'Heart' in the Bible

You have put joy in my heart,More than [others know] when their wheat and new wine have yielded abundantly.

In the morning, O Lord, You will hear my voice;In the morning I will prepare [a prayer and a sacrifice] for You and watch and wait [for You to speak to my heart].

For there is nothing trustworthy or reliable or truthful in what they say;Their heart is destruction [just a treacherous chasm, a yawning gulf of lies].Their throat is an open grave;They [glibly] flatter with their [silken] tongue.

My shield and my defense depend on God,Who saves the upright in heart.

I will give thanks and praise the Lord, with all my heart;I will tell aloud all Your wonders and marvelous deeds.

He says to himself, “I will not be moved;For throughout all generations I will not be in adversity [for nothing bad will happen to me].”

He says to himself, “God has [quite] forgotten;He has hidden His face; He will never see my deed.”

Why has the wicked spurned and shown disrespect to God?He has said to himself, “You will not require me to account.”

For look, the wicked are bending the bow;They take aim with their arrow on the stringTo shoot [by stealth] in darkness at the upright in heart.

They speak deceitful and worthless words to one another;With flattering lips and a double heart they speak.

How long must I take counsel in my soul,Having sorrow in my heart day after day?How long will my enemy exalt himself and triumph over me?

But I have trusted and relied on and been confident in Your lovingkindness and faithfulness;My heart shall rejoice and delight in Your salvation.

The [spiritually ignorant] fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.”They are corrupt, they have committed repulsive and unspeakable deeds;There is no one who does good.

He who walks with integrity and strength of character, and works righteousness,And speaks and holds truth in his heart.

I will bless the Lord who has counseled me;Indeed, my heart (mind) instructs me in the night.

Therefore my heart is glad and my glory [my innermost self] rejoices;My body too will dwell [confidently] in safety,

You have tried my heart;You have visited me in the night;You have tested me and You find nothing [evil in me];I intend that my mouth will not transgress.

Foreigners lose heart,And come trembling out of their strongholds.

The precepts of the Lord are right, bringing joy to the heart;The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes.

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heartBe acceptable and pleasing in Your sight,O Lord, my [firm, immovable] rock and my Redeemer.

I am poured out like water,And all my bones are out of joint.My heart is like wax;It is melted [by anguish] within me.

He who has clean hands and a pure heart,Who has not lifted up his soul to what is false,Nor has sworn [oaths] deceitfully.

The troubles of my heart are multiplied;Bring me out of my distresses.

Examine me, O Lord, and try me;Test my heart and my mind.

Though an army encamp against me,My heart will not fear;Though war arise against me,Even in this I am confident.

When You said, “Seek My face [in prayer, require My presence as your greatest need],” my heart said to You,“Your face, O Lord, I will seek [on the authority of Your word].”

Wait for and confidently expect the Lord;Be strong and let your heart take courage;Yes, wait for and confidently expect the Lord.

The Lord is my strength and my [impenetrable] shield;My heart trusts [with unwavering confidence] in Him, and I am helped;Therefore my heart greatly rejoices,And with my song I shall thank Him and praise Him.

That my soul may sing praise to You and not be silent.O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever.

Be strong and let your hearts take courage,All you who wait for and confidently expect the Lord.

Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, you righteous [who actively seek right standing with Him];Shout for joy, all you upright in heart.

Rejoice in the Lord, you righteous ones;Praise is becoming and appropriate for those who are upright [in heart—those with moral integrity and godly character].

The counsel of the Lord stands forever,The thoughts and plans of His heart through all generations.

For in Him our heart rejoices,Because we trust [lean on, rely on, and are confident] in His holy name.

The Lord is near to the heartbrokenAnd He saves those who are crushed in spirit (contrite in heart, truly sorry for their sin).

Transgression speaks [like an oracle] to the wicked (godless) [deep] within his heart;There is no fear (dread) of God before his eyes.

O continue Your lovingkindness to those who know You,And Your righteousness (salvation) to the upright in heart.

Delight yourself in the Lord,And He will give you the desires and petitions of your heart.

The law of his God is in his heart;Not one of his steps will slip.

I am numb and greatly bruised [deadly cold and completely worn out];I groan because of the disquiet and moaning of my heart.

My heart throbs violently, my strength fails me;And as for the light of my eyes, even that has also gone from me.

My heart was hot within me.While I was musing the fire burned;Then I spoke with my tongue:

“I delight to do Your will, O my God;Your law is within my heart.”

I have not concealed Your righteousness within my heart;I have proclaimed Your faithfulness and Your salvation.I have not concealed Your lovingkindness and Your truth from the great assembly.

For innumerable evils have encompassed me;My sins have overtaken me, so that I am not able to see.They are more numerous than the hairs of my head,And my heart has failed me.

And when one comes to see me, he speaks empty words,While his heart gathers malicious gossip [against me];When he goes away, he tells it [everywhere].

Would not God discover this?For He knows the secrets of the heart.

My heart overflows with a good theme;I address my psalm to the King.My tongue is like the pen of a skillful writer.

My mouth will speak wisdom,And the meditation of my heart will be understanding.

Behold, You desire truth in the innermost being,And in the hidden part [of my heart] You will make me know wisdom.

Create in me a clean heart, O God,And renew a right and steadfast spirit within me.

My [only] sacrifice [acceptable] to God is a broken spirit;A broken and contrite heart [broken with sorrow for sin, thoroughly penitent], such, O God, You will not despise.

The [empty-headed] fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.”They are corrupt and evil, and have committed repulsive injustice;There is no one who does good.

My heart is in anguish within me,And the terrors of death have fallen upon me.

God will hear and humble them,Even He who sits enthroned from old— Selah.Because in them there has been no change [of heart],And they do not fear God [at all].

The words of his mouth were smoother than butter,But his heart was hostile;His words were softer than oil,Yet they were drawn swords.

My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast and confident!I will sing, yes, I will sing praises [to You]!

No, in your heart you devise wrongdoing;On earth you deal out the violence of your hands.

From the end of the earth I call to You, when my heart is overwhelmed and weak;Lead me to the rock that is higher than I [a rock that is too high to reach without Your help].

Do not trust in oppression,And do not vainly hope in robbery;If riches increase, do not set your heart on them.

They devise acts of injustice, saying,“We are ready with a well-conceived plan.”For the inward thought and the heart of a man are deep (mysterious, unsearchable).

The righteous will rejoice in the Lord and take refuge in Him;All the upright in heart will glory and offer praise.

If I regard sin and baseness in my heart [that is, if I know it is there and do nothing about it],The Lord will not hear [me];

Reproach and insults have broken my heart and I am so sick.I looked for sympathy, but there was none,And for comforters, but I found none.

Truly God is good to Israel,To those who are pure in heart.

Their eye bulges from fatness [they have more than the heart desires];The imaginations of their mind run riot [with foolishness].

Surely then in vain I have cleansed my heartAnd washed my hands in innocence.

When my heart was embitteredAnd I was pierced within [as with the fang of an adder],

My flesh and my heart may fail,But God is the rock and strength of my heart and my portion forever.

I will remember my song in the night;I will meditate with my heart,And my spirit searches:

So David shepherded them according to the integrity of his heart;And guided them with his skillful hands.

For they have conspired together with one mind;Against You they make a covenant—

My soul (my life, my inner self) longs for and greatly desires the courts of the Lord;My heart and my flesh sing for joy to the living God.

Blessed and greatly favored is the man whose strength is in You,In whose heart are the highways to Zion.

Teach me Your way, O Lord,I will walk and live in Your truth;Direct my heart to fear Your name [with awe-inspired reverence and submissive wonder].

I will give thanks and praise You, O Lord my God, with all my heart;And will glorify Your name forevermore.

Remember, O Lord, the reproach of Your servants [scorned, insulted, and disgraced];How I bear in my heart the reproach of all the many peoples,

You have placed our wickedness before you,Our secret sins [which we tried to conceal, You have placed] in the [revealing] light of Your presence.

So teach us to number our days,That we may cultivate and bring to You a heart of wisdom.

For judgment will again be righteous,And all the upright in heart will follow it.

Light is sown [like seed] for the righteous and illuminates their path,And [irrepressible] joy [is spread] for the upright in heart [who delight in His favor and protection].

I will behave wisely and follow the way of integrity.When will You come to me?I will walk in my house in integrity and with a blameless heart.

A perverse heart shall depart from me;I will not tolerate evil.

Whoever secretly slanders his neighbor, him I will silence;The one who has a haughty look and a proud (arrogant) heart I will not tolerate.

My heart has been struck like grass and withered,Indeed, [absorbed by my heartache] I forget to eat my food.

For He knows our [mortal] frame;He remembers that we are [merely] dust.

And wine which makes the heart of man glad,So that he may make his face glisten with oil,And bread to sustain and strengthen man’s heart.

He has remembered His covenant forever,The word which He commanded and established to a thousand generations,

O God, my heart is steadfast [with confident faith];I will sing, I will sing praises, even with my soul.

Because the man did not remember to show kindness,But persecuted the suffering and needy man,And the brokenhearted, to put them to death.

For I am suffering and needy,And my heart is wounded within me.

Praise the Lord! (Hallelujah!)I will give thanks to the Lord with all my heart,In the company of the upright and in the congregation.

He will not fear bad news;His heart is steadfast, trusting [confidently relying on and believing] in the Lord.

His heart is upheld, he will not fearWhile he looks [with satisfaction] on his adversaries.

Blessed and favored by God are those who keep His testimonies,And who [consistently] seek Him and long for Him with all their heart.

I will give thanks to You with an upright heart,When I learn [through discipline] Your righteous judgments [for my transgressions].

With all my heart I have sought You, [inquiring of You and longing for You];Do not let me wander from Your commandments [neither through ignorance nor by willful disobedience].

Your word I have treasured and stored in my heart,That I may not sin against You.

My soul is crushed with longingFor Your ordinances at all times.

I will run the way of Your commandments [with purpose],For You will give me a heart that is willing.