Sadness Grief and Discouragement

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2 Corinthians 4:8-9

"We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed."

Paul catalogs severe pressure without denying it. The repeated but not draws a line that suffering cannot cross. Depression may press hard and perplex deeply, yet the believer is neither finally crushed nor abandoned. These contrasts give language for honest acknowledgment of pain while refusing the conclusion of total defeat.