Source identified
Read & copy the quotation
“Those things which a man cannot amend in himself or in others, he ought patiently to bear, until God shall otherwise ordain.”
- Source
- The Imitation of Christ
- Date
- 15th century
- English wording
- William Benham — Translator · from Latin
Meaning of “Those things which a man cannot amend in…”
The devotional advice separates attempted correction from patient endurance: when a fault cannot presently be changed, continued struggle to control it may need to give way to forbearance.
Where does it come from?
The Imitation of Christ, Book I, Chapter XVI, “Of bearing with the faults of others,” William Benham translation, Project Gutenberg #1653. The chapter advises patiently bearing what cannot presently be amended while also urging prayer and mutual forbearance; it remains Christian devotional counsel rather than permission to tolerate preventable harm.
