Man can, indeed, act contrarily to the decrees of God, as far as they have been written like laws in the minds of ourselves or the prophets, but against that eternal decree of God, which is written in universal nature, and has regard to the course of nature as a whole, he can do nothing." - Meaning and context.">
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Ch. 2, Of Natural Right
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Man can, indeed, act contrarily to the decrees of God, as far as they have been written like laws in the minds of ourselves or the prophets, but against that eternal decree of God, which is written in universal nature, and has regard to the course of nature as a whole, he can do nothing.

— Baruch Spinoza

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "Man can, indeed, act contrarily to the decrees of God, as far as they have been written like laws in the minds of ourselves or the prophets, but against that eternal decree of God, which is written in universal nature, and has regard to the course of nature as a whole, he can do nothing." in the context of "Ch. 2, Of Natural Right" to mean that wisdom is timeless.

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Source: Wikiquote: "Baruch Spinoza" (Quotes, Political Treatise (1677): Tractatus Politicus as translated by A. H. Gosset (1883); full text online (this is an unfinished work, left incomplete by Spinoza's death)) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app

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#Baruch Spinoza#written#nature#god#contrarily#ourselves#universal#prophets#decrees#against#eternal#nothing
Baruch Spinoza

About Baruch Spinoza

Benedictus de Spinoza (24 November 1632 – 21 February 1677) was a social and metaphysical philosopher known for the elaborate development of his monist philosophy, which has become known as Spinozism. Controversy regarding his ideas led to his excommunication from the Jewish community of his native Amsterdam. He was named Baruch ("blessed" in Hebrew) Spinoza by his synagogue elders and known as Bento de Spinoza or Bento d'Espiñoza, but afterwards used the name Benedictus ("blessed" in Latin) de Spinoza.