--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: They have been grand-jurymen since before…" description: "\"They have been grand-jurymen since before Noah was a sailor\" — William Shakespeare" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/645/william-shakespeare-4_justice_they-have-been-grand-jurymen-since-befor_1115107.jpg" --- # They have been grand-jurymen since before Noah was a sailor ![“They have been grand-jurymen since before Noah was a sailor” quote by William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/645/william-shakespeare-4_justice_they-have-been-grand-jurymen-since-befor_1115107.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/645/william-shakespeare-4_justice_they-have-been-grand-jurymen-since-befor_1115107.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/645/william-shakespeare-4_justice_they-have-been-grand-jurymen-since-befor_1115107.jpg) > “They have been grand-jurymen since before Noah was a sailor” [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The phrase suggests that jurors have been a longstanding institution, predating even biblical times. **In simple terms:** Jurors have existed since ancient times. Key Takeaway Recognize the deep roots of legal traditions. Themes law history tradition Mood historical thoughtful Type educational philosophical When to use this quote - courtrooms - legal education - historical analysis Key Concepts jurisprudence social contract Questions to Reflect On - Why do societies need juries? - How have jury roles evolved? A Different Perspective Exact historical accuracy is uncertain. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Justice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/justice/) [Noah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/noah/) [Sailor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sailor/) ## Related quotes > [Wretches hang that jurymen may dine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/wretches-hang-that-jurymen-may-dine/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [The hungry judges soon the sentence sign, and wretches hang that jurymen may dine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/the-hungry-judges-soon-the-sentence-sign-and-wretches-hang-that/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [Yea, foolish mortals, Noah's flood is not yet subsided; two thirds of the fair world it yet covers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/yea-foolish-mortals-noah-s-flood-is-not-yet-subsided-two-thirds-of/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [Lives like a drunken sailor on a mast, Ready with every nod to tumble down Into the fatal bowels of the deep.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/lives-like-a-drunken-sailor-on-a-mast-ready-with-every-nod-to-tumble/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [I'll drown more sailors than the mermaid shall; I'll slay more gazers than the basalisks; I'll play the orator as well as Nestor, Decieve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/i-ll-drown-more-sailors-than-the-mermaid-shall-i-ll-slay-more-gazers/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Ships are but boards, sailors but men; there be land-rats and water-rats, water-thieves and land-thieves, I mean pirates, and thenthere is the peril of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/ships-are-but-boards-sailors-but-men-there-be-land-rats-and-water/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Ships are but boards, sailors but men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/ships-are-but-boards-sailors-but-men/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [He got the notion into his head that if he restored the old house where they had come that night, Allie would find a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-notebook/he-got-the-notion-into-his-head-that-if-he-restored-the-old-house/) The Notebook > [“How lucky you are, Noah. Everyone wants to enjoy you, even from a distance.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierce-smith/how-lucky-you-are-noah-everyone-wants-to-enjoy-you-even-from-a/) [Pierce Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierce-smith/) > [“She's not the enemy. She's just a dirty fighter.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tarryn-fisher/she-s-not-the-enemy-she-s-just-a-dirty-fighter/) [Tarryn Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tarryn-fisher/) > [“To Peyton, I’m Noah. The guy she’s known her entire life and once called her best friend. To me, she’s everything.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heidi-mclaughlin/to-peyton-i-m-noah-the-guy-she-s-known-her-entire-life-and-once/) [Heidi McLaughlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heidi-mclaughlin/) > [“Anytime I see a rainbow, what comes into my mind is how skillful and talented someone was to create an ark that didn't leak…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/anytime-i-see-a-rainbow-what-comes-into-my-mind-is-how-skillful-and/) [Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/) > [I named my son Noah for the same reason Chris Martin named his apple: we're asses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-yorke/i-named-my-son-noah-for-the-same-reason-chris-martin-named-his-apple/) [Thom Yorke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-yorke/) > [“And there, tucked in his soul, was the love he felt for Sabella since the moment he had seen her.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lora-leigh/and-there-tucked-in-his-soul-was-the-love-he-felt-for-sabella-since/) [Lora Leigh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lora-leigh/) > [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) ## More by William Shakespeare > [Let us kill all lawyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/let-us-kill-all-lawyers/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/a-horse-a-horse-my-kingdom-for-a-horse/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [O tiger's heart wrapped in a woman's hide!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/o-tiger-s-heart-wrapped-in-a-woman-s-hide/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Time hath not yet so dried this blood of mine, Nor age so eat up my invention, Nor fortune made such havoc of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/time-hath-not-yet-so-dried-this-blood-of-mine-nor-age-so-eat-up-my/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Divers philosophers hold that the lips is parcel of the mouth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/divers-philosophers-hold-that-the-lips-is-parcel-of-the-mouth/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Short time seems long in sorrow's sharp sustaining.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/short-time-seems-long-in-sorrow-s-sharp-sustaining/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“Love is a smoke made with the fume of sighs; Being purg'd, a fire sparkling in lovers' eyes; Being vex'd, a sea nourish'd with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/love-is-a-smoke-made-with-the-fume-of-sighs-being-purg-d-a-fire/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [I, measuring his affections by my own, Which then most sought where most might not be found, Being one too many by my weary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/i-measuring-his-affections-by-my-own-which-then-most-sought-where/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Ask God for temp'rance. That's th' appliance only Which your disease requires.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/ask-god-for-temp-rance-that-s-th-appliance-only-which-your-disease/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“Thou hast no figures nor no fantasies Which busy care draws in the brains of men; Therefore thou sleep’st so sound. Julius Caesar (2.1.248-251)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/thou-hast-no-figures-nor-no-fantasies-which-busy-care-draws-in-the/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Truth needs no color; beauty, no pencil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/truth-needs-no-color-beauty-no-pencil/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Have you not heard it said full oft, A woman's nay doth stand for naught?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/have-you-not-heard-it-said-full-oft-a-woman-s-nay-doth-stand-for/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Omittance is no quittance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/omittance-is-no-quittance/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“Yes, madam: yet I cannot choose but laugh, To think it should leave crying and say 'Ay.' And yet, I warrant, it had upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/yes-madam-yet-i-cannot-choose-but-laugh-to-think-it-should-leave/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [I take thee at thy word: Call me but love, and I'll be new baptized; Henceforth I never will be Romeo.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/i-take-thee-at-thy-word-call-me-but-love-and-i-ll-be-new-baptized/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) [Explore all 5,604 William Shakespeare quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) ## More Jury quotes > [Be neither too early in the fashion, nor too long out of it, nor too precisely in it; what custom hath civilized is become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-quarles/be-neither-too-early-in-the-fashion-nor-too-long-out-of-it-nor-too/) [Francis Quarles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-quarles/) > [Trial by jury. Live wherever you can make a living. How could a government based on such principles fail?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-ambrose/trial-by-jury-live-wherever-you-can-make-a-living-how-could-a/) [Stephen Ambrose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-ambrose/) > [When the American people saw the LA riots and crowds of Blacks cheering O.J. Simpson (who was acquitted by the almost all Black jury),…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-duke/when-the-american-people-saw-the-la-riots-and-crowds-of-blacks/) [David Duke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-duke/) > [“No jury in this part of the world's going to say, "We think you're guilty, but not very," on a charge like that. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harper-lee/no-jury-in-this-part-of-the-world-s-going-to-say-we-think-you-re/) [Harper Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harper-lee/) > [The law of England has established trial by judge and jury in the conviction that it is the mode best calculated to ascertain the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-bentham/the-law-of-england-has-established-trial-by-judge-and-jury-in-the/) [Jeremy Bentham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-bentham/) > [A federal grand jury is investigating allegations that David Copperfield raped, assaulted and threatened a woman he took to his private island in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chelsea-handler/a-federal-grand-jury-is-investigating-allegations-that-david/) [Chelsea Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chelsea-handler/) > [One mechanism of repression is the grand jury.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-parenti/one-mechanism-of-repression-is-the-grand-jury/) [Michael Parenti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-parenti/) > [“Most courtroom movies feel it necessary to end with a clear-cut verdict. But 12 Angry Men never states whether the defendant is innocent or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ebert/most-courtroom-movies-feel-it-necessary-to-end-with-a-clear-cut/) [Roger Ebert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ebert/) > [While the prosecution has said this is about the defendants lies, one worries that those lies already have been buried under too much discussion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-berg/while-the-prosecution-has-said-this-is-about-the-defendants-lies-one/) [David Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-berg/) > [ I can assure the conspiracy theorists who have very effectively savaged \[Gerald\] Posner in their books that they're going to have a much, much… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vincent-bugliosi/i-can-assure-the-conspiracy-theorists-who-have-very-effectively/) [Vincent Bugliosi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vincent-bugliosi/) > [Those who deny the right of a jury to protect an individual in resisting an unjust law of the government, deny him all defence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lysander-spooner/those-who-deny-the-right-of-a-jury-to-protect-an-individual-in/) [Lysander Spooner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lysander-spooner/) > [Owing to the fact that leaders in the women's groups made a point of serving on the jury here whenever they were called, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/owing-to-the-fact-that-leaders-in-the-women-s-groups-made-a-point-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Global warming ... may be a plaintiff lawyer's dream. And it's interesting, in a perverse way, to imagine how a jury in 2050 might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ignatius/global-warming-may-be-a-plaintiff-lawyer-s-dream-and-it-s-interesting/) [David Ignatius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ignatius/) > [“I do not believe in the court system, at least I do not think it is especially good at finding the truth. No lawyer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-landay/i-do-not-believe-in-the-court-system-at-least-i-do-not-think-it-is/) [William Landay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-landay/) > [Any test that turns on what is offensive to the community's standards is too loose, too capricious, too destructive of freedom of expression to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-o-douglas/any-test-that-turns-on-what-is-offensive-to-the-community-s-standards/) [William O. Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-o-douglas/) Browse all 521 Jury quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "They have been grand-jurymen since before Noah was a sailor", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "William Shakespeare" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/they-have-been-grand-jurymen-since-before-noah-was-a-sailor/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Jury" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/they-have-been-grand-jurymen-since-before-noah-was-a-sailor/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/645/william-shakespeare-4_justice_they-have-been-grand-jurymen-since-befor_1115107.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/645/william-shakespeare-4_justice_they-have-been-grand-jurymen-since-befor_1115107.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/645/william-shakespeare-4_justice_they-have-been-grand-jurymen-since-befor_1115107.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“They have been grand-jurymen since before Noah was a sailor” — William Shakespeare", "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 Shakespeare", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "They have been grand-jurymen since before...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/they-have-been-grand-jurymen-since-before-noah-was-a-sailor/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/they-have-been-grand-jurymen-since-before-noah-was-a-sailor/#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 } } ] } ```