Day 358: Jude

(This post is Part 3 of Day 358. Please make sure to read 3 John (Part 2 of Day 358) before continuing with Jude.)

(This letter was written by Jude around 66 AD from an unknown location. Jude was the brother of James the Lesser and the half-brother of Jesus Christ. The Book of James was the first of the four authors in this mini-section of the New Testament which consisted of epistles written by four separate authors. James wrote Doctrine from a physical perspective. This was the final epistle of this mini-section. This letter was filled with Doctrine from a completely spiritual perspective.)

Jude 1
¹ Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to them that are called, beloved in God the Father, and kept for Jesus Christ:

(Jude, a servant of Christ and the brother of James (who wrote the epistle of James), wrote this letter to believers.)

² Mercy unto you and peace and love be multiplied.
³ Beloved, while I was giving all diligence to write unto you of our common salvation, I was constrained to write unto you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered unto the saints.

(Jude wrote to them concerning Salvation and exhorted them that they should earnestly contend for the faith: to intentionally increase their faith. Increasing your faith is done by growing in understanding of and experience with the object of your faith.)

⁴ For there are certain men crept in privily, even they who were of old written of beforehand unto this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.

(He wrote to them concerning Salvation because some men came in unaware and turned the grace of God into lasciviousness (immoral) and denied Jesus Christ. These people were intentional deceivers.)

⁵ Now I desire to put you in remembrance, though ye know all things once for all, that the Lord, having saved a people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that believed not.

(Jude's objective was to help them remember what Salvation actually was, just as God provided everything necessary to save Israel out of Egypt but destroyed those who chose to not believe. Likewise, God provided everything necessary to save us and those who chose not to believe would experience eternal punishment.)

⁶ And angels that kept not their own principality, but left their proper habitation, he hath kept in everlasting bonds under darkness unto the judgment of the great day.

(Peter wrote a similar passage in 2 Peter 2:4-5. Again, Jude proved Salvation was by choice because even angels chose to sin before the Flood and they were punished in tartarus.)

⁷ Even as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities about them, having in like manner with these given themselves over to fornication and gone after strange flesh, are set forth as an example, suffering the punishment of eternal fire.

(Peter wrote a similar passage in 2 Peter 2:6-7. Again, Sodom and the Flood were two examples where God punished because people chose not to believe. They were also the only two instances involving angels and sex. During Noah's time, some angels chose to have sex with women. During Lot's time, some men attempted to have sex with two angels.)

⁸ Yet in like manner these also in their dreamings defile the flesh, and set at nought dominion, and rail at dignities.

(In verse 4, Jude was focused on the intentional deceivers that had crept into the church. Jude said those deceivers were like the examples he had just presented: they defiled the flesh through sin and spoke against the wonderful things belonging to God, like angels.)

⁹ But Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing judgment, but said, The Lord rebuke thee.

(Jude gave an extreme example of someone handling verse 8 the right way. Michael the archangel had contended with the devil in a dispute about Moses' body. If anyone had the right to rail at dignities, it would have been Michael during the dispute over Moses' body. However, even Michael the archangel did not rail at the devil himself. Michael said "The LORD rebuke thee." This was not a physical battle. "Rebuking" was not physical, it was made up of words and sentences! This was an example of spiritual warfare.

Doctrine: We should not rebuke the devil. If Michael did not rebuke the devil, then we have no justification for doing it.)

¹⁰ But these rail at whatsoever things they know not: and what they understand naturally, like the creatures without reason, in these things are they destroyed.

(This was the same as what was stated in 2 Peter 2:12-13. These people did not have faith because all they could believe was what they understood naturally, what could be seen. Animals do not have faith. Also, animals do not have understanding/reason. Likewise, Jude stated the intentional deceivers were people who lacked understanding/reason, they lacked a right why. Deception is a right what with a wrong or no how/why. Jude gave three specific examples that illustrated how/why these intentional deceivers were destructive:)

¹¹ Woe unto them! For they went in the way of Cain, and ran riotously in the error of Balaam for hire, and perished in the gainsaying of Korah.

(Peter also mentioned Balaam in 2 Peter 2:15. Let's look at each example separately:

-Cain (Genesis 4) - Cain gave an offering (right what) but got upset when he saw Abel's offering get respect from God (wrong why). Cain wanted to feel good about himself at Abel's expense, so Cain murdered Abel (wrong how). Cain did not have faith. He could only believe in what he could see.

-Balaam (Numbers 22-24) - God told Balaam (the right) what to say. Balaam was told by God to deal with Balak in one way (right how), yet Balaam wanted a reward from Balak (wrong why), so Balaam did it his way (wrong how). Balaam did not have faith. He could only believe in what he could see.

-Korah (Numbers 16) - Korah rallied a group of 250 leaders against Moses (and Aaron) in order to take over. Korah got these 250 leaders to stand up against Moses and Aaron (wrong how) so that 250 vs. 2 would cause Moses and Aaron to appear to be wrong (wrong why). However, God had all 250 killed. Korah did not have faith. Korah could only believe in what he could see, and tried to get the people to be like him.

Cain wanted God's blessing. Balaam wanted money. Korah wanted power. The issue was why and how each of these three went about getting these three what's.)

¹² These are they who are hidden rocks in your love-feasts when they feast with you, shepherds that without fear feed themselves; clouds without water, carried along by winds; autumn leaves without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots;

(Notice, the examples all had a right what (appearance), yet they did not have the right how/why which would lead to profitability:
-Shepherds, that feed themselves.
-Clouds, without water.
-Leaves at harvest time, with no fruit.

Jude's measure (and God's) was profitability.)

¹³ Wild waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame; wandering stars, for whom the blackness of darkness hath been reserved forever.

(These people would experience eternal punishment.)

¹⁴ And to these also Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied, saying, Behold, the Lord came with ten thousands of his holy ones,
¹⁵ to execute judgment upon all, and to convict all the ungodly of all their works of ungodliness which they have ungodly wrought, and of all the hard things which ungodly sinners have spoken against him.

(Jude supported his premise that these intentional deceivers will experience eternal punishment with The Book of Enoch (1 Enoch 1:9). The Book of 1 Enoch was not considered canonical by the men who canonized the Bible. Jude's quoting of 1 Enoch almost caused this epistle to be removed from the Bible.)

¹⁶ These are murmurers, complainers, walking after their lusts (and their mouth speaketh great swelling words), showing respect of persons for the sake of advantage.

(The word "gossip" and its forms did not occur in the Bible. What we define as "gossipers" were known as "murmurers." The root of this word was Strong's #1111 goggyzo - "secret detraction."

Gossiping consists of two requirements:
1) What is stated must detract from another person.
2) This detraction must be stated in private.

Stating something that does not detract in private is not gossiping. Stating something that detracts in public is not gossiping. When you state something that detracts, ask yourself if you would say this to the person's face. If you would not, you are probably gossiping.)

¹⁷ But ye, beloved, remember ye the words which have been spoken before by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ;
¹⁸ That they said to you, In the last time there shall be mockers, walking after their own ungodly lusts.
¹⁹ These are they who make separations, sensual, having not the Spirit.

(Jude told them to remember the words of the Apostles and that they were warned of these events.)

²⁰ But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit,

(Jude stated some things that could be done by believers to deal with these intentional deceivers. First, build yourself up in your most holy faith and pray in the Holy Spirit, which could be tongues.)

²¹ keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.

(Second, keep yourself in the love of God. This is our responsibility! We love God because He first loved us.)

²² And on some have mercy, who are in doubt;
²³ and some save, snatching them out of the fire; and on some have mercy with fear; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh.

(Jude stated that we should not approach everyone with the same how. We ought to be led of the Holy Spirit (grace). The Holy Spirit would lead us to do what will work for the individual. This could be by using mercy or by confronting them to confess and repent in order to avoid eternal punishment (fear) or even by using mercy and fear.)

²⁴ Now unto him that is able to guard you from stumbling, and to set you before the presence of his glory without blemish in exceeding joy,
²⁵ to the only God our Saviour, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion and power, before all time, and now, and for evermore. Amen.

(This letter was written by Jude around 66 AD from an unknown location. Jude was the brother of James the Lesser and the half-brother of Jesus Christ. The Book of James was the first of the four authors in this mini-section of the New Testament which consisted of epistles written by four separate authors. James wrote Doctrine from a physical perspective. This was the final epistle of this mini-section. This letter was filled with Doctrine from a completely spiritual perspective. Jude was the penultimate book of the Bible. Next, was the final book of the Bible.)

Day 359