1

‫ אֵ ל ַקּנָא‬- El Kanah – The Jealous God – Ventures – June 13, 2010

In the forests of northern Europe and Asia lives a little animal called the ermine, known

for his snow-white fur in winter. His fur has traditionally been used in the white ermine capes

worn by royalty. He instinctively protects his white coat against anything that would soil it. Fur

hunters take advantage of this unusual trait of the ermine. They don’t set a snare to catch him,

but instead they find his home, which is usually a cleft in a rock or a hollow in an old tree. They

smear the entrance and interior with grime. Then the hunters set their dogs loose to find and

chase the ermine. The frightened animal flees toward home but doesn’t enter because of the filth.

Rather than soil his white coat, he is trapped by the dogs and captured while preserving his

purity. For the ermine, purity is more precious than life.1

You may wonder what this has to do with the topic of today’s lesson “The jealous God”.

We will get there.

When I first thought about this series on the names of God, I certainly began my list with

all the wonderful names we have and will be discussing – names that explain God’s character,

names that provide comfort or names that promise God’s care over our lives. Yet, as Gordon

already began to explain last week, God’s character is much more complex than just the attribute

of love. And it dawned on me that it might be really important to explore this particular part of

God’s character a bit more.

Why is this important? When I spent 10 days with my German girlfriend Sabine touring

Israel (just the two of us in a rental car), she turned to me one day and asked “I recently read

somewhere in the Bible about ‘fearing God’. Why should we fear God? I don’t understand.” It

dawned on me that nobody had ever appropriately taught her on the character of God. Having

grown up in a Lutheran state church in Germany, Sabine had only heard about God in the context
1
Galaxie Software, 10, 000 Sermon Illustrations (n.p.: Biblical Studies Press, 2002).
 2

of “God is love.” But is this the only part of God’s character? Let me make this a foregone

conclusion by saying no, it is not. Yet no one had taken the time to explain the character of God

fully to Sabine, so she struggled with why someone who loves God should fear Him.

I was recently asked by someone in a Bible study group about this as well as we were

studying the Tabernacle. Her concern was that she had now found a relationship with Jesus as

not only her Savior, but her Friend, and she was concerned that our studies had now endangered

this closeness she very much embraced since we were focusing so much on God’s holiness as

becomes apparent in the design of the Tabernacle. You may have asked yourself that question,

too. Have you wondered how those two mix? Doesn’t the seemingly stern character of God in

the Old Testament seem to clash with the loving concern by Jesus for people He engaged with?

So should we read more New Testament, when clearly Christians are called to love? Yet this

“character trait” of God appears not to be limited to the Old Testament, does it? The writer of

Hebrews writes, “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Hebrews 10:31).

We are going to spend quite a bit of time today crunching through verses and some key

concepts, so grab your Bibles and let’s start by taking a look at some of the key verses where the

adjective ”jealous” is used. In Hebrew, the terms are “kanah” - or “kanoh”, which is a very like

term – and it is used exclusively of God in the Pentateuch, i.e. the five books of Moses.

In Exodus 20:5 and continuing into 6: You shall not bow down to them or worship

them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the

fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a

thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments. The NET (New

English Translation, which I highly recommend for serious Bible study) says this about the

adjective “kanah”: “The word “jealous” is the same word often translated “zeal” or “zealous.”
 3

The word describes a passionate intensity to protect or defend something that is jeopardized.

Yahweh’s honor is bound up with the life of his people.”

Exodus 34:14 repeats: Do not worship any other god, for the LORD, whose name is

Jealous, is a jealous God. Again, the NET adds to our understanding in the translation note on

this verse, ”The use of ‘name’ here is to stress that this is in his nature, his character.”

In Deuteronomy 4:24: For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.

Again, the NET translation note offers tremendous insights into what exactly is meant here: “The

juxtaposition of the Hebrew terms ‫’( אֵׁש‬esh, “fire”) and ‫( ַקּנָא‬qanna’, “jealous”) is interesting in

light of Deut 6:15 where the Lord is seen as a jealous God whose anger bursts into a destructive

fire. For God to be “jealous” means that his holiness and uniqueness cannot tolerate pretended or

imaginary rivals. It is not petty envy but response to an act of insubordination that must be

severely judged.” Deuteronomy 5:9 and Deuteronomy 6:15 repeat that God is a jealous God.

In Joshua 24:19-20, Joshua tells the people this warning about God: “You are not able

to serve the LORD. He is a holy God; he is a jealous God. He will not forgive your rebellion

and your sins. If you forsake the LORD and serve foreign gods, he will turn and bring

disaster on you and make an end of you, after he has been good to you.” Kanoh, jealous.

Again.

In 1 Kings 19, Elijah encounters God and twice is asked by God “Why are you here,

Elijah?” to which he replies: “I have been very zealous for the LORD God Almighty.” The

word for “zealous” in the Hebrew is the same word we have already encountered translated

“jealous”, kanoh. The NET translates this as “I have been absolutely loyal to the LORD”. It

states in the translation notes that the form used here emphasizes the degree of his zeal and

allegiance to the Lord. So we can see a relationship between jealousy and loyalty here.
 4

In Ezekiel 39:25, God says “I will now bring Jacob back from captivity and will have

compassion on all the people of Israel, and I will be zealous for my holy name.” God is

shown to be very protective also of His own name – we will talk about this more later.

In Joel 2:18, God shows the same passion for His land: “Then the Lord will be jealous

for his land and take pity on his people.”

In Nahum 1:2-3, God’s jealousy is coupled with His wrath: “The LORD is a jealous

and avenging God; the LORD takes vengeance and is filled with wrath. The LORD takes

vengeance on his foes and maintains his wrath against his enemies. The LORD is slow to

anger and great in power; the LORD will not leave the guilty unpunished.” Ah, here we go

– that angry God we are worried about in the Old Testament. But let’s keep going.

In Zechariah 1:14: Then the angel who was speaking to me said, “Proclaim this word:

This is what the LORD Almighty says: ‘I am very jealous for Jerusalem and Zion.’ The NET

here translates, “I am very much moved for Jerusalem and for Zion.” The translation note in the

NET here says that the sort of jealousy God expresses here is one of “being protective of”, in

other words that Jerusalem is the special object of God’s grace and purposes and that He offers

His unusual protection, a protection not accorded others with whom he does not have such a

close relationship.

And finally in Zechariah 8:2, This is what the LORD Almighty says: “I am very

jealous for Zion; I am burning with jealousy for her.” The NET here translates “I am very

much concerned for Zion; indeed I am so concerned for her that my rage will fall on those who

hurt her.”

So we have heard that it is in God’s character to be protective or even defensive of His

people, His institutions and His honor, that He cannot tolerate even imaginary rivals. We have

seen an interplay of jealousy and loyalty. And we observed that this jealousy can produce wrath.
 5

However, we also saw that this is also the driving force behind protection and concern God

displays. God wants to protect what is rightly His.

What is God’s character then? David F. Wells in his book “God in the Wasteland”

describes God’s character in this way: “Holiness fundamentally defines the character of God

and… love is not an alternative to it, but, rather, and expression of it.”2 So then it appears that

holiness is what we should focus on if we want to explore the character of God.

God’s holiness is very different than anything seen in the cultures of the ancient Near

East around Israel. In the cultures around the Israelites, holiness was described to people, articles

and places, rather than to gods and goddesses. By contrast, God’s holiness demands exclusive

loyalty to Him, something we saw clearly in the giving of the Ten Commandments. As such,

how Yahweh is presented is a fundamental departure to the other ancient Near East cultures: He

alone is holy; the holiness ascribed to people, places or articles is only derived from their being

separated for use in the service of Yahweh. At the same time, this loftiness in Yahweh is not

removed, but rather intimately entwined with His tenderness and goodness, much unlike the

pagan gods and goddesses.3

When we study the Old Testament, we find that the prophets and psalmists describe God

both as holy and exalted and as trustworthy and compassionate. Wells writes that “these two

themes – the unblemished purity of God for which he is so exalted and the consequence of this,

his tenderness and compassion, increasingly appear together and are joined in the covenant.”4

So it seems that God is faithful to commitments made to His people and expresses great

power in defending them. He is absolutely holy, glorious, and upright in all His ways. He is

2
. David F. Wells, God in the Wasteland (Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdman's Publishing Company,
1994), 136.
3
. Wells, God in the Wasteland, 138-39.136.
4
. Ibid., 140.
 6

righteous and just, but He is also, as we have clearly seen, a jealous God who cannot and will not

tolerate competing allegiances. Three things must be clear in this context:

1) He will punish sin.

2) His delay in executing punishment is not a sign of weakness.

3) His delay is also not a remission of punishment. 2 Thessalonians 1 (7b-9) tells us,

“This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with

his powerful angels. 8He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the

gospel of our Lord Jesus. 9They will be punished with everlasting destruction and

shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power”.

Yet, as always, there is God’s compassionate side. As one commentator writes, “if His

people walk in disobedience and go after other gods, they can expect to experience His anger and

judgment. If they repent, however, this repentance will be met by His unqualified mercy.”5

Since holiness is what defines God’s character most fundamentally, catching a glimpse

of this holiness should inspire us and evoke our worship. It should also sustain our character, fuel

our passion for truth, and encourage persistence in efforts to do His will and call on His name in

fervent prayer.6 Just think about the passage in Isaiah 6, where the prophet Isaiah saw the Lord.

Isaiah, as you may recall, lived in the 8th century BC in the Kingdom of Judah. He had the great

privilege of being called into the literal presence of God. As a matter of fact, let me read it to you

to see his reaction to encountering the God of the universe. If you want to follow along, go to

Isaiah, chapter 6, beginning in verse 1.

1 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and

exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2 Above him were seraphs, each with six

5
. Roy B. Zuck, A Biblical Theology of the Old Testament, electronic ed. (Chicago: Moody Press, 1991),
67.
6
. Wells., 136.
 7

wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with

two they were flying. 3 And they were calling to one another:

"Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty;

the whole earth is full of his glory."

4 At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple

was filled with smoke.

5 "Woe to me!" I cried. "I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live

among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty."

In an instant, Isaiah understood all there was to know about the holiness of God. There

was no question in his mind that he was doomed – that he was a man full of sin. He understood

what Wells describes as such: “In his holiness, God is not to be trifled with; familiarity with God

inherently borders on contempt and is subject to judgment.”7 I sometimes chuckle when we sing

“I can only imagine”. As you probably know, one of the lines says: “Will I stand in your

presence or to my knees will I fall”. To me, there is not even a question as to what the answer is!

Would you agree? Isaiah relays God’s word in chapter 45:

“By myself I have sworn; from my mouth has gone out in righteousness a word that shall

not return: 'To me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear allegiance.'” (v. 23) –

Paul repeats this for us in Romans 14:11. It is certainly something God wanted to make sure we

understand!

Does it seem pompous that God would require such worship? If we were jealous for our

name, that is, defending it or demanding respect, it would be deemed vanity. Yet God, as we just

saw, swore by Himself. Why? Because there IS no one higher than Yahweh, El Elyon, Most

High God. God is so jealous of His name that He is willing to go to great length to ensure that is

it not sullied. Ezekiel tells us of God’s response to His obstinate people Israel in chapter 36 (16-
7
. Ibid., 141.
 8

23). Let’s go there together. Ezekiel is to the right of Isaiah, keep going, pass Jeremiah and

Lamentations, and you will find Ezekiel. Chapter 36, beginning in v. 16. I want you just to listen

and let this sink in – just how strongly God is jealous for His name.

16 Again the word of the LORD came to me: 17 "Son of man, when the people of

Israel were living in their own land, they defiled it by their conduct and their actions. Their

conduct was like a woman's monthly uncleanness in my sight. 18 So I poured out my wrath

on them because they had shed blood in the land and because they had defiled it with their

idols. 19 I dispersed them among the nations, and they were scattered through the

countries; I judged them according to their conduct and their actions. 20 And wherever

they went among the nations they profaned my holy name, for it was said of them, 'These

are the LORD's people, and yet they had to leave his land.' 21 I had concern for my holy

name, which the house of Israel profaned among the nations where they had gone.

22 "Therefore say to the house of Israel, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: It

is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am going to do these things, but for the sake of

my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations where you have gone. 23 I will

show the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, the name

you have profaned among them. Then the nations will know that I am the LORD, declares

the Sovereign LORD, when I show myself holy through you before their eyes.

Without a doubt, God is jealous for His name and will respond harshly to any sullying of

it. Yet, His loving and merciful side always finds a way out as well. And back to Isaiah’s

experience in Isaiah 6 when encountering the living God, even here we see that He is a God of

compassionate mercy as we read that one of the seraphs flew to Isaiah with live coal in his hand,

taken from the altar with tongs. Touching Isaiah’s mouth with it, he tells Isaiah that his guilt has

been taken away and his sin atoned for. And what was Isaiah’s immediate response to the Lord’s
 9

question "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" Isaiah replied, "Here am I. Send

me!"

Isaiah’s response was one of immediate realization that his only response to such grace

and mercy could be serving the most high God, El Elyon, as Gordon described for you last week.

Jumping to the New Testament, you will remember that Jesus Himself stressed this need

for the respect of the Father’s holiness when he drove the merchants out of the temple, as

described in all the gospels. Here is the account from John 2:

“14 In the temple courts he found men selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others

sitting at tables exchanging money. 15 So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from

the temple area, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and

overturned their tables. 16 To those who sold doves he said, "Get these out of here! How

dare you turn my Father's house into a market!" 17 His disciples remembered that it is

written: "Zeal for your house will consume me."

Yet many people in our churches simply have not understood this aspect of God – and

neither have they understood the need for a response.

I love the way Annie Dillard summarizes this: “Does anyone have the foggiest idea of

what sort of power we so blithely invoke? Or, as I suspect, does no one believe a word of it? The

churches are children playing on the floor with their chemistry sets, mixing up a batch of TNT to

kill a Sunday morning. It is madness to wear ladies' straw hats and velvet hats to church; we

should all be wearing crash helmets! Ushers should issue life preservers and signal flares; they

should lash us to our pews!”8

I am happy to say that I studied under a man at Liberty University who made sure I

understood this concept of God’s holiness and the need for our response extremely well. Dr.

Gary Yates, whom you met the last time I taught, has a great Old Testament blog, which by the
8
. Annie Dillard, Teaching a Stone to Talk, 58.
 10

way I highly recommend (shameless plug off). On it, he writes: “The OT prophets remind us of

the inconvenient truth that our God is a ‘consuming fire,’ and we ignore this truth at our own

peril.”

To draw this lesson to a close, let me remind you of what God told His people time and

time again in the Old Testament: “return to me”, “I will bless you”, and “you will be my people”

– all the while knowing that they are incapable of doing so in their own strength. Yet God

promised a new covenant, one that would entail God readily and freely giving His people a new

heart and a new spirit. He promised to remove hearts of stone and replace them with hearts of

flesh.

This, my friend, is what you are the beneficiary of: this grand plan of God to become one

of us so we could be reconciled to Him. Jesus Christ became flesh, so that through His death,

burial and resurrection He could become the door to this life with a heart of flesh where we can

freely worship and obey God. God paid the price that you and I deserved – and He set us free, if

only we trust in this free offer of incredible grace. When we bow our knee to El Kanah, the

jealous God, we are grafted into His family. He frees us to truly be His children and, in

extension, the recipients of His great love and favor on our lives. Galatians 4:4-6 tells us “But

when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to

redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons. Because you are sons,

God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, ‘Abba, Father.’”

So you see, as believers, we don’t have to fear the wrath of God, even if we should be always

mindful that God is not a casual acquaintance. In his book “The Lion, the Witch and the

Wardrobe, C.S. Lewis described what the children, Peter, Susan and Lucy, are told by the

Beavers about Aslan. Susan asks, ‘Who is Aslan?’ Mr Beaver replies, ‘Aslan is a lion—the Lion,
 11

the great Lion.’ Susan then says, ‘Is he—quite safe?’ ‘Safe?’ said Mr Beaver. ‘Who said

anything about safe? ’Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He’s the King, I tell you.’

And that, in story form, is what the Bible clearly teaches about Almighty God.

“As Christians, we live under the grace of God. God does not change. He is still a jealous

God. He wants our total allegiance and even more so now, since we are comforted with His

sacrifice of His own Son on our behalf.”9 Augustine, Bishop of Hippo, who lived from A.D. 354

to 430, said it well when he said “God thirsts to be thirsted after.” May we seek to thirst after

God – a God who is so jealous that He is “intensely set on caring for, protecting, and, if

necessary, avenging Himself upon the enemies of His people”10, those that are blood bought.

And may we remember that, like the ermine, we need to uphold personal purity before a holy

God who says, “be holy, because I am holy.”

9
. Ibid.
10
. Eugene E. Carpenter and Philip W. Comfort, Holman Treasury of Key Bible Words: 200 Greek and 200
Hebrew Words Defined and Explained (Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2000), 96.
 12

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Carpenter, Eugene E., and Philip W. Comfort. Holman Treasury of Key Bible Words: 200 Greek
and 200 Hebrew Words Defined and Explained. Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman
Publishers, 2000.

Dillard, Annie. Teaching a Stone to Talk.

Software, Galaxie. 10, 000 Sermon Illustrations. n.p.: Biblical Studies Press, 2002.

Wells, David F. God in the Wasteland. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdman's Publishing
Company, 1994.

Zuck, Roy B. A Biblical Theology of the Old Testament. Electronic ed. Chicago: Moody Press,
1991.