the spirit is strong but the flesh is weak

Alternative form of the spirit is strong, but the flesh is weak.

Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

proverb
  1. alternativeAlternative form of the spirit is strong, but the flesh is weak.

    For those who want to give up a bad habit, it would be great if it could be done “cold turkey.” Unfortunately, for many, the spirit is strong but the flesh is weak.

    2000 December 28, “Make 2001 a true new beginning”, in Oconomowoc Enterprise, volume 113, number 21, Oconomowoc, Wis., →OCLC, page A4, columns 3–4
    2 more examples

    My dear Sir,—I very much regret that I cannot attend the Annual Meeting of Farmers’ Club to day. I had fully intended doing so, but the weather and the fear of exposure out of a hot room in the evening must be my excuse: ‘the spirit is strong but the flesh is weak.’

    1843 January 13, H. S. Gilson, quotee, “Chelmsford Farmers’ Club”, in The Essex Standard, and General Advertiser for the Eastern Counties, 2nd edition, volume XIII, number 630, Colchester, Essex, published 20 January 1843, →OCLC, page [2], column 4

    I would like to be certain that I have inner the strength to be a martyr for my Jewish (or other) brothers, but in truth I cannot be so certain of how I would behave under such stress. I pray that I would do what is right; but, as my Scripture reminds me, I know that the spirit is strong but the flesh is weak.

    2004 January 3, Vic Biorseth, “Keep Bucmys’ crime in context”, in Dayton Daily News, final edition, volume 127, number 84, Dayton, Oh.: Cox Ohio Publishing, →ISSN, →OCLC, page A9, column 6
Cite this entry
APA

the spirit is strong but the flesh is weak. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/the%20spirit%20is%20strong%20but%20the%20flesh%20is%20weak

MLA

“the spirit is strong but the flesh is weak.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/the%20spirit%20is%20strong%20but%20the%20flesh%20is%20weak. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “the spirit is strong but the flesh is weak,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/the%20spirit%20is%20strong%20but%20the%20flesh%20is%20weak.

Source: the spirit is strong but the flesh is weak on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.