Jeremiah 17:10

10 ¹"I the LORD search the heart ²and test the mind,^{[a] 3}to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his deeds."

Jeremiah 17:10 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 17:10

I the Lord search the heart
The inward parts of it, every room and corner in it; and know the thoughts of it; all its intents, purposes, designs, contrivances, and imaginations; all the secret motions of it, and the wickedness that is in it; so that this is an answer to the question in the preceding verse; and therefore, though the heart is deceitful, it cannot deceive him, because he judges not according to outward appearance; he sees and knows the heart; and none but the Lord, or he who is Jehovah, can so search the heart as thus to know it; wherefore, since Christ is said to search the reins and the heart, and to know the thoughts of men, and to be a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart, he must be Jehovah, and the true God, ( Revelation 2:23 ) ( Matthew 19:4 ) ( Hebrews 4:12 Hebrews 4:13 ) :

I try the reins;
the most inward and remote parts, covered with fat, and out of sight: these are the seat of the affections; and the Lord tries these, whether they are towards him or not; and whether sincere or hypocritical; Christ the omniscient God knew Peter's love to him, and the sincerity of it; for which he appeals to him as such, ( John 21:17 ) :

even to give every man accordions to his ways, and according to the
fruit of his doings;
to do which it is necessary to search the heart, and try the reins, the fountain of all actions; and in which the principles of them are, and according to which they are denominated and judged of: in the future judgment every secret thing will be brought into account; the counsels of the heart will be made manifest; the book of conscience will be opened; and out of it, as well as other books, men will be judged according to their ways and works; and therefore it is requisite that the Judge should be the Lord God omniscient, the searcher and trier of the hearts and reins, as Christ is.

Jeremiah 17:10 In-Context

8 He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit."

9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?

10 "I the LORD search the heart and test the mind, to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his deeds."

11 Like the partridge that gathers a brood that she did not hatch, so is he who gets riches but not by justice; in the midst of his days they will leave him, and at his end he will be a fool.

12 A glorious throne set on high from the beginning is the place of our sanctuary.

Cross References

• 1. 1 Samuel 16:7; 1 Chronicles 28:9; Psalms 139:23; Romans 8:27
• 2. See Jeremiah 11:20
• 3. Jeremiah 32:19; Job 34:11; Psalms 62:12

Footnotes

• [a]. Hebrew kidneys