Jude 1:1
Jude, a bond-servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James,
To those who are the called, beloved in God the Father, and kept for Jesus Christ:
(a) Jude identifies himself as the brother of James. If this James was the leader of the church in Jerusalem, as many scholars believe, Jude or Judas was also the step-brother of Jesus (Matt. 13:55, Mark 6:3).
Like his brother James, Jude did not believe that Jesus was the Messiah until after the resurrection. Jude may have been one of the 500 witnesses who saw the Risen Lord (1 Cor. 15:6).
(b) A bond-servant of Jesus Christ; see entry for Rom. 1:1.
(c) James was the leader of the Jerusalem church (Acts 15:13), the step-brother of Jesus (Gal. 1:19), and the author of the epistle that bears his name.
(d) The called. The church. Everyone is called (1 Cor. 1:24), but only those who respond in faith are known as “the called of Jesus Christ” (Rom. 1:6).
Note: Some translations have “to them that are sanctified by God the Father.” You were sanctified by God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit (Rom. 15:16, 2 Th. 2:13, Heb. 2:11, 10:10). As the holy temple of the Holy Spirit, you are well and truly sanctified (1 Cor. 3:16).
(e) Beloved. Four times in his short letter, Jude refers to his Christian readers as beloved (Jude 1:1, 3, 17, 20). The original word (agapao) means to be well pleased or fond of or contented. This word captures God’s heart for you. Your heavenly Father is fond of you. You are his esteemed favorite and he is well pleased with you. He looks at you with a feeling of deep contentment knowing that you are his dearly loved child. See also 1 John 2:7.
All the epistle writers referred to believers as the beloved or dearly-loved children of God (see entry for Rom. 1:7).
(f) God the Father. The Maker of heaven and earth is your heavenly Father who loves and cares for you. See entry for 1 John 1:2.
Jude 1:2
May mercy and peace and love be multiplied to you.
(a) Mercy. The original word for mercy means compassion. Since mercy is one aspect of God’s grace, Jude’s greeting is similar to Paul’s traditional greeting of grace and peace (see 1 Cor. 1:3).
(b) Peace. The original word for peace means quietness and rest and by implication includes prosperity.
(c) Love. To the traditional greeting Jude adds the agape-love of God. Because God loves us, he gives us mercy and the result is peace. Everything good begins with a revelation of our Father’s love (see also 1 John 2:5).
Jude 1:3
Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints.
(a) Beloved; see entry for Jude 1:1.
(b) Salvation. The new life we share in Christ our Savior.
(c) The necessity to write to you. Jude wanted to write on the theme of God’s great salvation but he felt stirred to go in another direction.
(d) Contend earnestly for the faith. The church is under attack. It’s time to take a stand.
False teachers had infiltrated the church preaching a licentious message (see next verse). Jude calls out these false teachers and encourages us to resist this destructive and ungodly message.
Jude 1:4
For certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.
(a) Certain persons. False teachers had infiltrated the church and the result was division and discord. These ungodly persons were not confused Christians, but would-be influencers who denied the Lord and did not have the Holy Spirit (Jude 1:19).
(b) Crept in unnoticed. They came into the church community with a hidden and divisive agenda (see Jude 1:19).
False teachers and false apostles may seem like Biblical boogeymen, but they are Satan’s principle means for attacking the church from within. When John said, “Watch that you do not lose what we have accomplished that you may receive a full reward” (2 John 1:8), he was referring to smooth-talking deceivers who draw people away from Jesus.
(c) Marked out for this condemnation. It’s no secret what will happen to those who try to make a name for themselves by attacking the church. They bring destruction on themselves (2 Pet. 2:1).
(d) Ungodly person. An ungodly person is opposed to the things of God. He denies the Lord and rejects the grace that might otherwise save him. Such a person is truly lost. Like a pardoned prisoner who refuses to leave his cell, he chooses to remain under the condemnation of sin.
(e) Grace of God. Grace captures the goodwill, lovingkindness, and favor of God that is freely given to us so that we may partake in his divine life. Grace is God’s divine aid that supernaturally empowers you to live a whole and healthy life that is free from sin. See entry for Grace of God.
(f) Turn the grace of our God into licentiousness. Preach the gospel of grace and some will ask, “If God’s grace is greater than my sin, why can’t I go on sinning?” (see entry for Rom. 6:1). That was the issue Jude is confronting here. The grace of God teaches us to say no to ungodliness, but license teaches us to say yes. In context, certain men may have been encouraging Christians to participate at idol festivals (see entry for Jude 1:11). Jude strongly opposed this.
(g) Licentiousness. Jesus died to set us free but we can lose our freedom two ways; through legalism or licentiousness. The former puts price tags on the free grace of God, while the latter removes the price tags from sin. Licentiousness says do what you will, for we are under grace not law. It’s a partial truth (all things are permissible) that leads to captivity and death (not all things are beneficial).
Your sinning will never affect God’s love for you, but it will surely affect you. Sin is destructive. It will hurt you and those you love. It is not God’s will for you to destroy yourself through sinful living, and this is why he gives us his grace – so that we may be empowered to say no to temptation and live whole and godly lives (Tit. 2:11–12).
(h) Deny our only Master and Lord. These false teachers were not confused Christians; they were wolves among the sheepfold. Like the deceivers that John spoke of, they denied that Jesus was the Savior and Son of God (1 John 2:22, 4:3, 5:10).
Jude 1:5
Now I desire to remind you, though you know all things once for all, that the Lord, after saving a people out of the land of Egypt, subsequently destroyed those who did not believe.
(a) I desire to remind you. In three verses Jude gives three lessons from history illustrating the consequences of sin. In each example there was an original state of grace – Egypt was the greatest civilization on earth, the angels inhabited the heavens, and Sodom and Gomorrah were earthly paradises – that was lost through rebellion and unbelief.
(b) You know all things. You are familiar with these stories.
(c) Egypt. In Egypt, those who listened to the Lord (the Israelites) were delivered from bondage and slavery, but those who opposed him (Pharaoh et al.) were destroyed.
(d) Did not believe. The Egyptians built an empire on blood and bodies. They massacred babies and enslaved entire races. God in his mercy warned them through signs and wonders, but those who refused to listen died on account of their unbelief.
Jude 1:6
And angels who did not keep their own domain, but abandoned their proper abode, He has kept in eternal bonds under darkness for the judgment of the great day,
(a) Angels. The angels who rebelled against the Lord have been imprisoned in pits of darkness while they await Judgment Day (see entry for 2 Pet. 2:4).
(b) Abandoned. How these angels came to abandon their proper abode is the subject of extra-biblical conjecture. But what we can say is that God did not kick them out; they rejected him and departed their heavenly home. These proud beings believed they could do better on their own.
(c) Darkness. When you reject the God who is Light (1 John 1:5), you are left in darkness. These rebellious angels were cast down and bound in pits of darkness (2 Pet. 2:4).
Jude 1:7
just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities around them, since they in the same way as these indulged in gross immorality and went after strange flesh, are exhibited as an example in undergoing the punishment of eternal fire.
(a) Sodom and Gomorrah were so “exceedingly wicked” (Gen. 13:13), that their names became synonymous with depravity. These immoral cities were destroyed by fire and brimstone that rained down from heaven (Gen. 19:24).
(b) The cities around them that were also destroyed included Admah and Zeboiim (Deu. 29:23).
(c) Gross immorality. The people of Sodom and Gomorrah were murderous thugs who had blood on their hands (Is. 1:15). They revelled in their depravity (Is. 3:9), and they oppressed the poor and needy (Eze. 16:49). The suffering they inflicted was so great, that the outcry or lament reached to heaven (Gen. 18:20). Towns that had once been known as the garden of the Lord (Gen. 13:10), became hell on earth.
(d) Went after strange flesh. Their desires were unnatural and contrary to God’s design (Rom. 1:26–27).
(e) Eternal fire. Since Sodom and Gomorrah are no longer burning (2 Pet. 2:6), we can read this as “their punishment was fiery and permanent.” These garden-like cities became wastelands of perpetual desolation (Zep. 2:9).
Jude 1:8
Yet in the same way these men, also by dreaming, defile the flesh, and reject authority, and revile angelic majesties.
(a) In the same way. Just as the empire-building Egyptians, the rebellious angels and the sinning Sodomites were full of pride, these false teachers are self-righteous and proud. They reject authority, mock heavenly beings, and are arrogant towards others.
(b) These men. The “certain persons” who infiltrated the church were all men (Jude 1:10, 12, 14).
(c) Dreaming. They were making stuff up. They were intellectual, not spiritual, and fanciful, not scriptural. Their teachings came from their depraved imaginations.
(d) Defile the flesh. Licentious teaching hurts people.
The fruit of any false grace message is sin and captivity. In context, these false teachers were probably encouraging Christians to participate in pagan festivals and sexual immorality (see Jude 1:11).
(e) Reject authority. They were scornful of the apostles and the authority of scripture.
Jude 1:9
But Michael the archangel, when he disputed with the devil and argued about the body of Moses, did not dare pronounce against him a railing judgment, but said, “The Lord rebuke you!”
(a) Michael the archangel. Michael the mighty angel did not slander or insult the devil (unlike these ignorant men who mock what they don’t understand).
(b) A railing judgment is a slanderous accusation. If anyone deserves judgment, it is surely the devil. Yet Michael refused to usurp the role of the Lord. Judgment is God’s business, not ours (Jas. 4:12).
(c) The Lord rebuke you! God will deal with you!
The enemy will always tempt you to react in your own strength and understanding, because then you will be relying on your flesh. How much better if we look to the Lord in our battles. The devil hates it when we glorify God in our trials.
Jude 1:10
But these men revile the things which they do not understand; and the things which they know by instinct, like unreasoning animals, by these things they are destroyed.
(a) These men who infiltrated the church were preaching a divisive message and denying the Lord (Jude 1:4).
(b) Revile the things which they do not understand. They are full of scorn.
False teachers like to portray themselves as experts, but a sneering, dismissive tone often masks insecurity and ignorance.
(c) Know by instinct. They are fleshly.
Spiritual truth dawns by revelation, but since these men are devoid of the Spirit (Jude 1:19) everything they know is based on their natural understanding. When it comes to spiritual matters, they are out of their depth.
(d) Like unreasoning animals. They are unspiritual.
(e) By these things they are destroyed. The way of the flesh leads to corruption and death (Rom. 8:13).
An old covenant interpretation of Jude’s letter focuses on sin. “Look at the sinful Sodomites.” But sin is no barrier to salvation. If any are lost it is because they refuse to come to the Lord to receive life (John 5:40).
In contrast, a new covenant interpretation of Jude highlights the need for faith. The false teachers’ problem is not that they are sinners, for we are all sinners in need of grace. Their downfall is that they deny the Lord (Jude 1:4). Like the Egyptians who were destroyed, they are lost because do not believe (Jude 1:5).
Jude 1:11
Woe to them! For they have gone the way of Cain, and for pay they have rushed headlong into the error of Balaam, and perished in the rebellion of Korah.
(a) Woe to them! Woe does not mean “God will punish you!” It’s an expression of distress or deep sorrow. “How terrible for them!” These false teachers are going the wrong way and are headed for destruction.
(b) The way of Cain. Cain invented the violent and Satanic religion of DIY-righteousness (1 John 3:12).
(c) The error of Balaam. Balaam the false prophet said it was okay to participate in idol feasts and commit acts of sexual immorality (Num. 25:1–3).
(d) The rebellion of Korah. Korah the rebel offered unauthorized incense (Num. 16:35).
What these three men have in common is idolatry. Cain brought an offering that glorified himself; Balaam entrapped Israel through idol worship; and Korah sought to usurp the Levitical priesthood. The picture that emerges is of false teachers who say that grace means it’s okay for Christians to participate in idol worship.
The apostles encouraged the church to have nothing to do with pagan festivals. “Beloved, flee from idolatry,” said Paul. “Have nothing to do with demons” (see 1 Cor. 10:14, 20). But false teachers such as the Nicolaitans said it was fine for Christians to join in. Some churches, like the church in Pergamum, became divided over this issue (see entry for Rev. 2:14–15).
Jude 1:12
These are the men who are hidden reefs in your love feasts when they feast with you without fear, caring for themselves; clouds without water, carried along by winds; autumn trees without fruit, doubly dead, uprooted;
(a) Hidden reefs. These false teachers are submerged reefs waiting to shipwreck the faith of those who heed them.
(b) Love feasts were meals eaten together by the early church, usually when partaking of the Lord’s Supper (communion).
(c) They feast with you without fear or reverence or respect.
(d) Caring for themselves rather than looking out for others. Like those misbehaving Corinthians who got drunk or acted like gluttons, these men pushed their way to the table and showed no regard for others or the occasion (1 Cor. 11:21).
(e) Clouds without water. These false teachers are all talk and no action (Pro. 25:14). They promise much but deliver little.
(f) Carried along by winds. Their teaching is all over the place. One day they say this, the next they say that. They call it growth but it is really rootlessness.
(g) Autumn trees without fruit. They may look good – like trees in autumnal colors – but they are spiritually barren. No one is growing in grace or being strengthened in the faith as a result of their ministry and message.
(h) Doubly dead. An unbeliever remains dead in their sins (Eph. 2:1), but these men are twice dead because they have heard the gospel and rejected it. An unbeliever who does not know that God loves her may yet be saved. But someone who knows and does not believe is truly lost. “Their last state is worse than the first” (2 Pet. 2:20).
(i) Uprooted. These dead and fruitless trees have no connection with Jesus the Root (Rev. 22:16). They have not been joined to the life-giving Vine.
Jude 1:13
wild waves of the sea, casting up their own shame like foam; wandering stars, for whom the black darkness has been reserved forever.
(a) Wild waves of the sea. These false teachers are turbulent in their teaching and temper.
(b) Casting up their own shame like foam. They are all froth and no substance. Like the Sodomites who proudly displayed their sin (Is. 3:9), these false teachers have no shame when it comes to their scandalous pronouncements.
(c) Wandering stars. They are unreliable guides. You cannot navigate by them.
In scripture, those who teach the gospel of righteousness are called stars (Dan. 12:3, Rev. 1:20), while false teachers are called wandering stars. Because they walk in darkness, they do not know where they are going (1 John 2:11).
(d) The black darkness. These wandering stars will be extinguished.
Those who close their minds to the light of God’s love wander in darkness (1 John 2:11). Although the gospel of grace shines like a beacon calling them home, they prefer to remain outside in the dark and cold. They have no interest in the Lord’s delights. They would rather eat the mud pies of independence than feast at his table of abundance.
God patiently waits for them because he does not want any to perish. But those who persist in stubborn unbelief eventually cut themselves of from the One who is light. Like dying stars that drift out of the galaxy, they flicker into blackness and are gone for good.
Jude 1:14
It was also about these men that Enoch, in the seventh generation from Adam, prophesied, saying, “Behold, the Lord came with many thousands of His holy ones,
(a) Enoch was the father of Methuselah and the great grandfather of Noah (Gen. 5:21–29).
(b) Prophesied. Enoch’s prophecy of the Lord’s return is not found in the Bible but comes from the Book of Enoch (1 Enoch 1:9).
(c) Many thousands. The original word (murias), which is repeated for emphasis, means myriad, a countless, extremely large number. “The chariots of God are myriads, thousands upon thousands” (Ps. 68:17).
(d) Holy ones are angels (Deu. 33:2, Dan. 7:10, Heb. 12:22). When the Lord comes in judgment he will be accompanied by a heavenly host of incalculable number (Zec. 14:5, Matt. 25:31, 1 Th. 3:13).
Jude 1:15
to execute judgment upon all, and to convict all the ungodly of all their ungodly deeds which they have done in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.”
(a) Execute judgment. The angels that come with the Lord will weed out the wicked from among the righteous like reapers gathering tares (Matt. 13:39–40, 49).
(b) Their ungodly deeds. To be ungodly is to be opposed to God. It’s denying the Lord and boasting “I need nothing from you.”
The ungodly are not judged for their sins, per se, because all sins were judged on the cross. But just as light and darkness cannot coexist, God’s wrath is directed towards ungodliness and unrighteousness (Rom. 1:18).
It’s a mistake to tell the sinner that the angels are going to execute judgment upon them or that God’s wrath is for them. God has grace for the sinner, but he reveals his wrath against those things that hinder grace. False teachers who deny the Lord and speak out against them, put themselves offside with God.
(c) Spoken against Him. They slandered the Spirit of Christ.
The ungodly condemn themselves by speaking against the only One that can save them. To speak against is to slander or blaspheme. It is resisting the witness of the Holy Spirit and persisting in unbelief (see entry for Matt. 12:31).
Jude 1:16
These are grumblers, finding fault, following after their own lusts; they speak arrogantly, flattering people for the sake of gaining an advantage.
(a) Grumblers, finding fault. These false teachers are whiners. Nothing edifying comes out of their mouths.
A self-righteous man feeds on comparisons with others. To justify himself, he needs to find fault in others. “Look at what you did. I would never do that.” Putting others down reinforces his own inflated sense of importance.
(b) Lusts. Since they are without the Spirit (Jude 1:19), they are governed by their flesh. They want their own way and they want to appear important. They may put on a good show, but inwardly they are insecure, anxious, and afraid.
(c) They speak arrogantly and their superior speech belies their self-righteousness. “I am right. You are wrong. I know better.”
(d) Flattering people. False teachers are silver-tongued manipulators who will play you like a fiddle.
Jude 1:17
But you, beloved, ought to remember the words that were spoken beforehand by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ,
(a) Beloved; see entry for Jude 1:1.
(b) The apostles. Like Peter (2 Pet. 2:1), Paul (2 Cor. 11:13), and John (1 John 2:26) before him, Jude warned the church of the dangers of deceivers (false prophets, false apostles, and false teachers). His reference to the apostles suggests that Jude himself was not an apostle and that he wrote his letter after they had written theirs’.
Jude 1:18
that they were saying to you, “In the last time there will be mockers, following after their own ungodly lusts.”
(a) The last time is equivalent to “the last days” used by other epistle writers (Acts 2:17, 2 Tim. 3:1,) and “the last hour” used by John (1 John 2:18). It means the second half of history, or that era that began with the arrival of Christ and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost (see entry for Heb. 1:2).
Jude and the apostles had no doubt that they were living in the final age of human history (Jas. 5:3, 2 Pet. 3:3), and age that would end with the glorious return of Jesus and the final judgment (1 John 2:28, 3:2, 4:17).
(b) There will be mockers. The self-righteous man justifies himself by mocking authority, putting others down, and talking about things he doesn’t know about.
(c) Ungodly lusts. They want to get their own way, get everything for themselves, and they want to appear important. They have little interest in the needs of others and no interest in the things of God.
Jude 1:19
These are the ones who cause divisions, worldly-minded, devoid of the Spirit.
(a) Divisions. The church began to fracture and split over this licentious teaching.
Churches are inclusive communities where all are welcome. Sinners and saints alike may come to the table of the Lord to receive grace and mercy. But churches cannot stand when false teachers are allowed to preach divisive doctrine. While John warned about those with an antichrist spirit who denied that Jesus was the Son of God (1 John 2:18), Jude warns us to beware those who promote grace as a license to sin (Jude 1:4).
(b) Worldly-minded. To be worldly-minded is to value the things of the world – human effort, reputation and accomplishments – more highly than the things of the spirit. It’s trusting in yourself (your abilities, your understanding) and living solely from the basis of your earthly experience (what you see, hear, touch, know, etc.). The Bible calls this walking after the flesh. See entry for The Flesh. See also 1 John 2:15.
(c) Devoid of the Spirit. These false teachers who bring trouble to the church are not misguided Christians but unbelievers who lack the Holy Spirit (Rom. 8:9).
Jude 1:20
But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit,
(a) Beloved; see entry for Jude 1:1.
(b) Building yourselves up. We strengthen ourselves in the faith by keeping ourselves in the love of God (see next verse).
Licentious teaching undermines faith by appealing to the flesh. “Did God really say?” But whenever we rely on our own understanding and make decisions without regard for the word of the Lord, we set ourselves up for disaster (Jer. 17:5–6). The antidote to this sort of teaching is to lean on Jesus. What does he say about the matter?
(c) Most holy faith. To build yourself up in the most holy faith is to continue in the faith or continue trusting in Jesus. As you have received Christ Jesus (by faith), so walk in him (by faith; Col. 2:6).
(d) Praying in the Holy Spirit. Pray with the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
To pray in the Spirit is to pray with the expectation that the Spirit helps us when we pray (Rom. 8:26). He teaches us how to pray and how to receive from God. Praying in the Spirit includes praying in spiritual tongues (1 Cor. 14:14).
Jude 1:21
keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life.
(a) Keep yourselves in the love of God and let nothing move you.
The original word for keep (tereo) means watch, guard, or keep your eye on. When false teachers are baiting traps with appeals to our flesh, we need to take care that we remain in our Father’s love.
(b) The love of God; see Jude 1:2. See entry for 1 John. 2:5.
(c) Waiting anxiously. This is a poor translation since there is no word here that means anxiously. Rather, the word for waiting (prosdechomai) is repeated for emphasis. In other Bibles this is translated as “expect and patiently wait” (AMP), “looking for” (KJV), and “waiting for” (ESV). We await the Lord’s return with eagerness and confidence not anxiety and fear.
In his eschatological parables Jesus told stories of noblemen and bridegrooms being gone a long time (Matt. 24:48, 25:5, 25:19). He was talking about himself. Jesus is the master who has been gone a long time. Our part is to “be like servants waiting for their master” (Luke 12:36). The need to wait is echoed by the epistle writers. “Wait eagerly for our adoption as sons” (Rom 8:23). “We hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it” (Rom 8:25). “We eagerly await a Savior” (Php 3:20). “Be patient brethren, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits…” (Jas. 5:7).
Jesus and every New Testament writer spoke of the need to wait patiently and eagerly for the Lord’s return. We are to be watchful and ready, but we are not to put life on hold. Plant trees and raise families, and do whatever God put you on this earth to do. Invest, build, dig deep and go long. Let your light shine so others may praise your Father in heaven.
(d) Eternal life is not merely endless life; eternal life is divine life. It is Christ living his life through you. Eternal life is living forever in union with Jesus. See entry for John 3:15.
Jude 1:22
And have mercy on some, who are doubting;
(a) Mercy. Show compassion to those who are wavering and uncertain.
(b) Doubting. Those who are slow of heart to believe the good news.
It’s true that Jesus rebuked the disciples for being slow to believe what the prophets said about him (Luke 24:25). But those men had been with Jesus every day for years. They should have known better. Our default setting towards those who doubt is gentleness. We reveal the compassion of God to others and his great kindness inspires them to trust him.
Jude 1:23
save others, snatching them out of the fire; and on some have mercy with fear, hating even the garment polluted by the flesh.
(a) Save others. Don’t write off these false teachers – Jesus died for them too.
The church is under attack and Jude wants us to fight for the faith (Jude 1:3). But it would be a mistake to see these false teachers as the enemy. Our battle is not against flesh and blood (Eph. 6:12). In his letters to the Revelation churches, Jesus reminds us that our true enemy is the devil (see entry for Rev. 2:10). What are we to do with these deceivers? Try and save them, of course. The doubters need mercy and the deceivers need rescuing for they are seriously lost.
(b) Snatching them out of the fire. Save them before it’s too late.
The stakes could not be higher. The unbelieving Egyptians were destroyed and sinful Sodom was wiped out, but these men still have a chance to repent.
(c) On some have mercy with fear. All who are lost need mercy, but the self-righteous need to know they are headed for self-destruction.
Jude is not saying we need to employ the fear of hell in our witness, as though we were selling fire. Nor do we tell the lost that they are sinners in the hands of an angry God. Fear is no basis for a relationship and the love of the Lord casts out all fear (1 John 4:18).
The context here is saving arrogant, proud men who are without fear (Jude 1:12). These sneering and dismissive mockers are hurtling toward the precipice. Mercy is not enough. They need the sort of warning that Jude is sounding here. “Consider the Egyptians who did not believe. Turn to God before it is too late.”
(d) Hating even the garment polluted by the flesh. Beware stinky self-righteousness.
Do not let these false teachers fall back on their flesh – their ministries, their knowledge, their experience. They need to know that they are wretched, miserable, poor, blind and naked (Rev. 3:17). We have nothing to commend ourselves. Only with empty hands can we come to the throne of grace to receive mercy.
(e) The flesh refers to worldly things as opposed to spiritual things. Since these false teachers are arrogant mockers, we may surmise that they are confident of their own righteousness. See entry for The Flesh.
Jude 1:24
Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to make you stand in the presence of His glory blameless with great joy,
(a) Make you stand. It is Christ who sustains you, sanctifies you entirely and keeps you from stumbling (Rom. 11:18, 1 Th. 5:23). You can be confident that he will complete the good work he began in you and bring you safely to his heavenly kingdom (Php. 1:6; 2 Tim. 4:18).
(b) Blameless. Christ will present the church to himself as a holy and blameless bride (Eph. 5:27).
(c) Great joy. When Jesus returns, you will not need to hide in shame for you will be spotless and clothed in Christ’s radiant glory. Although some worry that on Judgment Day the Lord will play the dirty tapes of their secret lives, we can be confident that love keeps no record of wrongs. When Jesus returns it will be a day of happy reunions and great joy.
Jude 1:25
to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.
(a) The only God. The idols of stone and wood worshipped in pagan temples cannot save you.
Just as John concludes his first letter by exhorting us to “guard ourselves from idols” (1 John 5:21), Jude concludes his by reminding us that there is only one God and he alone is worthy of our worship.
(b) Through Jesus Christ our Lord. We might say that God’s salvation comes to us through Jesus our high priest and mediator (1 Tim. 2:5). Or we might go even further and say that Jesus is revealed to us our God and Savior (2 Pet. 1:1). Both interpretations are fully Biblical for the Father and the Son are one (John 10:30).
The Grace Commentary is a work in progress with new content added regularly. Sign up for occasional updates below. Got a suggestion? Please use the Feedback page. To report typos or broken links on this page, please use the comment form below.