The Word - It Pierces Us

In previous posts, we’ve seen the Word of God is alive, active, powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword. But what are swords intended to do? Pierce. And yes, this powerful Word that is the life-force of our faith and the person of Jesus Christ pierces us—deeply and eternally.

“For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” Hebrews 4:12 (KJV)

The Amplified translation offers even more insight into the word meanings here:

For the Word that God speaks is alive and full of power [making it active, operative, energizing, and effective]; it is sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating to the dividing line of the breath of life (soul) and [the immortal] spirit, and of joints and marrow [of the deepest parts of our nature], exposing and sifting and analyzing and judging the very thoughts and purposes of the heart.

The word translated "pierce" or "penetrate" is diikneomai, which means "to go through, to reach through; i.e. penetrate--pierce". It comes from two words: dia, meaning "through" and hikanos, which has the meaning of competent, ample, or sufficient, or enough. Hebrews 4:12 is the only place in Scripture where the word dikkneomai appears.

What does the Word of God pierce? The KJV says "even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart." And the Amplified further explains "the dividing line of the breath of life (soul) and [the immortal] spirit, and of joints and marrow [of the deepest parts of our nature], exposing and sifting and analyzing and judging the very thoughts and purposes of the heart.

This implies that in our very core and nature, there are things that need exposing—things that need to be brought to light; intentions, thoughts, desires, purposes. And these things can be exposes and understood not through our own reasoning but only through the Word of God.

Psalm 119:130 tells us the entrance of God’s words brings light. Light is a beautiful thing, but it exposes bad and good alike. Shine light into a dark place, and you'll see things you want to see--and things you don't.

In the next post, we'll dive into some of the things the Word of God exposes as is pierces us to the core.