Jude | TNotes | STEP |

Book of Jude — Quick facts:

Purpose: To urge readers to defend their faith in the face of false teaching

Author: Jude, brother of Jesus

Date: Unknown, possibly around the same time as 2 Peter (early 60s AD)

Setting: Written to a group of churches that had been infiltrated by false teachers who encouraged an immoral lifestyle

Book of Jude — Overview:

Setting
Jude wrote this letter to combat false teachers in the early church. Jude focuses less on what these people were teaching than on the way they were living; at the heart of Jude’s critique is the charge that they were libertines—they assumed that God’s grace revealed in Christ gave them the freedom to do whatever they pleased (1:4 ^a). They had no respect for authority (see 1:8-9 ^b), and they engaged in many sinful behaviors (1:16 ^c, 19 ^d). These profligates, who claimed to be followers of Christ (see 1:4 ^e), were effectively denying the Lord and were therefore destined for the condemnation of all who rebel against him.

Summary
After the letter opening (1:1-2 ^f), Jude explains the situation prompting his letter (1:3-4 ^g): The imminent danger posed by the false teachers required that he write a very different kind of letter from the one he had planned to write.
In 1:5-16 ^h, Jude elaborates on the character of these false teachers. This section unfolds in an A-B-A’ sequence. Jude first uses three scriptural examples to illustrate the condemnation that the false teachers face (A, 1:5-10 ⁱ). He then cites three more scriptural examples to castigate them for their ungodly attitudes and behavior (B, 1:11-13 ^j). At the end of this section, he returns to their condemnation, citing Jewish tradition to hammer home his indictment (A’, 1:14-16 ^k).
Jude then appeals directly to his readers (1:17-23 ^l), urging them to hold fast to God’s truth and to reach out to believers who might be tempted to follow the false teachers. The letter ends with a notable doxology (1:24-25 ^m).

Author
Jude identifies himself as “a brother of James” (1:1 ⁿ). This James is almost certainly the “Lord’s brother” (Gal 1:19 ^o; see Matt 13:55 ^p // Mark 6:3 ^q), who became the recognized leader of the Jerusalem church (Acts 15:13-21 ^r; 21:18 ^s) and wrote the letter of James. Jude was therefore also a brother of Jesus (Jude is called “Judas” in Matt 13:55 ^t // Mark 6:3 ^u). Jude and the other brothers of Jesus did not follow Jesus during his earthly ministry (John 7:5 ^v), but evidently became believers after the Resurrection (see Acts 1:14 ^w; 1 Cor 15:7 ^x) and traveled to spread the message about the resurrected Lord (1 Cor 9:5 ^y).

Date and Destination
We know so little about Jude that we cannot pin down a date or destination for the letter. It was probably written after AD 45, to allow time for the kind of false teaching described here to develop. It was probably written before AD 90, when even a young brother of Jesus would have been old. The close relationship between 2 Peter and Jude suggests that the two might have been written at about the same time (see 2 Peter Book Introduction, “Relationship to Jude”).

Meaning and Message
False Teachers. False teachers of many varieties have disturbed God’s people over the years. Jude’s letter is a powerful reminder of their potential to harm the community and offers a stark depiction of their terrible fate. Jude’s description of the false teachers makes dynamic use of the Old Testament and other Jewish traditions. Jude compares the false teachers to the rebellious Israelites in the wilderness (1:5 ^z), to the angels who rebelled against God (1:6 ^aa), and to the sinners of Sodom and Gomorrah (1:7 ^ab). The false teachers are like Cain (see Gen 4 ^ac), Balaam (see Num 22–24 ^ad), and Korah (see Num 16 ^ae). Like all of these examples, false teachers are rebels against the Lord and will experience his judgment.
Defending the Faith. In 1:3 ^af, Jude implies that there is a core message in the early church which serves as the basis for Christian belief. Paul assumes the same thing when he urges Timothy to “guard what God has entrusted to you” (1 Tim 6:20 ^ag; see 2 Tim 1:14 ^ah).
To be a Christian means to have faith in God and love for others; it also means to confess gladly the truth that God has revealed in Jesus Christ. We cannot truly express faith in God unless we acknowledge the truth that he has revealed. For this reason, early Christians, even in the New Testament period, formulated creedal statements to summarize the essentials of Christian truth (e.g., 1 Tim 3:16 ^ai). These creeds were often crafted to counteract a false teaching.
If we are to heed Jude’s call to “defend the faith,” we need to know just what that faith is. Too many Christians spend too much energy in debating nonessential details and too little in learning the essentials well. Only by learning the essentials will the faithful be able to explain their faith to others and to guard Christian truth from false teaching.

Summary for Jude 1:1-2: 1:1-2 ^aj In a typical letter opening, Jude identifies himself and his audience and prays for them.

• keeps you safe in the care of Jesus Christ: This description introduces an important emphasis (see also 1:21 ^ak, 24 ^al) and gives assurance in the context of false teaching. 1:1 ^am Jude (or Judas) is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew name “Judah.” It was a common name; this Jude was a brother of James, who was a brother of Jesus (see Jude Book Introduction, “Author”).

• a slave of Jesus Christ: Jude acknowledges that he is under Jesus’ lordship in every area of life. The title also carries honor: The great Old Testament leaders of God’s people were also called slaves or servants of God (see Josh 14:7 ^an; 2 Kgs 18:12 ^ao; Ezek 34:23 ^ap).

• to all who have been called: It is unclear who the specific recipients of Jude’s letter were.
Summary for Jude 1:3-4: 1:3-4 ^aq In place of the thanksgiving that usually comes at this point in a New Testament letter (see Rom 1:8-14 ^ar; 1 Cor 1:4-9 ^as), Jude explains his central purpose. False teaching was a potent danger to the faith of his readers (see Jude 1:22-23 ^at). 1:3 ^au In the New Testament, “faith” usually refers to the act of believing, while the faith refers to the content of Christian belief.
1:4 ^av Abusing God’s marvelous grace by saying that it allows us to live immoral lives is a constant temptation (cp. Rom 6 ^aw).
Summary for Jude 1:5-16: 1:5-16 ^ax This section elaborates on the “condemnation recorded long ago” (1:4 ^ay) by applying to the false teachers Old Testament examples of God’s judgment. 1:5 ^az The preexistent Jesus rescued the people of Israel from Egypt and later destroyed the unfaithful (cp. 1 Cor 10:4 ^ba).

• After rescuing the nation of Israel from Egypt, God led them toward the Promised Land. Most of the people did not trust the Lord to protect them. Because of their unbelief, God sentenced that generation (except Joshua and Caleb) to wander in the wilderness until they died (see Num 14 ^bb).
1:6 ^bc The angels might refer to the fall of Satan and his angelic followers, but no Old Testament passage clearly describes this event (see study notes on Isa 14:12-17; Ezek 28:12-19). Jude was probably referring to Gen 6:1-4 ^bd; Jewish tradition understood the “sons of God” in Gen 6 ^be to be wicked angels and viewed their intercourse with women as the cause of their judgment (see 1 Enoch 6–10; see also study notes on 1 Pet 3:19-20; 2 Pet 2:4). Jude later (Jude 1:14-15 ^bf) quotes directly from 1 Enoch.
1:7 ^bg God’s judgment on Sodom and Gomorrah had become proverbial (see Gen 18:17–19:26 ^bh; Luke 17:26-29 ^bi).

• neighboring towns: Deuteronomy 29:23 ^bj mentions Admah and Zeboiim.

• Every kind of sexual perversion probably refers to homosexuality (Gen 19:5-10 ^bk).
1:8 ^bl supernatural beings: Literally glorious ones, which are probably evil angels. In the Old Testament and in Judaism, angels were given a prominent role in the judgment. The false teachers might have been downplaying the reality of a judgment to come (see 1:18 ^bm; 2 Pet 3:3-4 ^bn) or denying the glorious origin of these fallen angels (cp. 2 Pet 2:10 ^bo).
1:9 ^bp Michael, one of the mightiest of the angels: In Jewish tradition, “archangel” was the highest rank of angel (see also 1 Thes 4:16 ^bq). Michael is mentioned several other times in Scripture (Dan 10:13 ^br, 21 ^bs; 12:1 ^bt; Rev 12:7 ^bu); the story about him fighting with the devil about Moses’ body is not in the Old Testament but is preserved in Jewish tradition (see Assumption of Moses).
1:11 ^bv Cain: See Gen 4:1-16 ^bw.

• Balaam: See study note on 2 Pet 2:15.

• Korah: See Num 16:1-35 ^bx.
1:12 ^by The early Christians celebrated the Lord’s Supper as part of shared fellowship meals with one another.
1:13 ^bz The planets were considered to be wandering stars because they moved across the sky in seemingly irregular patterns. The false teachers wandered, and God condemned their sin.
Summary for Jude 1:14-15: 1:14-15 ^ca Enoch was an early descendant of Adam (see Gen 5:18-24 ^cb; 1 Chr 1:3 ^cc); the comment in Gen 5:24 ^cd apparently means that Enoch did not die but was taken directly to heaven (cp. 2 Kgs 2:1-13 ^ce; see Heb 11:5 ^cf). This extraordinary commendation from God and the almost complete silence of Scripture about him make Enoch a fascinating character. There are a number of legends about him in Jewish literature, and at least two books of apocalyptic visions written between the Old Testament and the New Testament are attributed to him (1–2 Enoch).
Summary for Jude 1:17-23: 1:17-23 ^cg After condemning the false teachers, Jude again encourages his readers directly (see 1:3-4 ^ch). They had been warned by the apostles about false teaching (1:17-19 ^ci). They should encourage each other in the faith (1:20-21 ^cj) and reach out to those who might be going astray through the false teachers’ influence (1:22-23 ^ck). 1:17 ^cl what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ predicted: Such predictions are in Acts 20:29-30 ^cm; 1 Tim 4:1-3 ^cn; 2 Tim 3:1-5 ^co.
1:18 ^cp in the last times: The coming of Jesus as Messiah inaugurated the last stage of God’s plan, when the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies about the last days began to take place. For this reason, Jude applies the apostles’ prophecy about the last times to the immediate crisis created by the false teachers (1:19 ^cq).
1:20 ^cr your most holy faith: As in 1:3 ^cs, faith refers to what Christians believe, the doctrinal and ethical core of Christian identity, which false teachers threaten. Believers must therefore devote themselves to it.
Summary for Jude 1:22-23: 1:22-23 ^ct The NLT accepts the manuscript tradition that includes three commands in these verses, corresponding to three categories of people: (1) those whose faith is wavering, (2) those who need to be snatched from the flames of judgment, and (3) others who need to be shown mercy. Some manuscripts have only two categories of people: (1) those whose faith is wavering and thus need to be snatched from judgment, and (2) those who need to be shown mercy. The text adopted in the NLT follows the pattern of threes that Jude uses elsewhere (1:5-7 ^cu, 11 ^cv). 1:22 ^cw those whose faith is wavering: Some believers were in the early stages of doubt because of what the false teachers were saying.
1:23 ^cx Rescue others: Some believers were so open to the false teachers that they were in imminent danger of condemnation.

• Show mercy to still others: The third group probably consists of the false teachers themselves or those who had subscribed to the false teachers’ program. Showing mercy might have meant praying for them (cp. Matt 5:44 ^cy).

• Believers need to exercise great caution when showing mercy to false teachers and those who have fallen into their sinful ways, because their sins can be enticing. Cp. Zech 3:1-4 ^cz; Rev 3:4 ^da.
Summary for Jude 1:24-25: 1:24-25 ^db Jude concludes his letter with one of the most stirring doxologies in Scripture, and one quoted very often in liturgical settings. Jude’s wording makes it especially appropriate for his readers: They needed a renewed vision of God who could keep them from falling away, from succumbing to the enticing doctrine of false teachers. He has the glory, majesty, power, and authority to bring them safely into his glorious presence forever.