xjwsforChrist

I have always been interested in English word parts and their origin. More recently I have become fascinated by the Hebrew alphabet and the meaning of the Hebrew words and been astonished to find that the translations are often inaccurate.

I'm particularly interested in words that in their translation have caused distress to a lot of people. For instance translations speak of the heart being treacherous and insecure people have become very fearful of trusting the leadings of their own heart or the leadings of the spirit.

The Hebrew word means more than just the heart and that is why it is translated in the Greek scriptures as Jesus saying to love God with our whole heart, mind and soul.

So I have two main questions one about what the intended meaning of the word is and secondly the interaction of the heart with the spirit and conscience. Romans 9:1 & 2.

One neurologist described the heart as a checking station that has 40,000 neurons in it, the same neurons that are in the brain, and that the brain communicates with the heart. Other organs like the kidneys also have neurons.

Good morning and peace to you Summer,

When I saw this in the greek for heart with reference to Romans 9:2 it helps confirm to me that when our Lord speaks to us, it is not the physical anything that he is concerned with, it is my motives and intentions of my heart and why it needs to be cleansed and remain clean so that it can house His spirit, which IS Him to dwell.


B. denotes the centre of all physical and spiritual life
the vigour and sense of physical life
[i]the centre and seat of spiritual life
[/i]

Just my thoughts and wanted to share,
"Come! Take lifeswater, which IS our Lord in Spirit for FREE."
Your sister and fellow servant of Christ, Kim

OOOH Thank you Kim. I absolutely love that definition and your comments. It does my heart good. haha

It is more than life changing learning how to live in spirit and love.

What a difference to be focused on that rather than in fear of breaking man-made rules.

Peace to you both!

Funny, due to another discussion on the matter of 'heart', I looked up the meaning/etymology this morning. One of the meanings of 'heart' that I found is this:



https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/heart


In that sense, I understand that the heart of a person refers their center, essence, or core.

Similar to the definition that Kim provided above, in that this would be the spirit, the person we truly are on the inside.


Taken from part of the online etymology dictionary:



http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=heart


**

And also as Christ said:

Out of the heart's abundance, the mouth speaks,


Out of the abundance of what is in us, we speak (or do).




Peace to you both,
your servant and sister, and a fellow slave of Christ,
tammy

Thank you Tammy those are some lovely expressions.

I love the thought of the heartwood. Don't get me started on trees as I love them and leaves more than flowers. haha

Lots to think about there. I will have to return and chew it over.

JAH is GOOD, dear Summer (peace to you!). I say that because I used to contemplate this very issue, too, once - the "difference," if any, between the "heart" and the "conscience," and so am grateful that perhaps we both might now know.

I do appreciate dear 'Mom's (peace, luv!) comments, that:



... as well as dear Tec's (peace to you, as well, luv!) comment that:



Both comments are true. I never actually asked about this issue, though, the heart/conscience and whether they were the same or different, until your question. Even then, I did not actually ask, but as I read your question, the question I once had came up again in ME. And this time, I KNEW it would be answered. It was another two days, though, before I received a response to MY question (which seems to me to be the same one you are asking) and the following is the essence of what I received from my Lord, the HOLY One of Israel and Holy Spirit, JAHESHUA, the Chosen One of JAH (MischaJAH). I say "essence," because the conversation we had was much more in-depth but I am not able to recount all of it nor is it necessary for me to do so. What he gave me was:

The "conscience" is not what most consider the "ego" but is what we are aware of as to ourselves. what we [think we] "know" [about ourselves]. It is the conscience that [personally] accuses or excuses us... as to what we say or do, or do not say or do. Because of our "fallen" state (as flesh with IT'S blood, versus flesh with holy spirit, GOD's blood). however, and so our penchant to live OUTSIDE of [the] TRUTH, what we [think we] know [about ourselves] may or may not be true. Thus, our conscience... and what it "tells" us, it's accusing or excusing (of our words/actions, or lack thereof)... may or may not be accurate (trutthful).

The "heart" is something else altogether. It controls the WHY of ALL that we say and/or do (or don't say or do). It is not merely a "seat" of "motivation"; it is the SOURCE of our motivation. The "place" from which whatever it is that drove us to say/do (or NOT say.do) whatever it is we said/did (or didn't say/do) originated. Whatever is in our heart dictates WHY... we SAY what we say WHATEVER it is we SAY (i.e., what comes/does not come out of our mouths - )Matthew 12:34; 16:18; Luke 6:45)... and/or WHATEVER it is we DO... or do NOT do.

The heart is the motivaTOR - we say/do... or refrain from saying/doing... because of what's IN it. Which is why we must "GUARD" it. Not because it might be "broken" (by something someone ELSE said/did or did not say.do) but because of what it might motivate... MOVE... US... to SAY... OR do. Or NOT say or do.

For example, while Eve was deceived, it was what was IN Adham's heart that caused him to CHOOSE to do what he did, willingly. Or, in contrast, it is what is in the heart that causes US to obey... or not obey (i.e., "do")... what Christ tells us to do/not do. The heart IS treacherous. Not ALL the time, true, but it really only takes one act of treachery to make something "treacherous," yes? And so, what of those who, for example, SAY they love Christ... and yet, their HEART leads them to do things AGAINST him (for example, the treatment of US slaves by religious clergy in previous centuries)... while their CONSCIENCE excuses such conduct? Or, even simpler, saying one loves Christ, but not DOING what he SAYS... because of "something" in one's heart, which "something" the one's conscience excuses?

It is treacherous and so can turn on one in an instant. Peter's did, when he denied Christ, although loving him. His denial was based on his FEAR... which was in his HEART. Do you see? Because of the treachery of the heart, we are told to "guard" it. Meaning, guard what goes IN it, as well as what comes OUT of it. We are also told to "CLEANSE" it - but out CONSCIENCE, again, in IT's function of "excusing" can (mis)lead us to ignore the treachery of our heart, tell us that what our heart is leading us to do is "okay."

And so, those of his Body need Christ to teach and lead us as our own heart will seek our own desires, not his/God's.

That is the essence of what he shared with me on this matter. I also understood that the heart is NOT the spirit, per se. Because although spirit may be WILLING (for example, Peter may not have WANTED to deny Christ)... the FLESH is weak. And so the FEAR in Peter's heart... which was as to the preservation of his FLESH... turned him traitor... so that he denied even one he loved, Christ. His HEART showed itself treacherous... to preserve his FLESH alive. His heart not only betrayed HIM... but the Son of GOD!! And Peter's conscience knew it... and accused him; hence, his weeping.

The flesh and the spirit are ENEMIES, though, and so the "heart" cannot be as some may think, at least as the following states:



That definition denotes the heart being something to both (the physical and spiritual) at the same time. This is impossible because the FLESH... is of NO use, at ALL. It is the SPIRIT that is life. The HEART, then, belongs FIRST... to the FLESH. It will seek the WILL of the flesh... until we have it "made over." We can't really do that, though, make over our hearts. We can, to a very small extent, change SOME things, but to make the heart over FULLY and COMPLETELY... such that it becomes the "heart" of the SPIRIT... we need to replace the "blood" that flows through it with GOD's "blood" - holy spirit. We get that, first, through the acceptance and receipt of the blood of Christ, God's holy spirit that flows in and through HIM. We allow him to "replace" OUR "blood" and "heart" with HIS... which he does by giving us HIS "mind"... or "heart." What motivates HIM. Thus, we receive, possess, and say/do... or not say/do... HIS will. Then, it is no longer a heart of "flesh" (not meaning the physical organ, of course) but one of spirit.

I want to share with you the example of the "heart" and "conscience" of two different women, but with similar circumstances: Rahab and Mary the Magdalene. Both were prostitutes and most likely were for the same reason: families to care for. This what the "why" of what they did... what their "hearts" TOLD them to do, even if doing so was "wrong." And that is what JAH considered when dealing with both: He looked at their HEARTS, the WHY of what they were doing... and because what they were doing was out of LOVE (caring for family), their errors were (temporarily) ignored. Both, then, could be blessed, not with the preservation of flesh/spirit; that came later)... by even being used/called/recognized BEFORE they received the blessing that preserved them further (which blessings were due to their FAITH - but it was what was in their HEARTS that even "opened the way" for the latter).

These two women, however, although the same in occupation, were very different in their VIEW of that occupation. For Rahab, HER conscience EXCUSED her for her line of work (she wasn't an Israelite, wasn't under Law, and therefore did what she did with no reservations or feelings of shame). Mary, on the other hand, was ACCUSED by her conscience - she was ashamed and burdened, so much so she succumbed to "demons" which tortured her (spirit), because HER conscience CONDEMNED her. Which is why SHE was SO grateful to Christ, why she wept when near him, washed his feet with her tears, never left him, even when he was impaled, etc. Because he openly FORGAVE her... and set her FREE from (the condemnation) of her conscience. She no longer NEEDED to feel shame, but could now "stand" (albeit, still humbled) before the MOST HOLY One of Israel, JAH of Armies. No matter what MAN, humans... men AND women... thought of her, she KNEW... GOD loved her. And that she, too, could "enter" into the kingdom of God/the spirit realm ("heavens").

It was because of what was in these two women's HEART... that led the Spirit to first seek and find THEM... as WELL as for them to [allow themselves to] BE sought and found. Had they been women with "hardened" hearts... then the Spirit that eventually MOVED them (to hide the spies... recognize Christ [as the Son of God] when he presented himself to Israel, etc.)... could not have come IN (to their hearts) and so MOVED/LED them (to do what they did).

So, then, the "heart" is what drives the "why" of what we say/do (or not say/do)... while the "conscience" excuses or accuses what we say/do (or not say/do). Both Rahab and Mary did what they did... out of love. For the families they had to care for. One's conscience excused her; the other's accused her.

I hope this helps. Please also note, Romans 9:1, 2 are not the only verses regarding the "function" of the "heart." An online Bible search will show that there is a plethora of scriptures and verses written as to the heart. A review of these can help show one WHY it is necessary to guard, cleanse, and prepare the heart.

Again, peace to you, and thank you for bringing this matter up. Again, I used to wonder, as well, and so am grateful for the truth revealed to ME about it.

Your servant and a slave of Christ,

Shel

Thank you Shelby what you have written is fascinating. Some of it is very clear to me and some I need to think about.

One of the difficulties is that we are trying to understand not just what words mean but entirely different ways of thinking in different cultures, and I'm sure you know much more about this than me as I'm just beginning in my research on this.

For example the abstract way we think in English as opposed to the Hebrew being more literal, and in Hebrew a word can mean something negative or positive, but in English we find that awkward. At least Greek is more abstract.

Of course we also have the difference between the meaning of words in England and the United States. I haven't mentioned Scotland, Ireland and Wales as that's even more complex. I was told by a translator that the word righteous is understood very differently in US than in England. In England it is considered very harsh and more in the sense of being over righteous than a softer more acceptable meaning in the US.

Also I believe we don't store information in our brain like we do in filing cabinets of subjects. At the turn of the century a neurologist/neuro surgeon was giving a lecture and was asked if one day we could have a chip in our brain to store things like an encyclopedia, and her reply was no because we attach information to our emotions. She gave the example of not liking French because she didn't get on with her French teacher, whereas her sister enjoyed French so the sisters would have stored the language in different places in the brain.

I digress. I'll post this and get back to the heart.

I am in the process of re-examining my beliefs. I no longer think the Bible is the complete word of God, as for one thing Jesus is the word, but I'm using the scriptures as a starting point.

I'm posting here something about the Hebrew word for heart to think about before going on to think about the relationship with spirit and conscience etc. (I don't quite know how to expand a bit more on my queries about these subjects. It's got more complicated than I realised. Haha

In STRONG'S LEXICON H3820 the meaning of the  Hebrew for heart  LEB is given as inner man, mind, will, heart, understanding.

From Strong's description heart here could also be translated mind.  I've given a quote here from an Hebrew alphabet expert, Benner, that shows that "Western thought considers the mind more rational than the heart. So translations which treat lev as heart, with the abstract concept meaning an emotion such as love, may be misleading."  #  Of course the scriptures also use other organs such as the kidneys when speaking of emotions


BENNER 'THE LIVING WORDS - VOLUME 1' PAGE 43 
 
HEART
 
"The English word 'heart' can be a concrete concept meaning the organ that pumps blood, or an abstract concept, meaning an emotion such as love or kindness.  The Hebrew word levav [H3824] and its parent root lev also concretely mean the heart organ.  However the abstract concept behind these words is 'thought' rather than 'emotion' as can be seen in the following verses from the King James Version.
 
'Thus saith the Lord GOD; It shall come to pass, that at the same time shall things come into thy mind [levav], and thou shalt think an evil thought:'  EZEKIEL 38:10 KJV
 
'But I have UNDERSTANDING [LEVAV] as well as you; I am not inferior to you: yea, who knoweth not such things as these?'  JOB 12:3 KJV
 
'Let men of UNDERSTANDING [levav] tell me, and let a wise man hearken unto me.'   JOB 34:34 KJV
 
'For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into MIND (lev).'  ISAIAH 65:17 KJV
 
In the original pictograph script for the word lev H3820 the first letter L represents the shepherd staff and is a sign of 'authority' and the second letter B represents the house or tent meaning 'within'.  When combined, these pictographs mean 'thre authority within'.  The 'authority within' us is thre heart, the mind, but Jeremiah 17:9 gives us the following warning about our minds.


'The MIND [lev] is crooked above all things, it is sick, who can know it?'
 
The connection between a thought and the heart and its evil inclination can also be found in Genesis 6:5.
 
'Yahweh saw that the evil of man was great in the land and all the imaginations of the thoughts of his HEART/MIND [lev] is only evil all the day.'
 
In Deuteronomy 6:5 we are told to keep our mind and thoughts on God alone.
 
'And you shall love Yahweh your Elohiym with all your HEART/MIND [lev] and with all your soul and with all your resources.'
 
#  Western thought considers the mind more rational than the heart.  So translations which treat lev as heart, with the abstract concept meaning an emotion such as love, may be misleading.
 
[The meaning of the letter L is LAMED and is related to the word MALMAD H4451 meaning staff.}
 
[The name of the letter B is BEYT and is derived from the BEYT H1004 meaning house.]"

Greetings, dear Summer, and peace to you! I totally understand what you (and others) are saying and meaning. I am not sure a can agree, though. For instance, if the heart and mind are the same thing, how is it that our heart and our mind can "war" with one another? The mind can tell us that what our heart "wants" is not right/best/good, can it not... and vice versa (that something our heart says is good is actually bad)? For instance, our HEART might say, "I need to give that (begging) person some money/food," but our MIND might say, "He's only going to buy alcohol/he doesn't want food." Or vice versa (our mind says to give the man money/food... but our HEART says not to).

And our heart can have it's OWN mind, as well. As Paul wrote, "The good I WANT to do I do NOT do." Hence, you have:

The Mind... or ability to reason/rationalize
The Heart... which is the source of the "why" we say/do-not say/do and which can have it's own mind
The Conscience... that accuses or excuses what we say/do-don't say/do

But you need not take my word for this. Indeed, if one is counting on what's in the Bible to be accurate, and I perceive that you are (although I would debate whether is actually true or not with you), I think the truth that the heart and mind are NOT the same is summed up in the GREATEST commandment, per Christ's recorded words:

“‘Love JaHVeH your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind." Matthew 22:37; Mark 12:30; Luke 10:27

All three words, heart, mind, and conscience, are different in the Greek:

Heart - kardia
Mind - dianoia
Conscience - syneidēsis

While I cannot say that the transliterations are entirely accurate, I can say the words don't have the same meaning. The heart can have it's OWN mind... it's OWN "reasoning ability,", indeed one that is separate from the RATIONAL mind. Happens all the time. Which, again, is another reason why it must be guarded - so that we are not "double-minded." So that IT's mind... the mind OF the heart... does not overpower, for instance, in US... the mind of Christ. 1 Corinthians 2:16

I hope this helps and, again, wish you peace!

Your servant and a slave of Christ,

Shel














If his mind and heart were ONE, though, he would not have this problem.

Thank you Shelby for stating that very clearly. I actually agree with you completely that the heart, mind, and conscience are separate, as indicated in the Greek. I probably haven't made myself very clear.

It is the Hebrew word LEB that seems to include the heart, mind, and soul, and that is why loving God with the whole heart written in Hebrew is quoted and clarified in the Greek as loving God with the heart, mind, and soul.

The confusion arises when in the Hebrew scriptures LEB is sometimes being translated as heart and sometimes as mind, but not being consistent so that the rendering is not accurate.

There doesn't appear to be a Hebrew word for conscience.

I will look the scriptures up from the Hebrew as I would like your opinion on them.

Thank you so much for all your time and trouble. It is very much appreciated.

Haha I think I will give up on trying to make sense of the Hebrew on this and stick with the Greek, as I keyed 'mind' into search on Blue Letter Bible and the first reference that came up was Genesis 23:8 with nephesh translated as mind in the KJV.

Greetings, dear Summer, and peace to you! I am reminded of the significance of the viscera to the ancient Egyptians. I have posted here before as to the pyramids not being built as gateways (to the spirit realm, etc.), but altars, "high places", with the affluent being buried under them (Revelation 6:9, 10. They were pointed at the top so that the wide base would keep them from toppling, in light of how HIGH they were built. They built these "altars" because they knew about JAH, worshipped Him, and believed, JUST as the Hebrews did (and Jews SHOULD have), that:

1. There WOULD be a resurrection (which is why they had all of their valuable belongings buried with them and were buried with their loved ones INCLUDING pets;

2. The resurrection would be of the physical body (as Ezekiel saw), but one that was "changed"; however, it was the man on the INSIDE that would be preserved and be the SAME when awoken from "sleep" (death); hence, their removal FROM the physical vessel and especially careful preservation of the VISCERA (particularly the heart, kidneys, and liver, which they believe were, in essence, the "heart", "mind" and "conscience"... or "man" that lived IN the vessel that was the physical body).

Many today believe that these ancient people did not know JAH, but that is not the truth. We have several Hebrew accounts that help us understand they did indeed know Him, if not also worship Him:

- Abram being sent to Canaan, which was part of Egypt at the time (hence, Jacob having to go TO Egypt for grain during the famine "in all the earth") Genesis 11:31; 12:1, 6

- Abram going to Egypt during the famine of his time Genesis 12:10

- Pharaoh rebuking Abram for not telling him (Pharaoh) that Sa'ri'JAH was his (Abram's) wife, after being afflicted BY JAH for taking her, and letting Abram take her and go (rather than curse God and kill/punish Abram and just take Sa'ra'JAH Genesis 12:17, 18

- The Pharaoh of Joseph's time's comment as to Joseph being full of God's spirit Genesis 41:37-39

- The grain of Egypt saving Israel, being distributed by Pharaoh's second in command, Joseph, whose Egyptian name was Zaph'nath Pa'ane'JAH (which means both "God lives and speaks" and "Savior of the world") Genesis 41:45

- The fact that Joseph WAS second in command, no one above him BUT Pharaoh... he, Joseph, being a worshipper of the MOST HOLY One of Israel, JAH of Armies... and the one Pharaoh told ALL the people they must LISTEN to... and so, quite logically, Joseph would have TOLD... ALL the people... about JAH... PARTICULARLY after his father and brothers and their families arrived in Egypt (could he have denied JAH and kept their respect??)... and the people, Egyptian AND Hebrew, would have LISTENED and worshipped JAH... simply because Joseph SAID to do so Genesis 39:2-4, 9, 21-23 41:38, 39

- The Pharaoh of Moses day denying that he knew JAH; he no LONGER did because he had left off worshipping JAH at a young age due to the hardness of his own heart as a result of his greed Exodus 4:19; 5:2, 4, 5, 8;

- The fact that the Israelites did not leave Egypt poor, but with quite a lot of wealth due to those Egyptians who listened to JAH helping them and, therefore, vast mixed company (including a large number of Egyptians) that left Egypt WITH Israel... NOT out of fear due to the plagues, but because they, too, worshipped JAH. How do we KNOW? Because... the plagues, which passed by ALL of Israel, did NOT pass by ANY of Egypt... right? No. Those of Egypt who had [already] joined their hearts to the God of ISRAEL were spared as well. We can KNOW this... because we KNOW JAH is merciful. Hence, although being Egyptian, any one of those who chose to worship JAH would have been ACCOUNTED as part of "Israel" during the plagues. And so, they, too, would have observed the instructions to eat the lamb and bitter greens and splash the blood on THEIR doorposts.

Anyway, I thought this truth might interest you and so shared it. I hope there is something in it that is useful to you in your journey.

Again, peace to you... and may JAH bless!

Your servant and a slave of Christ,

Shel

Thank you Shelby. Yes I'm very interested in ancient Egypt. There are a lot of similarities between the Hebrew and Egyptian words:
BREATH, BLOW, WIND, Hebrew NEPHAKH and Egyptian NEFU.

Loz found some interesting things about FACE
Hebrew PANEH (PHANEH) meaning FACE, PRESENCE, PERSON. Egyptian FENEDJ meaning NOSE. The Bible often uses terms for nose when referring to a face. APH primarily means NOSE but is also used for FACE. Also as you said
Joseph, whose Egyptian name was Zaph'nath Pa'ane'JAH (which means both "God lives and speaks" and "Savior of the world") Genesis 41:45

The Hebrew word LEB in Egyptian IAB

There are various other Egyptian hieroglyphic words for heart.
HAT meaning THE BEGINNING or FRONTIER, LAYING A FOUNDATION AT THE BEGINNING.
HET meaning THE FOREMOST PART or THE MIND

I haven't got access to my notes on my old computer where I have more details.

Laird Scranton, who worked on computer patterns, discovered that the Dogon tribe in Africa has an alphabet based on glyphs that accurately resemble scientific symbols for the atom and string theory etc. He then discovered the similarities of the Egyptian and Hebrew glyphs to the Dogon. This has helped with deeper meanings in the Egyptian and Hebrew.

If this is all true, and it seems very compelling, then our Creator must have put all this in our languages.

Yes, dear Summer (peace to you!)... or that all languages originated from a single "tongue" (which is the premise behind the account of Babel). Even so, it would be absolutely ridiculous for us to know that Israel resided in Egypt proper for 400 years... and yet, the two kept their languages entirely separate. Yet, apparently there are those who believe this.

As a descendant of African Americans, those of numerous African indigenous peoples who were (involuntarily) immersed in the culture and language of the New World for only 200-300 hundred years before being set "free," I can absolutely believe than languages and dialects were mixed, as they are in the US today. Sure, we have "proper" English [grammar]. But who actually speaks it anymore? Who WRITES it anymore? Add to that, the leadership of Hebrew-speaking JOSEPH, there is no logical reason to believe that many EGYPTIAN words known to us today weren't originally HEBREW words. And, given the "leadership" of the Pharaoh of Moses' day, no reason to think a lot of the Hebrew handed down didn't have SOME Egyptian influence, if not a lot.

I mean, should we truly believe that every Israeliet who left Egypt had Hebrew as their first language? I am sure many DID, but I bet a lot MORE spoke some kind of Hebrewtian... or Egyptbrew. The ancient equivalent of Spanglish... or today's hip (hop) influenced lingo?

Not to mention the whole Chaldean influence resulting from Israel's exile into Babylon. We cannot assume the Hebrew found in the Bible is "pure." It isn't. It's a translation ("Hebrew") of a translation ("Greek") by people who no longer spoke the original language of Israel, Aramaic, which is more closely a Phoenician language and the human language of Christ. Contrary to teachings such as that of the WTBTS, Aramaic is NOT a combination of Hebrew-Chaldean, but a form of Phoenician-Hebrew.

Even so, it post-dates Babel, so...

This reminds me, though, of the (erroneous) theory of evolution and the premise that man evolved (from certain primates). Another discussion that, though - LOL!

On another note, dear hubby and I saw "X-Men: Apocalypse" this weekend and let's just say, the Egyptian... ummmmm... transformation energizing sequence "maze"... was QUITE interesting [in its patterning]. I won't give it away so not to spoil it for those who haven't seen the film but want to. And I do realize it's a modern movie but still, it was quite interesting.

I'm rambling. Long day. Need to quit and go to bed, so I will.

Good "talking" with you, dear Summer!

Your servant and a slave of Christ,

Shel

Greetings to All. May you have Peace.

Today, in thinking (Don’t ask me, Why?) on the subject of Law, I was reminded of what Paul wrote recorded at Romans 4:15: “Where there is no law, there is no sin.” I was reminded of all the various and multiple laws in the Law Covenant and remembered that they were, how shall I say, done away with, fulfilled, abolished, etc., by what our Lord accomplished when he was executed upon the stake (call it what you like). I used to think, if the Law Covenant was abolished then there is NO LAW any longer against the things that were once laws. I thought that if laws were abolished then those laws no longer held any power. But then the Lord reminded me of the “law of love” that we hear so much about, this law of love superseding any written code. The law of love encompassing those laws AND MORE.

I thought too of, What came before the Law Covenant? There were no laws BEFORE the Law Covenant. WRONG!!! That is when the Master kindly reminded me of the episode of Joseph and Potiphar’s wife as recorded in Genesis 9, of the laws written on the hearts of people. No law was yet written on stone tablets or Torah scrolls that stated Thou Shalt Not commit adultery. Yet . . . Joseph had a law written on his heart. Such law instructing him how he should act in his particular case. Nor did he need others telling him how he should act. That was when the Lord reminded me of what Paul wrote in Romans 2:14-15:



The Lord reminded of the EXISTENCE of laws (although not written LIKE the Law Covenant on stone or papyrus), but rather written on the hearts of people, SUCH THAT a person can indeed live a life with laws written on their hearts (with no necessity of stone tablets or papyrus or any other writing medium) instructing them how to live their lives with godly fear and devotion.

Do ALL people have the law written on their hearts? No, of course not. But those who do, know it, and, hopefully, appreciate it, and thus, make better choices for themselves and their loved ones. And no other outside person need “teach” such laws to another as these laws are already written on one’s heart. Reminds me of Jeremiah 31 about the New Covenant where it says no one need teach another about laws written on hearts because Jah will write them on each individual’s heart so that all, from the least to the great, will be instructed in law by Jah Himself.

Again, PEACE!

--Armand