Green Eyed Monster

So just how jealous are you? There on page 26 of your Managing Your Moods book you see a list of some things which sometimes cause jealousy within us toward others, especially other women. Just what kind of things can we be jealous of: "We resent this one"s bigger house or that one's new car. We wonder why some women are so wise, poised and articulate. This one is pretty. That one has the perfect career. This one has such polite children, That one has so many friends"...........etc, etc. etc. You can fill in the blank "I'm jealous of her because ___________."

So what's the result of letting are hearts become so full of jealousy toward another? According to Proverbs 14:30 (pg 26, #1) it is "rottenness to the bones." One translation even says it is like "cancer to the bone." Sounds like jealousy is a whole lot more destructive than we ever realized, especially when we let our jealous thoughts get a grip on us. They become destructive to us when they consume our hearts and minds on a regular basis.

If we don't deal with our jealousy toward other people or even other things we become like the pharisees mentioned in Luke 11:39 (pg 27 #2):

Then the Lord said to him, “You Pharisees are so careful to clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are filthy—full of greed and wickedness!

We too work really hard on cleaning the outside but neglect working on the inside, essentially the heart. Using the same dishwashing analogy let's consider for ourselves what it would be like to finish a delightful bowl of chili and a glass of milk. Picking up our dinner dishes we then take them to the sink where we take a rag and gently clean the outside of our dinner bowl and drinking glass then carefully place them back in the kitchen cabinet, giving not a thought to thoroughly cleaning the inside with soap and water. Not only would this be disgusting the next time you reach for those some dishes for your next meal but it could be potentially harmful to your stomach. The same is true according to our Lord in regards to our hearts. We must spend adequate time cleaning the inside of our hearts by allowing God to search them and reveal our jealousies or other sin. Otherwise that sin becomes disgusting and destructive.

Jealousy is destructive in two ways:

1. As mentioned above, if left unchecked it will eat at us, thereby creating a wedge in our relationship with God.
2. If acted upon it will bring destruction not only on us but on those closest to us like in Proverbs 15:27 where jealousy breeds a greed to the point of illicit gain.

At the risk now of losing you all together we are going to take a deeper look at the word jealous in the Bible. It will seem a bit confusing muddling through the definitions at first but if you will see it through to the end it will make sense.

In the Hebrew in the Old Testament we see the word jealous (envy) defined as:

[qana’ /kaw•naw/] v 1 to envy, be jealous, be envious, be zealous. 1A1 to be jealous of. 1A2 to be envious of. 1A3 to be zealous for. 1A4 to excite to jealous anger. 1B to provoke to jealous anger, cause jealousy.

One scripture example of the word jealous in the Old Testament is Genesis 37:11
So his brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the matter in mind. This speaks of Joseph whose brothers were so jealous of him because of their father's favoritism toward him that they sold him to a traveling caravan. Then they lied to their father that he'd been killed by a wild beast.

In the Greek in the New Testament jealous is defined as:

[zeloo /dzay•lo•o/] v. 1 to burn with zeal. 1A to be heated or to boil with envy, hatred, anger. 1A1 in a good sense, to be zealous in the pursuit of good. 1B to desire earnestly, pursue. 1B1 to desire one earnestly, to strive after, busy one’s self about him. 1B2 to exert one’s self for one (that he may not be torn from me). 1B3 to be the object of the zeal of others, to be zealously sought after. 1C to envy.

An example of a New Testament scripture here is from James 3:14-16:
But if you are bitterly jealous and there is selfish ambition in your heart, don’t cover up the truth with boasting and lying. For jealousy and selfishness are not God’s kind of wisdom. Such things are earthly, unspiritual, and demonic. For wherever there is jealousy and selfish ambition, there you will find disorder and evil of every kind.

Obviously in these two examples jealousy is a very negative and destructive emotion.

Now let's look at a word which, in the original Hebrew. is identical to jealous and in the Greek is almost identical. The word is zealous. Take a look below and compare it with the definitions above of jealous.

Hebrew - Old Testament

[qana’ /kaw•naw/] v. 1 to envy, be jealous, be envious, be zealous. 1A (Piel). 1A1 to be jealous of. 1A2 to be envious of. 1A3 to be zealous for. 1A4 to excite to jealous anger. 1B (Hiphil) to provoke to jealous anger, cause jealousy.

Greek – New Testament

[zelotes /dzay•lo•tace/] n m. 1 one burning with zeal, a zealot. 2 used of God as jealous of any rival and sternly vindicating his control. 3 most eagerly desirous of, zealous for, a thing. 3A to acquire a thing, (zealous of). 3B to defend and uphold a thing, vehemently contending for a thing.

In our English language we see these two words jealous and zealous so differently but years ago they were one and the same which is how they remain in our Bible today.

In 1 Kings 19: 10 & 14 most translations read that Elijah was "zealous for the Lord" but could easily be translated "jealous for the Lord". The same is true in 1 Peter 3:13 where we are encouraged to "be zealous for what is good". This could easily read "be jealous for what is good".

Confusing isn't it? I myself had a hard time getting my brain to reconcile these two seemingly different words which according to God's word are the same. Then my confusion was compounded when I read this in Exodus 20:5:

"You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods."

More searching brought up:

"You must worship no other gods, for the Lord, whose very name is Jealous, is a God who is jealous about his relationship with you." Ex 34:14

and

The Lord your God is a consuming fire; he is a jealous God.
Dt 4:24

Now I was really stumped. What exactly was the thread that tied jealous to zealous and ran right through a jealous God? The answer, which took some time to come to, was desire. Deep within each of us we desire certain things. That desire is not necessarily bad unless that desire lies outside of God's perfect will. In essence it is the object of our desires and its consuming of our attention which makes our jealousy (or zealotry) bad. If I am jealous/zealous for the things or people of the world more than God, desiring them with consuming passion, then that is sin. But if I am jealous/zealous for Him then that is righteous and what He desires for us.

The fact that God is jealous for us as indicated in the scriptures above shows us that He wants nothing to come between Him and His children. He loves us with a jealous love. In fact we are the apple of His eye according to Deuteronomy 32:10 and Zechariah 2:8. Some would argue those scriptures are strictly for the Israelites. However, when we give our lives to Christ, trusting Him fully for salvation then we belong to Him. We, along with all others who put their trust in Him, become his children, his people.

So yes, sweet sister, you are the apple of God's eye, His cherished possession. He has his eyes and heart focused squarely on you. He loves you with a jealous love and desires for you to reciprocate that love back to Him. That is why He will not tolerate sin in your life.

So what are you jealous/zealous for today? Is it Him? Or is it the things and ways of the world. Is it relationships? Our Jealous God will allow nothing or no one to come between Him and you. So I encourage you today to take a step into God's throne room. Ask Him to reveal to you those things which keep you from loving Him with jealous/zealous love. As you confess those things one by one with a genuine desire to lay them down you will find yourself taking one step closer to a deeper intimacy with Him. I know it is what He desires. The question is, is it what you desire?


Finish your lesson today by returning to Luke 10:38-42 (pg 29 #6). As you read back through this short but powerful lesson on Mary and Martha, consider what these two women were each jealous/zealous for. What was each of their individual desires? Then ask yourself three questions:

Which one of these two women am I most like today?

Which one do I most want to be like?

And what steps will I take today to become like her?