--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: More powerful than God, more evil than…" description: "\"More powerful than God, more evil than the Devil; the poor have it, the rich lack it, and if you eat it you die?\" — Margaret Atwood" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/354/margaret-atwood-40_devil_more-powerful-than-god-more-evil-than-th_2657379.jpg" --- # More powerful than God, more evil than the Devil; the poor… ![“More powerful than God, more evil than the Devil; the poor have it, the rich lack it, and if you eat it you die?” quote by Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/354/margaret-atwood-40_devil_more-powerful-than-god-more-evil-than-th_2657379.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/354/margaret-atwood-40_devil_more-powerful-than-god-more-evil-than-th_2657379.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/354/margaret-atwood-40_devil_more-powerful-than-god-more-evil-than-th_2657379.jpg) > “More powerful than God, more evil than the Devil; the poor have it, the rich lack it, and if you eat it you die?” [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A paradoxical riddle about something that is powerful, evil, scarce for the rich, abundant for the poor, and lethal if consumed. **In simple terms:** A deadly, contradictory resource. Key Takeaway Consider the hidden costs of power. Themes paradox resource wealth morality Mood thought‑provoking enigmatic Type riddle philosophical When to use this quote - political satire - economic inequality - health hazards Key Concepts riddle philosophical puzzle Questions to Reflect On - What does this riddle reveal about society? - Can you think of a real‑world equivalent? A Different Perspective The answer may be metaphorical, limiting literal interpretation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Devil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/devil/) [Evil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evil/) [Evil Devil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evil-devil-601539/) [God Evil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god-evil-730510/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Poor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poor/) [Powerful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/powerful/) [Powerful god](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/powerful-god/) [Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rich/) ## Related quotes > [“WHAT IS GREATER THAN GOD, MORE EVIL THAN THE DEVIL? THE POOR HAVE IT.  THE RICH NEED IT.  AND IF YOU EAT IT, YOU…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernie-lindsey/what-is-greater-than-god-more-evil-than-the-devil-the-poor-have-it/) [Ernie Lindsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernie-lindsey/) > [Madam Walker's name gets thrown out as either the savior of black women's hair or she's the evil devil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-lelia-bundles/madam-walker-s-name-gets-thrown-out-as-either-the-savior-of-black/) [A'Lelia Bundles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-lelia-bundles/) > [“Stop blaming evil on the Devil, blame it on the Creator of everything, if you don't understand, ask Him or at least hope that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bangambiki-habyarimana/stop-blaming-evil-on-the-devil-blame-it-on-the-creator-of-everything/) [Bangambiki Habyarimana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bangambiki-habyarimana/) > [A perfectly evil Devil makes even less sense than a perfect God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/a-perfectly-evil-devil-makes-even-less-sense-than-a-perfect-god/) [Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/) > [Becoming the Devil , makes me glad.. i know it makes everyone mad... brings everything sad... it ain't over lad.! If u think u…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jatin-kundra/becoming-the-devil-makes-me-glad-i-know-it-makes-everyone-mad-brings/) [Jatin Kundra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jatin-kundra/) > [I don't think Vince McMahon is evil or the devil. I think he's a very shrewd business man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-dibiase-sr/i-don-t-think-vince-mcmahon-is-evil-or-the-devil-i-think-he-s-a-very/) [Ted DiBiase Sr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-dibiase-sr/) > [This generation, and many others, have been led to believe that the devil is a myth, a figure, an idea, the idea of evil...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/this-generation-and-many-others-have-been-led-to-believe-that-the/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [I think Cruella is evil, because she's the devil. But all the other characters, I was able to find a common humanity with them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-close/i-think-cruella-is-evil-because-she-s-the-devil-but-all-the-other/) [Glenn Close](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-close/) > [“Evil is of the devil.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/evil-is-of-the-devil/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [Around us there is the presence of evil. The devil is at work. But in a loud voice I say: GOD IS STRONGER.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/around-us-there-is-the-presence-of-evil-the-devil-is-at-work-but-in-a/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [No man means evil but the devil, and we shall know him by his horns.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/no-man-means-evil-but-the-devil-and-we-shall-know-him-by-his-horns/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“Miss Smith, your suspicions wound me,' he said with a smile. He drew her, stiff and unwilling, against his side. Immediately her warmth seeped…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-campbell/miss-smith-your-suspicions-wound-me-he-said-with-a-smile-he-drew-her/) [Anna Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-campbell/) > [“One of the problems with the ways we tend to talk about the power of hell is that we shift the blame for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-ryan-butler/one-of-the-problems-with-the-ways-we-tend-to-talk-about-the-power-of/) [Joshua Ryan Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-ryan-butler/) > [“Evil is real - and powerful. It has to be fought, not explained away, not fled. And God is against evil all the way.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-marshall/evil-is-real-and-powerful-it-has-to-be-fought-not-explained-away-not/) [Catherine Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-marshall/) > [You came empty handed, but of course that is not up to the world, will be with you'r Sin virtue, which will be sent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/you-came-empty-handed-but-of-course-that-is-not-up-to-the-world-will/) [Mak\_786](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mak-786/) ## More by Margaret Atwood > [“I'm fine," said Pilar, "for the moment. And the moment is the only time we can be fine in.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/i-m-fine-said-pilar-for-the-moment-and-the-moment-is-the-only-time-we/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [And yet it disturbs me to learn I have hurt someone unintentionally. I want all my hurts to be intentional.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/and-yet-it-disturbs-me-to-learn-i-have-hurt-someone-unintentionally-i/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“Mary: Some call this "Eve's curse," but I think that is stupid because the real curse of Eve was having to put up with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/mary-some-call-this-eve-s-curse-but-i-think-that-is-stupid-because/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“The birds were singing around me, but I reflected that the very birds were strangers to me, for I did not even know their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/the-birds-were-singing-around-me-but-i-reflected-that-the-very-birds/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“Strange how we decorate pain. These ribbons, for instance, and the small hard teardrops of blood. Who are they for? Do we think the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/strange-how-we-decorate-pain-these-ribbons-for-instance-and-the-small/) [margaret atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [I wanted to forget the past, but it refused to forget me; it waited for sleep, then cornered me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/i-wanted-to-forget-the-past-but-it-refused-to-forget-me-it-waited-for/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“Back at home they drew the curtains and read, with disapproval, with relish, with avidity and glee - even the ones who'd never thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/back-at-home-they-drew-the-curtains-and-read-with-disapproval-with/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“It's my fault. I am forgetting too much.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/it-s-my-fault-i-am-forgetting-too-much/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [All fiction is about people, unless it's about rabbits pretending to be people. It's all essentially characters in action, which means characters moving through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/all-fiction-is-about-people-unless-it-s-about-rabbits-pretending-to/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“Simon walks back to the house alone. The night is clear and warm, with a moon, almost full, enclosed in a nimbus of mist;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/simon-walks-back-to-the-house-alone-the-night-is-clear-and-warm-with/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“There is indeed something delightful about being able to combine obedience and disobedience in the same act.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/there-is-indeed-something-delightful-about-being-able-to-combine/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“Every time the women appear, Snowman is astonished all over again. They're every known colour from the deepest black to whitest white, they're various…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/every-time-the-women-appear-snowman-is-astonished-all-over-again-they/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [Once you publish a book, it is out of your control. You cannot dictate how people read it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/once-you-publish-a-book-it-is-out-of-your-control-you-cannot-dictate/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“The more difficult it was to love the particular man beside us, the more we believed in Love, abstract and total. We were waiting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/the-more-difficult-it-was-to-love-the-particular-man-beside-us-the/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“She knows she's deceiving herself about that, but she prefers to deceive herself. She desperately needs to believe such pure joy is still possible.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/she-knows-she-s-deceiving-herself-about-that-but-she-prefers-to/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) [Explore all 2,072 Margaret Atwood quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) ## More Devil quotes > [“The Devil can cite Scripture for his purpose, Sergeant,’ Anthony Payne replied. ‘That is from The Merchant of Venice, but it holds great truth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-arnold/the-devil-can-cite-scripture-for-his-purpose-sergeant-anthony-payne/) [Michael Arnold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-arnold/) > [Alimony - the ransom that the happy pay to the devil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/alimony-the-ransom-that-the-happy-pay-to-the-devil/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [“Beauty is not only a terrible thing, it is also a mysterious thing. There God and the Devil strive for mastery, and the battleground…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/beauty-is-not-only-a-terrible-thing-it-is-also-a-mysterious-thing/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [The devil has been defeated, stop trying to defeat him. What we have left is the fight of faith, and it's a good fight!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-oyakhilome/the-devil-has-been-defeated-stop-trying-to-defeat-him-what-we-have/) [Chris Oyakhilome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-oyakhilome/) > [You gonna take the case?" It's not a case. It's a missing person. Sort of." You're gonna have a devil of a time finding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-evanovich/you-gonna-take-the-case-it-s-not-a-case-it-s-a-missing-person-sort-of/) [Janet Evanovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-evanovich/) > [Your head's like mine, like all our heads; big enough to contain every god and devil there ever was. Big enough to hold the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grant-morrison/your-head-s-like-mine-like-all-our-heads-big-enough-to-contain-every/) [Grant Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grant-morrison/) > [And so it is, that both the Devil and the angelic Spirit present us with objects of desire to awaken our power of choice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/and-so-it-is-that-both-the-devil-and-the-angelic-spirit-present-us/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [Remember that Abraham Lincoln was a Whig far longer than he was a Republican. As a whole, the Whigs looked upon banks and corporations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-c-guelzo/remember-that-abraham-lincoln-was-a-whig-far-longer-than-he-was-a/) [Allen C. Guelzo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-c-guelzo/) > [Wine is the first weapon that devils use in attacking the young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-jerome/wine-is-the-first-weapon-that-devils-use-in-attacking-the-young/) [St. Jerome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-jerome/) > [“I tend to agree with that little devil more and more these days.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-casey/i-tend-to-agree-with-that-little-devil-more-and-more-these-days/) [Elle Casey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-casey/) > [This is the gift of your species and this is the danger, because you do not choose to control your imaginings. You imagine wonderful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-crichton/this-is-the-gift-of-your-species-and-this-is-the-danger-because-you/) [Michael Crichton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-crichton/) > [“The devil?” Jason heaved the tick over his shoulder like a collier with his sack. “Satan. The adversary. The enemy of the plan of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/the-devil-jason-heaved-the-tick-over-his-shoulder-like-a-collier-with/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [God never talks. But the devil keeps advertising, Father. The devil does a lot of commercials.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-peter-blatty/god-never-talks-but-the-devil-keeps-advertising-father-the-devil-does/) [William Peter Blatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-peter-blatty/) > [If it was a sin for you to choose me . . . then I would go to the Devil himself and bless him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-gabaldon/if-it-was-a-sin-for-you-to-choose-me-then-i-would-go-to-the-devil/) [Diana Gabaldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-gabaldon/) > [“The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist”—Charles Baudelaire “The second greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-baudelaire/the-greatest-trick-the-devil-ever-pulled-was-convincing-the-world-he/) [Charles Baudelaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-baudelaire/) [Browse all 4,283 Devil quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/devil/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "More powerful than God, more evil than the Devil; the poor have it, the rich lack it, and if you eat it you die?", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Margaret Atwood" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/more-powerful-than-god-more-evil-than-the-devil-the-poor-have-it-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Devil" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/more-powerful-than-god-more-evil-than-the-devil-the-poor-have-it-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/354/margaret-atwood-40_devil_more-powerful-than-god-more-evil-than-th_2657379.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/354/margaret-atwood-40_devil_more-powerful-than-god-more-evil-than-th_2657379.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/354/margaret-atwood-40_devil_more-powerful-than-god-more-evil-than-th_2657379.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“More powerful than God, more evil than the Devil; the poor have it, the rich lack it, and if you eat it you…” — Margaret Atwood", "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": "Margaret Atwood", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "More powerful than God, more evil...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/more-powerful-than-god-more-evil-than-the-devil-the-poor-have-it-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/more-powerful-than-god-more-evil-than-the-devil-the-poor-have-it-the/#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 } } ] } ```