Zeal, Religious

Religious zeal (Hebrew qin'ah; Greek zelos) denotes fervent devotion to God and his cause — an intensity of commitment that Scripture presents as both a virtue when rightly directed and a danger when divorced from knowledge or rooted in selfish motivation. God himself is described as a "jealous [zealous] God" (Ex. 20:5; 34:14; Deut. 5:9), whose zeal for his own name drives both judgment and redemption (Isa. 9:7; 37:32; Ezek. 36:5). The godly expression of zeal is illustrated by Phinehas (Num. 25:11–13), Elijah's cry "I have been very jealous for the LORD" (1 Kgs. 19:10, 14), and Jesus' consuming zeal for the temple (John 2:17; Ps. 69:9). Paul describes his pre-conversion zeal for Judaism as genuine but misdirected — a "zeal for God, but not according to knowledge" (Rom. 10:2; Phil. 3:6) — and celebrates the transforming work of the Spirit that produces a zeal now governed by truth and love (Gal. 4:18; Tit. 2:14). Peter urges believers to "be zealous for good works" (Tit. 2:14) and to "be zealous to be found without spot or blemish" at Christ's return (2 Pet. 3:14).