QuoteProject
God's law is 'right reason.' When perfectly understood it is called 'wisdom.' When applied by government in regulating human relations it is called 'justice.
Marcus Tullius Cicero
ShareWTF𝕏

Interpretation

What this quote means

Cicero suggests that divine law translates into human wisdom and justice through rational understanding and application.

This quote by Cicero emphasizes the connection between divine law, wisdom, and justice in human society. He posits that true understanding of God's law is rooted in 'right reason,' and when this understanding is implemented in governance, it manifests as justice, guiding human interactions towards a moral and ethical order.

Themes

LawWisdomJusticeReasonGovernment

In practice

Example use cases

In discussions about ethics in law, this quote could be referenced to highlight the importance of reason and morality in legal frameworks.

More from Marcus Tullius Cicero

Friendship is the only thing in the world concerning the usefulness of which all mankind are agreed.
Marcus Tullius CiceroRead
Those wars are unjust which are undertaken without provocation. For only a war waged for revenge or defence can actually be just.
Marcus Tullius CiceroRead
Orators are most vehement when their cause is weak.
Marcus Tullius CiceroRead
Nothing contributes to the entertainment of the reader more, than the change of times and the vicissitudes of fortune.
Marcus Tullius CiceroRead
No one has the right to be sorry for himself for a misfortune that strikes everyone.
Marcus Tullius CiceroRead
Advice in old age is foolish; for what can be more absurd than to increase our provisions for the road the nearer we approach to our journey's end.
Marcus Tullius CiceroRead

Similar quotes

I desire only to know the truth, and to live as well as I can...And, to the utmost of my power, I exhort all other men to do the same...I exhort you also to take part in the great combat, which is the combat of life, and greater than every other earthly conflict.
SocratesRead
If you look too closely at the form, you miss the Essence.
RumiRead
Pride is a vice, which pride itself inclines every man to find in others, and to overlook in himself
Samuel JohnsonRead
In life we sit at the table and refuse to eat, and in death we are eternally hungry.
Nicole KraussRead
We talked death with burned-up intensity, both of us drawn to it like moths to an electric light bulb. Sucking on it!
Anne SextonRead
Genocide, after all, is an exercise in community building.
Philip GourevitchRead

A little wisdom, now and then

Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.