---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There comes a time, thief, when the…"
description: "\"There comes a time, thief, when the jewels cease to sparkle, when the gold loses its luster, when the throne room becomes a prison, and all that is lef..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a08/max-von-sydow-7808_cease_there-comes-a-time-thief-when-the-jewels_3198107.jpg"
---

#  There comes a time, thief, when the jewels cease to…

![“There comes a time, thief, when the jewels cease to sparkle, when the gold loses its luster, when the throne room becomes a prison, and all that is left is a father's love for his child.” quote by Max von Sydow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a08/max-von-sydow-7808_cease_there-comes-a-time-thief-when-the-jewels_3198107.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a08/max-von-sydow-7808_cease_there-comes-a-time-thief-when-the-jewels_3198107.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a08/max-von-sydow-7808_cease_there-comes-a-time-thief-when-the-jewels_3198107.jpg)

> “There comes a time, thief, when the jewels cease to sparkle, when the gold loses its luster, when the throne room becomes a prison, and all that is left is a father's love for his child.”

[Max von Sydow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-von-sydow/)

## About This Quote

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

Wealth and power lose their allure when personal bonds become the true source of meaning.

**In simple terms:** Riches fade, love endures.

Key Takeaway

Value relationships over material gain.

Themes

love family meaning wealth power

Mood

reflective melancholic

Type

philosophical emotional

When to use this quote

- marriage
- parenting
- career transition
- financial success

Key Concepts

existentialism human connection legacy

Questions to Reflect On

- What relationships do you prioritize over status?
- How can you nurture love when surrounded by wealth?

A Different Perspective

Material success may not compensate for emotional emptiness.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Cease](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cease/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Father](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/father/) [Father'S Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/father-s-love/) [Gold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gold/) [Gold Loses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gold-loses-5925489/) [Jewels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jewels/) [Jewels Cease](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jewels-cease-5925488/) [Left](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/left/) [Loses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/loses/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Luster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/luster/) [Prison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prison/) [Rooms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rooms/) [Sparkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sparkle/) [There comes a time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/there-comes-a-time/) [Thief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thief/) [Thief Jewels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thief-jewels-5925487/) [Thieves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thieves/) [Thrones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thrones/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Time Thief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time-thief-517974/)

## Related quotes

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> [Time's the thief of memory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/time-s-the-thief-of-memory/)

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> [“Time is a thief of memory”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/time-is-a-thief-of-memory/)

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> [Time is the thief you cannot banish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phyllis-mcginley/time-is-the-thief-you-cannot-banish/)

[Phyllis McGinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-mcginley/)

> [Life is so brief and time is a thief when you're undecided.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-stewart/life-is-so-brief-and-time-is-a-thief-when-you-re-undecided/)

[Rod Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-stewart/)

> [“Time is a thief. A killer. Time is killing him.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-kreitzer/time-is-a-thief-a-killer-time-is-killing-him/)

[Laura Kreitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-kreitzer/)

> [Life is Brief and Time is a Thief.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/life-is-brief-and-time-is-a-thief/)

[Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/)

> [The plainer the dress, the greater luster does beauty appear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-plainer-the-dress-the-greater-luster-does-beauty-appear/)

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

> [Youth enters the world with very happy prejudices in her own favor. She imagines herself not only certain of accomplishing every adventure, but of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/youth-enters-the-world-with-very-happy-prejudices-in-her-own-favor/)

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> [When you're a kid, nine times out of 10, everthing is pure depending on how you grow up. Everything is new as a kid,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corey-taylor/when-you-re-a-kid-nine-times-out-of-10-everthing-is-pure-depending-on/)

[Corey Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/corey-taylor/)

> [I have come to light the lamp of Love in your hearts, to see that it shines day by day with added luster. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sathya-sai-baba/i-have-come-to-light-the-lamp-of-love-in-your-hearts-to-see-that-it/)

[Sathya Sai Baba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sathya-sai-baba/)

> [“Luster, bring me home.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-coville/luster-bring-me-home/)

[Bruce Coville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-coville/)

> [Virtue and learning, like gold, have their intrinsic value: but if they are not polished, they certainly lose a great deal of their luster:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-chesterfield/virtue-and-learning-like-gold-have-their-intrinsic-value-but-if-they/)

[Lord Chesterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-chesterfield/)

> [I ne'er could any luster see in eyes that would not look on me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-brinsley-sheridan/i-ne-er-could-any-luster-see-in-eyes-that-would-not-look-on-me/)

[Richard Brinsley Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-brinsley-sheridan/)

## More by Max von Sydow

> [Italians are great improvisers. If something unforeseen happens, they throw up their hands, and they adjust.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-von-sydow/italians-are-great-improvisers-if-something-unforeseen-happens-they/)

[Max von Sydow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-von-sydow/)

> [Do it, do it, do it. And watch good actors. See what they are doing and how they are doing it. You have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-von-sydow/do-it-do-it-do-it-and-watch-good-actors-see-what-they-are-doing-and/)

[Max von Sydow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-von-sydow/)

> [There are those who want to believe but can't, and there are those who believe as children and it's no problem for them at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-von-sydow/there-are-those-who-want-to-believe-but-can-t-and-there-are-those-who/)

[Max von Sydow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-von-sydow/)

> [I find it very hard to take myself seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-von-sydow/i-find-it-very-hard-to-take-myself-seriously/)

[Max von Sydow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-von-sydow/)

> [I understand German; I can read German.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-von-sydow/i-understand-german-i-can-read-german/)

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> [France is, for me, the country of happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-von-sydow/france-is-for-me-the-country-of-happiness/)

[Max von Sydow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-von-sydow/)

> [I could never learn to be totally fluent in any other language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-von-sydow/i-could-never-learn-to-be-totally-fluent-in-any-other-language/)

[Max von Sydow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-von-sydow/)

> [If Jesus came back today, and saw what was going on in his name, he'd never stop throwing up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-von-sydow/if-jesus-came-back-today-and-saw-what-was-going-on-in-his-name-he-d/)

[Max von Sydow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-von-sydow/)

> [I owe Mr. Bergman so much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-von-sydow/i-owe-mr-bergman-so-much/)

[Max von Sydow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-von-sydow/)

> [Perhaps I scare people. I don't know why.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-von-sydow/perhaps-i-scare-people-i-don-t-know-why/)

[Max von Sydow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-von-sydow/)

> [I remember those days with Bergman with great nostalgia. We were aware that the films were going to be quite important, and the work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-von-sydow/i-remember-those-days-with-bergman-with-great-nostalgia-we-were-aware/)

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## More Cease quotes

> [So long as we fear the outside world, we must cease to think of Swaraj.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/so-long-as-we-fear-the-outside-world-we-must-cease-to-think-of-swaraj/)

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> [But if you will recall the history of our civil troubles, you will see half the nation bathe itself, out of piety, in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-diderot/but-if-you-will-recall-the-history-of-our-civil-troubles-you-will-see/)

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> [Cease speaking of enemies when an achievement can kindle a great light. Solitude will transmit the message better than the murmurs of crowds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-roerich/cease-speaking-of-enemies-when-an-achievement-can-kindle-a-great/)

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> [Without a function, we cease to be. So, I will write till I die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/farley-mowat/without-a-function-we-cease-to-be-so-i-will-write-till-i-die/)

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> [To write is to make oneself the echo of what cannot cease speaking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-bennett/to-write-is-to-make-oneself-the-echo-of-what-cannot-cease-speaking/)

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> [Were the life of man prolonged, he would become such a proficient in villainy, that it would become necessary again to drown or to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/were-the-life-of-man-prolonged-he-would-become-such-a-proficient-in/)

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