Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Exodus 34:14
For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name [is] Jealous, [is] a jealous God:
14. thou shalt not worship any other god ] Cf. the plural ‘other gods,’ in Exo 20:3. ‘Worship’ is lit. bow down (Exo 20:5), as regularly.
whose name is Jealous ] on ‘name’ (= ‘character’), see on Exo 33:19.
a jealous God ] as Exo 20:5, where see the note.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Whose name is Jealous; who hath made himself known by, and glories in that name, The jealous God, who cannot endure any competitor or corrival; whereas the false and puny gods of the heathens were contented with multitudes of partners. So this is properly said to be the name of God, whereby he is known and distinguished from all other gods.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
For thou shall worship no other god,…. Than the Lord their God, the one only living and true God, which was the first command given to the people of Israel, and binding upon all men:
for the Lord whose name is Jealous, [is] a jealous God; his name and nature answer to one another; he admits of no rival or competitor in worship; he will not give his glory to another god, or one so called, nor his praise to graven images; and in this he is distinguished from all nominal and fictitious gods, who have many joined with them, and are rivals of them, which gives them no concern, because insensible; but it is otherwise with the Lord, who knows the dishonour done him, and resents it, and is as jealous of any worship being given to another, as the husband is of the honour of his marriage bed; for idolatry is spiritual adultery, as is suggested in the following verse.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
(14) For thou shalt worship no other god.The images, altars, and groves would, if retained, lead on to the worship of the gods to whom they were dedicatedindeed, they could be retained for no other purpose. Thus their destruction followed, as a corollary, from the second commandment.
Whose name is Jealous.Comp. Exo. 20:5, and see Note 2 on that passage. Many attempts have been made to show that jealousy is unworthy of the Divine Nature; but that the one Only God, if there be but one Only God, should claim and exact under severe penalties an undivided allegiance is natural, reasonable, and in harmony with the most exalted conceptions of the Divine essence. If God looked with indifference upon idolatry, it would imply that He cared little for His human creatures: that, like the Deity of Epicurus, having once created man and the world, He thenceforth paid no attention to them.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
Exo 34:14. The Lord, whose name is Jealous See note on ch. Exo 20:5 where we have observed, that the context shews this word to signify the jealousy of a husband; in which relation the Lord was pleased to represent himself towards Israel, Thy Maker is thy Husband: and on this account it is, that idolatry is always represented in Scripture as infidelity to this Divine Husbandas spiritual adultery, Exo 34:15. Some have conceived, that such expressions have reference to the very impure and infamous rites which the heathens paid to many of their idols.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
DISCOURSE: 113
JEHOVAH A JEALOUS GOD
Exo 34:14. The Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.
PRACTICAL religion is altogether founded on the character of God. If he were, as many foolishly imagine him to be, a Being like unto ourselves, a very small measure of duty and service would be all that he could reasonably require. But being a God of infinite majesty, and unbounded mercy, it is not possible to exercise towards him too great a measure of fear and love; nor can he be too strict in exacting at our hands the utmost that we are able to pay. In this view, the feeling of jealousy, which seems at first sight not to comport well with our notions of the Supreme Being, may very properly be ascribed to him; and we may justly say, as in our text, The Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.
Let us contemplate,
1.
The character of God, as here described
Jealousy does exist in the bosom of Jehovah
[Jealousy in man is a painful feeling, arising from a suspicion that a measure of the regard due to us is transferred to another, who is in no respect entitled to it. And so deep is the wound which it inflicts, especially on a husband who conceives himself to have been dishonoured by his wife, that nothing can ever heal it. Jealousy, says Solomon, is the rage of a man: therefore he will not spare in the day of vengeance: he will not regard any ransom; neither will he rest content, though thou givest many gifts [Note: Pro 6:34-35.]. In God, also, does it burn with a most vehement flame: They have moved me to jealousy, says God; and a fire is kindled in mine anger, and it shall burn unto the lowest hell, and shall consume the earth with her increase, and set on fire the foundations of the mountains. I will heap mischiefs upon them, and will spend mine arrows upon them [Note: Deu 32:21-23.]. To the same effect the Prophet Nahum also speaks: God is jealous; and the Lord revengeth: the Lord revengeth, and is furious; the Lord will take vengeance on his adversaries; and he reserveth wrath for his enemies [Note: Nah 1:2.].]
Nor is this unworthy of his character
[On account of his own inconceivable excellency he deserves to stand without a rival in our affections. On account of what he has also done for us in creation, in providence, and in grace, especially in the gift of his only dear Son to die for us; and, I may add, on account of the relation in which he stands as the Husband of his Church [Note: Isa 54:5.], he has additional claims to our supreme regard: and if he see that we are in any respect suffering any thing to stand in competition with him, he may well be jealous. In truth, he could not, consistently with his own perfections, dispense with these obligations, even for a moment. He cannot give his glory to another [Note: Isa 42:8.]: he would cease to be God, if he could suffer his own inalienable rights to be withheld from him, and not express his indignation against the idolatrous offender. It is his very name and nature to be jealous: as to those who love him, he is a God of love and mercy; so is he, of necessity, to those who alienate their affections from him, a jealous God, and a consuming fire [Note: Deu 4:23-24.].]
From this view of his character, let us proceed to notice,
II.
Our duty, as arising from it
We must not act in any way inconsistent with the relation which we bear to him. We must not suffer,
1.
Any alienation of our affections from him
[We are bound to love him with all our heart, and all our mind, and all our soul, and all our strength. Nothing is to be loved by us but in subordination to him, and for his sake. If any thing under heaven be permitted to share our regards with him, we are guilty of idolatry [Note: Col 3:5.]. Nothing is excepted, when the Apostle says, Set your affections on things above, and not on things on the earth [Note: Col 3:2.]. We must take care, therefore, not only not to love any thing above him, but to hate even father and mother, and our own lives also, in comparison of him.]
2.
Any abatement in our attentions to him
[God speaks of our espousals to him as a season of peculiar love [Note: Jer 2:2.]. And at that season we are, for the most part, delighted with every thing that may bring us into nearer communion with him, and express the feelings of our heart towards him. Then the reading of his word, and secret prayer, and an attendance on the public ordinances of religion are to us sources of the sublimest joy. But if we become cold in these respects, and the ardour of our love abate, can we suppose that he will be pleased with us? Will he not say to us, as to the Church at Ephesus, I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love [Note: Rev 2:4.] ? Surely, if an earthly husband will not endure a declension in his wifes regards, much less will the God of heaven and earth endure a diminution of ours.]
3.
Any unnecessary intercourse with things which have a tendency to draw us from him
[This is particularly marked in the preceding context. God requires his people not to form alliance with their heathen neighbours, nor to accept invitations to their idolatrous feasts: he commands them to destroy their altars, and break down their images, and cut down their groves, and to forbear even the mention of the gods whom they worshipped. He knew how soon evil communications would corrupt good manners: and therefore he forbade any unnecessary intercourse with the heathen. And has he not given a similar injunction to us also? Has he not declared, that, as soon may light and darkness have communion with each other, or Christ with Belial, as a believer with an unbeliever; and that, therefore, we must come out from the ungodly world, and be separate, and not touch the unclean thing, if we would have him for a father unto us, and act as becomes his sons and daughters [Note: 2Co 6:14-18.] ? This is a gracious and merciful warning, similar to what an affectionate husband would give his wife in relation to the society of one who was seeking to seduce her. And we must carefully attend to it; and be no more of the world, than Christ himself was of the world. We must endeavour to keep our garments clean amidst the pollutions that are around us [Note: Rev 3:4.], and hate even the garment spotted by the flesh [Note: Jdg 1:23.]. We must not be contented with avoiding evil, but must abstain even from the appearance of it [Note: 1Th 5:22.].]
Address
1.
Those who think it an easy matter to serve God
[Though a woman may without any great difficulty perform her duties to an affectionate husband, where the bias of her natural affections is on the side of duty, it is not so easy to execute all that our God requires: for there we stem the current of nature, instead of being carried forward by it. Hence, when the whole people of Israel were so ready to bind themselves to serve their God, Joshua warned them, that they could not do it without divine aid [Note: Jos 24:18-19.]. So let me say to you, that, if you will indeed give yourselves to the Lord, and take him as your portion, you must not engage in your own strength; but must look unto your God, who alone can work in you either to will or to do.]
2.
Those who are unconscious of having given occasion to God to be jealous of them
[Look, not merely at your acts, but at the depositions of your mind; and then judge. He says, Give me thy heart. Now see whether your affections have not strayed: yea, whether you have not been like the wild ass in the wilderness, whom none can overtake or keep from her mate, till the time for parturition has nearly arrived [Note: Jer 2:23-24.] ? This is an humiliating, but a just, image of our conduct; and if we will not acknowledge it, and humble ourselves under a sense of it, God will surely plead with us to our confusion [Note: Jer 2:35.].]
3.
Those who are ashamed of their past ways
[Amongst men, the unfaithfulness of a wife may have been such as to preclude a possibility of her restoration to the station she once held: but no departures, however grievous, shall prevent our restoration to the divine favour, if, with sincerity of heart, we humble ourselves before him [Note: Jer 3:1.]. In the name of God himself, I am commanded to proclaim this, and to invite the most abandoned of you all to return to him [Note: Jer 3:12-14.]. Return, then, unto him, and so your iniquity shall not be your ruin [Note: Eze 18:30.].]
Fuente: Charles Simeon’s Horae Homileticae (Old and New Testaments)
Exo 34:14 For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name [is] Jealous, [is] a jealous God:
Ver. 14. No other god. ] In the Hebrew word Acher, rendered Other, there is a large R, to show the greatness of the sin of serving any other God. Hebrew Text Note
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
is = “he [is]”.
GOD = Hebrew El. App-4.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
worship: Exo 20:3-5, Deu 5:7, Mat 4:10
whose: Exo 34:5-7, Exo 33:19, Isa 9:6, Isa 57:15
jealous God: Exo 20:5, Deu 5:24, Deu 6:15, Deu 29:20, Deu 32:16, Deu 32:21, Jos 24:19, Nah 1:2, 1Co 10:22
Reciprocal: Exo 23:24 – overthrow Num 25:11 – that I Deu 4:24 – a jealous God Deu 5:9 – a jealous God Deu 6:14 – not go 1Ki 14:15 – beyond the river 1Ki 19:10 – very jealous 2Ki 17:12 – whereof Psa 78:58 – moved Isa 42:8 – my glory Jer 2:20 – playing Eze 8:3 – provoketh Eze 23:25 – I will set 2Co 6:16 – what Rev 19:10 – worship Rev 22:9 – worship God