Morbid jealousy may have been recognised in the Old Testament

Abstract

The ancient Israelites have recognized that men afflicted with suspicions (whether founded or unfounded) could not be ignored. Morbid jealousy is currently classified as one of the delusional disorders and is recognized as a dangerous condition, sometimes even associated with homicide. In the ancient world, it was the woman who bore the brunt of the punishment, even when she had done nothing wrong and only formed the focus of the man's delusional jealousy. Today there has been a small advance in that the women are no longer blamed for this condition, but in a difficult case a marital separation is still sometimes the only available treatment option. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)