--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Honor is venerable to us because it is no…" description: "\"“Honor is venerable to us because it is no ephemeris. It is always ancient virtue. We worship it today because it is not of today.”\" — Ralph Waldo Emerson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/69b/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_honor_honor-is-venerable-to-us-because-it-is-n_1427734.png" --- # Honor is venerable to us because it is no ephemeris. It is… ![“Honor is venerable to us because it is no ephemeris. It is always ancient virtue. We worship it today because it is not of today.” quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/69b/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_honor_honor-is-venerable-to-us-because-it-is-n_1427734.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/69b/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_honor_honor-is-venerable-to-us-because-it-is-n_1427734.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/69b/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_honor_honor-is-venerable-to-us-because-it-is-n_1427734.png) > ““Honor is venerable to us because it is no ephemeris. It is always ancient virtue. We worship it today because it is not of today.”” [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Honor is valued because it is enduring, not fleeting; it is an ancient virtue revered today **In simple terms:** Honor lasts forever, not just today Key Takeaway Cultivate lasting virtues over temporary trends Themes honor virtue timelessness Mood thoughtful inspirational Type philosophical ethical When to use this quote - personal conduct - public service - civic rituals Key Concepts transcendentalism ethical philosophy historical continuity Questions to Reflect On - What does honor mean to you today? - How can timeless virtues guide modern life? A Different Perspective Modern societies may reinterpret honor superficially ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ancient Virtue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ancient-virtue-1151488/) [Honor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/honor/) [Honor Venerable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/honor-venerable-5074729/) [Venerable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/venerable-511169/) [Venerable Ephemeris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/venerable-ephemeris-5074730/) [Virtue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/virtue/) ## Related quotes > [“Considering thus how much honor is awarded to antiquity, and how many times—letting pass infinite other examples—a fragment of an ancient statue has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niccolo-machiavelli/considering-thus-how-much-honor-is-awarded-to-antiquity-and-how-many/) [Niccolò Machiavelli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niccolo-machiavelli/) > [“Humans are venerable because they are capable of getting hurt.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/becca-fitzpatrick/humans-are-venerable-because-they-are-capable-of-getting-hurt/) [Becca Fitzpatrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/becca-fitzpatrick/) > [The errors of great men are venerable because they are more fruitful than the truths of little men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/the-errors-of-great-men-are-venerable-because-they-are-more-fruitful/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Nothing is more noble, nothing more venerable than fidelity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/nothing-is-more-noble-nothing-more-venerable-than-fidelity/) [Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/) > [Is the babe young? When I behold it, it seems more venerable than the oldest man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/is-the-babe-young-when-i-behold-it-it-seems-more-venerable-than-the/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [A large, branching, aged oak is perhaps the most venerable of all inanimate objects.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shenstone/a-large-branching-aged-oak-is-perhaps-the-most-venerable-of-all/) [William Shenstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shenstone/) > [Years place at last a venerable crown upon a head.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/years-place-at-last-a-venerable-crown-upon-a-head/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [A brotherhood of venerable trees.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/a-brotherhood-of-venerable-trees/) [William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/) > [ “Were we \[Women\] to express our conceptions of God, it wou'd never enter into the head of any one of us to describe him… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lady-sophia-fermor/were-we-women-to-express-our-conceptions-of-god-it-wou-d-never-enter/) [Lady Sophia Fermor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lady-sophia-fermor/) > [Venerable men! you have come down to us from a former generation. Heaven has bounteously lengthened out your lives, that you might behold this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-webster/venerable-men-you-have-come-down-to-us-from-a-former-generation/) [Daniel Webster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-webster/) > [A sense of absurdity interferes with my efforts to appear venerable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/a-sense-of-absurdity-interferes-with-my-efforts-to-appear-venerable/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [Venerable are letters, infinitely brave, forlorn, and lost. Life would split asunder without them. 'Come to tea, come to dinner, what's the truth of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/venerable-are-letters-infinitely-brave-forlorn-and-lost-life-would/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) > [“Virtue is venerable as nothing else in this world is.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/virtue-is-venerable-as-nothing-else-in-this-world-is/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [Venerable are letters, infinitely brave, forlorn, and lost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/venerable-are-letters-infinitely-brave-forlorn-and-lost/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) > [“Venerable are letters, infinitely brave, forlorn, and lost. Life would split asunder without them. "Come to tea, come to dinner, what's the truth of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/venerable-are-letters-infinitely-brave-forlorn-and-lost-life-would-2/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) ## More by Ralph Waldo Emerson > [The history of mankind interests us only as it exhibits a steady gain of truth and right, in the incessant conflict which it records…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-history-of-mankind-interests-us-only-as-it-exhibits-a-steady-gain/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [If we will not interfere with our thought, but will act entirely, or see how the thing stands in God, we know the particular…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-we-will-not-interfere-with-our-thought-but-will-act-entirely-or/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [If there is any period one would desire to be born in, is it not the age of Revolution; when the old and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-there-is-any-period-one-would-desire-to-be-born-in-is-it-not-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [A man cannot speak but he judges himself. With his will or against his will he draws his portrait to the eye of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/a-man-cannot-speak-but-he-judges-himself-with-his-will-or-against-his/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Consideration is the soil in which wisdom may be expected to grow, and strength be given to every up-springing plant of duty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/consideration-is-the-soil-in-which-wisdom-may-be-expected-to-grow-and/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [“There is then creative reading as well as creative writing. When the mind is braced by labor and invention, the page of whatever book…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/there-is-then-creative-reading-as-well-as-creative-writing-when-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [The order of things consents to virtue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-order-of-things-consents-to-virtue/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Life only avails, not the having lived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/life-only-avails-not-the-having-lived/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Another success is the post-office, with its educating energy augmented by cheapness and guarded by a certain religious sentimentin mankind; so that the power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/another-success-is-the-post-office-with-its-educating-energy/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [A child reminds us that playtime is an essential part of our daily routine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/a-child-reminds-us-that-playtime-is-an-essential-part-of-our-daily/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [No man can be criticised but by a greater than he. Do not, then, read the reviews.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/no-man-can-be-criticised-but-by-a-greater-than-he-do-not-then-read/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Coal lay in ledges under the ground since the Flood, until a laborer with pick and windlass brings it to the surface. We may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/coal-lay-in-ledges-under-the-ground-since-the-flood-until-a-laborer/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [I am; therefore, I had nothing better to do than to think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/i-am-therefore-i-had-nothing-better-to-do-than-to-think/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [In a library we are surrounded by many hundreds of dear friends, but they are imprisoned by an enchanter in these paper and leathern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/in-a-library-we-are-surrounded-by-many-hundreds-of-dear-friends-but/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [The compensations of calamity are made apparent to the understanding also, after long intervals of time. A fever, a mutilation, a cruel disappointment, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-compensations-of-calamity-are-made-apparent-to-the-understanding/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) [Explore all 4,802 Ralph Waldo Emerson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) ## More Honor quotes > [Women still, when they have breast cancer, go to work; they still lead their lives. They have to. I just did what I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-potter/women-still-when-they-have-breast-cancer-go-to-work-they-still-lead/) [Monica Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-potter/) > [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/) > [From the bitter cold winter at Valley Forge, to the mountains of Afghanistan and the deserts of Iraq, our soldiers have courageously answered when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/solomon-ortiz/from-the-bitter-cold-winter-at-valley-forge-to-the-mountains-of/) [Solomon Ortiz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/solomon-ortiz/) > [It is sure that those are most desirous of honour or glory who cry out loudest of its abuse and the vanity of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baruch-spinoza/it-is-sure-that-those-are-most-desirous-of-honour-or-glory-who-cry/) [Baruch Spinoza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/baruch-spinoza/) > [This is what I say about the scorn of the media elite: I wear their scorn as a badge of honor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-quayle/this-is-what-i-say-about-the-scorn-of-the-media-elite-i-wear-their/) [Dan Quayle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-quayle/) > [Just being in a video game is an honor, and being on the cover, I can't really describe it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-judge/just-being-in-a-video-game-is-an-honor-and-being-on-the-cover-i-can-t/) [Aaron Judge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-judge/) > [Spade! Thou art a tool of honor in my hands. I press thee, through a yielding soil, with pride.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/spade-thou-art-a-tool-of-honor-in-my-hands-i-press-thee-through-a/) [William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/) > [Although I write in English, and despite the fact that I'm from America, I consider myself an Armenian writer. The words I use are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/although-i-write-in-english-and-despite-the-fact-that-i-m-from/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [Making money doesn't oblige people to forfeit their honor or their conscience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-de-rothschild/making-money-doesn-t-oblige-people-to-forfeit-their-honor-or-their/) [Guy de Rothschild](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-de-rothschild/) > [The dog is guided by kindly instinct to the man or woman whose heart is open to his advances. The cat often leaves the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-repplier/the-dog-is-guided-by-kindly-instinct-to-the-man-or-woman-whose-heart/) [Agnes Repplier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-repplier/) > [“He put his forehead against hers. “Alannah, my heart is yours.” He said softly. “And yet, I must hand it over to someone else…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-c-morin/he-put-his-forehead-against-hers-alannah-my-heart-is-yours-he-said/) [B.C. Morin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-c-morin/) > [Use every man according to his desert and who should 'scape whipping? Use them after your own honor and dignity, the less they deserve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/use-every-man-according-to-his-desert-and-who-should-scape-whipping/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [There is honor between bitches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tess-gerritsen/there-is-honor-between-bitches/) [Tess Gerritsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tess-gerritsen/) > [A man should be upright, not kept upright.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/a-man-should-be-upright-not-kept-upright/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [I know my idea of beauty isn't what most people's is, and the fact that I'm getting the opportunity to show my beauty and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-osbourne/i-know-my-idea-of-beauty-isn-t-what-most-people-s-is-and-the-fact/) [Kelly Osbourne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-osbourne/) [Browse all 5,016 Honor quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/honor/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Honor is venerable to us because it is no ephemeris. 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