Modern Western wisdom: Never say never

I knew this expression in German language (Sage niemals nie) since my childhood days and I have wholeheartedly embraced it all my life.

I just learnt that this adage is likely not ancient Chinese wisdom. So I became curious.

I suspected it was perhaps ancient Greek or Roman wisdom or Indian or Persian. 

Perhaps this concept was expressed in ancient times in a different way, but perhaps not so succinctly and aptly.

According to Google Search "“Never say never.” This expression was first recorded in Charles Dickens's Pickwick Papers (1837)." Microsoft Bing Search delivers a similar result.