As we look into the story of Pinchas, the first word that comes to mind is zeal. But what does zeal mean? Are we supposed to be zealous? If so, what does that look like?
Zeal is when you are passionate or enthusiastic about something to the point where you will defend it and guard it. In the case of Pinchas he was protecting Yahwehs holiness! Pinchas was a levite, and the levites were given charge of the Tabernacle, the holiest part of the Israelites camp. So Pinchas was no stranger to dealing with clean and unclean and making the distinction between the two. Being a levite he knew this was a unholy and unclean thing that the people of Israel were doing. He knew it was costing many lives, people were dying, and probably people he knew personally. So when he saw another brethren taking this unclean and unholy princess (As some suspect the Midianite woman was) you can see how it was the last straw for him because if they kept taking midianite women as wives, the whole people could parish. So because he knew the laws and loved Yahweh so much he killed his relative and the woman he took. This set an example and put an end to the plague. He was rewarded for this zealous act and it was counted to him as righteousness. But it begs the question and stirs the heart to say, should I be this zealous as well?
There is nothing wrong with being zealous especially for Yahweh, however this level of zeal has to be accompanied by an equal level of Wisdom. Every circumstance is different, just because your neighbor across the street does witchcraft and profanes the sabbath DOES NOT mean you should go spear him. There is a big difference. Pinchas punished (Albeit with death) one brother to save a whole nation. And that one brother was breaking the law of Yahweh yoking himself to another God when he belongs to the one true God. This is a form of adultery with God that is called Idolatry. For that nation at that time it was to be punished with death and if Pinchas didn't carry out that punishment more men and women would have died. In modern day if we tried to carry out ancient Biblical laws and the punishments for breaking them we would be put in jail. So if we cant carry out these punishments how can we be zealous like Pinchas? To be zealous we don't have to kill, harass, condemn, or punish people. What we can do is guard our hearts. We can keep ourselves from breaking Yahwehs commandments, we can guard how we live our lives with a zeal like Pinchas. But the problem with having that much zeal is that you need an invaluable thing called Wisdom. When you have a lot of zeal it makes you want to act on impulse, with Wisdom you can take a step back and make the right decision. The best way I have found to get Wisdom is to
Read the Bible and specifically Proverbs
Ask Yahweh to give you Wisdom
He doesn't despise someone searching for Wisdom, in fact he says
"yes, if you call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding, if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God."
Proverbs 2:3-5
Be zealous, but approach each situation with Wisdom. Yahweh loves a heart for him, but you cant sin in your zeal. Consult Yahweh in prayer before you act in any manner. Seek him with all your heart! Blessings Shalom!
*As with much of the content I create, I was inspired to write this article by a very wise teacher, Bill Cloud with Jacob's Tent!
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