לֵב
heart
also: inner man, mind, will, understanding fuller range ↓
Full lexicon entry — Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)
From Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)
Where this word appears
See every Construct-state word in the Hebrew Bible →
Grammar key — what these labels mean
Part of speech
- Noun
- A naming word — a person, place, thing, or idea.
Noun type
- Common
- A common noun — a general class of person, place, or thing (“king,” “city,” “water”), not a specific name.
- Proper
- A name of a specific person, place, or people (e.g. Abraham, Zion, Israel).
State
- Absolute
- The independent form of a noun, not bound to a following word.
- Construct
- A noun bound to a following noun in a possessive / “of” relationship (the construct chain).
Gender
- Masculine
- Grammatically masculine.
Number
- Singular
- One.
- Plural
- More than one (in Hebrew, generally three or more).
Every verse where H3820 appears in the Book of Ecclesiastes — 34 distinct verses. Click any verse to open its interlinear word-by-word view. Verse text shown in the World English Bible for context — . Each verse’s Hebrew form is shown with its reference; the English is not keyword-highlighted, since the data carries no word-level English alignment. Use “Compare translations” on any verse to read it across multiple English versions. This concordance covers the Hebrew Bible; Septuagint (Greek Old Testament) occurrences are not indexed here.
Ecclesiastes
- Ecclesiastes 1:13 לִבִּ֗/י n c ms cs + sfx pers 1cs I applied my heart to seek and to search out by wisdom concerning all that is done under the sky. It is a heavy burden that God has given to the sons of men to be afflicted with.
- Ecclesiastes 1:16 לִבִּ/י֙ וְ/לִבִּ֛/י n c ms cs + sfx pers 1cs conj + n c ms cs + sfx pers 1cs I said to myself, "Behold, I have obtained for myself great wisdom above all who were before me in Jerusalem. Yes, my heart has had great experience of wisdom and knowledge."
- Ecclesiastes 1:17 לִבִּ/י֙ n c ms cs + sfx pers 1cs I applied my heart to know wisdom, and to know madness and folly. I perceived that this also was a chasing after wind.
- Ecclesiastes 2:1 בְּ/לִבִּ֔/י prep + n c ms cs + sfx pers 1cs I said in my heart, "Come now, I will test you with mirth: therefore enjoy pleasure;" and, behold, this also was vanity.
- Ecclesiastes 2:3 בְ/לִבִּ֔/י וְ/לִבִּ֞/י prep + n c ms cs + sfx pers 1cs conj + n c ms cs + sfx pers 1cs I searched in my heart how to cheer my flesh with wine, my heart yet guiding me with wisdom, and how to lay hold of folly, until I might see what it was good for the sons of men that they should do under heaven all the days of their lives.
- Ecclesiastes 2:10 לִבִּ֜/י לִבִּ֤/י n c ms cs + sfx pers 1cs n c ms cs + sfx pers 1cs Whatever my eyes desired, I didn't keep from them. I didn't withhold my heart from any joy, for my heart rejoiced because of all my labor, and this was my portion from all my labor.
- Ecclesiastes 2:15 בְּ/לִבִּ֗/י בְ/לִבִּ֔/י prep + n c ms cs + sfx pers 1cs prep + n c ms cs + sfx pers 1cs Then said I in my heart, "As it happens to the fool, so will it happen even to me; and why was I then more wise?" Then said I in my heart that this also is vanity.
- Ecclesiastes 2:20 לִבִּ֑/י n c ms cs + sfx pers 1cs Therefore I began to cause my heart to despair concerning all the labor in which I had labored under the sun.
- Ecclesiastes 2:22 לִבּ֑/ו n c ms cs + sfx pers 3ms For what has a man of all his labor, and of the striving of his heart, in which he labors under the sun?
- Ecclesiastes 2:23 לִבּ֑/וֹ n c ms cs + sfx pers 3ms For all his days are sorrows, and his travail is grief; yes, even in the night his heart takes no rest. This also is vanity.
- Ecclesiastes 3:11 בְּ/לִבָּ֔/ם prep + n c ms cs + sfx pers 3mp He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in their hearts, yet so that man can't find out the work that God has done from the beginning even to the end.
- Ecclesiastes 3:17 בְּ/לִבִּ֔/י prep + n c ms cs + sfx pers 1cs I said in my heart, "God will judge the righteous and the wicked; for there is a time there for every purpose and for every work."
- Ecclesiastes 3:18 בְּ/לִבִּ֔/י prep + n c ms cs + sfx pers 1cs I said in my heart, "As for the sons of men, God tests them, so that they may see that they themselves are like animals.
- Ecclesiastes 5:2 וְ/לִבְּ/ךָ֧ conj + n c ms cs + sfx pers 2ms Don't be rash with your mouth, and don't let your heart be hasty to utter anything before God; for God is in heaven, and you on earth. Therefore let your words be few.
- Ecclesiastes 5:20 לִבּֽ/וֹ n c ms cs + sfx pers 3ms For he shall not often reflect on the days of his life; because God occupies him with the joy of his heart.
- Ecclesiastes 7:2 לִבּֽ/וֹ n c ms cs + sfx pers 3ms It is better to go to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting: for that is the end of all men, and the living should take this to heart.
- Ecclesiastes 7:3 לֵֽב n c ms Sorrow is better than laughter; for by the sadness of the face the heart is made good.
- Ecclesiastes 7:4 לֵ֤ב וְ/לֵ֥ב n c ms cs conj + n c ms cs The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning; but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.
- Ecclesiastes 7:7 לֵ֖ב n c ms Surely extortion makes the wise man foolish; and a bribe destroys the understanding.
- Ecclesiastes 7:21 לִבֶּ֑/ךָ n c ms cs + sfx pers 2ms Also don't take heed to all words that are spoken, lest you hear your servant curse you;
- Ecclesiastes 7:22 לִבֶּ֑/ךָ n c ms cs + sfx pers 2ms for often your own heart knows that you yourself have likewise cursed others.
- Ecclesiastes 7:25 וְ/לִבִּ/י֙ conj + n c ms cs + sfx pers 1cs I turned around, and my heart sought to know and to search out, and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know that wickedness is stupidity, and that foolishness is madness.
- Ecclesiastes 7:26 לִבָּ֖/הּ n c ms cs + sfx pers 3fs I find more bitter than death the woman whose heart is snares and traps, whose hands are chains. Whoever pleases God shall escape from her; but the sinner will be ensnared by her.
- Ecclesiastes 8:5 לֵ֥ב n c ms Whoever keeps the commandment shall not come to harm, and his wise heart will know the time and procedure.
- Ecclesiastes 8:9 לִבִּ֔/י n c ms cs + sfx pers 1cs All this have I seen, and applied my mind to every work that is done under the sun. There is a time in which one man has power over another to his hurt.
- Ecclesiastes 8:11 לֵ֧ב n c ms cs Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil.
- Ecclesiastes 8:16 לִבִּ/י֙ n c ms cs + sfx pers 1cs When I applied my heart to know wisdom, and to see the business that is done on the earth (for also there is that neither day nor night sees sleep with his eyes),
- Ecclesiastes 9:1 לִבִּ/י֙ n c ms cs + sfx pers 1cs For all this I laid to my heart, even to explore all this: that the righteous, and the wise, and their works, are in the hand of God; whether it is love or hatred, man doesn't know it; all is before them.
- Ecclesiastes 9:3 לֵ֣ב n c ms cs This is an evil in all that is done under the sun, that there is one event to all: yes also, the heart of the sons of men is full of evil, and madness is in their heart while they live, and after that they go to the dead.
- Ecclesiastes 9:7 בְ/לֶב prep + n c ms cs Go your way--eat your bread with joy, and drink your wine with a merry heart; for God has already accepted your works.
- Ecclesiastes 10:2 לֵ֤ב וְ/לֵ֥ב n c ms conj + n c ms A wise man's heart is at his right hand, but a fool's heart at his left.
- Ecclesiastes 10:3 לִבּ֣/וֹ n c ms cs + sfx pers 3ms Yes also, when the fool walks by the way, his understanding fails him, and he says to everyone that he is a fool.
- Ecclesiastes 11:9 לִבְּ/ךָ֙ לִבְּ/ךָ֔ n c ms cs + sfx pers 2ms n c ms cs + sfx pers 2ms Rejoice, young man, in your youth, And let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth, And walk in the ways of your heart, And in the sight of your eyes; But know that for all these things God will bring you into judgment.
- Ecclesiastes 11:10 מִ/לִּבֶּ֔/ךָ prep + n c ms cs + sfx pers 2ms Therefore remove sorrow from your heart, And put away evil from your flesh; For youth and the dawn of life are vanity.
About this entry
At a glance — auto-summarized from this page’s data, not written by a person. Every figure links to its source below. This summary describes the numbers; it doesn’t interpret them.
“heart” is the headline sense of the Hebrew noun לב (lêb). First canonically at Genesis 6:5, it enters the text early. It turns up in 552 verses across 33 books, one of the most common footprint. Not a single-sense word: its full sense range also takes in “inner man”, “mind”, and “will”. From the same root come לבב, לבב and לב. The sections below give every sense, occurrence, and version rendering.
Gloss history
Strong's 1890 vs modern scholarship
About this word
Strong's H3820 catalogs a Hebrew word from the Hebrew Old Testament.
These counts are not copied from any lexicon or concordance. They are computed here, from the morphology-tagged Hebrew Old Testament. What Lemma adds →
- 552
- distinct verses
- The word appears in 552 distinct verses.
- 33 / 39
- OT books
- The word appears in 33 of 39 Old Testament books.
- #81
- by frequency
- Top 100 most frequent Hebrew words (rank 81 of 8,640 Hebrew words by occurrence).
View all 552 occurrences in the concordance →
By section of the Old Testament
By traditional corpus
Conventional, traditional groupings — biblical authorship is debated, so this is a traditional corpus grouping, not an authorship claim. Each share is this word’s portion of its verses in that division of the Hebrew canon. Each figure is a share of the word’s 552 distinct verses.
- Writings (Ketuvim) 293 verses · 53%
- Prophets (Nevi'im) 198 verses · 36%
- Torah (Pentateuch) 61 verses · 11%
How translations render this word
Counts come from each version’s own published word-to-Strong’s tagging or interlinear alignment — an approximate guide to how each version renders this word, not a word-level alignment the data otherwise carries. Because each total is that version’s own tagged count, the per-version totals vary from one another and need not match the appearance or distinct-verse counts above. These counts may also differ from a printed concordance because Lemma counts each distinctly tagged rendering and does not collapse phrase taggings into a single head-word total. This is a fixed set of word-tagged versions (KJV, ASV, BSB, ULT) and does not change with the reading translation you choose elsewhere. Each version’s license is shown beside its name below (and on Sources).
BDB lists this Strong’s number as 3 distinct words (homographs). Each count above pools all of them and is not split by sense — see the Senses section below. A low-frequency rendering may belong to a different one of those words, not the primary meaning.
- King James Version†: Heart 392×, Hearts 16×, Own heart 12×
- American Standard Version†: Heart 347×, 's heart 26×, Own heart 14×
- Berean Standard Bible†: Heart 307×, Hearts 70×, Mind 28×
- unfoldingWord Literal Text†: Heart 433×, Heart of 87×, Hearts 26×
King James Version Public Domain
Renders H3820 across 577† tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 69 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings. Not rendered by a distinct English word in 16 further occurrences.
American Standard Version Public Domain
Renders H3820 across 577† tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 101 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
Berean Standard Bible Public Domain
Renders H3820 across 526† tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 52 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings. Not rendered by a distinct English word in 67 further occurrences.
unfoldingWord Literal Text CC BY-SA 4.0
Renders H3820 across 610† tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus 31 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
22 senses and sub-senses in the full BDB
What do BDB’s symbols mean?
BDB uses these scholarly abbreviations:
| Symbol | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 𝔊 | the Septuagint (the ancient Greek translation, LXX) |
| 𝔙 | the Vulgate (the Latin translation) |
| 𝔖 | the Syriac version (the Peshitta) |
| 𝔗 | the Targum (the Aramaic translation) |
| ψ | the Psalms |
| √ | root (the underlying root or stem) |
| ‖ | parallel passage (a synonymous or contrasted parallel) |
| † | the dagger: every passage where the word occurs is cited |
The 22 senses and sub-senses the full Brown-Driver-Briggs lexicon distinguishes for this word, in lexicon order (not ranked by frequency), with BDB’s own verbatim wording and sub-sense lettering. Shown in Hebrew script with BDB’s own scholarly abbreviations. The condensed entry is in the Lexicon Entry tab. See also the Forms in the corpus table below.
לב I קַמְבֻּלָּי people of Gambulai SarowskyZAW 1912, 150–1 Je 51
לב II
- I. seldom of things, בְּלֶב־יָם in the midst of the sea Ex 15:8 Pr 23:34; 30:19; בְּלֵב יַמִּים ψ 46:3; Ez 27:4, 25, 26, 27; 28:2, 8 בלב האלה 2 S 18:14; בְּלֵב אֹיְבֵי in the midst of the enemies of ψ 45:2 (v. BrMP in loco; AV RV al. in the heart of). e.g. Exodus 15:8
- II. elsewhere of men:
- 1. the inner man in contrast with outer לבי ובשׂרי ירננו my heart and my flesh cry out ψ 84:3; ‖ מעים ψ 22:15 Je 4:19, the inner for outer מעים Je 49:22; as within the breast על לב Ex 28:3, 29, 30(×2) (P); מלב 2 K 9:24; בלב ψ 37:15 2 S 18:14; סְגוֹר לִבָּם Ho 13:8; antithesis with בָּשָׂר Pr 14:30 Ec 2:3; head Is 1:5, face Ez 14:3, 4, 7; arm Ct 8:6; hands Ez 22:14; bones ψ 102:5; eyes 1 K 9:3 (= 2 Ch 7:16) Je 22:17; ear Pr 22:17; 23:12; mouth ψ 55:22; lips Is 29:13; אֲנִי יְשֵׁינָה וְלִבִּי עֵר I slept but my heart waked Ct 5:2. e.g. Psalms 84:3
- 2. the inner man, indef., soul, comprehending mind, affections and will, with occasional emphasis of one or the other by means of certain verbs: † בכל לב 1 K 8:23 (= 2 Ch 6:14) ψ 9:2; 119:2, 10, 34, 58, 69, 145; 138:1 Pr 3:5 Je 3:10; 24:7; †עם לב 2 Ch 24:4 (see לבב 2); † כלב 2 S 7:21 (= 1 Ch 17:19) Je 3:15; תַּעֲלֻמוֹת לֵב secrets of the heart ψ 44:22; לֵב מְלָכִים אֵין חֵקֶר the heart of kings is unsearchable Pr 25:3; הַיֹּצֵר יַחַד לִבָּם ψ 33:15 etc. e.g. 1 Kings 8:23
- 3. specific reference to mind:
- a. †מִלֵּב of one’s own mind Nu 16:28; 24:13 (JE) 1 K 12:33; Ne 6:8; Ez 13:2, 17; †חֲסַר לֵב destitute of mind Pr 6:32; 7:7; 9:4, 16; 10:13, 21; 11:12; 12:11; 15:21; 17:18; 24:30; לִבּוֹ חָסֵר Ec 10:3; אֵין לֵב Je 5:21 Ho 7:11; לב אין Pr 17:16; קנה לב get a mind Pr 15:32; 19:8; כֹּחַ לב power of mind Jb 36:5; רֹחַב לב breadth of mind 1 K 5:9, גנב לב 2 S 15:6; Gn 31:20 (E? see לבב 3 a). e.g. Numbers 16:28
- b. knowledge, c. †ידע Dt 29:3; Pr 14:10; 22:17; Ec 1:17; 7:22, 25; 8:5, 16; Je 24:7; ראה ψ 66:18 Ec 1:16; חָכַם לב mind is wise Pr 23:15; †לֵב חָכָם wise mind 1 K 3:12; Pr 16:23; Ec 8:5; †חֲכַם לֵב Ex 31:6; 35:10; 36:1, 2, 8 (P) Pr 10:8; 11:29; 16:21; †חַכְמֵי לֵב Ex 28:3 (P) Jb 37:24; †חכמת לב Ex 35:25, 35 (P); לב חכמים Ec 7:4; 10:2; לב כסילים Pr 12:23; 15:7 Ec 7:4; 10:2; c. חכמה Ex 36:2 (P) 1 K 10:24 (= 2 Ch 9:23) Pr 2:10; 17:16; Ec 2:3; †לֵב נָבוֹן intelligent mind Pr 14:33; 15:14; 18:15; with הבין Pr 8:5; תְּבוּנָה Pr 2:2; שָׂ֑כֶל Jb 17:4 etc. e.g. Deuteronomy 29:3
- c. thinking, reflection, c. חשׁב ψ 140:3 Pr 16:9; מחשׁבות Gn 6:5 (J) ψ 33:11 Pr 6:18; 19:21 cf. Gn 8:21 (J); הגה muse, study Pr 15:28; 24:2; Is 33:18; 59:13; הגיון ψ 19:15; הָגוּת ψ 49:4; †שׂם לב set the mind, consider Is 41:22; Ez 44:5, c. לְ 1 S 9:20; Ez 40:4; 44:5; אֶל Ex 9:21 (J) 1 S 25:25; 2 S 18:3(×2) Jb 2:3; 34:14; עַל Jb 1:8; † שׁת לב ψ 62:10; Pr 22:17; 24:32, c. לְּ Ex 7:23 (JE) 1 S 4:20; 2 S 13:20; ψ 48:14; Pr 27:23; Je 31:21 אֶל Jb 7:17. e.g. Psalms 140:3
- d. memory †השׁיב אל לב call to mind Is 44:19; La 3:21; על לב Is 46:8; †עלה על לב come into mind (occur to one) Is 65:17; Je 3:16; 7:31; 19:5; 32:35 (cf. Acts 7:23), so בא על לב 2 Ch 7:11; †שׂם על לב lay to heart Is 42:25; 47:7; 57:1, 11; Je 12:11 Mal 2:2(×2) Dn 1:8; אל לב 2 S 13:33; 19:20 כתב על לב Je 31:33; קשׁר על לב Pr 6:21; † לוּחַ לֵב tablet of the memory Pr 3:3; 7:3 Je 17:1; נִשְׁכַּחְתִּי כְּמֵת מִלֵּב I am forgotten as a dead man out of mind ψ 31:13. e.g. Isaiah 44:19
- 4. spec. ref. to inclinations, resolutions and determinations of the will; †הכין לב set the mind 2 Ch 12:14 ψ 10:17; 78:8; Jb 11:13; †נכון לב ψ 57:8(×2) (= 108:2) 78:37; 112:7; †נתן לב לְ Ec 1:13, 17; 7:21; 8:9, 16; Pr 23:26 Dn 10:12; † נתן אל לב Ec 7:2; 9:1; Ne 2:12; 7:5 differ from Ec 7:2; 9:1 (the ‘heart’ here not being the subject’s). בלב Ex 35:34 (P) Ezr 7:27 Ec 3:11; †אֲשֶׁר־נְשָׂאוֹ לִבּוֹ whose heart stirred him up Ex 35:21; 36:2 cf. 35:26 (all P); †נְדִיב לֵב willing of mind Ex 35:5, 22 (P) 2 Ch 29:31 cf. Ex 25:2; 35:29 (P): †אחרי נטה לב inclined to follow Ju 9:3 ψ 119:112; Pr 2:2; †הטה לב 1 K 11:3 ψ 119:36; 141:4 cf. 2 S 15:13:—גְּדֹלִים חִקְקֵי־לֵב great resolves of heart Ju 5:15 etc. e.g. 2 Chronicles 12:14
- 5. spec. ref. to conscience, וַיַּךְ לֵב דָּוִד אֹתוֹ and David’s heart (conscience) smote him 1 S 24:6; מִכְשׁוֹל לֵב offence of conscience 1 S 25:31; cf. Ec 7:22. e.g. 1 Samuel 24:6
- 6. spec. ref. to moral character, God tries the heart ψ 17:3 Je 12:3; sees the heart and reins Je 20:12, tries them ψ 7:10 Je 11:20, refines them ψ 26:2; searches the heart and tries the reins Je 17:10. e.g. Psalms 17:3
- a. ישֶׁר־לִבִּי Jb 33:3; †יִשְׁרֵי לֵב ψ 7:11; 11:2; 32:11; 36:11; 64:11 (all c. דָּוִד in title), 94:15; 97:11; †לֵב שָׁלֵם 1 Ch 28:9; 29:9 Is 38:3 (all originally לבב, see לבב 6 a); נִשְׁבְּרֵי־לֵב broken of heart ψ 34:19 Is 61:1; לֵב־נִשְׁבָּר ψ 51:19; שְׁבוּרֵי לֵב ψ 147:3; לֵב נִדְכָּאִים Is 57:15; לֵב טָהוֹר clean heart ψ 51:12; †לֵב חָדָשׁ new heart Ez 18:31; 36:26 (prob. also 11:19 for אֶהָד see Co) etc. e.g. Job 33:3
- b. לֵב רָע evil heart Pr 26:23; חַנְפֵי־לֵב godless in heart Jb 36:13; עקּשׁ(י) לב perverse in heart Pr 11:20; 17:20; †תַּרְמִת לִבָּם deceit of their heart Je 14:14; 23:26; בלב ולב with a double heart ψ 12:3 etc. e.g. Proverbs 26:23
- c. seat of pride Pr 21:4; Je 48:29; 49:16; Ho 13:6; Ob 3 גְּבַהּ־לֵב Pr 16:5; גֹּבַהּ לב 2 Ch 32:26; †גָּבַהּ לֵב 2 Ch 17:6; 26:16; 32:25 ψ 131:1; Pr 18:12; Ez 28:2, 17. e.g. Proverbs 21:4
- d. the heart is uncircumcised Je 9:25 Ez 44:7, 9 and hardened: † חזּק לב Ex 4:21; 10:20, 27 (E), 9:12; 11:10; 14:4, 8, 17 (P), Jos 11:20 (D2 ?); †יֶהֱזַק לֵב Ex 7:13, 22; 8:15; 9:35 (P); חִזְּקֵי־לֵב Ez 2:4; † הקשׁה לב Ex 7:3 (P) Pr 28:14; קְשֵׁי־לֵב Ez 3:7; הכביד לב Ex 8:11, 28; 9:34; 10:1 (J); כָּבֵד לב Ex 7:14; 9:7 (J); כּבּד לב 1 S 6:6; הַשְׁמֵן לֵב־הָעָם הַזֶה make the heart of this people fat Is 6:10 (?); † שְׁרִ(י)רוּת לֵב Dt 29:18 ψ 81:13 after Je 3:17; 7:24; 9:13; 11:8; 13:10; 16:12; 18:12; 23:17; †לב האבן the heart of stone Ez 11:19; 36:26 etc. e.g. Jeremiah 9:25
- 7. for the man himself, † אמר בלב Gn 17:17 (P), 27:41 (JE), 1 K 12:26 Est 6:6 ψ 10:6, 11, 13; 14:1 (= 53:2) 35:25; 74:8; Ec 2:1, 15; 3:17, 18; Is 47:10; Ob 3; Zc 12:5; אֶל־לב Gn 8:21 (J) 1 S 27:1; † דבּר בלב Ec 2:15; אֶל־לב Gn 24:45 (J); עַל לב 1 S 1:13 (?); עִם לב Ec 1:16; נְאֻם־פֶּשַׁע לָרָשָׁע בְּקֶרֶב לִבִּי ψ 36:2. e.g. Genesis 17:17
- 8. as seat of appetites, סְעַד לב stay the heart (with bread) Gn 18:5 (J) Ju 19:5 ψ 104:15. e.g. Genesis 18:5
- 9. as seat of the emotions and passions:
- a. of joy and gladness, in various combinations of †טוב, Ju 16:25; 18:20; 19:6, 22; Ru 3:7; 1 S 25:36; 2 S 13:28;1 K 8:66 (= 2 Ch 7:10) 21:7; Est 1:10; 5:9; Pr 15:15 Ec 7:3; 9:7; 11:9; Is 65:14; various combinations of † שׂמח, Ex 4:14 (J) 1 Ch 16:10 (= ψ 105:3) ψ 4:8; 16:9; 19:9; 33:21; Pr 15:13, 30; 17:22; 27:9, 11 Ec 2:10(×2); 5:19; Ct 3:11; Is 24:7; Zc 10:7; שׂושׂ ψ 119:111; Is 66:14; La 5:15; עלץ 1 S 2:1; עלז ψ 28:7 Zp 3:14; רנן Jb 29:13; גיל ψ 13:6 Pr 24:17 Zc 10:7; of desire, ψ 21:3; 37:4; † דבּר עַל לֵב speak unto the heart (kindly) Gn 34:3; 50:21 (JE) Ju 19:3; 2 S 19:8; 2 Ch 30:22; Is 40:2; Ho 2:16; Ru 2:13. e.g. Judges 16:25
- b. of trouble 2 K 6:11; Is 65:14, sorrow Ne 2:2; Pr 14:13, pain ψ 55:5, vexation Ec 11:10, trembling Dt 28:65 (?) 1 S 28:5, faintness La 5:17; it is wounded ψ 109:22, dies within one out of fear 1 S 25:37 etc.; † לב נמס the heart melteth (in fear) 2 S 17:10 ψ 22:15 Ez 21:12; Na 2:11. e.g. 2 Kings 6:11
- 10. seat of courage: יַאֲמֵץ לִבֶּ֑ךָ let thine heart take courage ψ 27:14; אַמִּיץ לִבּוֹ Am 2:16; אַבִּירֵי לֵב stout-hearted ψ 76:6; Is 46:12; לִבּוֹ יָצוּק כְּמוֹ־אֶבֶן his heart as firm as a stone Jb 41:16; לִבּוֹ כְּלֵב הָאַרְיֵה his heart as the heart of the lion 2 S 17:10; cf. אֶת־לִבּוֹ מָצָא 2 S 7:27, מְלָאוֹ לִבּוֹ לְ׳ Est 7:5 (cf. Ec 8:11). e.g. Psalms 27:14
Senses from the full Brown-Driver-Briggs lexicon (Brown, Driver, Briggs; Oxford 1906 — public domain), digitized via Sefaria, supplemented by the OpenScriptures HebrewLexicon (CC BY 4.0). Full attribution on Sources.
Word origin
I. קַמְבֻּלָּי people of Gambulai SarowskyZAW 1912, 150–1 Je 51:1.
I. v. sub לבב infr.
II. לֵב599 n.m. Pr 23:15 (†f. Pr 12:25, from influence of נֶפֶשׁ v. De Now) inner man, mind, will, heart, abs. and cstr. לֵב Gn 8:21 + 239 times; לֶב־ Ex 15:8 + 15 times; sf. לִבִּי Gn 24:45 + 102 times; לִבְּךָ Ex 9:14 + 28 times; לִבֶּ֑ךָ Ju 19:6 + 25 times; לִבֵּךְ Is 47:7 + 7 times; לִבּוֹ Gn 6:5 + 93 times; לִבָּהּ Ju 19:3 + 7 times; לִבֵּנוּ Is 41:22 + 5 times; לִבְּכֶם Gn 18:5 + 2 times; לִבָּם Gn 42:28 + 56 times; לִבָּן Ex 35:26; לִבְּהֶן Ez 13:17; pl. לִבּוֹת ψ 7:10 Pr 15:11 + 3 times Pr.; sf. לִבֹּתָם Is 44:18; לִבּוֹתָם ψ 125:4—inner part, midst:
— Brown-Driver-Briggs (Oxford 1906, public domain), digitized via Sefaria, supplemented by the OpenScriptures HebrewLexicon (CC BY 4.0). See Sources.
Derived from לבב (lêbâb) (H3824) — heart.
Jastrow Dictionary
A second Hebrew/Aramaic lexicon for comparison, covering Aramaic and post-biblical (Talmudic, Targumic, Midrashic) usage that the biblical-Hebrew BDB does not. Matched by lemma rather than by Strong’s number, so a lemma may carry more than one Jastrow headword (shown separately below), and the entries cover usage well beyond the Bible.
לֵב
- [innermost,] heart, bosom; thought, inclination, mind &c. Sot. I, 5 היה לִבָּהּ נאה if her bosom was handsome (inciting the senses). Shebu. 26ᵃ לִבְּךָ אנסך thy heart has carried thee away against thy will, i.e. you were under the impression that you told the truth. Nidd. 3ᵇ, a. fr. לִבּוֹ נוקפו, v. נָקַף I. Men. 79ᵇ, a. e. לב ב"ד מתנה עליהן the authorities (in receiving materials for offerings) accept them with a condition at heart (that they may dispose at their discretion of what has not been used for sacrifices).—לבו גס, v. גּוּס I.—Midr. Till. to Ps. IX, 1 לבו עליו his heart is against him, he bears him a grudge.—Zeb. 21ᵃ להוציא מִלִּבָּן של צדוקים to remove (the false opinion) out of the heart of the Sadducees, i.e. to demonstrate, by practice, the rejection of their opinion; Ḥag. 23ᵃ (Ms. M. מפני הצדוקים); Yoma 2ᵃ (Ms. M. מפני הצ׳, v. Par. III, 7). Gen. R. s. 87, end (in a gloss) להוציאה מלבן של הבריות in order to remove (the bad opinion about) her out of the hearts of men, i.e. to save her reputation.—Ned. 20ᵇ, v. גָּרוּשׁ; a. v. fr.—Trnsf. a) the marrow of trees, the sap-wood. Meg. 14ᵃ; Succ. 45ᵇ as the palm-tree אין לו אלא לב אחד וכ׳ has only one ‘heart’ (sap-cells only in the stem but none in the branches), so has Israel one heart directed to his Father &c.—b) centre, central portion. Lev. R. s. 30, end לולב לִבָּהּ של וכ׳ a Lulab which is the central stalk of the palm tree, v. לוּלָב.—Pl. f. לִבּוֹת. Midr. Till. to Ps. VII ממה שאתה בוחן ל׳ וכ׳ from the fact that thou examinest hearts and reins &c.—V. לֵבָב.
לֵב ²
- Targ. Gen. VI, 5. Targ. I Chr. XII, 38; a. fr.—Ab. Zar. 55ᵃ לִבִּי ולִבָּךְ ידע myself and thyself are convinced &c. Midr. Till. to Ps. VII (ref. to תשמרם, ib. XII, 8) נטר אורייתא בלִבְּהוֹן וכ׳ guard the Law in their hearts. Midr. Till. to Ps. XXVIII, end (ref. to Gen. XXXVII, 4) מה דבל׳ הוי בפומא as they thought so did they speak, but there (II Sam. XIII, 22) מה דבל׳ לא בפומא he did not speak out what was in his heart; Gen. R. s. 84 די בלִיבְּהוֹן בפומהון; די בלִיבֵּיה בליביה what was in his heart remained there. Snh. 35ᵃ [read:] נהי דפומא כתבין ל׳ דאינשי אינשי although they (the secretaries) record the word of mouth (the vote of each judge), the heart (the impressiveness of the argument), once forgotten, remains forgotten (cannot be recalled several days after; v. Rashi in Rabb. D. S. a. l. note). Ḥull. 59ᵃ, a. fr.—אַלִּ׳ ריקנא on an empty stomach; a. v. fr.—אַלִיבָּא ד־ (אַלִּיבֵּיה), v. אַלִּיבָּא.—Pl. לִבַּיָּא, לִיבַּ׳, לְבָבַיָּא, לִבְבַיָּא, לִבְבִין, לִבְבֵי, לִי׳. Targ. Prov. XXVII, 19 לִבַּיָּא (ed. Lag. לִבֵּיהוֹן). Targ. Jer. XII, 3. Targ. II Esth. V, 1; a. fr. e.g. Genesis 37:4
A Dictionary of the Targumim, the Talmud Babli and Yerushalmi, and the Midrashic Literature (Marcus Jastrow; London, Luzac, 1903) — Public Domain. Digitized via Sefaria. Digitized via Sefaria. Full attribution on Sources.
Forms in the corpus
The 169 distinct written forms H3820 takes in the Hebrew Bible, most frequent first — each parse links to that state’s occurrences in the concordance. Hebrew forms include their vowel points and cantillation, so a single lemma takes many written forms.
The 60 most common forms are shown; 109 rarer forms follow in the full concordance.
Same root — word family
Other BDB entries built from the same root as H3820, grouped by Strong’s listed origin. These share a root / origin per the lexicon — not necessarily a shared meaning. Each links to that word’s own entry.
Derives from
Shares the same root
Derived from this word
Compare all same-root words → Showing 4 of 5 — not the complete family. They share a root, not necessarily a meaning.
Septuagint verse parallels
This word appears in 501 verses that also exist in the Greek Old Testament (Septuagint), out of the 552 Hebrew verses it occurs in. You can read those verses in Greek by switching the Old Testament edition to the Septuagint.
Read these verses in the Septuagint
- Genesis 6:5
- Exodus 4:14
- Numbers 16:28
- Deuteronomy 4:11
- Joshua 11:20
- Judges 5:9
- Ruth 2:13
- 1 Samuel 1:13
- 2 Samuel 6:16
- 1 Kings 3:9
- 2 Kings 5:26
- 1 Chronicles 12:33
This is a verse-level parallel only — the same verses exist in both the Hebrew and Greek Old Testaments. No word-level Hebrew↔Greek correspondence is claimed: the data carries no such alignment, so no Greek word is shown as this Hebrew word’s translation. Coverage is not total — the Septuagint omits the deuterocanon and renumbers the Psalms, so some Hebrew verses have no direct Greek parallel.
