Proverbs 17:22 (YLT)

Passage

A rejoicing heart doth good to the body, And a smitten spirit drieth the bone.

Nearby Context

Proverbs 17:20 The perverse of heart findeth not good, And the turned in his tongue falleth into evil.

Proverbs 17:21 Whoso is begetting a fool hath affliction for it, Yea, the father of a fool rejoiceth not.

Proverbs 17:22 A rejoicing heart doth good to the body, And a smitten spirit drieth the bone.

Proverbs 17:23 A bribe from the bosom the wicked taketh, To turn aside the paths of judgment.

Proverbs 17:24 The face of the intelligent <FI>is<Fi> to wisdom, And the eyes of a fool--at the end of the earth.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "Spirit", "rejoicing", "heart", "doth", "good", "body", "smitten", and "drieth". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "Spirit" and "rejoicing", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 21's "Whoso is begetting a fool hath affliction..." into verse 23's "A bribe from the bosom the wicked...", so "Spirit" and "rejoicing" belong inside that flow. In Proverbs context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "Spirit" and "rejoicing" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.