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Words, grammatical forms and meanings linked to the ontology.

sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof en · X

Pronunciation

  • /-ˈiːvəl-/ (Received-Pronunciation)
  • (General-American) audio
  • /səˈfɪʃənt ˌʌntə ðə ˈdeɪ ɪz ði ˈivəl ðɛˌɹʌv/ (General-American)
  • /səˈfɪʃ(ə)nt ˌʌntʊ ðə ˈdeɪ ɪz ðiː ˈiːvɪl ðɛəˌɹɒv/ (Received-Pronunciation)
  • /-ˌʌntə-/ (Received-Pronunciation)

Etymology

From Matthew 6:34 in the King James Version of the Bible (spelling modernized): “Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself: sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.” The phrase is a translation of Ancient Greek ἀρκετὸν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἡ κακία αὐτῆς (arketòn tēî hēmérāi hē kakía autês), and there is a parallel rabbinical expression in the Babylonian Talmud, דיה לצרה בשעתה (“the suffering of the (present) hour is enough for it”).

Meanings

  1. There is no need to worry about the future; the present provides enough to worry about.
    • For ought vve knovv every day may bring forth as much trouble as vve are able to bear; if it be otherwiſe vve muſt aſcribe it to the goodneſs of God, Matth. 6. 34. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof: and this is our condition as long as vve live, to be liable to trouble and ſorrovv all our dayes, […] 1667, O[wen] S[tockton], “Quest[ion] 3. What Shall They Render to the Lord for His Mercy, Whose Houses and Goods Were Preserved from Being Consumed by the Late Dreadful Fire?”, in Counsel to the Afflicted: Or, Instruction and Consolation for Such as Have Suffered Loss by Fire. With Advice to Such as Have Escaped that Sore Judgment. Contained in the Resolution of Three Questions, Occasioned by the Dreadful Fire in the City of London, in the Year 1666. […], London: […] E. Cotes, and are to be sold by H. Brome, […], →OCLC, section 12, pages 334–335:
    • He admonishes all not to anticipate evil to come, but to fold their hands and close their eyes in quietude, ever mindful of the consolatory text, "sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof." 1847 February 11, [Thomas] Corwin, Speech of Mr. Corwin, of Ohio, on the Mexican War. Delivered in the Senate of the United States, February 11, 1847, Washington, D.C.: […] John T. Towers, →OCLC, page 2:
    • Is not that, then, sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof? Is there anything in the present system requiring the attention of Parliament; is there anything unfair in the way we are paying for stores at the present time? 1893 June 6, T[homas] Playford [II] (chairperson), “First Progress Report of the Royal Commission on Stores: Minutes of Evidence”, in Proceedings of the Parliament of South Australia, with Copies of Documents Ordered to be Printed, volume III, Adelaide, S.A.: […] C. E. Bristow, Government Printer, […], published 1894, →OCLC, paragraph 8967, pages 104–105:
    • Bond shrugged his shoulders. Sufficient unto that day had been its evil. 1953, Ian Fleming, “'A Whisper of Love, A Whisper of Hate'”, in Casino Royale, London: Pan Books, published 1955, page 98:
    • The hardest problem to a person with his back against the wall is living a day at a time and knowing someone cares. Just one day at a time or as a Great Man said, "Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof." 1960 September, Hazel Scott, “The Truth about Me: Pianist-singer Makes First Comment on Controversial Marriage, Scores Show Business Evils”, in John H[arold] Johnson, editor, Ebony, volume XV, number 11, Chicago, Ill.: Johnson Publishing Co., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 144, column 2:
    • And now Drew Exford was proposing to visit her—if she could believe him. Useless to worry about how she was to greet him. "Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof," she said aloud. "I'll think about that when he arrives." 1998, Paula Marshall, “The Deserted Bride. Chapter 1.”, in Marie-Louise Hall, Paula Marshall, The Elizabethan Collection, Richmond, Surrey: Mills & Boon, published 2003, →ISBN, page 19:
    • That God, vvho provided for this Day, vvill take Care for the next; ſufficient unto the Day is the Evil thereof. 'Tis enough for you to bear every Day's Trouble our Heavenly Father lays upon you, in paſſing through all the Changes and Chances of this Mortal Life; in ſtriving againſt Sin and fighting the good Fight of Faith, you'll find VVork and Trouble enough for the next Day. 1709, Augustus Hermannus Franck [i.e., August Hermann Francke], translated by [anonymous], Faith in Christ, Inconsistent with a Sollicitous Concern about the Things of This World. A Sermon Preach’d on the XV Sunday after Trinity, 1708. At Hall in Saxony. […], London: […] Joseph Downing […], →OCLC, page 15:
    • I suspect that many people took a sufficient-unto-the-day-is-the-evil-thereof attitude toward the book [The Hell Bomb (1951) by William L. Laurence], and toward the bomb. Time enough to worry after the scientists got a little further along. 1951 September, O. C. S., “Off-duty Reading: The March of Progress: Writing Redskins to Hellish Bombs”, in Joseph I. Greene, editor, United States Army Combat Forces Journal, volume 2, number 2, Washington, D.C.: Association of the United States Army, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 48, column 2:
    • O, saith one, what shall I do when poverty and prison come? O, saith another, what shall I do when the sword and the plague come? O, saith a third, what shall I do when fire and famine come? O, saith a fourth, what shall I do when the rack and the stake come? But "sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof." He that now leadeth will then lead, if these things come before thou goest off the stage. 1679, R[ichard] Mayhew, “Direction III”, in The Death of Death in the Death of Christ: Being a Narrative of the First Death as the Mistress of Mortals, and Empress of the Universe, […] (Ward’s Library of Standard Divinity; 1), London: Thomas Ward and Co., published [1839], →OCLC, page 37, column 1:
    • And the Petition for Daily Bread [in the Lord's Prayer] is by ſome thus paraphras'd, "Provide for us to morrows Bread, and give it to us to day, that we be not ſolicitous for to morrow: for ſufficient unto the day is the evil thereof." 1698, Lancelot Addison, “A Farther Account of the Things to be Pray’d for”, in The Christians Daily Sacrifice, Duly Offer’d. Or A Practical Discourse Teaching the Right Performance of Prayer, London: […] Robert Clavel, […], →OCLC, page 118:
    • [I]t is a remarkable fact in our history that, notwithstanding the repeated efforts of the anti-slavery party, no single act has ever passed Congress, […] And it may also be observed, judging from present indications, that no probability exists of the passage of such an act by a majority of both houses, either in the present or the next Congress. Surely, under these circumstances we ought to be restrained from present action by the precept of Him who spake as man never spoke that "sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof." The day of evil may never come unless we shall rashly bring it upon ourselves. 1860 December 3, James Buchanan, Message from the President of the United States to the Two Houses of Congress at the Commencement of the Second Session of the Thirty-sixth Congress (Senate Executive Document, 36th Congress, 2d session; no. 1, pt. 3; United States Congressional Serial Set; no. 1080), Washington, D.C.: George W. Bowman, […], →OCLC, page 5:
    • Only this life with Clifford, this endless spinning of webs of yarn, of the minutiae of consciousness, these stories Sir Malcolm said there was nothing in, and they wouldn't last. Why should there be anything in them, why should they last? Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof. Sufficient unto the moment is the appearance of reality. 1928, D[avid] H[erbert] Lawrence, chapter I, in Lady Chatterley’s Lover, [Germany?]: Privately printed, →OCLC:

Synonyms

never cross a bridge before you come to it · never trouble trouble till trouble troubles you

Translations (20)

pt basta a cada dia o seu mal (there is no need to worry about the future; the present provides enough to worry about) · nl elke dag heeft genoeg aan zijn eigen kwaad (there is no need to worry about the future; the present provides enough to worry about) · uk кожний день має досить своєї турботи (there is no need to worry about the future; the present provides enough to worry about) · pl dosyć ma dzień swojej biedy (there is no need to worry about the future; the present provides enough to worry about) · ja 明日は明日の風が吹く (there is no need to worry about the future; the present provides enough to worry about) · ar يَكْفِي الْيَوْمَ شَرُّهُ (there is no need to worry about the future; the present provides enough to worry about) · cmn 一天的難處一天當就夠了 /一天的难处一天当就够了 (there is no need to worry about the future; the present provides enough to worry about) · eo sufiĉa por la tago estas ĝia propra malbono (there is no need to worry about the future; the present provides enough to worry about) · sv var dag har nog av sin egen plåga (there is no need to worry about the future; the present provides enough to worry about) · la sufficit diei malitia sua (there is no need to worry about the future; the present provides enough to worry about) · cu довлѣетъ дневи ѕлоба егѡ (there is no need to worry about the future; the present provides enough to worry about) · he דיה לצרה בשעתה (there is no need to worry about the future; the present provides enough to worry about) · fr à chaque jour suffit sa peine (there is no need to worry about the future; the present provides enough to worry about) · es basta a cada día su propio mal (there is no need to worry about the future; the present provides enough to worry about) · mnw ဍိုက်ပေၚ်တ္ၚဲဂှ်သွက်မယုတ်မာညးတံ (there is no need to worry about the future; the present provides enough to worry about) · ru довле́ет дне́ви зло́ба его́ (there is no need to worry about the future; the present provides enough to worry about) · es cada día trae su afán (there is no need to worry about the future; the present provides enough to worry about) · it basta a ciascun giorno il suo affanno (there is no need to worry about the future; the present provides enough to worry about) · ru дово́льно для ка́ждого дня свое́й забо́ты (there is no need to worry about the future; the present provides enough to worry about) · ja 一日の労苦は一日にて足れり。 (there is no need to worry about the future; the present provides enough to worry about)

wikipedia: King James Version · wikipedia: Martin Luther · wikipedia: Jan Jesenius · wikipedia: Oxford University Press