God & Savior

Proverbs 4:23

Guard your heart with all diligence, for from it flow springs of life.
Proverbs 4:23
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Study notes

Guard your heart above all else, because everything in life flows from it.

Explanation

In the Bible the heart is the centre of a person: thoughts, desires and choices. Words, actions and direction all flow from it (4:24-27).

Original language
  • נְצֹ֣ר (ne.Tzor): to watch
    Hebrew · Verb, qal, imperative, 2nd person, masculine, singular · Strong's H5341 · text: Leningrad Codex (as recorded in TAHOT)

    Guard, keep.

    Source: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, Cambridge), TAHOT: Translators Amalgamated Hebrew Old Testament, STEPBible-Data commit ed476a8, Proverbs 4:23, word 3

  • לִבֶּ֑ךָ (li.Be.kha): heart
    Hebrew · Noun, masculine, singular, construct + Suffix, pronominal, 2nd person, masculine, singular · Strong's H3820A · text: Leningrad Codex (as recorded in TAHOT)

    Heart.

    Source: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, Cambridge), TAHOT: Translators Amalgamated Hebrew Old Testament, STEPBible-Data commit ed476a8, Proverbs 4:23, word 4

  • תּוֹצְא֥וֹת (totz.'ot): outgoing
    Hebrew · Noun, feminine, plural, construct · Strong's H8444 · text: Leningrad Codex (as recorded in TAHOT)

    Sources, springs.

    Source: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, Cambridge), TAHOT: Translators Amalgamated Hebrew Old Testament, STEPBible-Data commit ed476a8, Proverbs 4:23, word 7

  • חַיִּֽים (chai.Yim): life
    Hebrew · Noun, masculine, plural, absolute · Strong's H2416E · text: Leningrad Codex (as recorded in TAHOT)

    Life.

    Source: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, Cambridge), TAHOT: Translators Amalgamated Hebrew Old Testament, STEPBible-Data commit ed476a8, Proverbs 4:23, word 8

Cross-references
  • Matthew 15:18-19 · Same theme

    What comes out of the mouth comes from the heart.

  • Luke 6:45 · Same theme

    Out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.

  • Philippians 4:7 · Same theme

    The peace of God will guard your hearts.

Sources

Original language and places

Reference data from open datasets, shown as published by their sources. Word-by-word English is a literal guide, not a translation.

Original language (Hebrew)

מִֽכָּל־מִ֭שְׁמָר נְצֹ֣ר לִבֶּ֑ךָ כִּֽי־מִ֝מֶּ֗נּוּ תּוֹצְא֥וֹת חַיִּֽים׃

  1. מִֽכָּל־mi.kol“more than all”
    Preposition + Noun, masculine, singular, construct · from כֹּל · “all” · Strong's H3605
  2. מִ֭שְׁמָרMish.mor“guarding”
    Noun, masculine, singular, absolute · from מִשְׁמָר · “custody” · Strong's H4929
  3. נְצֹ֣רne.Tzor“guard”
    Verb, qal, imperative, 2nd person, masculine, singular · from נָצַר · “to watch” · Strong's H5341
  4. לִבֶּ֑ךָli.Be.kha“heart your”
    Noun, masculine, singular, construct + Suffix, pronominal, 2nd person, masculine, singular · from לֵב · “heart” · Strong's H3820A
  5. כִּֽי־ki-“for”
    Particle · from כִּי · “for” · Strong's H3588A
  6. מִ֝מֶּ֗נּוּmi.Me.nu“[are] from it”
    Preposition + Suffix, pronominal, 3rd person, masculine, singular · from מִן־ · “from” · Strong's H4480A
  7. תּוֹצְא֥וֹתtotz.'ot“[the] sources of”
    Noun, feminine, plural, construct · from תּוֹצָאָה · “outgoing” · Strong's H8444
  8. חַיִּֽים׃chai.Yim“life”
    Noun, masculine, plural, absolute · from חַיִּים · “life” · Strong's H2416E
  • Prepared by the God & Savior team. Not yet reviewed by an editor.
  • Hebrew and Aramaic words: STEP Bible (STEPBible.org), based on work at Tyndale House, Cambridge. CC BY 4.0. Source (version ed476a8)