Emerson uses the language of wealth to argue that health is a fundamental form of human advantage. Material possessions and financial resources may expand a person’s options, but physical well-being provides much of the capacity needed to work, act, travel and participate fully in everyday life. Calling health the “first wealth” places it before conventional measures of prosperity.

Within Power, the statement reflects Emerson’s interest in the practical sources of human capability. He treats bodily energy and vitality as conditions that can support effective action, rather than separating physical health from broader questions of achievement. The quotation is an aphoristic statement of priority, not a claim that good health guarantees prosperity or that illness eliminates a person’s value or abilities. Its central point is that wealth can be understood more broadly than money, with health representing a basic resource on which many other activities depend.