Misunderstood Jealousy of the Old Testament God

Is God portrayed differently in the Old Testament than in the New Testament? Many claim that the Old Testament God is harsher than the loving God in the New Testament. Even in Exodus 20:5 God describes Himself as jealous: “For I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me.” In isolation, this verse indeed paints a picture of “fire and brimstone.” But read the next verse. It continues by saying, “… but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.”

How could God describe Himself as both jealous and merciful? It seems inconsistent but, as with any Bible study, one must look further into the context and translation of the verse.

The word “jealous,” as used in this scripture, has a different meaning from what we usually think. The Hebrew word qannâ is actually used to describe the “justice and holiness” of God (Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words, 1996). This tells us that human jealousy and godly jealousy differ greatly.

The use of the word qannâ denotes God’s desire to have us put Him first in our lives. God feels jealous for our attention because He wants to bless us in a way that is only possible when we follow His laws. On the other hand, human jealousy results in resentment and envy, possibly even leading to the breaking the 10th Commandment—written in the same chapter in Exodus!

Malachi 3:6 states that God does not change. In both the Old and New Testaments our Creator expresses an abundance of love and mercy for His creation. He desires all of mankind to turn to His ways so that they may take part in His eternal promises. To learn more about this topic, take a look at the article “Jealous God? What Does That Mean?”

Definition of a Christian

Many mainstream religions claim that “accepting Jesus into your heart” means you are a Christian. Can this really be true? Look at the first use of the word “Christian” in Acts 11:26: “And the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch.” The word itself means “follower of Christ.” Within the same verse, the word “disciple” means a student or pupil. So, just from this verse, we can conclude that a Christian studies and follows Jesus Christ. 

Consider the following: Effective students consistently engage in their learning by communicating with the instructor and studying the subject. It’s ludicrous to imagine that a student becomes a master of a subject by “accepting it into his heart.” The same principle applies to Christianity. Effective Christians consistently engage in their learning (beliefs) by communicating with their instructor (Jesus Christ and God, the Father) and studying the subject (the Bible). Ephesians 4:21-24 takes this concept even further by explaining that accepting Christ means literally “[putting] on the new man.”

Committing your life to being a follower and imitator of Jesus Christ involves a lifetime of effort. However, working to overcome sin and have the mind of Christ also brings about many physical and spiritual blessings. Learn more about how to make this change in your life in our article “What Is a Christian?”

How Can You Have a Better Relationship With God?

It may be difficult to grasp the concept that God wants a relationship with us. In Romans 8:15 Paul tells the Christians in Rome, “You received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, ‘Abba, Father’” (emphasis added).

The word Abba signifies an intimate paternal relationship. Appreciating these words opens the door to grasping how God relates to His creation. He desires to be our Father in the deepest sense of the word. In fact, He sacrificed His Son so that we could have the chance to enter into His family!

John 3:16 demonstrates this fact: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

So what is the next step? “We love Him because He first loved us” (1 John 4:19). God’s desire to have a relationship with us is rooted in His perfect love. The love and mercy that He shows toward us should motivate us to full obedience to His commandments. “If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love” (John 15:10).

To learn more, read the Life, Hope & Truth article “Relationship With God.”