A valuable commodity in JEHOVAH'S eyes. ~ INTEGRITY

[Bible Speaks]

A valuable commodity in JEHOVAH'S eyes. 

IT-1 pp. 1209-1212

INTEGRITY

Moral soundness, completeness, oneÂ’s being blameless and faultless.

The Hebrew terms relating to integrity (tom, tum·mah?, tam, ta·mim?) have the root meaning of that which is “complete” or “whole.” (Compare Le 25:30; Jos 10:13; Pr 1:12.) Ta·mim? is used several times to refer to physical completeness, or soundness, and freedom from impairment, for example, regarding sacrificial animals. (Ex 12:5; 29:1; Le 3:6) But more frequently these terms describe moral soundness or blamelessness.

When applied to God, ta·mim? may properly be translated “perfect,” as in describing Jehovah’s activity and works, his way, knowledge, and law. (De 32:4; Job 36:4; 37:16; Ps 18:30; 19:7) All these divine qualities and expressions manifest such unmatchable completeness and fullness, are so sound and free from defect, or fault, that they clearly identify their Source as the one true God.—Ro 1:20; see PERFECTION.

Significance of Human Integrity. In a few cases the Hebrew tom conveys simply the idea of honest motive, innocence as to wrong intention. (Compare Ge 20:5, 6; 2Sa 15:11.) But mainly these related Hebrew terms describe unswerving devotion to righteousness. Biblical usage and examples emphasize unbreakable devotion to a person, Jehovah God, and to his expressed will and purpose as the course of vital importance.

Involved in the supreme issue. The first human pair were given the opportunity to manifest integrity in Eden. The restriction regarding the tree of knowledge put to the test their devotion to their Creator. Under the pressure of outside influence from God’s Adversary and his appeal to selfishness, they gave way to disobedience. Their shame, their reluctance to face their Creator, and their lack of candor in responding to his questions all gave evidence of their lack of integrity. (Compare Ps 119:1, 80.) Obviously, however, they were not the first to break integrity, since the spirit creature who led them into a rebellious course had already done so.—Ge 3:1-19; compare his course with the dirge pronounced against the king of Tyre at Eze 28:12-15; see SATAN.

Satan’s rebellion, visibly initiated in Eden, produced an issue of universal importance—that of the rightfulness of God’s sovereignty over all his creatures, his right to require full obedience of them. Since the issue was not one of superiority of power but, rather, was a moral issue, it could not be settled merely by the exercise of power, as by God’s immediately crushing Satan and the human pair out of existence. This fact is an aid in understanding why wickedness and its author, Satan, have been allowed to continue so long. (See WICKEDNESS.) Since God’s Adversary first drew upon humans for support and endorsement of his rebel course (the earliest evidence for any siding with Satan on the part of spirit sons of God not appearing until sometime prior to the Flood; Ge 6:1-5; compare 2Pe 2:4, 5), this made the question of man’s integrity to God’s sovereign will an essential part of the overall issue (though Jehovah’s sovereignty is not itself dependent on the integrity of his creatures). Proof of this is seen in the case of Job.