Incarnations of the Jealousy Rite

The story of Scripture includes a number of performances of the jealousy rite (Num. 5), three of which we’ll consider below.

First let’s remind ourselves of what happens in the rite. The main steps are as follows:

• A suspected sinner is brought before the Lord.

• Curses are written out.

• Liquid is drunk, which affects the guilty party’s loins.

• And, with the words ‘Amen, Amen!’, the suspect invites God’s judgment to fall.

The jealousy rite has numerous incarnations in the Biblical narrative. The first is found in Exodus 32.

Israel arouse their divine husband’s jealousy. In response, Moses breaks the tablets of the law in pieces, grinds the golden calf to powder, dissolves the remains in water (the stone tablets included?),¹ and makes Israel drink the end product.

A similar event is described in Deuteronomy 27 and Joshua 8—an observation for which I’m thankful to Peter Leithart.

When the Israelites enter Canaan, they inscribe the law on plaster-covered stones, recite its curses, and add their “Amen”. As time goes on, the inscribed plaster is washed off (by rain) into the land’s rivers, from which Israel drinks. Meanwhile, Israel progressively depart from God’s law until the Lord’s jealousy against her cannot be restrained any longer (I Kgs. 14.22) and she is led away into exile.

To these events we can add Belshazzar’s experiences, which involve a jealousy rite with a difference (Dan. 5). Belshazzar does not want to undergo a jealousy rite, so God has to play a more active role than normal—which he duly does. First God sends his cup to Babylon so Belshazzar can drink from it (Jer. 25.15–29). (When Belshazzar brings the cup out from Babylon’s treasuries, he unintentionally turns his banquet hall into a sanctuary: Dan. 5.2.) Next God writes his curse on the king’s plaster-covered wall (Dan. 5.5) (per Deuteronomy 27). And, finally, God loosens Belshazzar’s loins as evidence of his guilt (Dan. 5.6).

Of particular importance to note is the direction of travel entailed in the two rites: in Numbers 5 we move from the head to the hands to the thigh (Num. 5.17–22), while in Daniel 5 we move from the face to the loins to the knees. Belshazzar is on his way down. It only remains for him to invite God’s judgment to fall on him. And, remarkably, he obliges. Belshazzar summons Daniel into his banquet hall and asks him to read the curse on the wall (Dan. 5.13–29). ‘Mene, Mene!’ (מנא מנא), Daniel begins, which happens to be an anagram of the words ‘Amen, Amen!’ (אמן אמן). The rest is history.

For more on the subject, see Alastair Roberts’ highly insightful article.

1. The verb ‘scatter’ does not have an explicit object. It could potentially, therefore, refer to the tablets as well as the calf.