angela hormberg

Tag: Heart

  • Proverbs 10:20

    Proverbs 10:20

    The Worth of the Just and the Wicked

    Commonplace –

    “The tongue of the just is as choice silver: the heart of the wicked is little worth” (Proverbs 10:20).

    In Proverbs 10:20, Solomon again unites two familiar subjects: the tongue and the heart. Here we learn “the tongue of the just is as choice silver”. Silver is wealth, so the words of the just are like riches, while “the heart of the wicked is little worth”, like poverty. Recalling previous verses in chapter 10, we remember that our words originate in our heart. As Jesus said,

    “A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh” (Luke 6:45).

    Circling back to Proverbs 10:20, we see that the heart of the just has good treasure, which the just man brings forth in his words. The heart of the wicked is worthless, so his words are worthless, too.

    Matthew Henry summarizes this proverb so well:

    “We are here taught how to value men, not by their wealth and preferment in the world, but by their virtue” (693).

    Works Cited

    Henry, Matthew. “Proverbs 10:20.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3 and Volume 6, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.

    Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.

    We'd love to hear from you!

    © 2025 Angela Hormberg

  • Proverbs 10:14

    Proverbs 10:14

    Laying up Knowledge

    Commonplace –

    “Wise men lay up knowledge: but the mouth of the foolish is near destruction” (Proverbs 10:14).

    So far in the first thirteen verses of Proverbs Chapter 10, Solomon has mentioned the mouth or lips six times, four times with a negative connotation and two times with a positive connotation.

    Negative References to mouth or lips:

    1. “violence covereth the mouth of the wicked” (10:6)
    2. “a prating fool shall fall” (10:8)
    3. “a prating fool shall fall” (10:10)
    4. “violence covereth the mouth of the wicked” (10:11).

    Positive References to mouth or lips:

    1. “the mouth of a righteous man is a well of life” (10:11)
    2. “In the lips of him that hath understanding wisdom is found” (10:13)

    In Proverbs 10:14, Solomon adds another negative reference to mouth or lips: “the mouth of the foolish is near destruction”. This brings the total references to mouth to seven in the first fourteen verses, which means half the verses are dealing with what we say, and, of those seven references, five of the seven are negative.

    Summary

    14 verses

    7 references to mouth or lips, 5 of which are negative

    Clearly, the takeaway is that our mouth can bring us trouble.

    If we take anything away from Solomon’s references to the mouth, it is a warning. This isn’t just a warning to watch what we say but to remember where our words come from: our heart. If we want our mouth to overflow with good things, we must fill our hearts with wisdom and knowledge. If we don’t take the time to store up good things, Matthew Henry warns we will become like the foolish, whose mouths are “near destruction, having the sharp arrows of bitter words always at hand to throw about” (692).

    Works Cited

    Henry, Matthew. “Proverbs 10:14.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3 and Volume 6, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.

    Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.

    We'd love to hear from you!

    © 2025 Angela Hormberg

  • Psalm 119: 89-96

    Psalm 119: 89-96

    Lamed

    Commonplace –

    “Unless thy law had been my delights, I should have perished in mine affliction.

    I will never forget thy precepts: for with them thou hast quickened me” (Psalm 119:92-93).

    Building on what we learned about Lamed in the last post, this section stays true to its title. In verses 92-93, we find David praising God for His word, which saved David from his “affliction” and which “quickened” him. Clearly, God’s word went straight to David’s heart. Lamed is about understanding with the heart. It’s also about action. David is fulfilling the true spirit of Lamed as a psalmist, using what he learns to teach others, while praising God all the while. David’s learning spurred him to action: writing and teaching others.

    In his writing on these verses, Matthew Henry notes, “

    “It was so now in [David’s] affliction; [God’s law] afforded him abundant matter of comfort, and from these fountains of life he drew living waters, when the cisterns of the creature were broken or dried up. His converse with God’s law, and his meditations on it, were his delightful entertainment in solitude and sorrow. A Bible is a pleasant companion at any time if we please” (Henry 577).

    Further, Henry states,

    “Ministers can prophesy upon the dry bones, they cannot put life into them; but, ordinarily, the grace of God works by the word and makes use of it as a means of quickening, and this is a good reason why we should never forget it, but should highly value what God has put such honour upon, and dearly love what we have found and hope still to find such benefit by. See here what is best help for bad memories, namely, good affections. If we are quickened by the word, we shall never forget it; nay, that word that does really quicken us to and in our duty is not forgotten; though the expressions be lost, if the impressions remain, it is well” (Henry 577).

    Works Cited

    Henry, Matthew. “Psalm 119.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.

    Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.

    © 2025 Angela Hormberg

  • Psalm 119:9-13

    Psalm 119:9-13

    Beth or Bet

    Commonplace –

    “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee” (Psalm 119:11).

    This verse struck me. The hiding of the Word of God in our heart is giving the Word a home in our heart, which is a beautiful reference to the meaning of this part of Psalm 119: Bet, which means house. Our heart is truly the safest place for God’s Word, because there we can recall it anywhere, anytime. “God’s word is a treasure worth laying up, and there is no laying it up safely but in our hearts; if we have it only in our houses and hands, our memories may fail us: but if our hearts be delivered into the mould of it, and the impressions of it remain on our souls, it is safe” (Henry 562).

    Henry comments on the second part of the verse are also noteworthy.

    “That I might not sin against thee. Good men are afraid of sin, and are in care to prevent it; and the most effectual way to prevent is to hide God’s word in our hearts, that we may answer every temtpation, as our Master did, with, It is written, may oppose God’s precepts to the dominions of sin, his promises to its allurements, and his threatenings to its menaces” (Henry 562).

    Works Cited

    Henry, Matthew. “Psalm 119.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.

    Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.

    © 2025 Angela Hormberg

  • Psalm 57

    Psalm 57

    Commonplace –

    “My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed: I will sing and give praise” (Psalm 57:7).

    This Psalm turns on this verse. David begins in prayer expressing his dire situation to God. Yet at verse 7, his attitude changes. He eyes are no longer set on the circumstances surrounding him but on God. As Matthew Henry notes:

    “How strangely is the tune altered here! David’s prayers and complaints, by the lively actings of faith, are here, all of a sudden, turned into praises and thanksgivings; his sackcloth is loosed, he is girded with gladness, and his hallelujahs are as fervent as his hosannas. This should make us in love with prayer, that, sooner or later, it will be swallowed up in praise” (369).

    It is at one and the same time a reminder to keep our hearts fixed on God continuing in prayer, and it is a praise that our hearts are fixed on God, our ever present help in trouble.

    Matthew Henry comments,

    “If by the grace of God we be brought into this even composed frame of spirit, we have great reason to be thankful” and “[i]t is implied that the heart is the main thing required in all acts of devotion; nothing is done to purpose, in religion, further than it is done with the heart. The heart must be fixed, fixed for the duty, fitted and put in frame for it, fixed in the duty by a close application, attending on the Lord without distraction” (369).

    Works Cited

    Henry, Matthew. “Psalm 57.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.

    Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.

    © 2025 Angela Hormberg