Midvash

לֵבָבlêbâb

לֵבָב: inner man, mind, will, heart, The inner, middle, or central part

Pronunciation: lay-bawb' · Hebrew/Aramaic (Old Testament) · H3824

Meanings

I. seldom of things (Jonah 2:3; Deuteronomy 4:11)

II. usually of men

1. the inner man, in contrast with the outer (Psalms 73:26; Joel 2:13; Psalms 73:13)

2. inner man, indefinite the soul, comprehending mind, affections and will, or, in connection with certain verbs, having more specific reference to some one of them (Deuteronomy 4:29; Deuteronomy 6:5; Deuteronomy 10:12)

3. specific reference to mind (characteristic of לבב)

a. men of mind, I also have a mind (Job 34:10; Job 34:34; Job 12:3)

b. knowledge (Deuteronomy 8:5; Deuteronomy 23:14; 1 Kings 2:44)

c. thinking, reflection (Isaiah 10:7; Zechariah 7:10; Zechariah 8:17)

d. memory, lay up in the mind (1 Samuel 21:13; Job 22:22; Deuteronomy 4:39)

4. specific reference to inclinations, resolutions, determinations of the will (characteristic of ׳ ל) (1 Samuel 7:3; 1 Chronicles 29:18; 2 Chronicles 20:33)

5. specific reference to conscience (Job 27:6)

6. specific reference to moral character (characteristic of ׳ ל) (1 Chronicles 29:17)

a. uprightness of heart, integrity of heart (Deuteronomy 9:5; 1 Chronicles 29:17; Psalms 119:7)

c. heart is lifted up (Psalms 101:5; Isaiah 9:8; Isaiah 10:12)

7. = the man himself (meaning characteristic of נֶפֶשׁ) (Deuteronomy 7:17; Deuteronomy 8:17; Deuteronomy 9:4)

8. specifically as the seat of the appetites (for which usually נֶפֶשׁ) (Psalms 104:15; Judges 19:8; Judges 19:9)

9. specifically of seat of the emotions and passions (for which usually נפשׁ)

a. speak into the heart (Isaiah 30:29; Jeremiah 15:16; Ezekiel 36:5)

b. the heart melteth (1 Kings 8:38; Psalms 25:17; Psalms 73:21)

10. seat of courage (for which usually רוּחַ) (Daniel 11:25; Psalms 31:25)

: heart (Daniel 4:13; Daniel 7:4; Daniel 2:30; Daniel 5:22; Daniel 5:20)

Same root

Where it appears

Appears 252 times in the Bible.

  • Genesis 20:5 Didn’t Abraham tell me, ‘She is my sister’? And she herself said, ‘Yes, he is my brother.’ I acted in complete innocence! My hands are clean.”
  • Genesis 20:6 In the dream God responded, “Yes, I know you are innocent. That’s why I kept you from sinning against me, and why I did not let you touch her.
  • Genesis 31:26 “What do you mean by deceiving me like this?” Laban demanded. “How dare you drag my daughters away like prisoners of war?
  • Exodus 14:5 When word reached the king of Egypt that the Israelites had fled, Pharaoh and his officials changed their minds. “What have we done, letting all those Israelite slaves get away?” they asked.
  • Leviticus 19:17 “Do not nurse hatred in your heart for any of your relatives. Confront people directly so you will not be held guilty for their sin.
  • Leviticus 26:36 “And for those of you who survive, I will demoralize you in the land of your enemies. You will live in such fear that the sound of a leaf driven by the wind will send you fleeing. You will run as though fleeing from a sword, and you will fall even when no one pursues you.
See every passage

Source: Brown, Driver and Briggs, Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), public domain; markup by unfoldingWord, CC BY (github.com/unfoldingWord/Brown-Driver-Briggs-Enhanced).