---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Let us not so much labor to know where…"
description: "\"Let us not so much labor to know where hell is - as how to escape it.\" — John Chrysostom"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4dd/john-chrysostom-18823_escape_let-us-not-so-much-labor-to-know-where-h_3120380.jpg"
---

#  Let us not so much labor to know where hell is - as how to…

![“Let us not so much labor to know where hell is - as how to escape it.” quote by John Chrysostom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4dd/john-chrysostom-18823_escape_let-us-not-so-much-labor-to-know-where-h_3120380.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4dd/john-chrysostom-18823_escape_let-us-not-so-much-labor-to-know-where-h_3120380.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4dd/john-chrysostom-18823_escape_let-us-not-so-much-labor-to-know-where-h_3120380.jpg)

> “Let us not so much labor to know where hell is - as how to escape it.”

[John Chrysostom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-chrysostom/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

He advises focusing on escaping suffering rather than obsessing over its location.

**In simple terms:** Escape suffering rather than locate it.

Key Takeaway

Prioritize solutions over speculation.

Themes

spirituality ethics practicality

Mood

thoughtful serious

Type

religious philosophical

When to use this quote

- personal crises
- mental health
- ethical dilemmas

Key Concepts

suffering escape strategies

Questions to Reflect On

- What steps can you take to leave a painful situation?
- How do you identify true sources of suffering?

A Different Perspective

Finding “hell” can be endless; escape requires action.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Escape](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/escape/) [Hell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hell/) [Hell Escape](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hell-escape-2717483/) [Know Hell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know-hell-652094/) [Labor Know](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/labor-know-736127/) [Let Labor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/let-labor-1801384/)

## Related quotes

> [“That some should be rich shows that others may become rich, and hence is just encouragement to industry and enterprise. Let not him who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/that-some-should-be-rich-shows-that-others-may-become-rich-and-hence-2/)

[Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/)

> [As memory may be a paradise from which we cannot be driven, it may also be a hell from which we cannot escape.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lancaster-spalding/as-memory-may-be-a-paradise-from-which-we-cannot-be-driven-it-may/)

[John Lancaster Spalding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lancaster-spalding/)

> [A few ideas seem to be agreed upon. Help none but those who help themselves. Educate only at schools which provide in some form…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rutherford-b-hayes/a-few-ideas-seem-to-be-agreed-upon-help-none-but-those-who-help/)

[Rutherford B. Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rutherford-b-hayes/)

> [“Or else I'm dead, and I've ended up in hell after all, and it's an escape pod with Lilac LaRoux.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amie-kaufman/or-else-i-m-dead-and-i-ve-ended-up-in-hell-after-all-and-it-s-an/)

[Amie Kaufman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amie-kaufman/)

> [Those who invest in South Africa should not think they are doing us a favor; they are here for what they get out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desmond-tutu/those-who-invest-in-south-africa-should-not-think-they-are-doing-us-a/)

[Desmond Tutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desmond-tutu/)

> [Labor, you know, is prayer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bayard-taylor/labor-you-know-is-prayer/)

[Bayard Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bayard-taylor/)

> [“Take down the walls. Otherwise you must live closely, in fear, building barricades against the unknown, saying prayers against the darkness, speaking verse of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/take-down-the-walls-otherwise-you-must-live-closely-in-fear-building/)

[Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/)

> [I dont know if hell exists, but there sure as hell are some people who dont belong in heaven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-harper/i-dont-know-if-hell-exists-but-there-sure-as-hell-are-some-people-who/)

[Ben Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-harper/)

> [When you know what an actor has, you can reach in and arouse it. If you don't know what he has, you don't know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elia-kazan/when-you-know-what-an-actor-has-you-can-reach-in-and-arouse-it-if-you/)

[Elia Kazan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elia-kazan/)

> [“Take down the walls. That is, after all, the whole point. You do not know what will happen if you take down the walls;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/take-down-the-walls-that-is-after-all-the-whole-point-you-do-not-know-2/)

[Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/)

> [That's the nature of research you don't know what in hell you're doing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-eugene-edgerton/that-s-the-nature-of-research-you-don-t-know-what-in-hell-you-re-doing/)

[Harold Eugene Edgerton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-eugene-edgerton/)

> [“Hell,huh? Well,hopefully we'll be able to disprove that theory soon.Besides, if it were hell,would I be here with you?" "I don't know,if hell called…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiersten-white/hell-huh-well-hopefully-we-ll-be-able-to-disprove-that-theory-soon/)

[Kiersten White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiersten-white/)

> [I like Shakespeare, but I never know what the hell is going on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-letts/i-like-shakespeare-but-i-never-know-what-the-hell-is-going-on/)

[Tracy Letts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-letts/)

> [“Do you know where hell is? It's up here, in your head.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/do-you-know-where-hell-is-it-s-up-here-in-your-head/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“You do not know what will happen if you take down the walls; you cannot see through to the other side, don't know whether…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/you-do-not-know-what-will-happen-if-you-take-down-the-walls-you/)

[Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/)

## More by John Chrysostom

> [I know my own soul, how feeble and puny it is: I know the magnitude of this ministry, and the great difficulty of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-chrysostom/i-know-my-own-soul-how-feeble-and-puny-it-is-i-know-the-magnitude-of/)

[John Chrysostom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-chrysostom/)

> [Christ is wont to catch every man in the way of his own craft - magicians with a star, fishers with a fish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-chrysostom/christ-is-wont-to-catch-every-man-in-the-way-of-his-own-craft/)

[John Chrysostom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-chrysostom/)

> [I do not know whether anyone has ever succeeded in not enjoying praise. And, if he enjoys it, he naturally wants to receive it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-chrysostom/i-do-not-know-whether-anyone-has-ever-succeeded-in-not-enjoying/)

[John Chrysostom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-chrysostom/)

> [The Judge will pass sentence, not according to what any other person has said concerning you, but according to what you have yourself spoken.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-chrysostom/the-judge-will-pass-sentence-not-according-to-what-any-other-person/)

[John Chrysostom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-chrysostom/)

> [“For it cannot, it cannot be, that a man should enjoy the benefit of grace except he watch.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-chrysostom/for-it-cannot-it-cannot-be-that-a-man-should-enjoy-the-benefit-of/)

[John Chrysostom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-chrysostom/)

> [Do not say I use what is mine: you use what is alien to you; the indulgent, selfish use makes what is yours something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-chrysostom/do-not-say-i-use-what-is-mine-you-use-what-is-alien-to-you-the/)

[John Chrysostom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-chrysostom/)

> [After the prophets, the false prophets; after the apostles, the false apostles; after Christ, anti-Christ.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-chrysostom/after-the-prophets-the-false-prophets-after-the-apostles-the-false/)

[John Chrysostom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-chrysostom/)

> [Higher than every painter, higher than every sculptor and than all artists do I regard him who is skilled in the art of forming…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-chrysostom/higher-than-every-painter-higher-than-every-sculptor-and-than-all/)

[John Chrysostom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-chrysostom/)

> [God draws, but He draws the willing one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-chrysostom/god-draws-but-he-draws-the-willing-one/)

[John Chrysostom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-chrysostom/)

> [By the cross we know the gravity of sin and the greatness of God's love toward us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-chrysostom/by-the-cross-we-know-the-gravity-of-sin-and-the-greatness-of-god-s/)

[John Chrysostom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-chrysostom/)

> [ “As a moth gnaws a garment, so doth envy consume a \[person\].” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-chrysostom/as-a-moth-gnaws-a-garment-so-doth-envy-consume-a-person/)

[John Chrysostom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-chrysostom/)

> [“I have taken you in my arms, and I love you, and I prefer you to my life itself. For the present life is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-chrysostom/i-have-taken-you-in-my-arms-and-i-love-you-and-i-prefer-you-to-my/)

[John Chrysostom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-chrysostom/)

> [As the Father useth this expression I AM, so also doth Christ, for it signifieth continuous being, irrespective of all time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-chrysostom/as-the-father-useth-this-expression-i-am-so-also-doth-christ-for-it/)

[John Chrysostom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-chrysostom/)

> [“If a man cannot learn well a melody on pipe or harp,   unless he in every way strain his attention; how shall one, who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-chrysostom/if-a-man-cannot-learn-well-a-melody-on-pipe-or-harp-unless-he-in/)

[John Chrysostom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-chrysostom/)

> [Correct him, but not as a foe, nor as an adversary exacting a penalty, but as a physician providing medicines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-chrysostom/correct-him-but-not-as-a-foe-nor-as-an-adversary-exacting-a-penalty/)

[John Chrysostom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-chrysostom/)

[Explore all 34 John Chrysostom quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-chrysostom/)

## More Escape quotes

> [With multiplayer, permanent death, and an ever-changing world to explore and conquer, 'A Valley Without Wind' might be the place you're looking for if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-manuel/with-multiplayer-permanent-death-and-an-ever-changing-world-to/)

[Rob Manuel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-manuel/)

> [Growing up in Iceland, it was very beautiful, very safe, but quite isolated. There was something about jazz music that had a way of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laufey/growing-up-in-iceland-it-was-very-beautiful-very-safe-but-quite/)

[Laufey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laufey/)

> [“Those who contemplate never escape the doubt.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henning-mankell/those-who-contemplate-never-escape-the-doubt/)

[Henning Mankell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henning-mankell/)

> [“Then from those profound slumbers we awake in a dawn, not knowing who we are, being nobody, newly born, ready for anything, the brain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/then-from-those-profound-slumbers-we-awake-in-a-dawn-not-knowing-who/)

[Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/)

> [I think my attitudes about the past are very traditional. You can't ignore history; you can't escape it even if you want to. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-gehry/i-think-my-attitudes-about-the-past-are-very-traditional-you-can-t/)

[Frank Gehry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-gehry/)

> [Music and sleep are two of the greatest ways to escape from everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/music-and-sleep-are-two-of-the-greatest-ways-to-escape-from-everything/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“Music is my escape from all the problems in life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kailin-cui/music-is-my-escape-from-all-the-problems-in-life/)

[Kailin Cui](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kailin-cui/)

> [Wherever you escape, the truth will find you! Always be prepared to meet with it!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/wherever-you-escape-the-truth-will-find-you-always-be-prepared-to/)

[Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/)

> [“I think the best way to escape your head isn’t to think about things that aren’t real, it’s to think about things that are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-brooks/i-think-the-best-way-to-escape-your-head-isn-t-to-think-about-things/)

[Ben Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-brooks/)

> [“You could say she hid there, in the words, an escape within an escape...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aurelie-sheehan/you-could-say-she-hid-there-in-the-words-an-escape-within-an-escape/)

[Aurelie Sheehan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aurelie-sheehan/)

> [Life will drag us kicking and screaming to our destiny if we try to escape it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alberto-villoldo/life-will-drag-us-kicking-and-screaming-to-our-destiny-if-we-try-to/)

[Alberto Villoldo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alberto-villoldo/)

> [How did you escape? (Syd) I fought my way out in a manner that would have made Rambo proud. And when I got home…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/how-did-you-escape-syd-i-fought-my-way-out-in-a-manner-that-would/)

[Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/)

> [There are reasons people seek escape in books, and one of those reasons is that the boundary of what can happen is beyond what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-patterson/there-are-reasons-people-seek-escape-in-books-and-one-of-those/)

[James Patterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-patterson/)

> [“Well, I like to know where I'm going before I try to get there. It's a mistake to try to execute a plan before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-barry/well-i-like-to-know-where-i-m-going-before-i-try-to-get-there-it-s-a/)

[Max Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-barry/)

> [“If poetry is an escape into the woods, then music is the journey back home.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/akash-mandal/if-poetry-is-an-escape-into-the-woods-then-music-is-the-journey-back/)

[Akash Mandal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/akash-mandal/)

[Browse all 1,660 Escape quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/escape/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Let us not so much labor to know where hell is - as how to escape it.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "John Chrysostom"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-chrysostom/let-us-not-so-much-labor-to-know-where-hell-is-as-how-to-escape-it/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Escape"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-chrysostom/let-us-not-so-much-labor-to-know-where-hell-is-as-how-to-escape-it/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4dd/john-chrysostom-18823_escape_let-us-not-so-much-labor-to-know-where-h_3120380.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4dd/john-chrysostom-18823_escape_let-us-not-so-much-labor-to-know-where-h_3120380.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4dd/john-chrysostom-18823_escape_let-us-not-so-much-labor-to-know-where-h_3120380.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Let us not so much labor to know where hell is - as how to escape it.” — John Chrysostom",
                "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": "John Chrysostom",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-chrysostom/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Let us not so much labor...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-chrysostom/let-us-not-so-much-labor-to-know-where-hell-is-as-how-to-escape-it/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-chrysostom/let-us-not-so-much-labor-to-know-where-hell-is-as-how-to-escape-it/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
