לִבָּה

From the study of Proverbs 17:3

Range of meaning

Plural of libbah, a rarer form of lēv/lēvāv, 'heart'. The Hebrew heart is the center of the inner person: mind, understanding, memory, plans, intentions, will, moral direction and loyalty, as well as emotion. People 'say in their heart' (they think), and a 'heart' can mean understanding (Proverbs 15:32; 17:16).

Against the English

Every version says 'heart(s)'. NIV and NLT use the singular 'the heart', which is acceptable but loses the plural's sweep: every person's heart. The real gap is the modern meaning of 'heart' as mainly feelings or sincerity, as opposed to the head.

How it drifted

Modern English, shaped by Romantic-era contrasts between head and heart, puts thinking in the head and feeling in the heart. Biblical Hebrew puts thinking, deciding and intending in the heart.

Used elsewhere in the period

The plural libbot appears in a cluster of sayings about God's knowledge: Proverbs 15:11 ('Sheol and Abaddon lie open before the LORD; how much more human hearts'), Proverbs 21:2 and 24:12 ('the weigher of hearts'), and Psalm 7:9. Compare Proverbs 16:2 ('the LORD weighs spirits'). The idea of a god weighing the heart is also well known from Egypt, where the dead person's heart is weighed in the judgment scene of the Book of the Dead.

From the study of Proverbs 15:11

Range of meaning

The heart as the inner person: thinking, understanding, planning, intention, will, conscience and feeling (BDB, HALOT s.v. lēb). In Proverbs, the lev is mostly where a person thinks and decides: it "plans its way" (16:9), "seeks knowledge" (15:14), and can be wise or foolish.

Against the English

Every translation has "hearts," and that is the right word. But to modern English readers "heart" mostly means emotions, so the Hebrew sense of the mind, plans and hidden motives tends to get lost.

How it drifted

In modern English the heart became the seat of feeling, as opposed to the head as the seat of thought. Hebrew had no such split, and the lev covered both.

Used elsewhere in the period

The plural libbot is used of God examining people: Ps 7:9 ("who tests hearts and kidneys"), Prov 17:3 ("the LORD tests hearts"), Prov 21:2 and 24:12 ("he who weighs hearts"). The Septuagint has kardiai.

From the study of Proverbs 21:2

Range of meaning

The inner person as a whole: mind, understanding, memory, intention, planning, will, conscience, and also emotion. In Wisdom literature the heart above all is the place where you think and decide. 'Give me your heart' (Prov 23:26) means 'pay attention to me and commit to my teaching.' 'Lacking heart' (ḥasar lev) means lacking sense, not lacking feeling.

Against the English

English 'heart' mainly means feelings and affection (and sometimes courage). Hebrew lev leans toward mind and will. 'Weighs the heart' is not mainly about how someone feels. It is about what they really intend, the reasoning and motives behind their path.

How it drifted

Over centuries English 'heart' narrowed toward emotion, and romantic and sentimental culture pushed it further. Hebrew put most feelings in the gut and kidneys and gave the heart the job of thinking and choosing.

Used elsewhere in the period

Prov 16:1, 9: 'the plans of the heart belong to man... a man's heart plans his way.' Prov 4:23: 'guard your heart, for from it flow the springs of life.' Prov 21:1, the verse before: 'the king's heart', meaning his decisions, is directed by Yahweh. In Egyptian thought, too, the heart (ib) was the seat of thought and moral memory. It was the heart that was weighed at judgment.