--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: All truth is precious, if not all divine…" description: "\"All truth is precious, if not all divine; and what dilates the powers must needs refine.\" — William Cowper" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff5/william-cowper-779_divine_all-truth-is-precious-if-not-all-divine_925384.png" --- # All truth is precious, if not all divine; and what dilates… ![“All truth is precious, if not all divine; and what dilates the powers must needs refine.” quote by William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff5/william-cowper-779_divine_all-truth-is-precious-if-not-all-divine_925384.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff5/william-cowper-779_divine_all-truth-is-precious-if-not-all-divine_925384.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff5/william-cowper-779_divine_all-truth-is-precious-if-not-all-divine_925384.png) > “All truth is precious, if not all divine; and what dilates the powers must needs refine.” [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote suggests that truth is valuable, though not all is divine; expanding power requires refinement and discernment. **In simple terms:** Truth is valuable, but not all is holy; growth needs refinement. Key Takeaway Seek truth and refine power. Themes truth growth refinement divine power Mood thoughtful inspirational Type philosophical ethical When to use this quote - ethical decision‑making - personal development - intellectual inquiry Key Concepts epistemology spirituality self‑improvement Questions to Reflect On - How do we distinguish divine truth from mere knowledge? - What practices help refine our powers responsibly? A Different Perspective The pursuit of truth can be fraught with moral ambiguity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Divine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/divine/) [Divine Dilates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/divine-dilates-1465462/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Needs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needs/) [Precious Divine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/precious-divine-1465461/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) [Truth is](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth-is/) [Truth Precious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth-precious-1263759/) ## Related quotes > [For truth is precious and divine, too rich a pearl for carnal swine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/for-truth-is-precious-and-divine-too-rich-a-pearl-for-carnal-swine/) [Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/) > [Truth is the most precious thing. That's why we should ration it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/truth-is-the-most-precious-thing-that-s-why-we-should-ration-it/) [Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/) > [In wartime, truth is so precious that she should always be attended by a bodyguard of lies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/in-wartime-truth-is-so-precious-that-she-should-always-be-attended-by/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [Winston Churchill said 'In war time, truth is so precious that she should always be attended by a bodyguard of lies'. Any book called…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/winston-churchill-said-in-war-time-truth-is-so-precious-that-she/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It is open to every man to choose the direction of his striving; and also every man may draw comfort from Lessing's fine saying,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/it-is-open-to-every-man-to-choose-the-direction-of-his-striving-and/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [The search for truth is more precious than its possession.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gotthold-ephraim-lessing/the-search-for-truth-is-more-precious-than-its-possession/) [Gotthold Ephraim Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gotthold-ephraim-lessing/) > [“Sometimes a truth is so precious that it cannot be disowned.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galen-beckett/sometimes-a-truth-is-so-precious-that-it-cannot-be-disowned/) [Galen Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galen-beckett/) > [“For the truth is so precious she must be accompanied by a bodyguard of lies.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-elia-macneal/for-the-truth-is-so-precious-she-must-be-accompanied-by-a-bodyguard/) [Susan Elia MacNeal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-elia-macneal/) > [Time is precious, but truth is more precious than time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-disraeli/time-is-precious-but-truth-is-more-precious-than-time/) [Benjamin Disraeli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-disraeli/) > [General abstract truth is the most precious of all blessings; without it, man is blind; it is the eye of reason.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/general-abstract-truth-is-the-most-precious-of-all-blessings-without/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [The truth is a precious commodity. 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Controversy for the sake of truth is a divine command.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-martin/controversy-for-the-sake-of-controversy-is-sin-controversy-for-the/) [Walter Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-martin/) ## More by William Cowper > [And hast thou sworn on every slight pretence, Till perjuries are common as bad pence, While thousands, careless of the damning sin, Kiss the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/and-hast-thou-sworn-on-every-slight-pretence-till-perjuries-are/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [No wild enthusiast could rest, till half the world like him was possessed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/no-wild-enthusiast-could-rest-till-half-the-world-like-him-was/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [Admirals extolled for standing still, or doing nothing with a deal of skill.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/admirals-extolled-for-standing-still-or-doing-nothing-with-a-deal-of/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [“The good we never miss we rarely prize”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/the-good-we-never-miss-we-rarely-prize/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [Thus happiness depends, as nature shows, less on exterior things than most suppose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/thus-happiness-depends-as-nature-shows-less-on-exterior-things-than/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [Stamps God's own name upon a lie just made, To turn a penny in the way of trade.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/stamps-god-s-own-name-upon-a-lie-just-made-to-turn-a-penny-in-the-way/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [But oars alone can ne'er prevail To reach the distant coast; The breath of Heaven must swell the sail, Or all the toil is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/but-oars-alone-can-ne-er-prevail-to-reach-the-distant-coast-the/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [“Nature is but a name for an effect whose cause is God"...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/nature-is-but-a-name-for-an-effect-whose-cause-is-god/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [But conversation, choose what theme we may, And chiefly when religion leads the way, Should flow, like waters after summer show'rs, Not as if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/but-conversation-choose-what-theme-we-may-and-chiefly-when-religion/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [Remorse, the fatal egg that pleasure laid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/remorse-the-fatal-egg-that-pleasure-laid/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [“When we don't pray, we quit the fight. Prayer keeps the Christian's armor bright. And Satan trembles when he sees. The weakest saint upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/when-we-don-t-pray-we-quit-the-fight-prayer-keeps-the-christian-s/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [But animated nature sweeter still, to soothe and satisfy the human ear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/but-animated-nature-sweeter-still-to-soothe-and-satisfy-the-human-ear/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [A fretful temper will divide the closest knot that may be tied, by ceaseless sharp corrosion; a temper passionate and fierce may suddenly your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/a-fretful-temper-will-divide-the-closest-knot-that-may-be-tied-by/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [Ten thousand casks, Forever dribbling out their base contents, Touch'd by the Midas finger of the state, Bleed gold for ministers to sport away.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/ten-thousand-casks-forever-dribbling-out-their-base-contents-touch-d/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [The art of poetry is to touch the passions, and its duty to lead them on the side of virtue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/the-art-of-poetry-is-to-touch-the-passions-and-its-duty-to-lead-them/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) [Explore all 371 William Cowper quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) ## More Divine quotes > [Every action that helps us manifest our divine nature more and more is good; every action that retards it is evil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/every-action-that-helps-us-manifest-our-divine-nature-more-and-more/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [The world's history is a divine poem, of which the history of every nation is a canto, and every man a word. Its strains…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/the-world-s-history-is-a-divine-poem-of-which-the-history-of-every/) [James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/) > [Like many other scientists who hold the Catholic faith, I see the Creator's plan and purpose fulfilled in our universe. I see a planet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-r-miller/like-many-other-scientists-who-hold-the-catholic-faith-i-see-the/) [Kenneth R. Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-r-miller/) > [I take the seashell from my jeans pocket and rub my fingers across its silken, indented surface, shallow as my own open hand. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katrina-kenison/i-take-the-seashell-from-my-jeans-pocket-and-rub-my-fingers-across/) [Katrina Kenison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katrina-kenison/) > [Can you imagine any better example of divine creative accomplishment that the consummate flying machine that is a bird? 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I'd come to think of God in terms like Divine Reality,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/in-recent-years-my-understanding-of-god-had-evolved-into-increasingly/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [“Monsters are divine portents.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-davidson/monsters-are-divine-portents/) [Andrew Davidson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-davidson/) > [Neither novels or their readers benefit from any attempts to divine whether any facts hide inside a story. Such efforts attack the very idea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/neither-novels-or-their-readers-benefit-from-any-attempts-to-divine/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Miracles are like candles lit up until the sun rises, and then blown out. Therefore, I am amused when I hear sects and churches…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/miracles-are-like-candles-lit-up-until-the-sun-rises-and-then-blown/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [Evil may mar the divine image and cloud its brilliance, but it cannot destroy it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-c-sproul/evil-may-mar-the-divine-image-and-cloud-its-brilliance-but-it-cannot/) [R. C. Sproul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-c-sproul/) > [Coercion is the basis of every law in the universe,--human or divine. A law is not law without coercion behind it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/coercion-is-the-basis-of-every-law-in-the-universe-human-or-divine-a/) [James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/) > [Silence tells the seeker in us to love, to love himself. 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