Deceitful and Wicked

What can we know about our hearts?

In Jeremiah 17:5-11 “Thus says Yahweh, “Cursed is the person who trusts in humankind and makes flesh his strength, and turns aside his heart from Yahweh. And he will be like a juniper in the wilderness, and he will not see when good comes, and he will dwell in the parched places in the desert, in a land of salt flats, where no one lives. Blessed be the person who trusts in Yahweh, and Yahweh is his trust. For he will be like a tree planted by water, and to the stream it sends its roots, and it will not fear when heat comes, and its leaves will be luxuriant, and in the year of drought it will not be anxious, and it will not cease from the bearing of fruit. The heart is deceitful more than anything else, and it is disastrous. Who can understand it? I, Yahweh, examine the mind, I test the heart, and give to each one according to his way, according to the fruit of his deeds. Like a partridge that hatches eggs it did not lay is one who amasses wealth without justice. In the middle of his days it will leave him, and at his end he will prove to be a fool.”

God is speaking and giving commentary on how it is exceedingly deceitful. Does this mean that we, ourselves, have difficulty understanding our own hearts. Is there a disconnect between our heart and flesh?

The Hebrew words used for (1) “mind” and (2) “heart”, in the LEB are literally equivalent to (1) “heart” and (2) “kidneys”. To me this calls to mind the sacrifices in the Law and, in the context of the ancient Hebrew audience, would likely call to mind the sacrifices outlined in Leviticus 3-5. What an interesting picture of judgement and offering to the Lord. There is such an emphasis placed on the fat surrounding the kidneys and livers and the organs themselves in the sacrifices.

How does that color and shade the passage in Jeremiah 17:9-10?

God is the tester of the quality of our innermost being. God sees clearly and judges righteously.