift of making friends, for it is one of God's best gifts. 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I press thee, through a yielding soil, with pride.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/spade-thou-art-a-tool-of-honor-in-my-hands-i-press-thee-through-a/) [William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/) > [Vegetables, which are the lowest in the scale of living things, are fed by roots, which, implanted in the native soil, select by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-anthelme-brillat-savarin/vegetables-which-are-the-lowest-in-the-scale-of-living-things-are-fed/) [Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-anthelme-brillat-savarin/) > [To husband is to use with care, to keep, to save, to make last, to conserve. Old usage tells us that there is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/to-husband-is-to-use-with-care-to-keep-to-save-to-make-last-to/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [Close contact between science and the practice of collective farms and State farms creates inexhaustible opportunities for the development of theoretical knowledge, enabling us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trofim-lysenko/close-contact-between-science-and-the-practice-of-collective-farms/) [Trofim Lysenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trofim-lysenko/) > [Things happen too quickly, crisis follows crisis, the soil of our minds is perpetually disturbed. Each of us, to relieve his feelings, broadcasts his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jan-struther/things-happen-too-quickly-crisis-follows-crisis-the-soil-of-our-minds/) [Jan Struther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jan-struther/) > [There is one, and only one solution, and we have almost no time to try it. We must turn all our resources to repairing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/there-is-one-and-only-one-solution-and-we-have-almost-no-time-to-try/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [The art music of the West has developed through out its history by means of individual geniuses, and out of the soil supporting them;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toru-takemitsu/the-art-music-of-the-west-has-developed-through-out-its-history-by/) [Toru Takemitsu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toru-takemitsu/) > [Yes, I am positive that one of the great curatives of our evils, our maladies, social, moral, and intellectual, would be a return to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-wagner/yes-i-am-positive-that-one-of-the-great-curatives-of-our-evils-our/) [Charles Wagner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-wagner/) > [Whereas our ancestors (not of choice) were the first successful cultivators of the wilds of America, we their descendants feel ourselves entitled to participate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-allen/whereas-our-ancestors-not-of-choice-were-the-first-successful/) [Richard Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-allen/) > [The best thing for you to do is shop at your local farmer's market and support the organic growers who are there. 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These backgrounds may not be particularly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chogyam-trungpa/we-do-not-have-to-be-ashamed-of-what-we-are-as-sentient-beings-we/) [Chogyam Trungpa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chogyam-trungpa/) [Browse all 1,301 Soil quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soil/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“If Earth was such unworthy soil for God's best specimens, why did he perversely plant them there?”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Emma Donoghue" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-donoghue/if-earth-was-such-unworthy-soil-for-god-s-best-specimens-why-did-he/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Soil" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-donoghue/if-earth-was-such-unworthy-soil-for-god-s-best-specimens-why-did-he/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bd3/emma-donoghue-1499_soil_if-earth-was-such-unworthy-soil-for-god_1801687.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bd3/emma-donoghue-1499_soil_if-earth-was-such-unworthy-soil-for-god_1801687.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bd3/emma-donoghue-1499_soil_if-earth-was-such-unworthy-soil-for-god_1801687.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If Earth was such unworthy soil for God's best specimens, why did he perversely plant them there?” — Emma Donoghue", "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": "Emma Donoghue", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-donoghue/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“If Earth was such unworthy soil...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-donoghue/if-earth-was-such-unworthy-soil-for-god-s-best-specimens-why-did-he/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-donoghue/if-earth-was-such-unworthy-soil-for-god-s-best-specimens-why-did-he/#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 } } ] } ```