--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The wicked have told me of things that…" description: "\"The wicked have told me of things that delight them, but not such things as your law has to tell.\" — Saint Augustine" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1a/saint-augustine-328_delight_the-wicked-have-told-me-of-things-that-d_1727782.png" --- # The wicked have told me of things that delight them, but… ![“The wicked have told me of things that delight them, but not such things as your law has to tell.” quote by Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1a/saint-augustine-328_delight_the-wicked-have-told-me-of-things-that-d_1727782.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1a/saint-augustine-328_delight_the-wicked-have-told-me-of-things-that-d_1727782.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1a/saint-augustine-328_delight_the-wicked-have-told-me-of-things-that-d_1727782.png) > “The wicked have told me of things that delight them, but not such things as your law has to tell.” [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human desire for pleasure can conflict with divine law, revealing moral tension. **In simple terms:** Pleasure vs. moral law creates conflict. Key Takeaway Balance desire with ethical principles. Themes morality temptation spirituality Mood contemplative serious Type theological philosophical When to use this quote - personal decision‑making - spiritual guidance - legal ethics Key Concepts ethical conflict human nature Questions to Reflect On - What pleasures challenge your moral code? - How can law guide ethical choices? A Different Perspective May oversimplify complex motivations. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Delight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/delight/) [Law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/law/) ## Related quotes > [A lawyer's duty is to read the law well himself, then tell the people what it is, and let them act upon it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brigham-young/a-lawyer-s-duty-is-to-read-the-law-well-himself-then-tell-the-people/) [Brigham Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brigham-young/) > [“She sighed. "Have I ever told you that you're impossible?" His smile was wonderfully wicked. 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Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-j-morgan/) > [The Law is not in fault, but our evil and wicked nature; even as a heap of lime is still and quiet until water…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/the-law-is-not-in-fault-but-our-evil-and-wicked-nature-even-as-a-heap/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [Wicked sons do not have the Holy Ghost in the same way as do beloved sons, and yet they do have Baptism. So, too,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/wicked-sons-do-not-have-the-holy-ghost-in-the-same-way-as-do-beloved/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [Now I want to live like everybody else. I want to have a wife like everybody else and to take her out on Sundays.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaston-leroux/now-i-want-to-live-like-everybody-else-i-want-to-have-a-wife-like/) [Gaston Leroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaston-leroux/) > [Teach correctly... Find delight in contemplation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/teach-correctly-find-delight-in-contemplation/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [“They were all fitting into place, the jig-saw pieces. The odd strained shapes that I had tried to piece together with my fumbling fingers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daphne-du-maurier/they-were-all-fitting-into-place-the-jig-saw-pieces-the-odd-strained/) [Daphne Du Maurier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daphne-du-maurier/) > [I've asked about you, and they've told me things. my mind didn't change, girl I still feel the same.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drake/i-ve-asked-about-you-and-they-ve-told-me-things-my-mind-didn-t-change/) [Drake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drake/) ## More by Saint Augustine > [Lust indulged became habit, and habit unresisted became necessity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/lust-indulged-became-habit-and-habit-unresisted-became-necessity/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [The playthings of our elders are called business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/the-playthings-of-our-elders-are-called-business/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [Do what you can and pray for what you cannot yet do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/do-what-you-can-and-pray-for-what-you-cannot-yet-do/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [For I did not know that the soul needs to be enlightened by light from outside itself, so that it can participate in truth,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/for-i-did-not-know-that-the-soul-needs-to-be-enlightened-by-light/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [My mother spoke of Christ to my father, by her feminine and childlike virtues, and, after having borne his violence without a murmur or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/my-mother-spoke-of-christ-to-my-father-by-her-feminine-and-childlike/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [Wicked sons do not have the Holy Ghost in the same way as do beloved sons, and yet they do have Baptism. So, too,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/wicked-sons-do-not-have-the-holy-ghost-in-the-same-way-as-do-beloved/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [To wisdom belongs the intellectual apprehension of things eternal; to knowledge, the rational apprehension of things temporal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/to-wisdom-belongs-the-intellectual-apprehension-of-things-eternal-to/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [It is this one Spirit who makes it possible for an infant to be regenerated . . . when that infant is brought to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/it-is-this-one-spirit-who-makes-it-possible-for-an-infant-to-be/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [God has no need of your money, but the poor have. You give it to the poor, and God receives it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/god-has-no-need-of-your-money-but-the-poor-have-you-give-it-to-the/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [Nothing conquers except truth and the victory of truth is love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/nothing-conquers-except-truth-and-the-victory-of-truth-is-love/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [“O God, who is ever at work and ever at rest. May I be ever at work and ever at rest.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/o-god-who-is-ever-at-work-and-ever-at-rest-may-i-be-ever-at-work-and/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [Our Lord reserved to Himself certain things which He would do in due time in a manner outside the course and order of nature,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/our-lord-reserved-to-himself-certain-things-which-he-would-do-in-due/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [Give me chastity and continence, but not yet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/give-me-chastity-and-continence-but-not-yet/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [Nothing, therefore, happens unless the Omnipotent wills it to happen. He either permits it to happen, or He brings it about Himself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/nothing-therefore-happens-unless-the-omnipotent-wills-it-to-happen-he/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [The reward of patience Is patience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/the-reward-of-patience-is-patience/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) [Explore all 672 Saint Augustine quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) ## More Delight quotes > [She smiled with all the delight of a kid on Christmas morning and said, "Y'all smoke to enjoy it. I smoke to die." -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/she-smiled-with-all-the-delight-of-a-kid-on-christmas-morning-and/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Shhh.” He put a finger to her lips. “Hear me out. I cannot deny that I would've liked to have made babies with you.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-hoyt/shhh-he-put-a-finger-to-her-lips-hear-me-out-i-cannot-deny-that-i/) [Elizabeth Hoyt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-hoyt/) > [There is a spirit which I feel that delights to do no evil, nor to revenge any wrong, but delights to endure all things,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-nayler/there-is-a-spirit-which-i-feel-that-delights-to-do-no-evil-nor-to/) James Nayler > [There was an Old Man of Messina, Whose daughter was named Opsibeena; She wore a small wig, and rode out on a pig, To…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-lear/there-was-an-old-man-of-messina-whose-daughter-was-named-opsibeena/) [Edward Lear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-lear/) > [A real flame of love is a subtle thing. It burns as a will-o'-the-wisp, dancing onward to fairy lands of delight. It roars as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-dreiser/a-real-flame-of-love-is-a-subtle-thing-it-burns-as-a-will-o-the-wisp/) [Theodore Dreiser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-dreiser/) > [“The gift of words, the source of enjoyment, the source of delight that comes within and the unfading beauty and energy of words.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/euginia-herlihy/the-gift-of-words-the-source-of-enjoyment-the-source-of-delight-that/) [Euginia Herlihy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/euginia-herlihy/) > [Benefits received are a delight to us as long as we think we can requite them; when that possibility is far exceeded, they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tacitus/benefits-received-are-a-delight-to-us-as-long-as-we-think-we-can/) [Tacitus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tacitus/) > [All the world's bravery that delights our eyes is but thy several liveries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-cowley/all-the-world-s-bravery-that-delights-our-eyes-is-but-thy-several/) [Abraham Cowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-cowley/) > [It might be lonelier Without the Loneliness - I’m so accustomed to my Fate - Perhaps the Other - Peace - Would interrupt the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-dickinson/it-might-be-lonelier-without-the-loneliness-i-m-so-accustomed-to-my/) [Emily Dickinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-dickinson/) > [Design should do the same thing in everyday life that art does when encountered: amaze us, scare us or delight us, but certainly open…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-betsky/design-should-do-the-same-thing-in-everyday-life-that-art-does-when/) Aaron Betsky > [My life shall be free and broad and great, and I will not be the slave to the sense delights which chained my ancient…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/my-life-shall-be-free-and-broad-and-great-and-i-will-not-be-the-slave/) [Jack London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-london/) > [Every natural power exhilarates; a true talent delights the possessor first.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/every-natural-power-exhilarates-a-true-talent-delights-the-possessor/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [If we are to define science, ... it does not consist so much in knowing, nor even in "organized knowledge," as it does in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-sanders-peirce/if-we-are-to-define-science-it-does-not-consist-so-much-in-knowing/) [Charles Sanders Peirce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-sanders-peirce/) > [Significantly, God in Genesis 1 pronounces the rest of creation "good" before humanity is created. 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Like the Doctor himself I find myself in a state of utter terror and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-capaldi/being-asked-to-play-the-doctor-is-an-amazing-privilege-like-the/) [Peter Capaldi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-capaldi/) [Browse all 2,212 Delight quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/delight/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The wicked have told me of things that delight them, but not such things as your law has to tell.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Saint Augustine" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/the-wicked-have-told-me-of-things-that-delight-them-but-not-such/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Delight" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/the-wicked-have-told-me-of-things-that-delight-them-but-not-such/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1a/saint-augustine-328_delight_the-wicked-have-told-me-of-things-that-d_1727782.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1a/saint-augustine-328_delight_the-wicked-have-told-me-of-things-that-d_1727782.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1a/saint-augustine-328_delight_the-wicked-have-told-me-of-things-that-d_1727782.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The wicked have told me of things that delight them, but not such things as your law has to tell.” — Saint Augustine", "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": "Saint Augustine", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The wicked have told me of...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/the-wicked-have-told-me-of-things-that-delight-them-but-not-such/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/the-wicked-have-told-me-of-things-that-delight-them-but-not-such/#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 } } ] } ```