--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In the order of nature, we cannot render…" description: "\"In the order of nature, we cannot render benefits to those from whom we receive them, or only seldom. But the benefit we receive must be rendered again..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/659/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_benefits_in-the-order-of-nature-we-cannot-render_184820.jpg" --- # In the order of nature, we cannot render benefits to those… ![“In the order of nature, we cannot render benefits to those from whom we receive them, or only seldom. But the benefit we receive must be rendered again, line for line, deed for deed, cent for cent, to somebody. Beware of too much good staying in your hand. It will fast corrupt and worm worms. Pay…” quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/659/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_benefits_in-the-order-of-nature-we-cannot-render_184820.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/659/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_benefits_in-the-order-of-nature-we-cannot-render_184820.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/659/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_benefits_in-the-order-of-nature-we-cannot-render_184820.jpg) > “In the order of nature, we cannot render benefits to those from whom we receive them, or only seldom. But the benefit we receive must be rendered again, line for line, deed for deed, cent for cent, to somebody. Beware of too much good staying in your hand. It will fast corrupt and worm worms. Pay it away quickly in some sort.” [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. Reciprocity demands that any benefit we receive must be passed on, lest it corrupt us if **In simple terms:** Give what you get, or it will rot. Key Takeaway Share blessings promptly to avoid moral decay. Themes ethics reciprocity corruption generosity Mood reflective cautionary Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - personal finance - community aid - charitable giving - workplace teamwork Key Concepts moral responsibility social exchange ethical stewardship Questions to Reflect On - How can you ensure you give back regularly? - What risks arise from hoarding goodwill? A Different Perspective If you keep all benefits, you may become selfish. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Benefit Receive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/benefit-receive-1866667/) [Benefits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/benefits/) [Benefits Receive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/benefits-receive-1966895/) [Cents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cents/) [Deed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deed/) [Deed Cent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deed-cent-1966893/) [Deeds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deeds/) [Hands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hands/) [Lines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lines/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Order](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/order/) [Pay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pay/) [Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rich/) [Seldom Benefit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seldom-benefit-1966894/) [Staying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/staying/) [Too much](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/too-much/) [Worms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worms/) ## Related quotes > [For every benefit you receive a tax is levied.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/for-every-benefit-you-receive-a-tax-is-levied/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [“If we look deeply at life, we realise that the benefits we receive from society are largely attributable to their location. Benefits are local…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-adams/if-we-look-deeply-at-life-we-realise-that-the-benefits-we-receive/) [Martin Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-adams/) > [We are better pleased to see those on whom we confer benefits than those from whom we receive them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/we-are-better-pleased-to-see-those-on-whom-we-confer-benefits-than/) [Francois de La Rochefoucauld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/) > [Tis good-will makes intelligence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/tis-good-will-makes-intelligence/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [So each man, like each plant, has his parasites. A strong, astringent, bilious nature has more truculent enemies than the slugs and moths that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/so-each-man-like-each-plant-has-his-parasites-a-strong-astringent/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Beware of too much good staying in your hand. It will fast corrupt and worm worms. Pay it away quickly in some sort.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/beware-of-too-much-good-staying-in-your-hand-it-will-fast-corrupt-and/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [There is no God dare wrong a worm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/there-is-no-god-dare-wrong-a-worm/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Who are the farmer's servants? ... Geology and Chemistry, the quarry of the air, the water of the brook, the lightning of the cloud,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/who-are-the-farmer-s-servants-geology-and-chemistry-the-quarry-of-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [A good deed is not just a duty, but above all, a privilege.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shari-arison/a-good-deed-is-not-just-a-duty-but-above-all-a-privilege/) [Shari Arison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shari-arison/) > [A man who is wise in speech but not in deeds is not wise for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/a-man-who-is-wise-in-speech-but-not-in-deeds-is-not-wise-for-me/) [Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/) > [If you see a guy opening a car door for a girl, its one of two things, either a new girl, or a new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-armenta/if-you-see-a-guy-opening-a-car-door-for-a-girl-its-one-of-two-things/) [Jorge Armenta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-armenta/) > [One good deed will lead to thousands more of blessings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/one-good-deed-will-lead-to-thousands-more-of-blessings/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Be sure to do your duty today, and let God Take care of the outcome.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/be-sure-to-do-your-duty-today-and-let-god-take-care-of-the-outcome/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I discovered that everything you do is in response to a request or a suggestion made to you by some other party either inside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flann-o-brien/i-discovered-that-everything-you-do-is-in-response-to-a-request-or-a/) [Flann O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flann-o-brien/) > [Time often serves to justify a deed which seems at first unjustifiable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-p-ryan/time-often-serves-to-justify-a-deed-which-seems-at-first-unjustifiable/) [Donald P. Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-p-ryan/) ## 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 Benefits quotes > [If the members of parliament no longer consider themselves mandatories of the taxpayers but deputies of those receiving salaries, wages, subsidies, doles, and other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/if-the-members-of-parliament-no-longer-consider-themselves/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [ \[The Dalai Lama\] told me some years ago, "I've made every concession to China, and I've been as open and tolerant as I could,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/the-dalai-lama-told-me-some-years-ago-i-ve-made-every-concession-to/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [Anger is a rough water; if you can canalize it into a water mill, you can benefit from it. Anything bad can be transformed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/anger-is-a-rough-water-if-you-can-canalize-it-into-a-water-mill-you/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [Shortly after I turned 50, both Ted Turner and the AARP came into my life. The only difference? With AARP, there were benefits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-fonda/shortly-after-i-turned-50-both-ted-turner-and-the-aarp-came-into-my/) [Jane Fonda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-fonda/) > [That old man dies prematurely whose memory records no benefits conferred. They only have lived long who have lived virtuously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-brinsley-sheridan/that-old-man-dies-prematurely-whose-memory-records-no-benefits/) [Richard Brinsley Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-brinsley-sheridan/) > [Politics is about power. It is about the power of the state. It is about the power of the state as applied to individuals,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-rudd/politics-is-about-power-it-is-about-the-power-of-the-state-it-is/) [Kevin Rudd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-rudd/) > [Therefore, I see whatever exists as good, death is to me like life, sin like holiness, wisdom like foolishness, everything has to be as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/therefore-i-see-whatever-exists-as-good-death-is-to-me-like-life-sin/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [Trust is about keeping commitments, but in many instances, circumstances change and organizations therefore shed commitments, things such as retiree medical benefits, pension obligations,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-pfeffer/trust-is-about-keeping-commitments-but-in-many-instances/) [Jeffrey Pfeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-pfeffer/) > [Neither novels or their readers benefit from any attempts to divine whether any facts hide inside a story. 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