--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The penalty may be removed, the crime is…" description: "\"The penalty may be removed, the crime is eternal.\" — Ovid" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/95b/ovid-276_crime_the-penalty-may-be-removed-the-crime-is_1142184.png" --- # The penalty may be removed, the crime is eternal. ![“The penalty may be removed, the crime is eternal.” quote by Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/95b/ovid-276_crime_the-penalty-may-be-removed-the-crime-is_1142184.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/95b/ovid-276_crime_the-penalty-may-be-removed-the-crime-is_1142184.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/95b/ovid-276_crime_the-penalty-may-be-removed-the-crime-is_1142184.png) > “The penalty may be removed, the crime is eternal.” [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Eternal consequences remains despite temporary punishments or penalties. **In simple terms:** Some sins never truly end. Key Takeaway Recognize lasting consequences beyond immediate penalties. Themes morality justice eternity Mood reflective somber Type ethical philosophical When to use this quote - legal judgments - personal guilt - spiritual reflection Key Concepts philosophy ethics Questions to Reflect On - How do we address crimes that outlive their punishments? - Can redemption erase an eternal moral stain? A Different Perspective Even if punishment ends, the moral weight persists. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Crime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crime/) [Crime Eternal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crime-eternal-3188912/) [Eternal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eternal/) [May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/may/) [Penalty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/penalty/) [Penalty Removed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/penalty-removed-3188913/) [Removed Crime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/removed-crime-3188914/) ## Related quotes > [When the penalty for a policeman's mistake is to put a criminal back out on the street, then we are hurting America; we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-bauer/when-the-penalty-for-a-policeman-s-mistake-is-to-put-a-criminal-back/) [Gary Bauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-bauer/) > [As governor, I came to believe that the death penalty would be a just punishment for certain, especially heinous crimes, such as the murder…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-dean/as-governor-i-came-to-believe-that-the-death-penalty-would-be-a-just/) [Howard Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-dean/) > [ Overlook our deeds, since you know that crime was absent from our inclination. \[Lat., Factis ignoscite nostris Si scelus ingenio scitis abesse meo.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/overlook-our-deeds-since-you-know-that-crime-was-absent-from-our/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [It is a horrible idea that there is somebody who owns us, who makes us, who supervises us - waking and sleeping - who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-is-a-horrible-idea-that-there-is-somebody-who-owns-us-who-makes-us/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [The heaviest penalty for declining to rule is to be ruled by someone inferior to yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/the-heaviest-penalty-for-declining-to-rule-is-to-be-ruled-by-someone/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [Joe Biden cannot leave the lives of those on death row in the hands of future presidents. If he truly opposes the death penalty,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cori-bush/joe-biden-cannot-leave-the-lives-of-those-on-death-row-in-the-hands/) [Cori Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cori-bush/) > [Sometimes I have to compromise my views, but I never compromise on issues like the death penalty and the arm trade laws, despite what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-shapiro/sometimes-i-have-to-compromise-my-views-but-i-never-compromise-on/) [Jonathan Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-shapiro/) > [The system is not perfect. Until it's perfect, let's do away with the death penalty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kinky-friedman/the-system-is-not-perfect-until-it-s-perfect-let-s-do-away-with-the/) [Kinky Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kinky-friedman/) > [Any penalty - I've told you a hundred times - can be eliminated by concentration or good judgment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-parcells/any-penalty-i-ve-told-you-a-hundred-times-can-be-eliminated-by/) [Bill Parcells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-parcells/) > [I support the death penalty and will continue to do that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-santorum/i-support-the-death-penalty-and-will-continue-to-do-that/) [Rick Santorum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-santorum/) > [The death penalty system is fundamentally flawed - it is inequitable, ineffective, and it has no place in this Commonwealth or this country.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-northam/the-death-penalty-system-is-fundamentally-flawed-it-is-inequitable/) [Ralph Northam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-northam/) > [If all the lawyers were hanged tomorrow, and their bones were sold to a mah jong factory, we'd all be freer and safer, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/if-all-the-lawyers-were-hanged-tomorrow-and-their-bones-were-sold-to/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [Our legal system, including the police, is anti-Dalit and anti-poor. The death penalty laws' wrathful majesty, in blood-shot equality, deals the fatal blow on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/v-r-krishna-iyer/our-legal-system-including-the-police-is-anti-dalit-and-anti-poor-the/) [V. R. Krishna Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/v-r-krishna-iyer/) > [“In our time, they say there is no penalty for writing poems. They say this. This is the penalty.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muriel-rukeyser/in-our-time-they-say-there-is-no-penalty-for-writing-poems-they-say/) [Muriel Rukeyser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muriel-rukeyser/) > [I am confident when I take the penalty otherwise I would pass for somebody else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-fernandes/i-am-confident-when-i-take-the-penalty-otherwise-i-would-pass-for/) [Bruno Fernandes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-fernandes/) ## More by Ovid > [Every woman thinks herself attractive; even the plainest is satisfied with the charms she deems that she possesses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/every-woman-thinks-herself-attractive-even-the-plainest-is-satisfied/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [Suppressed grief suffocates, it rages within the breast, and is forced to multiply its strength.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/suppressed-grief-suffocates-it-rages-within-the-breast-and-is-forced/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [Honesty, by evil fortune tried, Finds in adversity the seed of praise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/honesty-by-evil-fortune-tried-finds-in-adversity-the-seed-of-praise/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [It is some alleviation to ills we cannot cure to speak of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/it-is-some-alleviation-to-ills-we-cannot-cure-to-speak-of-them/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [ A mind conscious of right laughs at the falsehoods of rumour. \[Lat., Conscia mens recti famae mendacia risit.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/a-mind-conscious-of-right-laughs-at-the-falsehoods-of-rumour-lat/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [Time is generally the best doctor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/time-is-generally-the-best-doctor/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [It is convenient that there be gods, and, as it is convenient, let us believe there are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/it-is-convenient-that-there-be-gods-and-as-it-is-convenient-let-us/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [I hate a woman who offers herself because she ought to do so, and cold and dry thinks of her sewing when making love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/i-hate-a-woman-who-offers-herself-because-she-ought-to-do-so-and-cold/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [The sea's vast depths lie open to the fish; Wherever the breezes blow the bird may fly; So to the brave man every land's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/the-sea-s-vast-depths-lie-open-to-the-fish-wherever-the-breezes-blow/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [Rare is the virtue that's not ruled by Fortune, That stands unshaken even when Fortune flees.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/rare-is-the-virtue-that-s-not-ruled-by-fortune-that-stands-unshaken/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [Thus all things altered. Nothing dies. And here and there the unbodied spirit flies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/thus-all-things-altered-nothing-dies-and-here-and-there-the-unbodied/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [How little is the promise of the child fulfilled in the man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/how-little-is-the-promise-of-the-child-fulfilled-in-the-man/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [Judgement of beauty can err, what with the wine and the dark.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/judgement-of-beauty-can-err-what-with-the-wine-and-the-dark/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [Leave war to others; 'tis Protesilaus' part of love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/leave-war-to-others-tis-protesilaus-part-of-love/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [Remove but the temptations of leisure, and the bow of Cupid will lose its effect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/remove-but-the-temptations-of-leisure-and-the-bow-of-cupid-will-lose/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) [Explore all 771 Ovid quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) ## More Crime quotes > [Joking about violence is not funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/perez-hilton/joking-about-violence-is-not-funny/) [Perez Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/perez-hilton/) > [“Crime and punishment can be summed up in two classifications: there are bad people and there are people who get into bad situations. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnnie-dent-jr/crime-and-punishment-can-be-summed-up-in-two-classifications-there/) [Johnnie Dent Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnnie-dent-jr/) > [With 'Pretty Girls,' I saw the opportunity to talk not just about crime but what crime leaves behind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karin-slaughter/with-pretty-girls-i-saw-the-opportunity-to-talk-not-just-about-crime/) [Karin Slaughter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karin-slaughter/) > [“The jailers, the Court, everyone in that building – it wasn’t about justice; it was about obedience and intimidation…about maintaining order. Fear accomplished that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-allan/the-jailers-the-court-everyone-in-that-building-it-wasn-t-about/) [Jay Allan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-allan/) > [Taking notes while watching Forensic Files and Snapped. I don't want to make the same mistakes the criminals do! ;)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/taking-notes-while-watching-forensic-files-and-snapped-i-don-t-want/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) > [A man could be a lover and defender of the wilderness without ever in his lifetime leaving the boundaries of asphalt, powerlines, and right-angled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/a-man-could-be-a-lover-and-defender-of-the-wilderness-without-ever-in/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [Nations sometimes flourish by denying the crimes that brought them into being. Only when the original invasion, occupation, extermination or usurpation has been safely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-eagleton/nations-sometimes-flourish-by-denying-the-crimes-that-brought-them/) [Terry Eagleton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-eagleton/) > [The danger that may really threaten (crime fiction) is that soon there will be more writers than readers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-barzun/the-danger-that-may-really-threaten-crime-fiction-is-that-soon-there/) [Jacques Barzun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-barzun/) > [“a crime to fell a tree and light it on fire, where coals of hardened shit warmed and stunk up homes,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-howey/a-crime-to-fell-a-tree-and-light-it-on-fire-where-coals-of-hardened/) [Hugh Howey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-howey/) > [A great read; an exciting, frightening account of organized crime today. But like all important works of nonfiction, it goes further… This book is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/le-ly-hayslip/a-great-read-an-exciting-frightening-account-of-organized-crime-today/) [Le Ly Hayslip](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/le-ly-hayslip/) > [History is the study of the world's crime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/history-is-the-study-of-the-world-s-crime/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [If it comes to a question of law, the charges they brought against me - the Espionage Act - is called the quintessential political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/if-it-comes-to-a-question-of-law-the-charges-they-brought-against-me/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [Too much virtue can be criminal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-racine/too-much-virtue-can-be-criminal/) [Jean Racine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-racine/) > [The federal prison population increased by almost 800 percent between 1980 and 2013, often at a far faster rate than the Bureau of Prisons…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-yates/the-federal-prison-population-increased-by-almost-800-percent-between/) [Sally Yates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-yates/) > [ \[P\]rogress, however, has not sufficiently infiltrated the Interior Ministry, affording protection to those who participated in the Bytyqi murders and other egregious Milosevic-era crimes. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/avis-bohlen/p-rogress-however-has-not-sufficiently-infiltrated-the-interior/) [Avis Bohlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/avis-bohlen/) [Browse all 8,359 Crime quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crime/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The penalty may be removed, the crime is eternal.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ovid" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/the-penalty-may-be-removed-the-crime-is-eternal/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Crime" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/the-penalty-may-be-removed-the-crime-is-eternal/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/95b/ovid-276_crime_the-penalty-may-be-removed-the-crime-is_1142184.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/95b/ovid-276_crime_the-penalty-may-be-removed-the-crime-is_1142184.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/95b/ovid-276_crime_the-penalty-may-be-removed-the-crime-is_1142184.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The penalty may be removed, the crime is eternal.” — Ovid", "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": "Ovid", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The penalty may be removed, the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/the-penalty-may-be-removed-the-crime-is-eternal/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/the-penalty-may-be-removed-the-crime-is-eternal/#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 } } ] } ```