To a close-shorn SHEEP God gives wind by measure

Meaning & Analysis

God moderates the intensity of the wind for a sheep that has recently been sheared, leaving it exposed and vulnerable to the cold.

Insights

Providence for the Vulnerable

The proverb suggests that a divine or natural force provides protection and care to those who are most vulnerable or in a weakened state. The 'shorn sheep' represents anyone stripped of their natural defenses.

Proportional Hardship

It implies that life's challenges and hardships ('the wind') are not arbitrary but are tailored to an individual's ability to withstand them. No one is given a burden greater than they can bear.

Hope in Adversity

For those experiencing adversity or loss, the proverb offers a message of hope and reassurance, suggesting that their suffering is seen and that they will be granted the strength or relief necessary to endure.

Biblical and Pastoral Symbolism

The proverb draws heavily on the Judeo-Christian symbol of the lamb or sheep to represent innocence and vulnerability. The shepherd's care for his flock is a powerful biblical metaphor for divine protection, and this proverb extends that imagery to suggest that even in moments of greatest exposure (after being shorn), a benevolent force ensures survival.

Literary Popularization

The proverb's most famous iteration, 'God tempers the wind to the shorn lamb', comes from Laurence Sterne's 1768 novel 'A Sentimental Journey'. This popularization cemented the proverb in the literary imagination, linking it to the 18th-century's emphasis on sentiment, empathy, and compassion.

Psychological Comfort

Psychologically, the proverb serves as a powerful coping mechanism. It offers a framework for enduring hardship by suggesting that suffering is neither random nor infinite. This belief can foster resilience by providing hope that one's challenges are measured and will not be overwhelming.

Rhetorical Devices

Symbolism

The 'shorn sheep' serves as a powerful symbol of vulnerability and innocence, while the 'wind' symbolizes life's hardships and adversities.

Metaphor

The entire phrase is a metaphor for the belief that the vulnerable are protected and that challenges are adjusted to one's capacity to endure.

Anthropomorphism

The proverb attributes a conscious, compassionate act—measuring the wind—to God, framing a natural phenomenon as an expression of divine and benevolent will.

vulnerabilityprovidencehopesufferingcompassionfaith

Analyzed with gemini-2.5-pro on November 23, 2025

Transcription

Quotations

— 1640, HERB., no. 861

— 1659, N.R., p. 114

But God tempers the wind, said Maria, to the shorn lamb.

— 1768, STERNE, Sent. Jour., II 206

Related Proverbs

D18 DAME deem¹ warily 90.4%V20 Raw VEAL and chickens make fat churchyards 89.9%G107 GIFTS enter everywhere without a wimble¹ 89.7%D205 The DESCENT to hell is easy 89.5%F14 Thy FACE is shorn against the wool 89.5%V27 Never inquire whence VENISON comes 89.5%S654 SORROW comes unsent for 89.5%B642 You but spend your BREATH (wind) in vain 89.3%C237 He is a fond CHAPMAN that comes after the fair 89.2%G354 He may shoe the GOOSE 89.2%F258 FIRE is as hurtful as healthful 89.2%V71 It is a VIRTUE to abstain from pleasures 89.1%E197 Drawing EVIL about one as the northeast wind does clouds 89.0%B610 Be fair conditioned and eat BREAD with your pudding¹ 89.0%D449 The DOG (wolf) barks in vain at the moon 88.9%N166 A blustering NIGHT a fair day 88.9%R161 A ROGUE's wardrobe is harbor for a louse 88.9%F450 Every FOOL is a fiddle to the company 88.9%D487 It is an ill DOG that deserves not a crust 88.9%C658 He eats his CORN in the blade 88.9%

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