God’s jealousy towards Israel

A jealous and avenging God is the LORD; The LORD is avenging and wrathful. The LORD takes vengeance on His adversaries, And He reserves wrath for His enemies. Nahum 1:2

God’s jealousy is covenantal

The first time we have a statement about God’s jealousy is in the giving of the commandments.

“You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God…” Exodus 20: 4-5a

There are other references to God being a jealous God in the context of a warning against idolatry (which is a betrayal of the covenant).

For you shall not worship any other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God Exodus 34:14

“So watch yourselves, that you do not forget the covenant of the LORD your God which He made with you, and make for yourselves a graven image in the form of anything against which the LORD your God has commanded you. “For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God. Deuteronomy 4: 23-24

You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God
Deuteronomy 5:9

You shall not follow other gods, any of the gods of the peoples who surround you, for the LORD your God in the midst of you is a jealous God… Deuteronomy 6: 14-15a

God could demand exclusive worship because He was the God the truly loved Israel. God's demand for exclusive worship isn't arbitrary or authoritarian. Deuteronomy 6:4–5, often considered the heartbeat of Israel’s faith, links monotheism with love:

“Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD is one! “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. Deuteronomy 6: 4-5

God’s jealousy is relational

Yahweh’s oneness is not just a theological truth. It demands a relational response. Israel is called to love God because He first loved them:

For you are a holy people to the LORD your God; the LORD your God has chosen you to be a people for His own possession out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth. “The LORD did not set His love on you nor choose you because you were more in number than any of the peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples, but because the LORD loved you and kept the oath which He swore to your forefathers, the LORD brought you out by a mighty hand and redeemed you from the house of slavery, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. Deuteronomy 7: 6-8

The gods of the other nations were often transactional. But Israel’s God acted in love & grace before asking for worship. His exclusive demand is not coercive, but covenantal:

He chose Israel out of love.
He redeemed them from slavery.
He dwelled among them in faithfulness.

Because of this, Israel’s worship was to be exclusive, holistic, and joyful, out of gratitude and love.

God’s jealousy is protective

God’s jealousy is not petty or insecure. It is the passion of a lover who refuses to share what is meant to be exclusive. Like a faithful husband, God’s jealousy protects the covenant.

His jealousy was provoked by idolatry and injustice, and was expressed in prophetic warnings and judgement.

God’s jealousy towards the church

God’s love is not only expressed but even amplified in the New Testament. Just like Israel, we were also chosen in Christ and redeemed by His love; ever before we were given a commandment to obey.

For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5: 6-8

Out of gratitude, we must live our entire lives for Him.

I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me. Galatians 2:20

For the love of Christ compels us, since we have reached this conclusion, that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all so that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for the one who died for them and was raised. 2 Corinthians 5: 14-15

God does not want anything that stands in the way of our complete devotion to Him.

Too long, please open your Bible 2 Corinthians 11: 2-4

God’s jealousy is for our benefit

They rejected his statutes and his covenant he had made with their ancestors and the warnings he had given them. They followed worthless idols and became worthless themselves, following the surrounding nations the LORD had commanded them not to imitate. 2 Kings 17:15

Idols do not love us or care for us. The more we pursue them, the less human we actually become.