The term "desperately" is often associated with a sense of urgency, extreme need, or hopelessness. In the context of the Bible, it is frequently linked to the condition of the human heart and the need for divine intervention.

Biblical Usage and Context

The most notable use of the term "desperately" in the Bible is found in the book of Jeremiah. Jeremiah 17:9 states, "The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure—who can understand it?" The King James Version adds, "desperately wicked," highlighting the profound moral and spiritual corruption inherent in humanity. This verse underscores the biblical perspective that the human heart, in its natural state, is in dire need of redemption and transformation by God.

The Human Condition

The Bible consistently portrays the human heart as flawed and in need of God's grace. The use of "desperately" in Jeremiah 17:9 emphasizes the severity of this condition. It suggests that without divine intervention, humanity is incapable of achieving true righteousness or understanding its own depravity. This aligns with the broader biblical narrative that emphasizes the necessity of a Savior to redeem and renew the human heart.

Desperation and Divine Intervention

Throughout Scripture, moments of desperation often precede divine intervention. For example, in the account of the Israelites' exodus from Egypt, their desperate cries for deliverance were heard by God, leading to their liberation (Exodus 2:23-25). Similarly, in the New Testament, individuals in desperate situations, such as the woman with the issue of blood (Mark 5:25-34) or the blind beggar Bartimaeus (Mark 10:46-52), received healing and restoration through their faith in Jesus Christ.

Spiritual Implications

The concept of being "desperately" in need is not limited to physical or emotional circumstances but extends to the spiritual realm. The Bible teaches that recognizing one's desperate need for God is a crucial step toward salvation. In the Beatitudes, Jesus declares, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 5:3). This poverty of spirit reflects an acknowledgment of one's desperate need for God's grace and mercy.

Prayer and Desperation

Prayer is often depicted as a response to desperation in the Bible. The Psalms, in particular, are filled with prayers of lament and cries for help from those in dire situations. Psalm 34:17 assures believers, "The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears; He delivers them from all their troubles." This verse highlights the biblical promise that God responds to the desperate prayers of His people.

Conclusion

The biblical use of "desperately" serves as a reminder of the human condition and the need for divine intervention. It calls believers to recognize their own limitations and to seek God's grace and mercy in times of need. Through faith and prayer, the Bible assures that God hears and responds to the cries of the desperate, offering hope and redemption.(adv.) In a desperate manner; without regard to danger or safety; recklessly; extremely; as, the troops fought desperately.2371. thumomacheo -- to fight desperately
... to fight desperately. Part of Speech: Verb Transliteration: thumomacheo Phonetic
Spelling: (thoo-mom-akh-eh'-o) Short Definition: I am furiously angry with ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/2371.htm - 6k

2139. euperistatos -- easily encircling
... what is encompassing (encircling), ie surrounding, "wholly around"; (figuratively)
a serious hindrance that "" (hampers) someone who desperately needs to ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/2139.htm - 7k

605. anash -- to be weak, sick
... root Definition to be weak, sick NASB Word Usage desperately sick (1), incurable
(6), sick (1), woeful (1). desperately wicked, incurable, sick, woeful. ...
/hebrew/605.htm - 6k

How Solomon Grew Rich, and Fell Desperately in Love with Women and ...
... CHAPTER 7. How Solomon Grew Rich, And Fell Desperately In Love With Women And How
God, Being Incensed At It, Raised Up Ader And Jeroboam Against Him. ...
/.../josephus/the antiquities of the jews/chapter 7 how solomon grew.htm

The Deceitfulness of the Human Heart
... Third Series Sermon 123 The Deceitfulness of the Human Heart. "The heart of man
is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: Who can know it?" ...
/.../wesley/sermons on several occasions/sermon 123 the deceitfulness of.htm

The Great Change
... So desperately set was this Ephraim upon going after her idols that God had much
ado to drag her away from them, for that second chapter continues, "Therefore ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 42 1896/the great change.htm

"The Carnal Mind is Enmity against God for it is not Subject to ...
... "The heart is deceitful above all things," as well as "desperately wicked," two
things superlative and excessive in it, bordering upon an infiniteness, such as ...
/.../binning/the works of the rev hugh binning/sermon xxi the carnal mind.htm

Manasseh
... very face. He was a desperado in sin, and went to the utmost limit of it, being
very bold, and desperately set on mischief. Now, whether ...
//christianbookshelf.org/spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 2 1856/manasseh.htm

"They have Corrupted Themselves; their Spot is not the Spot of his ...
... them; there was not such a heart in them as to hear and obey, but they undertake,
being ignorant of their own deceitful hearts, which were desperately wicked. ...
/.../binning/the works of the rev hugh binning/sermon iv they have corrupted.htm

Concerning the Condition of Man in the Fall.
... [191] Secondly, This appears clearly from that saying of the prophet Jeremiah, chap.
xvii.9. The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked. ...
/.../proposition iv concerning the condition.htm

Vespasian, when He had Taken the City Gadaea Marches to Jotapata. ...
... up every way for an exit; which thing making the Jews despair of escaping, excited
them to act more boldly; for nothing makes men fight so desperately in war ...
/.../chapter 7 vespasian when he.htm

Marks of a True Conversion
... The Lord Jesus Christ knew this full well; he knew how desperately wicked and deceitful
men's hearts were; he knew very well how many would go to hell even by ...
/.../whitefield/selected sermons of george whitefield/marks of a true conversion.htm

The Death of the Master and the Death of the Servant
... We need not be passive in death; we need not, when it comes to our turn to
die, cling desperately to the last vanishing skirts of life. ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture the acts/the death of the master.htm

Desperately (2 Occurrences)
... (adv.) In a desperate manner; without regard to danger or safety; recklessly; extremely;
as, the troops fought desperately. ...Desperately (2 Occurrences). ...
/d/desperately.htm - 7k

Despair (23 Occurrences)
...Desperately in Jeremiah 17:9 the King James Version, where the heart is said to
be "desperately (ie incurably) wicked" or "sick.". Multi-Version Concordance ...
/d/despair.htm - 14k

Desperate (8 Occurrences)

/d/desperate.htm - 9k

Deadly (31 Occurrences)
... 2. (a.) Aiming or willing to destroy; implacable; desperately hostile; flagitious;
as, deadly enemies. 3. (a.) Subject to death; mortal. ...
/d/deadly.htm - 17k

Despicable (5 Occurrences)

/d/despicable.htm - 8k

Mortally (17 Occurrences)
... 3. (adv.) In an extreme degree; to the point of dying or causing death; desperately;
as, mortally jealous. Multi-Version Concordance Mortally (17 Occurrences). ...
/m/mortally.htm - 11k

Agonize (1 Occurrence)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary 1. (vi) To writhe with agony; to suffer violent anguish.
2. (vi) To struggle; to wrestle; to strive desperately. ...
/a/agonize.htm - 6k

Jonah (30 Occurrences)
... cast him overboard. The heathen mariners rowed desperately to get back
to land, but made no progress against the storm. They then ...
/j/jonah.htm - 35k

Manasseh (140 Occurrences)
... All this, which to the matured prophetic sense was headlong wickedness, was the
mark of a desperately earnest soul, seeking blindly in this wholesale way to ...
/m/manasseh.htm - 68k

Heart (1223 Occurrences)
... 51); and "hardened" (Exodus 4:21); "wicked" (Proverbs 26:23); "perverse" (Proverbs
11:20); "godless" (Job 36:13); "deceitful and desperately wicked" (Jeremiah ...
/h/heart.htm - 49k

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