The Heart

"Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it is the wellspring of life" (Proverbs 4:23). The teaching of the heart holds much truth, and in many ways it is the foundation of the relationship between people and Yahweh. In ancient Hebrew, each letter was a picture. The word for heart, lev, is made of two letters: one pictures a tent, meaning family, house or inner dwelling, and the other a shepherd's staff, meaning teach, yoke or direct. So the heart is the inner dwelling place where we are taught and take direction. That explains why it matters so much, both for daily life and for eternity. Scripture also speaks many times of the heart of Yahweh and of Christ, and understanding it is one key to knowing Him better. This section's study, "Yahweh's Grieved Heart," shows that God sometimes allows pain to His own heart by doing what is undesirable, in order to see good come in the end. Read on to learn how to guard your heart and know His.