“Do not worship any other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.” Exodus 34:14 NIV
We typically think of jealousy as being a bad trait, and for the most part it is. Our society contains many jealous people. It seems to me that the wealthier countries have a bigger problem with it than impoverished countries. We have exposure to so much whereas they have exposure to so little.
We know some people possessed by the jealous monster, and their thinking, words, and actions are oftentimes sad, petty, and unnecessary. We’ve seen men who are jealous of other men’s possessions like houses, boats, cars, and big boy toys. Likewise, we’ve known women who are jealous of other women who have better marriages, live in nicer homes, and have more money. Both sexes demonstrate jealousy over others’ spouses and their perceived attractiveness, education, personality, achievements, social standing, etc.
Quite frankly, I don’t get it. This kind of jealousy is evil and brings out the worse in people. It requires violation of some of the Ten Commandments such as covetousness–never a good idea.
We humans suffer from the bad type of jealousy. It’s a disease that eats people from the inside out. Left unaddressed, it can destroy a person’s peace-of-mind and love-of-life. How could anyone for one single second think that God would be pleased with this kind of human jealousy?
However, there is another version that is holy. The Bible speaks of it many times. It’s the jealousy that God has for His people and His desire for them to live in righteousness with Him. We know that He has a jealousy for Jerusalem, for the Jewish people, for us, too! He demonstrated such on numerous occasions by punishing those who aroused his jealousy, such as the people who worshiped false gods. Even King Solomon, the richest and wisest man on earth by a long shot, messed up big time in this regard!
God is perfect in holiness, and we simply don’t measure up. Our sin, our rebellion, our inadequacies, separate us from Him. However, in spite of our own unholiness, we have the redemptive grace of Jesus Christ that enables us to approach Him.
Not a day goes by that we shouldn’t thank and praise God for His amazing grace and plan of salvation. Without it we are utterly and completely doomed, because the Lord’s name is Jealous.
Prayer: Thank you, God, for Your grace. Amen.