31 Attributes of God, Day 10: He Is Jealous

Welcome to Day 10 of our 31 Attributes of God series!  If you missed a day, you can find all of our posts right here.  Be sure to grab the accompanying free printable here (no email address required!) and join us for today's study!

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Talking about God's jealousy almost feels anti-Christian.  Aren't we commanded not to be jealous or envious?  Isn't jealousy a sin?  How, then, can our Good God also be a jealous God?

There is a big difference between our sinful jealousy, which we are definitely commanded to repent from, and God's jealousy, which is righteous and pure.  Whereas our jealousy is nearly always rooted in sin, the Creator God has a right to desire our praise, our attention, and our hearts and thus is right to be jealous when we give these things to someone other than Himself.    

Because He has created us and the world we live in, He has a right to us.  He is justly jealous of our worship and praise.  While we work hard to teach our children not to be sinfully jealous, we need to remember that there is a righteous jealousy.  Just as a husband is rightfully jealous of his wife's romantic affection and vice versa, the Lord's jealously stems from pure motives as well.

Today's Assignment:  How do you view God's jealousy?  Do you know and understand that He is righteous in His jealousy of our time and devotion, or is the concept of Godly jealousy difficult to grasp?  Look up Bible verses on God's jealousy and write down what you learn.