What Is Loyalty?

"Loyalty" as used in the Hebrew Scriptures is kindness that lovingly attaches itself to an object and does not let go until its purpose in connection with that object is realized. More is involved than faithfulness. After all, a person might be faithful merely out of a sense of duty. In contrast, loyalty is rooted in love. Then, too, the word "faithful" can be applied to inanimate things. For example, the psalmist called the moon "a faithful witness in the skies" because of its regular nightly appearance. (Psalm 89*:37) But the moon cannot be described as being loyal. Why? Because loyalty is an expression of love-something that inanimate things cannot display.

In its Scriptural sense, loyalty is warm. Its very manifestation indicates that a relationship exists between the person who displays the quality and the one toward whom it is shown. Such loyalty is not fickle. It is not like waves of the sea blown about by changing winds. On the contrary, loyalty, or loyal love, has the stability and strength to overcome the most daunting of obstacles.

Granted, such loyalty is rare today. All too often, close companions are "disposed to break one another to pieces." Increasingly, we hear of spouses who abandon their mates. (Proverbs 18:24; Malachi 2:14-16) Treacherous acts are so common that we might find ourselves echoing the words of the prophet Micah: "The loyal one has perished from the earth." (Micah 7:2) Although humans often fail to show loving-kindness, loyalty outstandingly characterizes Jehovah. In fact, the best way to learn just what loyalty entails is to examine how Jehovah displays this grand facet of his love.

Next time: Jehovah's Matchless Loyalty

Draw Close To Jehovah, 2002