Do not worship any other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God. Exodus 34:14

A man dressed in civilian clothes asked a young airman at the Visitor Control Center for a vehicle pass. After examining the man’s identification, the airman noticed the letters BG stamped on the military ID and asked, “What’s BG stand for—Big Guy?”

“No,” the man replied, leaning over the counter. “Try Brigadier General.”

Obviously, the General sought to protect the honor of his own position in spite of the disrespectful airman. God feels that same way when His creatures mock and disrespect Him. In today’s verse we see that God earnestly seeks to protect His own honor by demanding that the Israelites tear down their alters to pagan gods in the land of Canaan. Why? Because the LORD “is a jealous God.” His jealousy is perfectly acceptable for He fully deserves the honor that He will not yield to others (Isaiah 48:11). For example, when you boast about shooting expert on the range yet God gave you the breath and the skill to perform, God gets jealous. Jealousy is when we rob God of the honor that belongs to Him. Obviously, jealously is not one of the attributes of God we should imitate. Instead, this attribute should remind us that God is a “Big Guy” who is worthy to be praised.

“Few men have the strength to honor a friend’s success without envy.” – Aeschylus