God’s holy jealousy
Series: Holy – Holy – Holy | Bible text: Exodus 34:14, Exodus 20:1–13, Exodus 4:24, Isaiah 9:6, John 2:13–25
God introduces himself as «the jealous one». When it comes to the people of Israel, God cannot tolerate them following another God. For he has chosen them for himself. The holiness and jealousy of God belong close together. Because the people of Israel are supposed to be holy, God’s jealousy hits them when they become unfaithful to God. God’s jealousy seeks us human beings. In Jesus Christ, God comes close to us and intercedes for us.
Jealousy always has a negative connotation in our ears. Jealousy is not an attribute of which we are proud or which we like to hear from others. Yet God himself describes himself as a jealous God. Today we want to go on a journey of discovery about God’s jealousy.
God’s name is «the jealous one».
The people of Israel lived in Egypt for four hundred years. Then they moved out from there and approached the Promised Land. On the way, God gives them some instructions on how to organise their life with each other and also life as God’s holy people. But the land of Canaan is not an uninhabited area; various peoples had already settled there before. The instructions God gives there are hardly imaginable for us today. For the local peoples are to be driven out, and some even killed. The reason for this is that these peoples put their hope in other gods than the God of the Bible. The order to expel the previous inhabitants is followed by the reason. «For you shall worship no other God. For the LORD, whose name is «The Jealous One», is a jealous God.» (Ex 34:14 SLT). In Hebrew, the root «qn» » means to envy, to be jealous of, to envy, to envy or to make jealous. Depending on the context and usage, the meaning can move in one of several directions inherent in the root. In this verse here, two words occur which have the root «qn» ». Hence the doubling in German. God’s name is on the one hand «the jealous one», on the other hand this is also a description of His nature. Not only is he jealous, but he is also jealous in his actions. In the context of the verse at hand, God’s jealousy is shown in the fact that he wants them to worship him alone. It makes him jealous when they seek salvation from other gods. Just as I get jealous when my son Hosea is away from me for too long, God wants his people to be with him. He wants them to worship him alone as their God.
What does this statement of God is jealous do to you? Maybe it just fits into the image you have of God. An image of aggressive, inaccessible or at least incomprehensible. But it could also be that this description of God upsets you. Jealousy is really not a positive quality. But this is not directly true. Because with us, jealousy is always negative, but there is ONE good jealousy – God’s jealousy. If jealousy is understood positively, then it denotes passionate devotion to something that rightfully belongs to one. This is the case with the people of Israel. God chose this people for himself. «For you are a holy people; you belong entirely to the LORD. He has chosen you out of all the peoples of the world to be his own.» (Deut. 14:2 HfA). Therefore, God is jealous when his people do not worship him. God does not want honour to go to anyone else but Him. Is God then selfish? No, absolutely not. If he is truly God, the author of everything and himself above everything, then he cannot give honour to anyone else but himself! Just as the people of Israel belong to him, so does the honour.
God is jealous
God’s jealousy is also a basis for his decisions. For the journey from Egypt to the Promised Land, Moses was appointed as a guide. He presided over the Israelites, brought them from Egypt to the borders of Canaan and led them through the desert for forty years. But he himself was not allowed into the Promised Land. Moses» misconduct is described as the reason for this. The Israelites were travelling in the desert (Exodus 20:1–13) and once again they complained to Moses. This time there was a lack of drinking water. So Moses, together with his brother Aaron, went to the tent of meeting and asked God for advice. He instructed them to take a staff from the sanctuary and go with it to a rock. When they arrived at the rock, they were to speak to the stone and God would make water flow from it. But what did the two do? «Afterwards, he and Aaron made the people gather before the rock. Listen, you stubborn people,» Moses shouted, «what do you mean? Will we give you Let water spring from this rock?» And Moses lashed out and struck the rock twice with the staff. Then water gushed out, so that all the Israelites and their livestock had enough to drink» (Exodus 20:10–11 NLB). God gave the order to speak to the rock, but Moses struck it. Thus he disobeyed God and, even more seriously, he deprived him of the opportunity to show himself to his people. The consequence? Moses and Aaron were not allowed into the Promised Land. All these years, God did not change his mind. Moses is allowed to look at the land from a hill, but shortly afterwards he will die. The reason for this harsh decision follows immediately. «For you both disobeyed me before the Israelites at the waters of Meribah-Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin. There you failed to make the Israelites see my holiness. Therefore you shall see the land which I give to the Israelites only from afar, but you shall not enter it» (Deut. 32:51–52 NLB).
The holiness and jealousy of God are closely related. For holiness means being set apart. When God chooses a people, a group or individuals, he wants them to be set apart from the rest, who have not been chosen. That these two things belong together is shown by another story from the Old Testament. Moses was succeeded by Joshua. He led the people into the Promised Land and helped to take large parts of it. At the end of his life, he made a covenant between the people of Israel and God. In this context, he makes a clear and severe warning. «Joshua then said to the people, «You cannot serve the LORD, for he is a holy and jealous God. He will not forgive your rebellion and sin.» (Joshua 24:19 NLB). If the people turn to other gods, there will be devastating consequences – the destruction of the whole nation. Quick side note: This threat of consequences does not sound at all like how we would invite people to live with God. Yet it achieves the same goal. The people consent to the covenant with God. They say yes to a holy and jealous God. God’s people are his people and they belong to no one else. The jealousy of God is not without danger for the one who meets it and nothing can withstand it. «For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, he is a jealous God!» (Deut. 4:24 NLB). The jealousy of God destroys everything and leaves nothing.
God’s zeal seeks us humans
The Old Testament was written in Hebrew and over time a full translation of it was made into Greek. This is called the Septuagint. It is the same with the Greek as it is with the New Testament. I find it exciting to see which word is used in the Septuagint and where it is used in the New Testament. For the words with the Hebrew root «qn» », words with the Greek root «zeo» are used. What is exciting is that in its basic meaning this has nothing to do with zeal, jealousy or envy. It has to do with an everyday activity – cooking. «zeo» means to cook, to be hot or to glow. Therefore, the German expression kochen vor Wut (to boil with rage) is not a bad fit. If we want to cook, there must be energy. Something that is certainly not lacking in zeal and jealousy. The meanings of «zeo» are not fundamentally negative. We could even go so far as to say «God glows for people». For in his zeal God seeks us human beings. Already the prophet Isaiah promises a Prince of Peace in the Old Testament. «His reign is great and the peace on the throne of David and in his kingdom will be endless. He establishes and sustains it for all time through justice and righteousness. This is what the LORD Almighty will work for enduringly» (Isaiah 9:6 NLB). The Schlachter Bible translates the last sentence as follows. «[…] The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this!» (Isaiah 9:6 SLT). This promised Prince of Peace is Jesus Christ. God’s zeal for us human beings was the reason for the mission of Jesus Christ. He went all out for us and died on the cross.
During his lifetime, Jesus intervened for people so that they could meet God. I would like to highlight one incident as an example. This is particularly significant because we see Jesus angry on the one hand, and on the other hand he stands up for the non-Jews (John 2:13–25). Jesus came to Jerusalem for a festival and went into the temple there. This had different areas. On the inside was the Holy of Holies, then the Holy of Holies and after that there were different courts. It was always precisely defined up to where which group of people was allowed to go. At the very end was the so-called Court of the Gentiles. Non-Jews were allowed to go as far as there. This area was not sacred for the religious leadership of the time. Therefore, it was most likely used as a market place. For people came from all over to offer their sacrifices. So that they did not have to travel hundreds of kilometres with the animals, they could buy them on the spot. But so that they could also pay with the right currency, there were also money changers. So this forecourt was filled with all kinds of practical stalls: Cattle dealers, pigeon sellers and money changers. But now comes a scene which, for many, does not fit into the concept of a loving Jesus who sacrifices himself for everyone. For he makes a whip out of rope and drives out all the animals, traders and money changers. He hurls the money on the ground and overturns the moneychangers» tables. «Then the disciples remembered the prophecy from Scripture: «The passion for your house burns within me».» (John 2:17 NLB). This quotation comes from Psalm 69:10 and there is a word for passion with the root «qn» ». The zeal and passion of God is closely related to His jealousy. While zeal and passion is the positive direction of the same coin, God’s jealousy is shown when something goes against God’s holiness and honour.
But what happened there in the temple courtyard? Jesus Christ made room for you there! He wanted the gentiles to be able to come into God’s presence unhindered. In all the hustle and bustle of the marketplace, this was simply impossible. But Jesus cleared the way. With zeal, Jesus Christ seeks us people and intercedes for us. It is the same zeal that drove Jesus to open the way to God, as well as to close the way for Moses into the Promised Land. He wants us to worship no other gods, in whatever form. He wants us to follow him alone. «For you shall worship no other God. For the LORD, whose name is «The Jealous One», is a jealous God.» (Ex 34:14 SLT).
Possible questions for the small group
Bible text read: Exodus 34:14; Deuteronomy 20:1–13; John 2:13–25
- What does the statement God’s name is «the jealous one» do to you? How do you imagine a jealous God?
- How could jealousy be understood positively if it is related to God?
- Describe the events of Exodus 20:1–14, what do you notice? Do you understand the «offence» of Moses and Aaron? What do you find difficult?
- God’s holiness and jealousy are closely related. Where do you see closeness? Where do you find it difficult?
- God searches for us humans with zeal. What is your response to this passionate search for you? What about other gods in your life?
- Can you classify the behaviour of Jesus Christ in the temple? What was new to you?
