---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We don’t need to wait for the Second…"
description: "\"“We don’t need to wait for the Second Coming in order to overcome death. A couple of geeks in a lab can do it. If traditionally death was the specialit..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c4/yuval-noah-harari-100_death_we-don-t-need-to-wait-for-the-second-com_709154.jpg"
---

#  We don’t need to wait for the Second Coming in order to…

![“We don’t need to wait for the Second Coming in order to overcome death. A couple of geeks in a lab can do it. If traditionally death was the speciality of priests and theologians, now the engineers are taking over.” quote by Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c4/yuval-noah-harari-100_death_we-don-t-need-to-wait-for-the-second-com_709154.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c4/yuval-noah-harari-100_death_we-don-t-need-to-wait-for-the-second-com_709154.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c4/yuval-noah-harari-100_death_we-don-t-need-to-wait-for-the-second-com_709154.jpg)

> ““We don’t need to wait for the Second Coming in order to overcome death. A couple of geeks in a lab can do it. If traditionally death was the speciality of priests and theologians, now the engineers are taking over.””

[Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Technology can eventually defeat death, shifting the power to control mortality from religion to engineering.

**In simple terms:** Science may end death, moving control from priests to engineers.

Key Takeaway

Embrace scientific progress responsibly.

Themes

mortality technology ethics power shift

Mood

hopeful concerned

Type

philosophical inspirational

When to use this quote

- medical research
- policy making
- public discourse
- personal health planning

Key Concepts

longevity biotech transhumanism secularism

Questions to Reflect On

- How should societies regulate life‑extension technologies?
- What moral responsibilities do engineers have?

A Different Perspective

Ethical dilemmas and societal inequality may arise from unequal access to life‑extending tech.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Overcome Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/overcome-death-1441772/) [Second Coming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/second-coming-317547/) [Theologians](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theologians/) [Theologians Engineers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theologians-engineers-5597130/) [Traditionally Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/traditionally-death-5597131/)

## Related quotes

> [“Moreover, most faiths turned death into the main source of meaning in life. Try to imagine Islam, Christianity or the ancient Egyptian religion in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/moreover-most-faiths-turned-death-into-the-main-source-of-meaning-in/)

[Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/)

> [“If you can overcome love, you can overcome fear. If you can overcome fear, you can overcome death.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/santosh-kalwar/if-you-can-overcome-love-you-can-overcome-fear-if-you-can-overcome/)

[Santosh Kalwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/santosh-kalwar/)

> [You must overcome death by finding God in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/you-must-overcome-death-by-finding-god-in-it/)

[Pierre Teilhard de Chardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/)

> [Literature is the best way to overcome death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilan-stavans/literature-is-the-best-way-to-overcome-death/)

[Ilan Stavans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilan-stavans/)

> [The last to be overcome is death, and the knowledge of life is the knowledge of death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-cayce/the-last-to-be-overcome-is-death-and-the-knowledge-of-life-is-the/)

[Edgar Cayce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-cayce/)

> [“To physically overcome death – is that not the goal? – we must think the unthinkable thoughts and ask unanswerable questions. Yet we must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/to-physically-overcome-death-is-that-not-the-goal-we-must-think-the/)

[Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/)

> [“Easter? We’re paying more attention to dying than to death. We’re more concerned to get over the act of dying than to overcome death.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/easter-we-re-paying-more-attention-to-dying-than-to-death-we-re-more/)

[Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/)

> [“Amillennialists thus hold that the “thousand years” is a symbolic reference to the entire period (which we are now in) between Christ’s resurrection until…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-menn/amillennialists-thus-hold-that-the-thousand-years-is-a-symbolic/)

[Jonathan Menn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-menn/)

> [The Olivet Discourse is not about the Second Coming of Christ. It is a prophecy of the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-chilton/the-olivet-discourse-is-not-about-the-second-coming-of-christ-it-is-a/)

[David Chilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-chilton/)

> [Our brains are no longer conditioned for reverence and awe. We cannot imagine a Second Coming that would not be cut down to size…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/our-brains-are-no-longer-conditioned-for-reverence-and-awe-we-cannot/)

[John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/)

> [The doctrine of the Second Coming teaches us that we do not and cannot know when the world drama will end. The curtain may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/the-doctrine-of-the-second-coming-teaches-us-that-we-do-not-and/)

[C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/)

> [I'd like to see the Second Coming in every one of us. That we all be Jesus. That we all embody that consciousness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-siberry/i-d-like-to-see-the-second-coming-in-every-one-of-us-that-we-all-be/)

[Jane Siberry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-siberry/)

> [How Cable survived Second Coming and what his responsibility is to his daughter, Hope, may have something to do with the Avengers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeph-loeb/how-cable-survived-second-coming-and-what-his-responsibility-is-to/)

[Jeph Loeb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeph-loeb/)

> [“ . . . after twenty centuries of stony sleep, what rough beast, its hour come round at last, slouches toward Bethlehem to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-b-yeats-2/after-twenty-centuries-of-stony-sleep-what-rough-beast-its-hour-come/)

[W. B. Yeats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-b-yeats-2/)

> [“Is desecration teaching? Is violence knowledge? Is haunting a kind of life? I had no model for rebirth. No second coming blueprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amber-dawn/is-desecration-teaching-is-violence-knowledge-is-haunting-a-kind-of/)

[Amber Dawn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amber-dawn/)

## More by Yuval Noah Harari

> [“For similar reasons, archaic humans did not initiate any revolutions. As far as we can tell, changes in social patterns, the invention of new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/for-similar-reasons-archaic-humans-did-not-initiate-any-revolutions/)

[Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/)

> [“Today the main source of wealth is knowledge. And whereas you can conquer oil fields through war, you cannot acquire knowledge that way.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/today-the-main-source-of-wealth-is-knowledge-and-whereas-you-can/)

[Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/)

> [“How do you cause people to believe in an imagined order such as Christianity, democracy or capitalism? First, you never admit that the order…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/how-do-you-cause-people-to-believe-in-an-imagined-order-such-as/)

[Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/)

> [I think the basic thing that happened is we have lost our story. Humans think in stories, and we try to make sense of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/i-think-the-basic-thing-that-happened-is-we-have-lost-our-story/)

[Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/)

> [“Whereas chimpanzees spend five hours a day chewing raw food, a single hour suffices for people eating cooked food. The advent of cooking enabled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/whereas-chimpanzees-spend-five-hours-a-day-chewing-raw-food-a-single/)

[Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/)

> [“the Chinese air-purification market is booming.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/the-chinese-air-purification-market-is-booming/)

[Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/)

> [“Whereas liberalism merged with the milder versions of nationalism to protect the unique experiences of each human community, evolutionary humanists such as Hitler identified…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/whereas-liberalism-merged-with-the-milder-versions-of-nationalism-to/)

[Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/)

> [“Corporations, money and nations exist only in our imagination. We invented them to serve us; why do we find ourselves sacrificing our lives in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/corporations-money-and-nations-exist-only-in-our-imagination-we/)

[Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/)

> [“Small children in affluent societies often dislike showering, and it takes them years of education and parental discipline to adopt this supposedly attractive custom.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/small-children-in-affluent-societies-often-dislike-showering-and-it/)

[Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/)

> [“Ever more scholars see cultures as a kind of mental infection or parasite, with humans as its unwitting host. Organic parasites, such as viruses,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/ever-more-scholars-see-cultures-as-a-kind-of-mental-infection-or/)

[Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/)

> [“Soviet Communism was a fanatical and missionary religion. A devout Communist could not be a Christian or a Buddhist, and was expected to spread…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/soviet-communism-was-a-fanatical-and-missionary-religion-a-devout/)

[Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/)

> [“Whereas religion asks us to believe in something, money asks us to believe that other people believe in something”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/whereas-religion-asks-us-to-believe-in-something-money-asks-us-to/)

[Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/)

> [“Terrorists are like a fly that tries to destroy a china shop. The fly is so weak that it cannot budge even a single…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/terrorists-are-like-a-fly-that-tries-to-destroy-a-china-shop-the-fly/)

[Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/)

> [“Yet what happens if the greedy shoemaker increases his profits by paying employees less and increasing their work hours? The standard answer is that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/yet-what-happens-if-the-greedy-shoemaker-increases-his-profits-by/)

[Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/)

> [“A natural order is a stable order. There is no chance that gravity will cease to function tomorrow, even if people stop believing in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/a-natural-order-is-a-stable-order-there-is-no-chance-that-gravity/)

[Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/)

[Explore all 1,200 Yuval Noah Harari quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/)

## More Death quotes

> [“He wondered how it was fair that your dying should depend so much on when you were born.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-albom/he-wondered-how-it-was-fair-that-your-dying-should-depend-so-much-on/)

[Mitch Albom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-albom/)

> [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/)

[Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/)

> [Most of us are convinced that we are our egos, which is who we think we are. The ego is part of our incarnation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/most-of-us-are-convinced-that-we-are-our-egos-which-is-who-we-think/)

[Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/)

> [I do not want to live at the cost of the life even of a snake. I should let him bite me to death…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/i-do-not-want-to-live-at-the-cost-of-the-life-even-of-a-snake-i/)

[Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/)

> [“It was beautiful. He thought he had never seen anything so beautiful in all his life; that, having seen it, he could die content,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-grant/it-was-beautiful-he-thought-he-had-never-seen-anything-so-beautiful/)

[Mira Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-grant/)

> [Retirement? You're talking about death, right?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-altman/retirement-you-re-talking-about-death-right/)

[Robert Altman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-altman/)

> [With multiplayer, permanent death, and an ever-changing world to explore and conquer, 'A Valley Without Wind' might be the place you're looking for if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-manuel/with-multiplayer-permanent-death-and-an-ever-changing-world-to/)

[Rob Manuel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-manuel/)

> [“What did you see?” she asked gently. His brow furrowed, as if he could not understand the question. Then his eyes turned to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-anthony-torino/what-did-you-see-she-asked-gently-his-brow-furrowed-as-if-he-could/)

[J. Anthony Torino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-anthony-torino/)

> [Those whose life is long still strive for gain, and for all mortals all things take second place to money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/those-whose-life-is-long-still-strive-for-gain-and-for-all-mortals/)

[Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/)

> [“I practice Dying--every night-- But have not learned to, still-- Though Talented--by Mortal bones-- For such a common Skill.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-w-powers/i-practice-dying-every-night-but-have-not-learned-to-still-though/)

[Alan W. Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-w-powers/)

> [“You must understand the pain and grief of losing someone is nothing more than a function of survival.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-cooper/you-must-understand-the-pain-and-grief-of-losing-someone-is-nothing/)

[Steven Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-cooper/)

> [I am not a depressive person at all, but I reflect a lot on my life, and life in general, from the perspective of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/i-am-not-a-depressive-person-at-all-but-i-reflect-a-lot-on-my-life/)

[Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/)

> [“Death is a reality that calls the rest of life and all of our assorted strivings into sharp relief.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/death-is-a-reality-that-calls-the-rest-of-life-and-all-of-our/)

[Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/)

> [I love life. I love life to death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmanuelle-riva/i-love-life-i-love-life-to-death/)

[Emmanuelle Riva](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmanuelle-riva/)

> [I think when you’re dying you start looking for important things in the corners. You can’t let anything that seems even semi-important pass, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-crutcher/i-think-when-you-re-dying-you-start-looking-for-important-things-in/)

[Chris Crutcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-crutcher/)

[Browse all 39,127 Death quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“We don’t need to wait for the Second Coming in order to overcome death. A couple of geeks in a lab can do it. If traditionally death was the speciality of priests and theologians, now the engineers are taking over.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Yuval Noah Harari"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/we-don-t-need-to-wait-for-the-second-coming-in-order-to-overcome/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Death"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/we-don-t-need-to-wait-for-the-second-coming-in-order-to-overcome/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c4/yuval-noah-harari-100_death_we-don-t-need-to-wait-for-the-second-com_709154.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c4/yuval-noah-harari-100_death_we-don-t-need-to-wait-for-the-second-com_709154.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c4/yuval-noah-harari-100_death_we-don-t-need-to-wait-for-the-second-com_709154.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“We don’t need to wait for the Second Coming in order to overcome death. A couple of geeks in a lab can do…” — Yuval Noah Harari",
                "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": "Yuval Noah Harari",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“We don’t need to wait for...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/we-don-t-need-to-wait-for-the-second-coming-in-order-to-overcome/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/we-don-t-need-to-wait-for-the-second-coming-in-order-to-overcome/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
