As WWI broke out, Sir Edward Grey lamented that Europe's pea

QuoteHistorical Account★★★★

and as darkness enveloped the city outside and as the sands of and as darkness enveloped the city outside and as the sands of peace were running out — those last fateful moments — he said with deep insight: “The lights are going out all over Europe.”

— Frederick C. Gill

Also attributed to: Edward Grey

The point

As WWI broke out, Sir Edward Grey lamented that Europe's peace and hope were vanishing, comparing the onset of darkness to the extinguishing of lights.

Scripture

John 1:5John 14:27Isaiah 9:21 Thessalonians 5:5

Audience

AdultsYouth

Tone

Sobering · Reflective

To tell aloud

under a minute · 35 words

Subjects

Darkness Hope War Peace Light History Sorrow

Community

Loading discussion...

AI tools

More like this

The Mirror★★★★★

Author Robert Fulghum tells this story of one of his professors, a wise man whose name was Alexander Papaderos: At the l…

— Robert Fulghum

We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark. The…★★★★

We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark. The real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the Light.

Sir Edward Grey, watching a lamplighter at work on a London …★★★★

Sir Edward Grey, watching a lamplighter at work on a London street, just as World War I was beginning, said: “The lamps …

— Sir Edward Grey

Nothing except a battle lost can be half so melancholy as a …★★★★

Nothing except a battle lost can be half so melancholy as a battle won.

— Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington

First Opportunity to See the Stars★★★★

A small boy whose life had been spent in the heart of one of the great European cities rejoiced when the blackout war me…

— STEADFASTNESS

Hitting Your Pinky Toe in the Dark★★★★

HAVE YOU ever gotten up in the middle of the night to go to the restroom or to the kitchen, failed to turn on the light,…

— Tony Evans

Find more illustrations →