How Could God Be Jealous?

"This great minister was preaching on how great God was and how omniscient and omnipresent and God is everything and then he said, ‘the Lord thy God is a jealous God.’ I was caught up in the rapture of that moment until he said ‘jealous,’ and something struck me. I was like twenty-seven or twenty-eight and I’m thinking, ‘God is all. God is omnipresent. And God is also jealous?’ God is jealous of me? And something about that didn’t feel right in my spirit… and that is where the search for something more than doctrine started to stir within me."
-Oprah Winfrey

Once she stumbled over the thought of God being jealous...Oprah left the knowledge of His Word so she could formulate her own doctrines. Sadly, this has ended up leading a lot of people astray and blinding their eyes to the truth about the nature of God. Ironically, Oprah's misunderstanding of God's jealousy has actually led her to develop another target for God's jealousy!

What do I mean by this? Let me explain.

Is Jealousy A Bad Thing?

Proverbs 6:34 "For jealousy is a husband's fury..."

Exodus 20:5 "For I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God..."

2 Corinthians 11:2 "For I am jealous for you with a godly jealously."

First, let's set the record straight: Not one time is jealousy spoken of as a bad thing in the Bible! There may have been times in Scripture when, in its unrestrained form, jealousy caused men to do foolish things....but the concept of jealousy itself is never called evil. Most of the time, jealousy is simply spoken of as natural - as if "that's just the way it is."

We know that jealousy can't be an evil thing in itself. How could I say that? Because God calls Himself jealous! If He's a jealous God...then obviously jealousy isn't wrong! Actually, if you'll look back to 2 Corinthians 11:2, you'll see that there is such a thing as "godly jealousy."

This is probably new to a lot of people. In fact, today may be the first time you've ever heard this. It's shocking to say that jealousy isn't wrong...but that's because a lot of us have a lack of knowledge. It's actually the same misunderstanding that led Oprah astray; we've confused envy with jealousy. 

Envy is a sin. There's never a time when it's right, because it clearly violates the 10th commandment.

But jealousy is not only permissible...there are actually times when it's righteous.

What's the difference?

Envy is when you crave what belongs to someone else. It's the desire to have something that's not yours.

Jealousy is the anger you have when someone you love is pulled away from you and seduced by someone else.

You see, I have no right to envy someone else's wife. But if another man begins to monopolize my wife's time, and I see her start to pull away from me, my love for her will start producing jealousy. That is righteous. That is not a sin (as long as it doesn't drive me to act foolishly).

This is what the Bible refers to when it says God is jealous of us!

A Wonderful Picture Of God's Love

There are only two types of jealousy mentioned in the Bible.

The first is inside the relationship of a husband and wife. This is what Proverbs 6:34 refers to; "For jealousy is a husband's fury; therefore he will not spare in the day of vengeance." If you'll look at this verse in context, you'll see a very clear warning against committing adultery with a married woman. In this passage, you'll discover that God is not the only one you'll have to answer to if you take someone's wife....And her husband may not be as forgiving as God is! Why? Because the man is jealous for her!

Does a husband have a right to be jealous for his wife? Of course he does! This isn't about domineering or controlling her...it's about his love for her. I'm jealous for my wife because I love her. And should some poor soul try to take her from me....they may just feel how much I love her!

The other time jealousy is mentioned in the Bible is inside of God's relationship with His people. This is interesting, considering God is often pictured as a husband and His people referred to as a wife. 

This relationship is found in the Old Testament.
Isaiah 54:5 "For your Maker is your husband, the Lord of hosts is His name; and your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel; He is called the God of the whole earth."

And it hasn't changed in the New Testament.
Ephesians 5:31-32 "'For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.' This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church."

Knowing this relationship, it becomes easy to see how God would be jealous for His people's affection. Any husband that loves his wife would become angry if she started giving her attention to another man. So how else would God feel about His people turning away from Him for other things?
All too often, His people give their trust to bankers, doctors, and careers.
All too often, they give their love to a person (at the expense of their love toward the Maker).
All too often, They'll give their attention to hobbies, recreation, and their own lives.
And as this happens, they'll often find themselves drawing away from the Lord.

Whenever things like this begin to pull us away from the God who loves us, of course He's going to be jealous for us! And that's a good thing! No husband that truly loves his wife would just stand still and let her be stolen away. And no God that loves His people would be passive when they are being pulled away from Him.

So how could a good God be jealous? Because He loves you! 

The Fire of Yahweh

Deuteronomy 4:24 "For the Lord your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God."

Love and jealousy go hand-in-hand. The stronger a husband's love for his wife, the stronger the jealousy he'll have for her. The more a husband wants time with his wife, the less he'll tolerate someone trying to steal that time away. 

Strong love = Strong jealousy

Now apply this principle to God, Who is love. No other love is stronger than His; and no other jealousy can even compare. This is why His jealousy is often compared to a fire. You see this most clearly in Song of Solomon 8:6, "Set me as a seal upon your arm, as a seal upon your arm; for love is as strong as death, jealousy as cruel as the grave; its flames are flames of fire, a most vehement flame."

That last phrase "a most vehement flame" means much more than what it first appears to be. The literal translation is "the very fires of Yahweh."

The fire of God isn't just a divine power that moves into a church service. It's not just a feeling you get when the worship goes right on Sunday morning. No, the fire of God is a manifestation of His jealousy....not against you, but for you! The fire of God shows up as God steps in to win you back. It's designed to destroy the things that were trying to steal you away. 

Look at when the fire came down in 1 Kings 18, on top of Mount Carmel. Israel was dividing their affections between Baal and the one true God....and God had enough of it. In front of the entire nation, Elijah prayed "turn their hearts to you again!" As soon as he said that, God immediately answered him in the fire of His jealousy. 
Literally - that fire burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the water.
Symbolically - that fire consumed everything that was trying to take His people away from Him.

Friends...God's is an intense love. This is love like you've never realized before. He wants you - all of you. And He will burn up anything that stands in His way. This may seem uncomfortable at first, but take the time to think about it:
How amazing it is for us to be loved so fiercely by someone so powerful!