In Law of Jealousy – 1 we saw, once again, that a woman is to be faithful to only one man; her father, her man/master (what we call a husband), other male near of kin or even a master for whom she is a maid-servant.
Numbers chapter 5 is Yehovah’s instructions for the man to know without a doubt if his woman, or one of his women, have been with another man. He brings his woman to the priest and if she is guilty her belly swells and her thigh rots. This is a painful and public death and an example to all the women of the city to be faithful to only their man.
Here is a thought. What if we suspect that our daughter or a near of kin relative we brought into our home or even our maidservant (all of whom we are not sexually active with) has become sexually active with a man without our permission? Can we bring that woman to the priest? The law of jealousy in most Bible translations says “his wife,” instead of “his woman,” and we tend to assume that we are only talking about a woman we are sexually active with; but that might not be the case. We will see today that Yehovah is jealous over his sons and sex is not a part of the issue. I think the issue is who belongs to whom. There is a reason a man gives his daughter/woman to another man. Here are a couple of scriptures which come to my mind.
“But if the thing is true, and evidences of virginity are not found for the young woman, then they shall bring out the young woman to the door of her father’s house, and the men of her city shall stone her to death with stones, because she has done a disgraceful thing in Israel, to play the harlot in her father’s house. So you shall put away the evil from among you. (Deu 22:20-21)
Even a maidservant does not just take a man; she is given to a man.
If his master has given him a woman, and she has borne him sons or daughters, the woman and her children shall be her master’s, and he shall go out by himself. (Exo 21:4)
As a woman follows only her elohim (your desire shall be for your man and he shall rule over you), so a man was created to serve only the Elohim. Unfortunately, practically all men have left Yehovah and taken other elohim (lawmakers and judges), and as a result, they will die. Yehovah says through Ezekiel,
“Do I have any pleasure at all that the wicked should die?” says my Master, Yehovah, “and not that he should turn from his ways and live?” (Eze 18:23)
Well, repentance is the only alternative to dying.
“But if a wicked man turns from all his sins which he has committed, keeps all My statutes, and does what is lawful and right, he shall surely live; he shall not die. None of the transgressions which he has committed shall be remembered against him; because of the righteousness which he has done, he shall live. (Eze 18:21-22)
We men were created in Yehovah’s image, to serve only Him by keeping His, statutes, His ordinances and His judgments. So the man who will repent, leave the kingdom of his birth, join Himself to Yehovah and then, at Passover, enter into covenant with him and become his betrothed and heir.
For as a young man marries [בעל – ba’-al – masters] a virgin [בתולה – be-tu-lah’], so shall You marry [בעל – ba’-al – master] Your sons; and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your Elohim rejoice over you. (Isa 62:5)
The law of jealousy provides for a man who has become jealous, regardless as to whether his woman has been unfaithful or not.
“Speak to Israel’s seed, and say to them: ‘If any man’s woman goes astray and behaves unfaithfully toward him; and a man lies with her carnally, and it is hidden from the eyes of her man, and it is concealed that she has defiled herself, but there was no witness against her, nor was she caught — and a spirit of jealousy [קנאה – kan-naw] comes, and he becomes jealous [קנאה – kan-naw] concerning his woman, who has defiled herself; or if a spirit of jealousy [קנאה – kan-naw] comes upon him and he becomes jealous [קנאה – kan-naw] concerning his woman, although she has not defiled herself… (Num 5:12-14)
But Yehovah too is a jealous Elohim concerning His son, Israel. He brought us out of our Egypt and the elohim (lawmakers and judges) that we were forced to serve there; and now, He describes Himself as a jealous Elohim. He is jealous and does not want Israel (His betrothed) going off to other elohim.
“I am Yehovah your Elohim, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. You shall have no other elohim before My face. … For I, Yehovah, your Elohim, am a jealous [קנאה – kan-naw] Elohim, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the sons to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments. (Exo 20:3-6)
Take heed to yourself, lest you make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land where you are going, lest it be a snare in your midst. But you shall destroy their altars, break their sacred pillars, and cut down their wooden images (for you shall worship no other elohim, for Yehovah, whose name is Jealous [קנאה – kan-naw], is a jealous [קנאה – kan-naw] Elohim), lest you make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and play the harlot with their elohim and slaughter to their elohim, and one of them invites you and you eat of his slaughter, and you take of his daughters for your sons, and his daughters play the harlot with their elohim and make your sons play the harlot with their elohim. (Exo 34:12-16)
Take heed to yourselves, lest you forget the covenant of Yehovah [this covenant is renewed every Passover] your Elohim which He made with you, and make for yourselves a carved image in the form of anything which Yehovah your Elohim has forbidden you. For Yehovah your Elohim is a consuming fire, a jealous [קנאה – kan-naw] Elohim. (Deu 4:23-24)
You shall fear Yehovah your Elohim and serve Him, and shall take oaths in His name. You shall not go after other elohim, the elohim of the peoples who are all around you (for Yehovah your Elohim is a jealous [קנאה – kan-naw] Elohim among you), lest the anger of Yehovah your Elohim be aroused against you and destroy you from the face of the earth. (Deu 6:13-15)
The law of jealousy is for the man to know the heart of his woman; but Yehovah knows the heart of the man and the man who will not serve only Him will die.
“The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it? I, Yehovah, search the heart, I test the mind, even to give every man [אישׁ – eesh] according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings. (Jer 17:9-10)
The only choice a man has who hopes to find eternal life for himself (and his family) is to repent from serving other elohim, leave the kingdom of his birth and begin to serve only Yehovah.
But hey man [אישׁ – eesh], it is your choice. I think Joshua said it well when he said,
“Now therefore, fear Yehovah, serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the elohim which your fathers served on the other side of the River [back in Ur and Haran] and in Egypt. Serve Yehovah! But, if it seems evil to you to serve Yehovah, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the elohim which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the elohim of the Amorites [put your own country here], in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve Yehovah.” Jos 24:14-15