ProverbWisdom
French origin1594
French origin1594God tempers the wind to the shorn sheep.
Meaning: Hardship diminishes in proportion to one's vulnerability, or mercy matches misfortune.
Origin: Often assumed to be from the Bible, but it is not. Laurence Sterne made it famous in A Sentimental Journey (1768), and it is older in French: the printer Henri Estienne recorded in 1594 that God measures the cold to the shorn sheep. It means that hardships are made bearable for those least able to endure them.
Equivalents in French, Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese
French: À brebis tondue, Dieu mesure le vent (literally: To the shorn sheep, God measures the wind)
Spanish: Dios aprieta pero no ahoga (literally: God squeezes but does not choke)
Italian: Dio manda il freddo secondo i panni (literally: God sends the cold according to the clothes)
Portuguese: Deus dá o frio conforme a roupa (literally: God gives the cold according to the clothing)
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