Having quoted from the Old Testament the writer now applies the message to today. We are to guard against having a "sinful, unbelieving heart". Unbelief is sin, and we need to guard the condition of our hear. As it says in Proverbs 4:23 we should guard our heart above all things for it is the wellspring of life.
The first way of doing this that he mentions is to encourage one another. When we are discouraged we are more prone to sin's deceitfulness. Now it is clearly best to never be discouraged, and we can reduce the number of times we feel discouraged by encouraging each other. Never draw back from discouraging someone else, it is always good to be encouraged, and to encourage someone else. However, there will still be times when we become discouraged. In those times we must be on our guard, knowing that our heart and mind will lie to us. We must have a healthy distrust of thoughts and feelings that we have in those times.
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