---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: After a long time and many questions…"
description: "\"“After a long time and many questions, Satan said, \"The spider kills the fly, and eats it; the bird kills the spider and eats it; the wildcat kills the..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b6/mark-twain-22_god_after-a-long-time-and-many-questions-sat_941496.jpg"
---

#  After a long time and many questions, Satan said, "The…

![“After a long time and many questions, Satan said, &quot;The spider kills the fly, and eats it; the bird kills the spider and eats it; the wildcat kills the goose; the -- well, they all kill each other. It is murder all along the line. Here are countless multitudes of creatures, and they all kill, kill…” quote by Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b6/mark-twain-22_god_after-a-long-time-and-many-questions-sat_941496.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b6/mark-twain-22_god_after-a-long-time-and-many-questions-sat_941496.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b6/mark-twain-22_god_after-a-long-time-and-many-questions-sat_941496.jpg)

> ““After a long time and many questions, Satan said, "The spider kills the fly, and eats it; the bird kills the spider and eats it; the wildcat kills the goose; the -- well, they all kill each other. It is murder all along the line. Here are countless multitudes of creatures, and they all kill, kill, kill, they are all murderers. And they are not to blame, Divine One?””

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

## About This Quote

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

The passage reflects on the endless cycle of predation in nature, suggesting that all creatures are murderers by survival, and questions divine accountability for this violence.

**In simple terms:** All living beings kill each other; questioning divine blame.

Key Takeaway

Recognize the harshness of natural survival.

Themes

nature violence philosophy theodicy mortality

Mood

somber thoughtful

Type

philosophical critical

When to use this quote

- wildlife observation
- ethical debates
- environmental policy
- personal moral reflection

Key Concepts

predation moral responsibility existential doubt

Questions to Reflect On

- Can we find meaning beyond survival?
- How do we reconcile nature’s brutality with moral values?

A Different Perspective

The view may ignore cooperation and symbiosis.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[God](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god/) [Satan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/satan/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/)

## Related quotes

> [Wind power, if not properly planned and sited, can harm birds and bats (although Danish studies of 10,000 bird kills revealed that almost all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-suzuki/wind-power-if-not-properly-planned-and-sited-can-harm-birds-and-bats/)

[David Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-suzuki/)

> [“When I opened my eyes this morning, Satan said, "Damn, he's awake.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-revel/when-i-opened-my-eyes-this-morning-satan-said-damn-he-s-awake/)

Gary Revel

> [“I'm here, Satan," he said. "I can't see you, and maybe you can move faster than I can, but I'm still here, and by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-e-peretti/i-m-here-satan-he-said-i-can-t-see-you-and-maybe-you-can-move-faster/)

[Frank E. Peretti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-e-peretti/)

> [I told Satan go away I dont believe in you ,he came back strong with MOST of my so call friends who was working…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frenchqueen/i-told-satan-go-away-i-dont-believe-in-you-he-came-back-strong-with/)

Frenchqueen

> [“Haylee thought of all the supernatural creatures that could kill her... a vampire or even a vampire slayer, and became angry at the idea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natasha-larry/haylee-thought-of-all-the-supernatural-creatures-that-could-kill-her/)

[Natasha Larry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natasha-larry/)

> [ “\[..\] it has remained for man alone among all creatures to kill senselessly and wantonly for the mere pleasure of inflicting suffering and death.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-rice-burroughs/it-has-remained-for-man-alone-among-all-creatures-to-kill-senselessly/)

[Edgar Rice Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-rice-burroughs/)

> [“...and Satan said, This is not possession, if it were, you would do what I tell you and not refuse my counsel, for I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabih-alameddine/and-satan-said-this-is-not-possession-if-it-were-you-would-do-what-i/)

[Rabih Alameddine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabih-alameddine/)

> [“However...," Satan said. Bick sighed. "However, I didn't count on the growing interference of lawyers, regulators, bureaucrats and politicians into my business. I swear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-s-belcher/however-satan-said-bick-sighed-however-i-didn-t-count-on-the-growing/)

[R.S. Belcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-s-belcher/)

> [And then Satan said mix in the alphabet with math... &gt;.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris/and-then-satan-said-mix-in-the-alphabet-with-math/)

[Chris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris/)

> [And then Satan said, 'Put the alphabet in math…'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-then-satan-said-put-the-alphabet-in-math/)

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

> [“And the first thing I have got to say is, that for my own part I hold my master Don Quixote to be stark…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes-saavedra/and-the-first-thing-i-have-got-to-say-is-that-for-my-own-part-i-hold/)

[Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes-saavedra/)

> [“I was always alone, Doc, solitary whether I wished to be or not, ever since I could remember I wished to be lost in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabih-alameddine/i-was-always-alone-doc-solitary-whether-i-wished-to-be-or-not-ever/)

[Rabih Alameddine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabih-alameddine/)

> [“Satan had been making admiring remarks about certain of the Creator's sparkling industries -- remarks which, being read between the lines, were sarcasms.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/satan-had-been-making-admiring-remarks-about-certain-of-the-creator-s/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [But who prays for Satan? Who, in eighteen centuries, has had the common humanity to pray for the one sinner that needed it most?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/but-who-prays-for-satan-who-in-eighteen-centuries-has-had-the-common/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [“I have no special regard for Satan; but I can at least claim that I have no prejudice against him. It may even be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/i-have-no-special-regard-for-satan-but-i-can-at-least-claim-that-i/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

## More by Mark Twain

> [Sing like no one's listening, love like you've never been hurt, dance like nobody's watching, and live like its heaven on earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/sing-like-no-one-s-listening-love-like-you-ve-never-been-hurt-dance/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [If you had made the acquiring of ignorance the study of your life, you could not have graduated with higher honor than you could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/if-you-had-made-the-acquiring-of-ignorance-the-study-of-your-life-you/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [“The Creator sat upon the throne, thinking. Behind him stretched the illimitable continent of heaven, steeped in a glory of light and color; before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/the-creator-sat-upon-the-throne-thinking-behind-him-stretched-the/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [It's easy to quit smoking. I've done it hundreds of times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/it-s-easy-to-quit-smoking-i-ve-done-it-hundreds-of-times/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [“It is never wrong to do the right thing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/it-is-never-wrong-to-do-the-right-thing/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [A man accustomed to American food and American domestic cookery would not starve to death suddenly in Europe, but I think he would gradually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/a-man-accustomed-to-american-food-and-american-domestic-cookery-would/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [There is nothing training can't cannot do. Nothing is above its reach.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/there-is-nothing-training-can-t-cannot-do-nothing-is-above-its-reach/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [I never write Metropolis for seven cents because I can get the same price for city. I never write policeman because I can get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/i-never-write-metropolis-for-seven-cents-because-i-can-get-the-same/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [The higher animals get their teeth without pain or inconvenience. Man gets his through months and months of cruel torture; he will never get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/the-higher-animals-get-their-teeth-without-pain-or-inconvenience-man/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [“As far as I can see, Italy, for fifteen hundred years, has turned all her energies, all her finances, and all her industry to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/as-far-as-i-can-see-italy-for-fifteen-hundred-years-has-turned-all/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [Begin with the determination to succeed and the work is half done already.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/begin-with-the-determination-to-succeed-and-the-work-is-half-done/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [Many public-school children seem to know only two dates—1492 and 4th of July; and as a rule they don't know what happened on either…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/many-public-school-children-seem-to-know-only-two-dates-1492-and-4th/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [If we could imagine such a man, that is a man who could invent the fly and send him out on his mission and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/if-we-could-imagine-such-a-man-that-is-a-man-who-could-invent-the-fly/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [You perceive, now, that these things are all impossible except in a dream. You perceive that they are pure and puerile insanities, the silly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/you-perceive-now-that-these-things-are-all-impossible-except-in-a/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [Lord save us all from a hope tree that has lost the faculty of putting out blossoms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/lord-save-us-all-from-a-hope-tree-that-has-lost-the-faculty-of/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

[Explore all 3,277 Mark Twain quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

## More God quotes

> [I don't drink much anymore, but when I traveled with Frank Sinatra, God rest his soul, I used to drink like I could do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-rickles/i-don-t-drink-much-anymore-but-when-i-traveled-with-frank-sinatra-god/)

[Don Rickles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-rickles/)

> [“God hates Hell. He hates the idea of people going there. He hates it so much that He was willing to take on human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-minton/god-hates-hell-he-hates-the-idea-of-people-going-there-he-hates-it-so/)

[Evan Minton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-minton/)

> [“am not suggesting that successes in academics, athletics, or vocation somehow stand outside God’s good plan. Learning and play are joys that God himself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-paul-jones/am-not-suggesting-that-successes-in-academics-athletics-or-vocation/)

[Timothy Paul Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-paul-jones/)

> [I pray that wherever we are and whatever duties we have in the priesthood of God, we will be united in the cause to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-b-eyring/i-pray-that-wherever-we-are-and-whatever-duties-we-have-in-the/)

[Henry B. Eyring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-b-eyring/)

> [Philosopher is a dictator who modifies accepted standards with his thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/philosopher-is-a-dictator-who-modifies-accepted-standards-with-his/)

[Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/)

> [God's love never fail :)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/god-s-love-never-fail/)

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

> [Here's the reality. The image of a white Jesus has been used to justify enslavement, conquest, colonialism, the genocide of indigenous peoples. There are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/here-s-the-reality-the-image-of-a-white-jesus-has-been-used-to/)

[Tim Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wise/)

> [The faster you go, the shorter you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/the-faster-you-go-the-shorter-you-are/)

[Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/)

> [A lot of people have been saying 'The 100' reminds them of 'Lord Of The Flies,' 'Lost' and 'Battlestar Galactica,' and all of those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marie-avgeropoulos/a-lot-of-people-have-been-saying-the-100-reminds-them-of-lord-of-the/)

[Marie Avgeropoulos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marie-avgeropoulos/)

> [As we are coming to the end of the year, I want you to forget about the past, the failure, the negative thoughts or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/as-we-are-coming-to-the-end-of-the-year-i-want-you-to-forget-about/)

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

> [I wonder: when a Jehovah's Witness dies and goes to Heaven, does God hide behind the door and pretend He's not home?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-celio/i-wonder-when-a-jehovah-s-witness-dies-and-goes-to-heaven-does-god/)

[Brian Celio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-celio/)

> [What would God have me do with my life?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-taft-benson/what-would-god-have-me-do-with-my-life/)

[Ezra Taft Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-taft-benson/)

> [God always gets the glory when Jesus comes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louie-giglio/god-always-gets-the-glory-when-jesus-comes/)

[Louie Giglio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louie-giglio/)

> [“Do all the good you can, By all the means you can, In all the ways you can, In all the places you can,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-graham/do-all-the-good-you-can-by-all-the-means-you-can-in-all-the-ways-you/)

[Billy Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-graham/)

> [You are a God Act like one!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-leary/you-are-a-god-act-like-one/)

[Timothy Leary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-leary/)

[Browse all 37,707 God quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“After a long time and many questions, Satan said, \"The spider kills the fly, and eats it; the bird kills the spider and eats it; the wildcat kills the goose; the -- well, they all kill each other. It is murder all along the line. Here are countless multitudes of creatures, and they all kill, kill, kill, they are all murderers. And they are not to blame, Divine One?”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Mark Twain"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/after-a-long-time-and-many-questions-satan-said-the-spider-kills-the/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "God"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/after-a-long-time-and-many-questions-satan-said-the-spider-kills-the/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b6/mark-twain-22_god_after-a-long-time-and-many-questions-sat_941496.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b6/mark-twain-22_god_after-a-long-time-and-many-questions-sat_941496.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b6/mark-twain-22_god_after-a-long-time-and-many-questions-sat_941496.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“After a long time and many questions, Satan said, \"The spider kills the fly, and eats it; the bird kills the…” — Mark Twain",
                "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": "Mark Twain",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“After a long time and many...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/after-a-long-time-and-many-questions-satan-said-the-spider-kills-the/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/after-a-long-time-and-many-questions-satan-said-the-spider-kills-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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
