Greek word · Strong's G2588

καρδία

kardía · noun · “heart”

In a sentence

Kardia is the heart — in the Bible the control center of a person: mind, will, and emotion together. It is what God examines and what he renews.

When Scripture speaks of the “heart” it rarely means feelings alone. The kardia is the inner core where thinking, choosing, and desiring meet — the real self beneath the surface. “Out of the heart come” the things that defile or bless (Matthew 15:18–19).

That is why God looks on the heart rather than outward appearance, and why the new covenant promises a new heart. Discipleship is finally a matter of the heart: “Guard your heart, for from it flow the springs of life” (Proverbs 4:23).

Strong's reference

Definition: the heart, i.e. (figuratively) the thoughts or feelings (mind); also (by analogy) the middle

KJV usage: (+ broken-)heart(-ed)

Reference gloss from Strong's Concordance (1890, public domain).

Key verses BSB · Public Domain (CC0)

Proverbs 4:23 “Guard your heart with all diligence, for from it flow springs of life.” Matthew 22:37 “Jesus declared, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’” Jeremiah 17:9 “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?”

Original BibleDawn word study. Original-language data and the public-domain Strong's (1890) gloss are referenced; see sources.