Jealousy

Is that particular uneasiness which arises from the fear that some rival may rob us of the affection of one whom we greatly love, or suspicion that he has already done it. The first sort of jealousy is inseparable from love, before it is in possession of its object; the latter is unjust, generally mischievous, and always troublesome.

WATERS OF. See ADULTERY.

See under ADULTERY. The idol of jealousy, Eze 8:3,5, is the same with Thammuz in Eze 8:14 . See THAMMUZ.\par

qana, ’to be inflamed.’ The warm affection that cannot bear to see its loved one enticed by another, as a man is jealous of his wife, Num 5:14; as Paul felt for the Corinthian saints, 2Co 11:2; and as God regarded the people and the land which He had chosen, and upon which He had placed His name. Psa 79:5; Eze 39:25; Joe 2:18; Zec 1:14; Zec 8:2. "Jehovah, whose name is jealous, is a jealous God." Exo 34:14.

Moses speaks of Jehovah provoking Israel to jealousy by their seeing Gentiles coming into blessing. Paul also sought to do the same that they might be saved. Deu 32:21; Rom 10:19; Rom 11:11; Rom 11:14.

THE IMAGE OF JEALOUSY, which provoketh to jealousy, was seen in a vision by the prophet, set up in the temple (Eze 8:3-5), as when Manasseh set up the graven image in the house of Jehovah, 2Ki 11:7; though doubtless by the scope of the prophecy reference is made to secret idolatry in connection with the service of the temple, and to secret idols in the hearts of those who were professedly the worshippers of God: such would assuredly provoke the jealousy of Jehovah.

THE LAW OF JEALOUSY, when a man suspected his wife of being unfaithful to him, is given in Num 5:11-31. The woman was required to drink bitter water, composed of ’holy water,’ in which was placed dust from the floor of the tabernacle (type of the Holy Spirit applying what death is, as God’s judgement of sin, by the word to the conscience). If she had been unfaithful it would be a curse to her. It pointed figuratively to the question of Israel’s unfaithfulness to Jehovah.

JEALOUSY.—This word is not used in the Gospels, though Joh 2:17 has ὅ ζῆλος τοῦ οἴκου σου = קנִאַת בֵּיתף (Psa 69:10) = ‘jealousy for thy house’; and one of Jesus’ disciples was Simon ὁ ζηλωτής (Luk 6:15, Act 1:13) = Simon ὅ Καναναῖος (Mar 3:18), a man who had belonged to that party in the Jewish State which was so jealous for the sole sovereignty of God in Israel that it regarded the recognition of any other (.g. by paying tribute to Caesar) as a form of treason. But the thing which the OT means by קנְאָה, in all its aspects, is everywhere present in the NT, and especially in the Gospels.

1. The jealousy of God in the OT is connected with the truth that He is God alone, and it is expressed mainly in two ways. First, in the exclusive claims which He makes for Himself: ‘Thou shalt have no other gods before me’ (Exo 20:3); ‘Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart,’ etc. (Deu 6:5); ‘I am the Lord, that is my name; and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise unto graven images’ (Isa 42:8). This exclusiveness or intolerance of God—His jealousy for Himself, as it may be called—pervades the OT. It is the source of that compulsion which He puts upon the human race to learn the most important lesson which the mind is capable of receiving, that there is one only, the living and true God. This is the presupposition not only of all uplifting religion, but of all science, and of all morality which rises above caste and convention; and what we see in the OT is the jealousy of God working monotheism into the constitution of a race who should impart it to the world. In this sense the jealousy of God is represented in the mind of Christ by the exclusive claims which He makes for Himself, and in the rest of the NT by the reiteration of these claims through the lips of His disciples. Sometimes the expression of it is informal: e.g. ‘He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me’ (Mat 10:37); or, ‘Blessed is he whosoever shall find none occasion of stumbling in me’ (Mat 11:6). Sometimes, again, it is quite explicit: ‘No one knoweth the Son save the Father; neither doth any know the Father save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son willeth to reveal him’ (Mat 11:27). In the Fourth Gospel this tone predominates, and there could not be more precise and formal expressions of the jealousy of God, as God is revealed in Christ, than are found, e.g., in Joh 1:18; Joh 8:24; Joh 14:6 (see art. Preaching Christ). This jealousy of God for Himself is echoed in passages like Act 4:12 (‘There is none other name,’ etc.), 1Co 3:11 (‘Other foundation can no man lay,’ etc.), Gal 1:8 f. (‘Though we or an angel from heaven should preach unto you any other gospel,’ etc.: the peculiarity of the Pauline as opposed to the Judaizing gospel being that it ascribed the whole of salvation to Christ alone, and did not share His glory with the Law), and 2Jn 1:9 f.

The second way in which the jealousy of God expresses itself in the OT is in God’s unreserved identification of Himself with His people. It is a jealousy for them, in which their cause is His, in which His honour (if such a word can be used in such a connexion) is touched if they are wronged, in which His love rises into passion, and takes on itself responsibilities for them of which they would not have dared to think. Sometimes this, too, is informally expressed: e.g. ‘He that toucheth you toucheth the apple of his eye’ (Zec 2:8). Sometimes it is quite explicit: e.g. the great Messianic promises of Isa 9:1 ff. are sealed in Isa 9:7 by ‘The jealousy of Jahweh of hosts shall do this.’ Cf. also the striking passage Zec 8:2 ff. All this is reproduced in the mind and words of Jesus. He is jealous for His people, especially for ‘the little ones’ (who, however, are not so much a class of Christians, as Christians generally—a weak and inconsiderable folk in ordinary eyes), and nothing that concerns them is alien to Him. The very slightest service done them has a reward solemnly assured to it (Mat 10:42); the sin of causing one of them to stumble is denounced with a passion which startles us still as we read (Mat 18:6); cf. art. Anger, 2 (a). The most thrilling illustration of this jealousy of Jesus for His ‘little ones’ is given in the Final Judgment: ‘Inasmuch as ye did it (or, did it not) to one of these least, my brethren, ye did it (or, did it not) unto me’ (Mat 25:40; Mat 25:45). Jealous love can go no further than this.

2. Since God, especially God revealed in Christ, is in this twofold sense a jealous God, it is clear that there must be in the Christian religion and character a corresponding intensity and passion. Christians ought to be jealous for Christ, sensitive to all that dishonours Him, and especially to all that degrades Him from the place which He claims, and which belongs to Him alone. The NT gives Him what He demands, the name which is above every name; and it is inconsistent with jealousy for Him to give Him only a name alongside of other names—to classify Him, as is often done, with prophets or religious heroes or founders of religions. Jealousy, no doubt, is apt to be a turbid virtue; the OT examples of it—Phinehas, Elijah, and Jehn—all illustrate this; and even in Christian history jealousy for Jesus as sole Lord and Saviour has often been confounded with zeal for a definition of one’s own making, or for the predominance of one’s own ecclesiastical or political faction. Of all virtues, it is the one which most readily calls the old man into the field to reinforce the new, a process which always ends in disaster. Nevertheless, it is the primary virtue of a Christian, just as the keeping of the first commandment was the primary virtue of a Jew.

3. Apart from their use in the sense of an ardent and exclusive devotion to God in Christ, and to the cause of Christ in His people (2Co 11:2), the associations of the words ζῆλος, ζηλοῦν in the NT are rather repellent. Sometimes ζῆλος is anger (Act 5:17), the Heb. קִנְאָה being at least once rendered θυμός in LXX Septuagint ; often it is envy (Act 13:45: so the verb Act 7:9, Act 17:5); in this sense, too, it is frequently combined with ἔρις (Rom 13:13, 1Co 3:3, 2Co 12:20, Gal 5:20); only rarely does it denote a keen and affectionate interest (2Co 7:7; 2Co 7:11). But this last sense is the one which is really congruous with the fundamental import of jealousy as the sense of self-respect and of honour in the God who is revealed in Christ as Love.

James Denney.

JEALOUSY.—The law of the ‘jealousy ordeal’ (in which a wife suspected of unfaithfulness had to prove her innocence by drinking the water of bitterness [‘holy water’ mixed with dust from the floor of the Tabernacle]) is found in Num 5:11-31. The conception of idolatry as adultery and of Jehovah as the Husband of Israel led the OT writers frequently to speak of Him as a jealous God (Exo 20:5, Deu 5:9, Jos 24:19, 1Ki 14:22, Psa 78:58, Eze 36:6, Nah 1:2). This jealousy is the indication of Jehovah’s desire to maintain the purity of the spiritual relation between Himself and His people. Extraordinary zeal for this same end is characteristic of the servants of Jehovah, and is sometimes called jealousy with them (2Co 11:2, Num 25:11; Num 25:13, 1Ki 19:10). A few times the word is used in a bad sense (Rom 13:13, 1Co 3:3, 2Co 12:20, Gal 5:20, Jas 3:14; Jas 3:16).

D. A. Hayes.

Jealousy is here taken to be synonymous with envy. It is defined to be a sorrow which one entertains at another’s well-being because of a view that one’s own excellence is in consequence lessened. Its distinctive malice comes from the opposition it implies to the supreme virtue of charity. The law of love constrains us to rejoice rather than to be distressed at the good fortune of our neighbour. Besides, such an attitude is a direct contradiction of the spirit of solidarity which ought to characterize the human race and, especially, the members of the Christian community. The envious man tortures himself without cause, morbidly holding as he does, the success of another to constitute an evil for himself. The sin, in so far as it defies the great precept of charity, is in general grievous, although on account of the trifling matter involved, as well as because of the lack of deliberation, it is often reputed to be venial. Jealousy is most evil when one repines at another’s spiritual good. It is then said to be a sin against the Holy Ghost. It is likewise called a capital sin because of the other vices it begets. Among its progeny St. Thomas (II-II:36) enumerates hatred, detraction, rejoicing over the misfortunes of one’s fellow, and whispering. Regret at another’s success is not always jealousy. The motive has to be scrutinized. If, for instance, I feel sorrow at the news of another’s promotion or rise to wealth, either because I know that he does not deserve his accession of good fortune, or because I have founded reason to fear he will use it to injure me or others, my attitude, provided that there is no excess in my sentiment, is entirely rational. Then, too, it may happen that I do not, properly speaking, begrudge my neighbour his happier codition, but simply am grieved that I have not imitated him. Thus if the subject-matter be praiseworthy, I shall be not jealous but rather laudably emulous.-----------------------------------JOSEPH F. DELANY Transcribed by Joseph P. Thomas In memory of Mrs. Maria Gahr The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume VIIICopyright © 1910 by Robert Appleton CompanyOnline Edition Copyright © 2003 by K. KnightNihil Obstat, October 1, 1910. Remy Lafort, S.T.D., CensorImprimatur. +John Cardinal Farley, Archbishop of New York

jel´us-i (קנאה, kin’āh; ζῆλος, zḗlos): Doubtless, the root idea of both the Greek and the Hob translated “jealousy” is “warmth,” “heat.” Both are used in a good and a bad sense - to represent right and wrong passion.

When jealousy is attributed to God, the word is used in a good sense. The language is, of course, anthropomorphic; and it is based upon the feeling in a husband of exclusive right in his wife. God is conceived as having wedded Israel to Himself, and as claiming, therefore, exclusive devotion. Disloyalty on the part of Israel is represented as adultery, and as provoking God to jealousy. See, e.g., Deu 32:16, Deu 32:21; 1Ki 14:22; Psa 78:58; Eze 8:3; Eze 16:38, Eze 16:42; Eze 23:25; Eze 36:5; Eze 38:19.

When jealousy is attributed to men, the sense is sometimes good, and sometimes bad. In the good sense, it refers to an ardent concern for God’s honor. See, e.g., Num 25:11 (compare 1Ki 19:10; 2Ki 10:16); 2Co 11:2 (compare Rom 10:2). In the bad sense it is found in Act 7:9; Rom 13:13; 1Co 3:3; 2Co 12:20; Jas 3:14, Jas 3:16.

The “law of jealousy” is given in Nu 5:11-31. It provided that, when a man suspected his wife of conjugal infidelity, an offering should be brought to the priest, and the question of her guilt or innocence should be subjected to a test there carefully prescribed. The test was intended to be an appeal to God to decide the question at issue. See ADULTERY; SACRIFICE.

Jealousy, as the translation of æῆëïò (vb. æçëüù, denotes the state of mind which arises from the knowledge or fear or suspicion of rivalry. (1) It is often begotten of self-love. Those who have come out of heathen darkness into Christian light should no longer walk in strife and jealousy (Rom_13:13), which are characteristics of the carnal or selfish mind (1Co_3:3). Bitter jealousy (æῆëïí ðéêñüí) and faction, in which rivals are ‘each jealous of the other, as the stung are of the adder’ (King Lear, v. i. 56f.), and exult over (êáôáêáõ÷ᾶóèå) every petty triumph achieved, are an antithesis of Christianity, a lying against the truth (Jam_3:14). Where jealousy and faction are, there is anarchy (ἀêáôáóôáóßá) and every vile deed (Jam_3:16). The Jewish opponents of the gospel were filled with jealousy, e.g. in Jerusalem (Act_5:17) and Pisidian Antioch (Act_13:45). ‘Jealousies’ (æῆëïé, 2Co_12:20, Gal_5:20) are the inward movements or outward manifestations of this un-Christian feeling.

(2) But the heat of jealousy (cf. ÷ðְàָä) is not always false fire. To the Corinthians St. Paul says, ‘I am jealous over you with a godly jealousy’ (æçëῶ ãὰñ ὑìᾶò èåïῦ æÞëῳ, 2Co_11:2), i.e. with a jealousy like that of God. In the OT Jahweh is the husband of Israel, loving her and claiming all her love; in which sense He is a jealous God. A somewhat similar jealousy is once ascribed to Christ (in Joh_2:17, æῆëïò, ‘zeal’); and St. Paul, who has betrothed the Corinthian Church to the Lord, and hopes to present her as a pure bride to Him, is jealous over her on His behalf, feeling the bare thought that she may after all give herself to another to be intolerable. Some take èåïῦ æÞëῳ to mean ‘with a zeal for God,’ but the context demands a stricter sense of the word.

James Strahan.

There are two aspects of jealousy in the Bible, one bad, the other good. Jealousy in the bad sense is envy – the feeling of resentment or hate that people have towards those who have more influence, power, ability, status, fame or possessions than they (Gen 30:1; Gen 37:11; 1Sa 18:8-9; Job 5:2; Psa 106:16; Mat 27:18; Act 5:17; 1Jn 3:12). Such jealousy is a characteristic of sinful human nature, but the Spirit of Christ and the power of love in a person’s life can overcome it (Pro 27:4; Rom 13:13-14; 1Co 13:4; Gal 5:21; Jas 3:14-16).

Jealousy in the good sense is the desire a person has for the well-being of someone he or she loves. It is a desire so strong that it demands faithfulness and opposes all that would tempt to unfaithfulness (Num 5:12-15; Pro 6:32-35). This is what the Bible means when it speaks of God being jealous for his people. He desires their faithfulness and has a deep concern for their well-being (Exo 20:4-5; Deu 6:15; Jos 24:19; Psa 78:58; Zec 1:14; 1Co 10:21-22; Jas 4:5).

Likewise the godly leader who is concerned for the spiritual progress of God’s people may speak of himself as being jealous for them (2Co 11:2). In the same way the person who is concerned to uphold the honour of God’s name is jealous for God (1Ki 19:10; Eze 39:25). Jealousy may therefore include the idea of zeal for all that is right and opposition to all that is wrong (Num 25:11-13; Deu 4:24; Nah 1:2; Joh 2:17; 2Co 7:11).