Jealousy in humans can have devastating results. When it shows up amongst us, jealousy has an element of ‘suspicious care’ to it.
Jealousy has a blinding effect in humans, keeping us from seeing the whole truth.
The elder brother from the parable of the prodigal son is a good example of this (Luke 15). The elder brother was continually with the father, which demonstrates fatherly love in one way. But when the prodigal returned and the father showered him with more obvious, conventional displays of affection, the elder brother mistrusted his father’s feelings for him. The elder brother took his father’s presence for granted, further showing how jealousy can so blind us to what we have that we become filled with unspeakable ingratitude.
The Difference between God’s Jealousy and Ours
The jealousy of God differs dramatically from human jealousy. A key difference is that humans can be envious—an aspect of jealousy—but God cannot. God envies no one. If he did it would mean that he was lacking in some way. God is perfect (Matthew 5:48). He owns everything. Even if he had needs, he wouldn’t tell us about them (Psalm 50:12).
Humans can be envious—an aspect of jealousy—but God cannot.
King Saul aptly demonstrates how unhinged jealousy can be when envy is amplified. Saul had all the natural and spiritual advantages expected of a king. Yet a ruddy-cheeked youth by the name of David bested him at every turn. Understandably, Saul was irked, to the point of repeatedly hounding David’s steps in a bid to eliminate the competition. What is baffling is that Saul did all these wild things knowing full well that God was on David’s side (1 Samuel 18:28). Again, jealousy has a blinding effect in humans, keeping us from seeing the whole truth while leading us astray.
So, it seems that one thing that provokes humans to jealousy is seeing advantages conferred on someone else. But what provokes the Creator God to jealousy? Simply put: idolatry (1 Corinthians 10:22; Deuteronomy 32:16, 17).
God is Rightly Jealous for Our Devotion
The backdrop for God’s righteous jealousy is his relationship with Israel, his chosen people (Deuteronomy 32:9-12). When the Bible speaks of God being jealous it is usually in this context. He is described as the nation’s husband (Isaiah 54:5), making Israel’s repeated forays into idolatry akin to adultery—just read Hosea. Ezekiel uses very colourful language to paint this picture. In every instance of idolatry, Israel wandered from the one true God, despising his prophets and worshipping gods of their own imaginations (2 Chronicles 36:16; Hosea 4:12).
What provokes the Creator God to jealousy? Idolatry.
Rightly provoked by this transgression, God dealt with his people accordingly. The beauty of God’s jealousy is that even in his dealings with Israel, he demonstrated patience. After blessing them with his presence and favour (Numbers 6:25, 26), God promised to hide his face from Israel as punishment for their idolatry (Deuteronomy 32:20). After making them a chosen people, God promised to adopt and include another people, other than ethnic Israel (Deuteronomy 32:21).
Humans provoked to jealousy tend to be suspicious or envious. God’s response to provocation was to withdraw his presence, in judgment. Simultaneously God showed his affection and special care to others. So God’s jealousy ultimately has a great deal of generous redemption within it. He was provoked by Israel’s idolatry, but non-Israelites reaped an eternal benefit— a saving knowledge of the one true God.
