To act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight. In Jeremiah 29:11, the Hebrew word is machashavah (H4284): a thought worked out: an intention, a plan. Strong’s says it can be a bad plan, a plot, or a good one, advice. It comes...
Get DeepWordWhat the original says
Behind the word “plans” in this verse is the Hebrew word machashavah (said mah-khah-shah-VAH).
It means a thought worked out: an intention, a plan. Strong’s says it can be a bad plan, a plot, or a good one, advice. It comes from chashav, ‘to think’, and that verb is in the same line: word for word, ‘the plans that I am planning’.
This form, hammachashavot, has ‘the’ (הַ) in front and is plural: “the plans”. The LORD uses the word twice in the verse: “the plans I have for you” and “plans to prosper you”.
In the Berean Standard Bible, it is ‘thought’ or ‘thoughts’ 16 times, ‘plan’ or ‘plans’ 12 times, and ‘scheme’ 6 times. The “plans” of Proverbs 19:21, later in this question, are this word:
Word by word
| יָדַעְתִּי | אֶת | הַמַּחֲשָׁבֹת | אֲשֶׁר | אָנֹכִי | חֹשֵׁב | עֲלֵיכֶם | נְאֻם | יְהוָה |
| I know | — | the · thoughts | that | I | am thinking | toward · you | declares | the LORD |
Original form
What this tells us
Jeremiah writes a letter “to all the exiles who were carried away from Jerusalem to Babylon” (Jeremiah 29:4). He tells them to settle in: “Build houses and settle down. Plant gardens and eat their produce” (Jeremiah 29:5). And he tells them how long: “When Babylon’s seventy years are complete, I will attend to you” (Jeremiah 29:10). Seventy years is longer than most of them would live. The word for “plans” is machashavah: a thought worked out, an intention. The LORD uses it twice: “the plans I have for you” and “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, to give you a future and a hope.” His plan for them was real while they were still far from home, in a city they had not chosen. The promise goes on: “You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:13). Christians read this verse in different ways: some keep it to the exiles it was first written to, others hear in it God’s heart for his people in every age, and many hold both. Either way, the plan comes inside a long wait, not instead of it. Joseph said something similar about his own hard years: “what you intended against me for evil, God intended for good” (Genesis 50:20). If you are waiting for God’s plan to show itself, this verse does not promise that it will be quick. It promises that he has not stopped planning good for his people.
What the original says
Behind the word “will” in this verse is the Greek word thelēma (said THEL-ay-mah).
It means what someone wants or has decided: a will, a choice. Strong’s says it comes from thelō, ‘to want, to will’.
This form, thelēma, is a noun. Paul describes it with three words: “the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.”
In the Berean Standard Bible, it is ‘will’ 58 times, as in “Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10):
Word by word
| δοκιμάζειν | ὑμᾶς | τί | τὸ | θέλημα | τοῦ | θεοῦ |
| to prove | you | what | the | will | of the | God |
Original form
What this tells us
Paul has spent eleven chapters on what God has done in Christ, and he ends that part of the letter with praise: “For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things” (Romans 11:36). Now he turns to how to live, starting with the whole self: “offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God” (Romans 12:1). The word for “will” is thelēma: what someone wants or has decided. Paul does not describe God’s will as a hidden code to crack. He calls it “the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God”, and he says it is something you come to recognize: you “test and approve” it as your mind is renewed. So knowing God’s will is less like finding a secret map and more like learning someone’s heart over many years of living close to them. Jesus taught his disciples to pray, “Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10), and Paul writes elsewhere, “understand what the Lord’s will is” (Ephesians 5:17). Christians often speak of God’s will in two senses, his plans for the world and his will for how we live; this verse is mostly about the second. If you are anxious about missing God’s will, this verse points you to something you can begin today: letting your mind be renewed, so that what he wants becomes something you can recognize.
What the original says
Behind the word “require” in this verse is the Hebrew word darash (said dah-RASH).
It means to seek, to look for, to ask for. Strong’s gives its first sense as ‘to tread or frequent’: to keep going after something.
This form, doresh, describes the LORD as the one seeking: “what does the LORD require of you”. Then come three things: to act, to love, and to walk.
In the Berean Standard Bible, it is ‘seek’ 56 times, ‘sought’ 14 times, ‘inquire’ 33 times, and ‘require’ 5 times:
Word by word
| וּמָה | יְהוָה | דּוֹרֵשׁ | מִמְּךָ | כִּי | אִם | עֲשׂוֹת | מִשְׁפָּט | וְאַהֲבַת | חֶסֶד |
| and · what | the LORD | seeks | from · you | but | only | to do | justice | and · love of | mercy |
Original form
What this tells us
Micah 6 opens like a courtroom: “For the LORD has a case against His people” (Micah 6:2). God asks, “My people, what have I done to you?” (Micah 6:3). The people answer with a question of their own: “With what shall I come before the LORD when I bow before the God on high?” (Micah 6:6). Their offers grow bigger and more desperate: “thousands of rams”, even “Shall I present my firstborn for my transgression” (Micah 6:7). The word for “require” is darash: to seek, to ask for, to keep going after something. God is not looking for a bigger sacrifice. What he seeks has already been shown: “He has shown you, O man, what is good.” And it comes in three parts: “to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God”. Jesus said much the same when he called “justice, mercy, and faithfulness” the “weightier matters of the law” (Matthew 23:23). Think of a parent who does not want an expensive present, but wants their child to come home and be kind to their brother. Micah’s three are not a ladder to climb. They are a way of walking, and the last words hold the other two together: with your God. When you ask what God wants of your life, this verse does not hand you a job title or a city. It gives you three things you can begin this week.
Read every verse in the original Hebrew and Greek, in the app
Tap any word to see its meaning, lexicon entry, and every other place it appears.
Download on the App StoreWhat the original says
Behind the words “make your paths straight” in this verse is the Hebrew word yashar (said yah-SHAR).
It means to be straight, level; and in this form, to make straight: he will make your paths straight.
This form, yeyashsher, means ‘he will make straight’. The word for “acknowledge” is yada, ‘know’: word for word, ‘in all your ways know him’.
In the Berean Standard Bible, it is ‘please’ in some form 8 times, of something that seems right to someone, and ‘straight’ 4 times, as in “make a straight highway for our God” (Isaiah 40:3):
Word by word
| בְּכָל | דְּרָכֶיךָ | דָעֵהוּ | וְהוּא | יְיַשֵּׁר | אֹרְחֹתֶיךָ |
| in · all | ways · your | know · him | and · he | will make straight | paths · your |
Original form
What this tells us
Proverbs 3 opens like a parent talking to a grown child: “My son, do not forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments” (Proverbs 3:1). These two verses sit at the center of that talk, and the verse after them adds a warning: “Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and turn away from evil” (Proverbs 3:7). The word behind “straight” is yashar: to be straight, level, and here to make straight. The promise is “He will make your paths straight.” The condition before it is about trust, not about having every answer: “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding”. Word for word, the reader is told to know him in all their ways. A straight path is not always a short one or an easy one. It is a path that gets you where you need to go, without needless wandering. Another proverb puts it this way: “A man’s heart plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps” (Proverbs 16:9). And a psalm says, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105): a lamp, not floodlights, enough light for the next step. You do not have to see the whole road to take the next step. This verse asks for your trust in all your ways, and it promises that the LORD will make the path straight.
What the original says
Behind the word “counsel” in this verse is the Hebrew word yaats (said yah-ATS).
It means to advise, to give counsel.
This form, i’atsah, means ‘I will counsel’. Word for word the line is ‘I will counsel, upon you my eye’: counsel given with his eye on you. The Berean puts it as “I will give you counsel and watch over you.”
In the Berean Standard Bible, it is ‘counselor’ or ‘counselors’ 21 times, ‘advise’ 9 times, and ‘counsel’ 6 times:
Word by word
| אַשְׂכִּילְךָ | וְאוֹרְךָ | בְּדֶרֶךְ | זוּ | תֵלֵךְ | אִיעֲצָה | עָלֶיךָ | עֵינִי |
| I will instruct · you | and · I will teach · you | in · the way | which | you go | I will counsel | upon · you | eye · my |
Original form
What this tells us
Psalm 32 begins with the relief of being forgiven: “Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered” (Psalm 32:1). David tells how it happened: “I acknowledged my sin to You and did not hide my iniquity” (Psalm 32:5). Then, in this verse, the LORD himself begins to speak. The word for “counsel” is yaats: to advise, to give counsel. God does not forgive and then leave a person to find their own way. He offers to teach: “I will instruct you and teach you the way you should go”. Word for word the last line is ‘I will counsel, upon you my eye’: advice given by someone who keeps watching you as you go. The next verse gives the contrast: “Do not be like the horse or mule, which have no understanding; they must be controlled with bit and bridle” (Psalm 32:9). Think of the difference between a guide who walks beside you and a rope that drags you. God offers to be the guide. And the psalm ends with what surrounds the one who trusts: “loving devotion surrounds him who trusts in the LORD” (Psalm 32:10). Guidance here comes after forgiveness, from someone who already has his eye on you. What would it mean to ask for his counsel as someone who has already been forgiven?
What the original says
Behind the word “purpose” in this verse is the Hebrew word etsah (said ay-TSAH).
It means advice, counsel, and so a plan or a purpose. Strong’s says it comes from yaats, the word you met in Psalm 32:8.
This form, va’atsat, is ‘and’ with ‘counsel of’: “but the purpose of the LORD”. The word for “plans” at the start of the verse is machashavah, the “plans” of Jeremiah 29:11.
In the Berean Standard Bible, it is ‘counsel’ 36 times, ‘plan’ or ‘plans’ 16 times, and ‘advice’ 11 times:
Word by word
| רַבּוֹת | מַחֲשָׁבוֹת | בְּלֶב | אִישׁ | וַעֲצַת | יְהוָה | הִיא | תָקוּם |
| many | plans | in · heart of | a man | and · counsel of | the LORD | it | will stand |
Original form
What this tells us
This is one of many short sayings in Proverbs that set human plans beside God’s. The verse just before it says, “Listen to counsel and accept discipline, that you may be wise the rest of your days” (Proverbs 19:20). Then this one draws a line between our planning and his. The word for “purpose” is etsah: counsel, advice, and so a plan or a purpose. It comes from yaats, the verb for giving counsel that you met in Psalm 32:8. People have “Many plans”; the LORD has a purpose, and it “will prevail”. The contrast is not between planning and not planning, but between many plans and the one purpose that stands. This is not a warning against making plans. Another proverb says, “Commit your works to the LORD and your plans will be achieved” (Proverbs 16:3). James says to plan with an open hand, saying “If the Lord is willing, we will live and do this or that” (James 4:15). Think of drawing up a route for a trip and holding it loosely, ready to take a better road if one opens. Your plans matter, and so does the purpose that will outlast them. This verse can make your planning lighter, not heavier: what prevails in the end is the LORD’s purpose, not your ability to get everything right.
What the original says
Behind the word “purpose” in this verse is the Greek word prothesis (said PROTH-eh-sis).
It means a setting forth: a plan laid out ahead. It is also the word for the bread set out before God in the tabernacle.
This form, prothesin, comes after kata, ‘according to’: “called according to His purpose”.
In the Berean Standard Bible, it is ‘purpose’ 4 times and ‘plan’ 2 times:
Word by word
| τοῖς | κατὰ | πρόθεσιν | κλητοῖς | οὖσιν |
| to the | according to | purpose | called | being |
Original form
What this tells us
Paul has just admitted something surprising: “For we do not know how we ought to pray, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans too deep for words” (Romans 8:26). Right after what we do not know comes something he says we do know: “And we know that God works all things together for the good of those who love Him”. The word for “purpose” is prothesis: a setting forth, a plan laid out ahead of time. The same word is used for the bread set out before God in the tabernacle. Paul says believers are “called according to His purpose”: they are part of something God laid out before they arrived. Paul does not say that all things are good. In the same chapter he names “trouble or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword” (Romans 8:35). He says God works all things together for good, the way a weaver works dark threads into a pattern. The next verse says what that good is: to be “conformed to the image of His Son” (Romans 8:29). And the chapter ends with a promise that nothing “will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:39). If something in your life looks only dark, this verse does not ask you to call it good. It says God is still at work in it, for the good of those who love him.
Behind "plan" are 15 different words
Your English Bible says "plan" 47 times. Behind it stand several Hebrew and Greek words:
Reflect
Read it as yours
Micah 6:8 is for anyone wondering what God wants. Read it slowly:
Name it
What decision are you anxious about? Write it down. Then write one way you can act justly, love mercy, or walk humbly this week, whatever you decide.
Carry with you
Proverbs 3:6 says “in all your ways acknowledge Him”. Which of your ways have you not brought to him yet?
A note
If worry about your future is weighing on you, you’re not alone. Talking with a pastor or counselor can help.