Jude was one of several brothers of Jesus mentioned in the Gospels, alongside James, Joseph, and Simon (Matthew 13:55, Mark 6:3). Like his siblings, Jude did not believe in Jesus during His earthly ministry, and the Gospels note that Jesus’ own family, at one point, doubted Him (John 7:5, Mark 3:21). This makes Jude’s later devotion to Christ especially significant, reflecting a personal transformation likely brought about by witnessing the resurrection and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.
After the resurrection, Jesus’ brothers, including Jude, are listed among the believers gathered in prayer with the apostles (Acts 1:14), showing a clear shift from skepticism to genuine faith. Jude humbly identifies himself not as the brother of Jesus, but as a servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James (Jude 1), reflecting his focus on service rather than status, despite his close family connection to the Lord.
Jude wrote this short but urgent letter to warn believers about false teachers who had infiltrated the church, promoting immoral behavior while distorting the grace of God into a license for sin (Jude 4). These false teachers appear to have blended sensuality with spiritual arrogance, rejecting authority and corrupting the fellowship of believers (Jude 8, 12 to 13).
Jude originally intended to write about the shared salvation believers enjoyed, but felt compelled instead to urge them to contend earnestly for the faith due to this pressing danger (Jude 3). He draws heavily on Old Testament examples, such as the rebellion of certain angels, the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, and the account of Cain, to illustrate the serious consequences of turning away from God’s truth (Jude 5 to 7, 11).
Introduction
In this brief but powerful letter, Jude writes to believers urging them to earnestly contend for the faith that was once delivered to the saints. He warns of false teachers who have secretly infiltrated the community, twisting the grace of God into a license for immorality and denying the authority of Jesus Christ. Jude draws on examples from the Old Testament, including the fate of unbelieving Israelites, rebellious angels, and the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, to illustrate the certainty of judgment for those who reject God’s ways. He also references the archangel Michael’s dispute with the devil and the prophecy of Enoch to emphasize the coming judgment on ungodly individuals. The letter closes with an exhortation for believers to build themselves up in faith, keep themselves in God’s love, and reach out with mercy to those who are wavering, all while trusting in God’s power to keep them from stumbling.
Chapter 1 (BBE)
1 Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and the brother of James, to those of God’s selection who have been made holy by God the Father and are kept safe for Jesus Christ:
2 May mercy and peace and love be increased in you.
3 My loved ones, while my thoughts were full of a letter which I was going to send you about our common salvation, it was necessary for me to send you one requesting you with all my heart to go on fighting strongly for the faith which has been given to the saints once and for ever.
4 For certain men have come among you secretly, marked out before in the holy Writings for this evil fate, men without the fear of God, turning his grace into an unclean thing, and false to our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.
5 Now it is my purpose to put you in mind, though you once had knowledge of all these things, of how the Lord, having taken a people safely out of Egypt, later sent destruction on those who had no faith;
6 And the angels who did not keep to their kingdom but went out from the place which was theirs, he has put in eternal chains and in dark night till the great day of the judging.
7 Even as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the towns near them, having like these, given themselves up to unclean desires and gone after strange flesh, have been made an example, undergoing the punishment of eternal fire.
8 In the same way these dreamers make the flesh unclean, having no respect for authorities, and say evil of rulers.
9 Now when Michael, one of the chief angels, was fighting against the Evil One for the body of Moses, fearing to make use of violent words against him, he only said, May the Lord be your judge.
10 But these men say evil about such things as they have no knowledge of; and the things of which they have natural knowledge, like beasts without reason, are the cause of their destruction.
11 A curse on them! They have gone in the way of Cain, running uncontrolled into the error of Balaam for reward, and have come to destruction by saying evil against the Lord, like Korah.
12 These men are unseen rocks at your love-feasts, when they take part in them with you, keepers of sheep who without fear take the food of the sheep; clouds without water rushing before the wind, wasted trees without fruit, twice dead, pulled up by the roots,
13 Violent waves of the sea, streaming with their shame, wandering stars for whom the darkest night is kept in store for ever.
14 The prophet Enoch, who was the seventh after Adam, said of these men, The Lord came with tens of thousands of his saints,
15 To be the judge of all, and to give a decision against all those whose lives are unpleasing to him, because of the evil acts which they have done, and because of all the hard things which sinners without fear of God have said against him.
16 These are the men who make trouble, ever desiring change, going after evil pleasures, using high-sounding words, respecting men’s position in the hope of reward.
17 But you, my loved ones, keep in memory the words which were said before by the Apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ,
18 How they said to you, In the last days there will be men who, guided by their evil desires, will make sport of holy things.
19 These are the men who make divisions, natural men, not having the Spirit.
20 But you, my loved ones, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, and making prayers in the Holy Spirit,
21 Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for life eternal through the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ.
23 And to some give salvation, pulling them out of the fire; and on some have mercy with fear, hating even the clothing which is made unclean by the flesh.
24 Now to him who is able to keep you from falling, and to give you a place in his glory, free from all evil, with great joy,
25 To the only God our Saviour, through Jesus Christ our Lord, let us give glory and honour and authority and power, before all time and now and for ever. So be it.
Important Verses
Jude 1:3 Jude urges believers to earnestly contend for the faith that was once delivered to the saints, emphasizing the importance of defending sound doctrine.
Jude 1:4 Jude warns against false teachers who twist the grace of God into a license for immorality and deny the authority of Jesus Christ.
Jude 1:6 to 7 Jude references the judgment of rebellious angels and the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah as warnings of the consequences of turning away from God.
Jude 1:20 to 21 Believers are encouraged to build themselves up in faith, pray in the Holy Spirit, and keep themselves in the love of God.
Jude 1:24 to 25 The letter closes with a doxology affirming God’s power to keep believers from stumbling and to present them faultless before His glory.
