Proverbs 18:14

A person’s spirit ¹  sustains him through sickness – but who can bear ²  a crushed spirit? ³ 

A man’s spirit sustains him in sickness, but a crushed spirit who can bear?

The spirit of a man can endure his sickness, But as for a broken spirit who can bear it?

The human spirit can endure a sick body, but who can bear it if the spirit is crushed?

A healthy spirit conquers adversity, but what can you do when the spirit is crushed?

The spirit of a man will be his support when he is ill; but how may a broken spirit be lifted up?

The human spirit will endure sickness; but a broken spirit—who can bear?

The spirit of a man will sustain him in sickness, But who can bear a broken spirit?

A person’s spirit ¹  sustains him through sickness – but who can bear ²  a crushed spirit? ³ 

¹ tn Heb “the spirit of a man.” Because the verb of this clause is a masculine form, some have translated this line as “with spirit a man sustains,” but that is an unnecessary change.

² sn This is a rhetorical question, asserting that very few can cope with depression.

³ sn The figure of a “crushed spirit” (ASV, NAB, NCV, NRSV “a broken spirit,” comparing depression to something smashed or crushed) suggests a broken will, a loss of vitality, despair, and emotional pain. In physical sickness one can fall back on the will to live; but in depression even the will to live is gone.