But Moses said to him, “Are you jealous for my sake? If only all the Lord’s people were prophets, that the Lord would put His Spirit upon them!”

~Numbers 11:29 NASB

Have you heard about the church that was praying for revival? Many in the church had gotten words from the Lord that revival was coming, and they were excited. But then God brought revival in a church down the street. To make matters worse, it was a church they thought had a somewhat flawed theology. I think some of the people were tempted to say, “Come on, God.” Jealousy and judgment.

The Jealousy

Moses brought seventy of the elders of Israel to the tabernacle to prepare them to assist him in leadership. The Lord poured out the Spirit that was upon Moses on the seventy elders, and they prophesied.

Eldad and Medad, two of the men, had stayed in the camp, yet the Spirit that was upon Moses rested on them also, and they prophesied in the camp. We are not told why they were not where they were supposed to be. Perhaps they slept in, but this does not appear to disqualify them from service with Moses.

The Judgment

When Joshua heard that Eldad and Medad prophesied in the camp, he was highly offended on Moses’s behalf and said, “Moses, my Lord, restrain them.”

Moses’ response provides a window into the soul of the man called the most humble man on earth. But Joshua got a lesson from his mentor that day. As a leader, he learned that people don’t have to be perfect for God to use them.

The Grace

Moses did not take offense when Eldad and Medad didn’t do exactly what the other elders did. Were Eldad and Medad wrong? The Bible doesn’t say, but if they were, God still spoke through them. And the same Spirit rested on them in the camp as those at the tabernacle.

The next time we, who belong to the Body of Christ, see a person, church, or group do things differently than us, we should resist the temptation to think it’s wrong; it’s just different. Instead, we should respond with grace, as Moses and God did, rather than with jealousy and judgment, as Joshua did.

Choose grace instead of jealousy and judgment.

Father, when I am tempted to be jealous or judge, turn my thoughts to grace and love.

Genre: Non-fiction

Copyright 2026: Jealousy and Judgment: Ken Barnes: All Rights Reserved.