“The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” – Jeremiah 17:9 (KJV)
The aforementioned Scripture should not be read in the absence of the facts surrounding the declaration.
It is noted that the preceding verses of the Scripture text inform that sin, particularly idolatry, had become unalterably ingrained in the nature of the people of Judah. In Verse 9, it is recognised that the heart is not simply the seat of emotions; it is the location of a person’s thoughts and beliefs. Because it is hidden, the heart is hard to understand. Yet the Lord is able to heal and transform what can be such a broken and dysfunctional organ, and He promises to do so under the new covenant (Jeremiah 31:33).
The wickedness of the heart should never be underestimated. Jesus in Matthew 15:19 and Mark 7:21-23 states that out of the heart flow evil thoughts, murder, adultery and sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, and slander.
Many of us in our life journey have suffered because of the corrupt actions of friends, family members, and/or false brethren who employed character assassination, lies, deceit, slander, and evil counsel designed to destroy our credibility, ruin our good reputation, and malign our good character. Jesus understands the bitterness of betrayal. In order to be in right standing, however, we need to submit our hearts for God to cleanse them from unforgiveness. The Word of God in Matthew 5:8 (KJV) states, “ Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.”
Beloved, if you are the person who perpetrated evil against those who love and trust you, like the Psalmist David, you can come before God and repent of your sins.
King David had committed adultery with Uriah’s wife, Bathsheba, and got her pregnant. He had Bathsheba’s husband brought in from the front line of the battle with the Philistines, and tried to manipulate him to sleep with her, with the intention that Uriah could be duped into believing that the unborn child was his. Uriah refused to sleep with his wife since his men were still on the battlefield. King David sent him back and orchestrated his death on the said battlefield.
David, therefore, could be portrayed as an adulterer and a murderer. However, overwhelmed by his sins, he petitioned God, in Psalms 51:10, ‘to create in him a clean heart, and renew a right spirit within him.’ God heard his prayers and answered.
Beloved, having a clean heart for God means having single-minded devotion, unmixed motives, and an inner desire to please Him. You also can achieve this by His grace.
Read: Psalm 119:9; 1 Peter 1:15-16
Bible Reading Guide: Psalm 119:41-48; 1 Timothy 1; Jeremiah 32:26-44; Jeremiah 33; Jeremiah 34