For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

MATTHEW 6:21KJV
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Matthew 6:21 (KJV)

What does Matthew 6:21 mean?

Matthew 6:21 says that whatever you value most—your “treasure”—will naturally draw your deepest attention, care, and desire, which is your “heart.” In other words, what you invest in or cherish most will shape what matters to you and where your focus in life truly lies.

In this verse, Jesus is speaking to a crowd during the Sermon on the Mount, teaching about priorities and the dangers of being overly focused on material wealth. He is urging his listeners to think carefully about what they treasure, because their inner life and motivations will follow whatever they hold most dear.

The Greek behind Matthew 6:21

  • θησαυρός (thēsauros): This word means “treasure” or “storehouse.” It refers not just to money, but to anything a person highly values or stores up. The verse is not limited to physical riches, but includes anything someone considers precious.
  • καρδία (kardia): Translated as “heart,” this Greek word often refers to the center of a person’s thoughts, feelings, and will—not just emotions, but the whole inner self. The verse is saying that your entire inner life is drawn toward what you treasure.

Why Matthew 6:21 matters

  • Matthew 6:21 clarifies that Jesus is not only warning against greed, but is also highlighting how our values shape our entire outlook and priorities.
  • This verse connects to the wider passage about storing up treasures in heaven rather than on earth, showing that spiritual priorities lead to a different kind of focus and fulfillment.
  • It helps clear up the misunderstanding that “heart” refers only to feelings; in the original context, it means the whole inner person—thoughts, desires, and decisions.

Where else these words appear

“treasure” Greek G2344 · used in 16 verses

  • Matthew 2:11 And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh.
  • Matthew 13:52 Then said he unto them, Therefore every scribe which is instructed unto the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which bringeth forth out of his treasure things new and old.
  • Luke 12:34 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

“where” Greek G3699 · used in 77 verses

  • Matthew 6:19 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:
  • Luke 9:57 And it came to pass, that, as they went in the way, a certain man said unto him, Lord, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest.
  • John 17:24 Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world.

“there” Greek G1563 · used in 98 verses

  • Matthew 2:13 And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.
  • Mark 6:10 And he said unto them, In what place soever ye enter into an house, there abide till ye depart from that place.
  • John 6:22 The day following, when the people which stood on the other side of the sea saw that there was none other boat there, save that one whereinto his disciples were entered, and that Jesus went not with his disciples into the boat, but that his disciples were gone away alone;