Jude 1

The book of Jude is a short letter, but it is packed with warnings against false teachers who had infiltrated the Christian community, emphasizing the need for Christians to contend for the faith and remain steadfast in their spiritual commitments. Jude uses examples from the Old Testament and other Jewish literature to illustrate the fate of the ungodly and urges believers to maintain their faith and assist those led astray.

Jude 1:1-4 (NKJV)
1 Jude, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to those who are called, sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ:
2 Mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you.
3 Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints.
4 For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ.

Jude introduces himself as a servant of Jesus and the brother of James, indicating his connection to the early Christian community. He addresses his readers as those chosen and kept safe by God, wishing them increased mercy, peace, and love. He shifts focus to urge them to defend the faith against false teachings. Jude highlights the severity of the situation with deceitful individuals infiltrating the community, manipulating God’s grace for immoral purposes and denying Christ's authority.

Jude 1:5-7 (NKJV)
5 But I want to remind you, though you once knew this, that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe.
6 And the angels who did not keep their proper domain, but left their own abode, He has reserved in everlasting chains under darkness for the judgment of the great day;
7 as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities around them in a similar manner to these, having given themselves over to sexual immorality and gone after strange flesh, are set forth as an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.

Jude reminds his readers of historical instances of divine punishment to stress the dangers of apostasy and immorality. He cites the Israelites who were saved from Egypt but later destroyed due to unbelief, the angels who rebelled against God and were bound until judgment, and the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, punished for their grievous sins. These examples serve as stern warnings of the consequences of deviating from God’s ways.

Jude 1:8-10 (NKJV)
8 Likewise also these dreamers defile the flesh, reject authority, and speak evil of dignitaries.
9 Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil, he disputed about the body of Moses, did not bring against him a reviling accusation, but said, “The Lord rebuke you!”
10 But these speak evil of whatever they do not understand; and whatever they know naturally, like brute beasts, in these things they corrupt themselves.

Jude compares false teachers to notorious biblical figures, accusing them of immorality, disrespect for authority, and slander. He contrasts their behavior with that of Michael the archangel, who demonstrated restraint and respect in his dispute with the devil, highlighting the false teachers’ ignorance and destructive nature.

Jude 1:11-13 (NKJV)
11 Woe to them! For they have gone in the way of Cain, have run greedily in the error of Balaam for profit, and perished in the rebellion of Korah.
12 These are spots in your love feasts, while they feast with you without fear, serving only themselves. They are clouds without water, carried about by the winds; late autumn trees without fruit, twice dead, pulled up by the roots;
13 raging waves of the sea, foaming up their own shame; wandering stars, for whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever.

Jude pronounces a curse on the ungodly, comparing their deceit and rebellion to that of biblical villains like Cain, Balaam, and Korah. He criticizes their participation in communal meals, where they are self-serving and dangerous to others' spiritual health. Jude uses vivid metaphors to describe their fruitlessness and destructive nature, emphasizing their ultimate doom.

Jude 1:14-16 (NKJV)
14 Now Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men also, saying, “Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of His saints,
15 to execute judgment on all, to convict all who are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have committed in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.”
16 These are grumblers, complainers, walking according to their own lusts; and they mouth great swelling words, having men’s persons in admiration because of advantage.

Jude refers to a prophecy attributed to Enoch, foretelling God's judgment against the ungodly, highlighting their sinful actions and disrespectful words against God. He describes the false teachers as chronic complainers and flatterers who manipulate others for personal gain.

Jude 1:17-23 (NKJV)
17 But you, beloved, remember the words which were spoken before by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ:
18 how they told you that there would be mockers in the last time who would walk according to their own ungodly lusts.
19 These are sensual persons, who cause divisions, not having the Spirit.
20 But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit,
21 keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.
22 And on some have compassion, making a distinction;
23 but others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire, hating even the garment defiled by the flesh.

Jude exhorts his readers to recall the teachings of the apostles about the end times and the presence of mockers led by their sinful desires. He encourages believers to strengthen their faith through prayer and to remain in God’s love while awaiting Christ’s mercy. Jude advises dealing with doubters with discernment—offering compassion to some and more direct interventions to others to steer them away from spiritual peril.

Jude 1:24-25 (NKJV)
24 Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy,
25 To the only wise God our Savior, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen.

Jude concludes with a doxology, praising God’s ability to protect believers from falling and to bring them into His glorious presence joyfully. He attributes to God all wisdom, glory, and power, ending the letter on a note of divine assurance and worship.