The Architecture of the Heart: Deceit vs. Delight Text: Proverbs 12:20
Introduction: Two Blueprints for the Soul
The book of Proverbs is a book of stark contrasts. It is not a book for those who like to live in the mushy middle, blurring the lines that God has drawn with such sharp, architectural precision. Over and over, Solomon sets before us two paths, two kinds of people, two destinations. There is the wise man and the fool, the righteous and the wicked, the diligent and the sluggard. And here, in our text, we are presented with two kinds of hearts, which function as the respective headquarters for two entirely different operations. One is a dark room where evil is meticulously planned, and the other is a council chamber where peace is crafted.
Our culture wants to tell us that the heart is a sentimental, squishy thing, a valentine to be followed wherever it may lead. But the Bible treats the heart as the command center of a man's life. It is the source of all his thoughts, words, and deeds. As Jesus said, "out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks" (Matt. 12:34). What is down in the well of the heart will eventually come up in the bucket of life. This proverb, then, is not giving us a bit of folksy wisdom about interior decorating. It is giving us a foundational diagnostic of the human condition. It is showing us the blueprints for two kinds of souls, and the inevitable emotional payload that each design delivers.
The first heart is a crooked workshop, a place of shadows and whispers, where evil is devised. The second is a place of open counsel, where peace is the project, and the result is gladness. We must understand that these are not two equally valid lifestyle choices. One is the way of death, characterized by the internal misery of deceit. The other is the way of life, characterized by the robust joy that accompanies godly counsel. The world is full of people who are miserable because they are constantly scheming, and it is full of Christians who have lost their joy because they have forgotten that their central business is to be ambassadors of peace.
This proverb forces us to ask a fundamental question: what is my heart manufacturing? Is it a factory for grievances, plots, and selfish strategies? Or is it a garden where peace is cultivated? The emotional state of your life is a direct report on the kind of work being done in your heart.
The Text
Deceit is in the heart of those who devise evil,
But counselors of peace have gladness.
(Proverbs 12:20 LSB)
The Crooked Workshop (v. 20a)
We begin with the first half of the contrast:
"Deceit is in the heart of those who devise evil..." (Proverbs 12:20a)
The word for "deceit" here is mirmah. It carries the sense of treachery, fraud, and falsehood. It is not just a simple lie; it is a settled state of dishonesty that has taken up residence. And where has it taken up residence? In the heart. This is crucial. The problem is not out there; it is in here. The issue is not a slip of the tongue but a corruption of the central processing unit.
And what is this deceitful heart doing? It is "devising evil." The Hebrew word for devise, charash, means to plow, to engrave, to fabricate. It is a craftsman's word. This is not a picture of someone who stumbles into sin by accident. This is the man who gets out his tools, clears his workbench, and meticulously plots out how to do wrong. He plows the field of his mind with wicked thoughts, preparing the soil for a harvest of destruction. He is an artisan of iniquity.
This is the essence of a fallen heart. It is not just that it does evil things; it is that it schemes them. It thinks them up. It marinates in them. This is the man who rehearses the angry conversation in his head before he has it. This is the woman who nurses a grudge, polishing it daily until it gleams. This is the employee who figures out how to cut corners, the husband who plans how to conceal his sin, the church member who strategizes how to undermine the elders. They are all plowing evil.
And the necessary, inseparable companion to this activity is deceit. Why? Because evil cannot operate in the light of day. It requires a smokescreen. The man who devises evil must first lie to himself. He must tell himself that his cause is just, that his anger is righteous, that his lust is harmless, that his bitterness is warranted. He re-labels his sin to make it palatable. Covetousness becomes "ambition." Gossip becomes "concern." Rebellion becomes "standing up for what's right." This internal deceit is the anesthetic that allows the heart to perform surgery on reality without flinching.
This is a miserable way to live. A heart full of schemes is a heart full of turmoil. It is a restless, suspicious, and anxious heart. It is always looking over its shoulder, always keeping its stories straight, always managing the narrative. There is no rest for the wicked because they are always busy plowing.
The Council of Peace (v. 20b)
The contrast could not be more stark. We move from the dark, solitary workshop of the evil-deviser to the bright, open work of the peacemaker.
"...But counselors of peace have gladness." (Proverbs 12:20b LSB)
Notice the shift from "devising" to "counseling." Devising evil is a solitary, secretive activity. But counseling for peace is inherently relational. It involves giving wise, shalom-producing advice. Shalom, or peace, is not merely the absence of conflict. It is a positive state of wholeness, righteousness, and flourishing. It is the way things are supposed to be. A counselor of peace is someone whose words and actions are aimed at restoring things to the way they are supposed to be.
This is the man who, instead of plotting revenge, seeks reconciliation. This is the woman who, instead of spreading gossip, speaks a word that heals a rift. This is the friend who advises you to confess your sin, not cover it up. They are not peace-keepers at any price; they are peace-makers. A peace-keeper will ignore sin to avoid a fight. A peace-maker will confront sin in order to achieve true, biblical peace. As Paul says, "If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men" (Rom. 12:18). This requires wisdom, courage, and a heart set on God's order, not man's comfort.
And what is the result of this work? Gladness. The Hebrew word is simchah. This is not a superficial happiness that depends on circumstances. This is a deep, abiding joy. It is the delight that comes from being aligned with the character of God, who is the God of peace. Jesus pronounces a benediction on such people: "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God" (Matt. 5:9). To be a son of God is to bear the family resemblance, and our Father is in the business of reconciliation. He made peace through the blood of His cross (Col. 1:20).
Why does this work produce gladness? Because it is creative work that mirrors the work of God. The deviser of evil is a de-creator; he brings chaos and disintegration. The counselor of peace is a co-creator with God; he brings order and wholeness. There is a profound satisfaction, a deep-seated joy, in being used by God to put things right. The deceitful heart is cramped and twisted, but the heart of a peacemaker is expansive and joyful.
The Gospel Connection
This proverb is a diagnostic tool, but without the gospel, it is a tool that only leads to despair. For when we look honestly into our own hearts, which one do we find? Do we find a pristine council chamber of peace? Or do we find a workshop with some very shady projects underway in the back corner?
The Bible is clear that by nature, "the heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick" (Jeremiah 17:9). Our native inclination is to be devisers of evil. We are all, by birth, skilled craftsmen in the art of self-justification and sin-plotting. We are born with a deceitful heart that is constantly plowing furrows of rebellion against God.
This is why we need a new heart. This is why we need the gospel. The good news is not that we can renovate our crooked workshop into a council chamber through sheer effort. The good news is that God, through the work of Jesus Christ, performs a heart transplant. Through the new birth, He takes out the heart of stone, the deceitful, evil-devising heart, and He gives us a heart of flesh (Ezekiel 36:26).
Christ is the ultimate counselor of peace. He is the Prince of Peace. He did not devise evil against us, though we deserved it. Instead, He devised a plan of peace, a plan of reconciliation between a holy God and sinful men. And He accomplished this peace by taking all our deceit and all our evil upon Himself on the cross. He absorbed the chaos we create so that He could give us the shalom we desperately need.
Therefore, the Christian life is the process of learning to operate out of this new heart. When we find ourselves back in the old workshop, devising evil, nursing a grudge, or plotting a selfish course, we must repent. We must confess that we are acting like the old man we once were. To confess our sin is to drag it out of the deceitful darkness of the heart and into the light of God's truth. And when we confess, He is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us (1 John 1:9). He forgives us, and He restores to us the joy, the gladness, that is the birthright of every true counselor of peace.
So, look at your heart. What is on the workbench? If you find deceit and evil plans, do not despair. Take them to the cross. Abandon the crooked work of a rebel artisan. And take up the glad work of a son of the King, the joyful business of making peace.