--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: But all the wickedness in the world which…" description: "\"But all the wickedness in the world which man may do or think is no more to the mercy of God than a live coal dropped in the sea.\" — William Langland" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e19/william-langland-34038_coal_but-all-the-wickedness-in-the-world-whic_48757.png" --- # But all the wickedness in the world which man may do or… ![“But all the wickedness in the world which man may do or think is no more to the mercy of God than a live coal dropped in the sea.” quote by William Langland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e19/william-langland-34038_coal_but-all-the-wickedness-in-the-world-whic_48757.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e19/william-langland-34038_coal_but-all-the-wickedness-in-the-world-whic_48757.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e19/william-langland-34038_coal_but-all-the-wickedness-in-the-world-whic_48757.png) > “But all the wickedness in the world which man may do or think is no more to the mercy of God than a live coal dropped in the sea.” [William Langland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-langland/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human sin, even at its worst, is insignificant to divine mercy, likened to a coal that vanishes instantly in the ocean. **In simple terms:** Divine mercy dwarfs human wickedness. Key Takeaway God's compassion is limitless. Themes theology humility grace impermanence perspective Mood reverent humble hopeful Type aphorism scriptural analogy When to use this quote - prayerful reflection - ethical counseling - theological education - personal crisis - interfaith dialogue Key Concepts divine mercy human sin cosmic scale spiritual humility Practical Applications - sermon illustration - spiritual counseling Questions to Reflect On - How does this view affect moral responsibility? - What does it imply about the nature of forgiveness? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Compassion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compassion/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Mercy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mercy/) [Mercy of god](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mercy-of-god/) [Sea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sea/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Wickedness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wickedness/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [The hatred you're carrying is a live coal in your heart - far more damaging to yourself than to them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawana-blackwell/the-hatred-you-re-carrying-is-a-live-coal-in-your-heart-far-more/) [Lawana Blackwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawana-blackwell/) > [“The wickedness of the world is so great, you have to keep running so your legs won't be stolen from under you!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertolt-brecht/the-wickedness-of-the-world-is-so-great-you-have-to-keep-running-so/) [Bertolt Brecht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertolt-brecht/) > [“The wickedness of the world was a part of creation, I knew this, and the Angel of Death had been created on that day…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-hoffman/the-wickedness-of-the-world-was-a-part-of-creation-i-knew-this-and/) [Alice Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-hoffman/) > [“Now the wickedness of the world is already so great that it needs no more teaching to make it worse.  On the whole, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/now-the-wickedness-of-the-world-is-already-so-great-that-it-needs-no/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [All the wickedness in the world begins with an act of forgetting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-buchanan/all-the-wickedness-in-the-world-begins-with-an-act-of-forgetting/) [Mark Buchanan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-buchanan/) > [You need to be in fellowship of a church...If you separate a live coal from the others, it will soon die out. However, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-graham/you-need-to-be-in-fellowship-of-a-church-if-you-separate-a-live-coal/) [Billy Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-graham/) > [Our wickedness shall not overpower the unspeakable goodness and mercy of God; our dullness shall not overpower God's wisdom, nor our infirmity God's omnipotence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-of-kronstadt/our-wickedness-shall-not-overpower-the-unspeakable-goodness-and-mercy/) [John of Kronstadt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-of-kronstadt/) > [“I had forgotten how much wickedness is in the world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-b-kerr/i-had-forgotten-how-much-wickedness-is-in-the-world/) [P.B. Kerr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-b-kerr/) > [Jews are responsible for the majority of the wickedness in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/professor-griff/jews-are-responsible-for-the-majority-of-the-wickedness-in-the-world/) [Professor Griff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/professor-griff/) > [“Confess your sins, worship God, and get on with your life. You can experience the mercy of God no matter what you’ve been through.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-s-mcgee/confess-your-sins-worship-god-and-get-on-with-your-life-you-can/) [Robert S. McGee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-s-mcgee/) > [“As we meditate on the undeserved mercy of God in forgiving our sins, we will freely grant forgiveness and kindness to our husbands and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-mahaney/as-we-meditate-on-the-undeserved-mercy-of-god-in-forgiving-our-sins/) [Carolyn Mahaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-mahaney/) > [It is highly convenient to believe in the infinite mercy of God when you feel the need of mercy, but remember also his infinite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-haydon/it-is-highly-convenient-to-believe-in-the-infinite-mercy-of-god-when/) [Benjamin Haydon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-haydon/) > [“Humility teaches us that God is actively redeeming the world. And because He is, we can experience the relief of confessing our brokenness—whether it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-anderson/humility-teaches-us-that-god-is-actively-redeeming-the-world-and/) [Hannah Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-anderson/) > [“So it falls out that in this world, in evil days like these, the Church walks onward like a wayfarer stricken by the world's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augustine-of-hippo/so-it-falls-out-that-in-this-world-in-evil-days-like-these-the-church/) [Augustine of Hippo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augustine-of-hippo/) > [“The mercy of God's grace guides me in the right path.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/the-mercy-of-god-s-grace-guides-me-in-the-right-path/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) ## More by William Langland > [Manye chapeleyns arn chaste, ac charite is aweye; Are none hardere than hii whan hii ben avaunced: Unkynde to hire kyn and to alle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-langland/manye-chapeleyns-arn-chaste-ac-charite-is-aweye-are-none-hardere-than/) [William Langland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-langland/) > [Like father, like son: every good tree maketh good fruits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-langland/like-father-like-son-every-good-tree-maketh-good-fruits/) [William Langland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-langland/) > [There smites nothing so sharp, nor smelleth so sour as shame.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-langland/there-smites-nothing-so-sharp-nor-smelleth-so-sour-as-shame/) [William Langland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-langland/) > [“And what a tree took away a tree shall restore”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-langland/and-what-a-tree-took-away-a-tree-shall-restore/) [William Langland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-langland/) > [For if hevene be on this erthe, and ese to any soule,It is in cloistre or in scole.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-langland/for-if-hevene-be-on-this-erthe-and-ese-to-any-soule-it-is-in-cloistre/) [William Langland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-langland/) > [First impressions of mediaeval life are usually coloured by the courtly romances of Malory and his later refiners. Chaucer brings us down to reality,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-langland/first-impressions-of-mediaeval-life-are-usually-coloured-by-the/) [William Langland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-langland/) > [The Spirit of Justice is the single most important seed Piers planted; if you don't live by its teaching, your chance of salvation is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-langland/the-spirit-of-justice-is-the-single-most-important-seed-piers-planted/) [William Langland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-langland/) > [A fair feeld ful of folk fond I ther bitwene -Of alle manere of men, the meene and the riche,Werchynge and wandrynge as the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-langland/a-fair-feeld-ful-of-folk-fond-i-ther-bitwene-of-alle-manere-of-men/) [William Langland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-langland/) > [In a somer seson, whan softe was the sonne, I shoop me into shroudes as I a sheep were, In habite an heremite unholy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-langland/in-a-somer-seson-whan-softe-was-the-sonne-i-shoop-me-into-shroudes-as/) [William Langland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-langland/) > [I kan noght parfitly my Paternoster as the preest it syngeth,But I kan rymes of Robyn Hood and Randolf Erl of Chestre.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-langland/i-kan-noght-parfitly-my-paternoster-as-the-preest-it-syngeth-but-i/) [William Langland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-langland/) > [Who will bell the cat?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-langland/who-will-bell-the-cat/) [William Langland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-langland/) > [Al the povere peple tho pescoddes fetten; Benes and baken apples thei broghte in hir lappe, Chibolles and chervelles and ripe chiries manye, And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-langland/al-the-povere-peple-tho-pescoddes-fetten-benes-and-baken-apples-thei/) [William Langland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-langland/) > [For hevene myghte nat holden it, so was it hevy of hymself,Til it hadde of the erthe eten his fille.And whan it hadde of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-langland/for-hevene-myghte-nat-holden-it-so-was-it-hevy-of-hymself-til-it/) [William Langland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-langland/) [Explore all 14 William Langland quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-langland/) ## More Coal quotes > [Assuming normal winter weather, we currently anticipate the coal markets to remain difficult through 2015; while we always strive to operate a full capacity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-craft/assuming-normal-winter-weather-we-currently-anticipate-the-coal/) [Joe Craft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-craft/) > [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/) > [The only difference between black coal and a precious diamond is the amount of pressure it endured.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/the-only-difference-between-black-coal-and-a-precious-diamond-is-the/) [Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/) > [In that sense, I became politicized because the people in the coal mining villages who were involved in the struggle knew why they were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-bragg/in-that-sense-i-became-politicized-because-the-people-in-the-coal/) [Billy Bragg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-bragg/) > [Dusty, dark, cold, and hard, coal has no beauty of its own, but when it is consummated by fire it is beautiful and becomes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederica-mathewes-green/dusty-dark-cold-and-hard-coal-has-no-beauty-of-its-own-but-when-it-is/) [Frederica Mathewes-Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederica-mathewes-green/) > [a TEN-YEAR-OLD lad in Indianapolis who was arrested for picking up coal along the side of railroad tracks is now in jail. If the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mother-jones/a-ten-year-old-lad-in-indianapolis-who-was-arrested-for-picking-up/) Mother Jones > [Coal is the moral choice, particularly for the developing world... The model for the world right now should be Australia. Australia gets it. Scientifically…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-morano/coal-is-the-moral-choice-particularly-for-the-developing-world-the/) Marc Morano > [Iron and coal dominated everywhere, from grey to black: the black boots, the black stove-pipe hat, the black coach or carriage, the black iron…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-mumford/iron-and-coal-dominated-everywhere-from-grey-to-black-the-black-boots/) [Lewis Mumford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-mumford/) > [I remember being very influenced by 'Taxi Driver', and also Tommy Lee Jones in 'Coal Miner's Daughter' a little bit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-rockwell/i-remember-being-very-influenced-by-taxi-driver-and-also-tommy-lee/) [Sam Rockwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-rockwell/) > [I have visited sweatshops, factories, and crowded slums. If I could not see it, I could smell it. The foundation of society is laid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/i-have-visited-sweatshops-factories-and-crowded-slums-if-i-could-not/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [Shakespeare doesn't belong to the past. If his material is valid, it is valid now. It's like coal. The only meaningfulness of a piece…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-brook/shakespeare-doesn-t-belong-to-the-past-if-his-material-is-valid-it-is/) [Peter Brook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-brook/) > [Coal is My Worst Nightmare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-chu/coal-is-my-worst-nightmare/) [Steven Chu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-chu/) > [America is the Saudi Arabia of coal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-duhigg/america-is-the-saudi-arabia-of-coal/) [Charles Duhigg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-duhigg/) > [“...those others - they're looking for trends - subjects to catch a spark - but I have you - a coal from God's altar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-geddes/those-others-they-re-looking-for-trends-subjects-to-catch-a-spark-but/) [John Geddes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-geddes/) > [We're not going to be living in a world of abundant coal power in a hundred years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-chait/we-re-not-going-to-be-living-in-a-world-of-abundant-coal-power-in-a/) [Jonathan Chait](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-chait/) Browse all 720 Coal quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "But all the wickedness in the world which man may do or think is no more to the mercy of God than a live coal dropped in the sea.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "William Langland" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-langland/but-all-the-wickedness-in-the-world-which-man-may-do-or-think-is-no/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Coal" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-langland/but-all-the-wickedness-in-the-world-which-man-may-do-or-think-is-no/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e19/william-langland-34038_coal_but-all-the-wickedness-in-the-world-whic_48757.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e19/william-langland-34038_coal_but-all-the-wickedness-in-the-world-whic_48757.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e19/william-langland-34038_coal_but-all-the-wickedness-in-the-world-whic_48757.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“But all the wickedness in the world which man may do or think is no more to the mercy of God than a live…” — William Langland", "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": "William Langland", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-langland/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "But all the wickedness in the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-langland/but-all-the-wickedness-in-the-world-which-man-may-do-or-think-is-no/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-langland/but-all-the-wickedness-in-the-world-which-man-may-do-or-think-is-no/#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 } } ] } ```