Jude
Copyright ©
Darroll Evans 2008
The
Greek words used in reference are root words that do not follow the Englishman’s lexicon spelling!
1 Jude, the servant of Jesus
Christ, and brother of James, to them that are sanctified by God the Father, and
preserved in Jesus Christ, and called:
Jude
(Gr. Ioudas-Ἰούδας)
may better be understood as “Judas!”
That Hebrew name was popular during the first
century.
Until recently, the authenticity has been questioned
by some.
One of the reasons is the use of extra-biblical
references.
During
this commentary we will point out those extra-biblical references.
Jude
refers to himself as a “servant” of Jesus Christ!
That term indicates a slave!
Jude
also says that he is a “brother” (Gr. adelfas-ἀδελφός)
of James!
That term is used of all the Church “brethren.”
However,
many suppose Jude to be James physical brother, which would also make him a
half-brother to Jesus!
This
letter is a general epistle, being sent to “them that are sanctified by God the
Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ, and called”.
In
that it constitutes a letter that may be considered by the Church as a whole
and not focusing on Gentiles as do Paul’s letters or on the nation of Israel as
does the rest of Scripture.
Although
Christ occasionally dealt with Gentiles, His earthly ministry was focused on
the nation of Israel!
Matt 15:24 But he answered and said, I
am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
“Sanctified”
(Gr. hagiazō-ἁγιάζω)
speaks of one who has been purified, extremely cleansed, and set aside,
dedicated to God!
The Greek root word refers to love!
God
sanctifies us, reconciles us, redeems us, and justifies us as the result of His
love for His Son, who gave His life for us in faith that the Father would
sanctify all for whom he died.
Did
you realize that as one who has been saved by Christ, you are now sanctified?
You
may not “feel” sanctified, but you are not saved because you “feel” saved!
You
are saved because God the Father declares you saved in Christ the Son!
As
such, you have been sealed by God the Spirit and shall be kept by the Holy
Spirit!
Eph 1:13 In whom ye also trusted,
after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom
also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy
Spirit of promise,
Being
sanctified in Jesus Christ, we are now preserved in Him!
“Called”
(Gr. klētos-κλητός)
speaks of being called to a banquet!
As
Those of Christ, we have been called to the marriage supper, marriage banquet of
the Lamb of God!
Rev 19:9a And he saith
unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of
the Lamb.
2 Mercy unto
you, and peace, and love, be multiplied.
In Christ we have mercy, peace, and love!
“Mercy” appears first.
It indicates that we are not receiving what we
deserve!
We have been called because of God’s mercy!
“Mercy” speaks of God’s compassion for us!
While love is the
engine, mercy is the spark that ignites grace resulting in peace.
God works on our
behalf because of His mercy or compassion for us.
Without mercy, the
engine that delivers us from sin would not work.
Biblical “peace” is
not the mere absence on open hostilities.
God's peace is a
serenity, or tranquility that is ours when things around us are going terribly
wrong.
God's peace within us is not the result of human reasoning.
It goes far beyond and actually defies human reasoning.
The eye of a hurricane represents God's peace.
Around the eye, the water is churning violently.
The winds are howling.
Within the
hurricane's eye the seas are calm, and the sun is shining.
Those who are
content with social peace shall go into the Lake of Fire!
The only peace that
is meaningful is peace with God the Father through Christ the Son!
“Love”
is the engine that pulls salvation!
It
is the super glue that holds the universe together.
God’s mercy is the
result of His love, which causes grace to come to us, resulting in peace with
God.
Although few
believe or teach it, and most teach to the contrary, God's love never ever
fails.
God’s love is incapable of failure.
God is Love, and He cannot fail!
God's grace, peace,
mercy, and love are intertwined as a strong rope with each doing its part to
bring us to the knowledge of Christ.
God
loved you even before you accepted Him.
I Jn 4:19
We love him, because he first loved us.
Our
love for God the Father and the Son is a reflection of His love for us!
Love
for the Father or the Son cannot originate in an unregenerate heart!
That
is why Jude says, that mercy, peace, and love, are multiplied to those who love
the Lord!
3 Beloved, when I gave all
diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to
write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith
which was once delivered unto the saints.
Salvation
is “common” or shared by all that have come to Christ as the result of His
call!
That
being said, it is important that those who are weak in the faith be reminded of
His love!
Notice
that Jude reminds us that faith was “delivered unto the saints.”
Human faith is useless in the matter of salvation!
We are justified by the faith OF Jesus Christ!
Gal 2:16 Knowing that a man is not
justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that
we might be justified by the faith of
Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no
flesh be justified.
Let me be blunt!
I
am not a KJV only fan, however if the Bible you use does not translate
Galatians 2:16 using “of” it is a mistranslation!
You cannot “choose” to come to Christ outside of His
call!
You cannot have faith in Christ outside of His
imputed faith!
4
For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to
this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into
lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.
Oddly, this is the only use of the word grace in
this letter!
This
verse tells us that some have come in among true Church members in an attempt
to distort God’s grace!
The
pretenders seek to corrupt God’s grace turning it into human lasciviousness!
“Lasciviousness”
indicates filth, or unbridled lust!
In
proclaiming lasciviousness, they are seeking to deny the only Lord God, and our
Lord Jesus Christ.
Unfortunately
such corruption is now rampant among the churches (lower case c)!
As
an aside, the sign on the front door is no indication concerning the activities
within!
Certain
men have been sent by Satan into churches to distort God’s grace!
Grace is not license!
Those
who obey Satan show that Christ is not Lord of their lives!
5
I will therefore put you in remembrance, though ye once knew this, how that the
Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed
them that believed not.
In this Jude believes that even God’s people have forgotten how God brought Israel out of Egyptian bondage!
We
should recall that of those who went through the Red Sea, only two entered the
Promised Land!
The
reason they did not enter the Promised Land was the sin of doubt!
6
And the angels which kept not their first estate, but
left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under
darkness unto the judgment of the great day.
In
addition to the Israelites that fell in the wilderness, the angels who joined
Lucifer in his rebellion fell into disrepute!
Those
fallen angels are now being held in eternal (Gr. aidios-ἀΐδιος)
chains of spiritual darkness!
This
is one of only two verses in the entire Bible that uses a single word that may
be translated “eternal.”
The other verse is Romans 1:20!
Since
the chains are eternal, so we may assume that their use is also eternal!
7
Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them
in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange
flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.
Sodom
and Gomorrah were examples of what happens to those who deny God and turn to
human passions as a substitute for the righteous God!
8
Likewise also these filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and
speak evil of dignities.
Imagination is a wonderful thing!
Or, is it?
Often
those who despise God’s government set themselves up in artificial places of
authority!
They may imagine that they are God, or God’s vicar
on earth!
Men,
no matter how well intentioned, never have the same authority as God and His
Christ!
The human mind is capable of great deception!
9
Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the
body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The
Lord rebuke thee.
This
verse is one of the reasons why Jude’s letter was not universally accepted by
the early Church!
It
is taken from the Book of Enoch, which is a spurious, extra-biblical writing!
Look
at this verse! Michael had to battle the Devil!
Did
Michael struggle with all his might?
Absolutely
not!
What
did Michael do?
He
simply said, with confidence, “The Lord rebuke you!”
At
that the battle was over, it had been fully won with a simple confident
statement!
Do
you understand God’s power?
Looking
at this through the eyes of the resurrection, do you understand the full
consequences of the resurrection?
Many
believe that the resurrection took place, but few understand the full effects!
Let
“your” strength be shown in the power of Christ Jesus! Do not attempt to defeat a defeated enemy! Satan’s
defeat is a fact.
When
Christ returns, He is not coming to defeat Satan! He is returning to collect that which He paid
for at Calvary!
10 But
these speak evil of those things which they know not: but what they know
naturally, as brute beasts, in those things they corrupt themselves.
Those who speak
evil of heavenly powers which they do
not know or understand (i.e.
God the Father, Son, or Holy
Spirit) are
ignorant brutes by nature, human nature!
Their words are
their downfall!
Their very words lead to their personal corruption!
11 Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily
after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core.
Greed is the number one social sin!
Far too many people are personally corrupted by sin!
Balaam could not prophesy against God’s people
Israel!
But,
he could and did teach Balak’s people to entice
Israel into sin!
Balaam
taught the people of Balak as the result of sin that
gripped him!
The
promise of personal wealth still leads many to abandon Christ!
Satan
may promise great carnal wealth, nut only Christ can deliver Life Everlasting!
12 These are spots in your
feasts of charity, when they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear:
clouds they are without water, carried about of winds; trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the
roots;
Some
teach that Christ cannot come back for His Church until “we” cleanse ourselves!
That is a false teaching!
If
as you read this, you are saved, you are a saint!
As
a saint of Christ Jesus, you are, by definition, pure, holy, and blameless
before God the Father!
You
may not be pure, holy or blameless before society, but you are also not saved
by society!
Christ Jesus is your Savior!
Those
who have crept into church meetings and leadership positions without truly
accepting Christ are Pretenders!
They are “clouds they are without water!”
They are trees whose fruit has withered!
They show no fruit of the Spirit!
They are “twice dead,” and plucked up by the roots!
That is not a pretty picture!
13
Raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame; wandering stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever.
Pretenders are spiritual raging waves of the sea!
Raging waves may cause great damage!
John the baptizer equated false witness with
violence!
Luke 3:14c And he said unto them, Do violence to no man, neither accuse
any falsely;
The
psalmist was lead to ask:
Psalms 2:1 Why do
the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing?
They are foaming out their own shame!
This may refer to following a false doctrine!
Following
a false teaching brings shame, and spiritual disgrace.
They are metaphorical wandering stars!
2 Tim 4:3 For the
time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts
shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;
In
case you have not noticed, that day is here!
Many
supposed Christian leaders are now looking to alliances with Islam to achieve
peace!
2 Cor 6:14
Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath
righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion
hath light with darkness?
God
has reserved the fallen angels to exist in utter spiritual for
ever!
14 And Enoch also, the
seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with
ten thousands of his saints,
The
Lord, Christ Jesus is coming, or actually returning for a great gathering of
all those who have placed their trust in Him!
Sadly,
most Jews will not be among those who welcome Him with joy!
When
they see Christ in His glory they shall realize the result of their rejection!
Rev 1:7 Behold, he
cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds
of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.
15 To execute judgment upon
all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds
which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly
sinners have spoken against him.
Christ is coming to execute judgment!
Those who have followed Him will be judged in mercy.
Those
who have rejected Him, no matter their “religious” standing, shall heard
rejection of their false works!
Matt 7:22-23
22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have
we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have
cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful
works?
23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that
work iniquity.
Rev 22:12 And,
behold, I come quickly; and my reward is
with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.
We are not saved by works, but we are judged by
works!
The saved are judged by the work of Christ!
The lost are judged by their rejection of Christ!
16 These are murmurers, complainers, walking after their own lusts; and
their mouth speaketh great swelling words, having
men's persons in admiration because of advantage.
Those
who reject Christ and speak against God’s anointed shall be cast into the Lake
of Fire!
Rev 21:8 But the fearful, and
unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and
sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake
which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the
second death.
17 But,
beloved, remember ye the words which were spoken before of the apostles of our
Lord Jesus Christ;
In
this day, the only way we have to remember what was spoken by the Apostles
concerning Christ is to study the Bible!
We are not called to just read the Bible!
We are called to study!
2 Tim 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of
truth.
18 How that they told you there
should be mockers in the last time, who should walk after their own ungodly
lusts.
The times we now live in were prophesied!
“Mockers”
refers to false teachers, those who deride Christ Jesus, those who scoff at His
position as the Messiah, Son of God, and His return!
They
“walk after,” or live according to their own personal lusts and desires!
Those lust and desires are driven by their sin
nature!
19 These be
they who separate themselves, sensual, having not the Spirit.
Those described in verse 16 and 18 are not joined to
Christ!
They
are driven by sensual desires, and do not have the Spirit of God living within
them!
20 But
ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the
Holy Ghost,
However,
those who have been baptized into Christ are separated from the world!
Being led by the Holy Spirit, we use our time and
faith wisely!
21 Keep yourselves
in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal
life.
“Keep” means to guard.
God’s loving Holy Spirit guards us from
unrighteousness!
It
is due to His loving mercy that we continue to look for His return and the
manifestation of life that has been promised to is by means of the Holy Spirit!
Christ is and is the object of our Hope!
22 And of some
have compassion, making a difference:
This
verse may also be translated: “And, the
mercy differentiates”
Christians
are not much different socially from those who do not know Christ, BUT His
mercy makes the difference!
God’s mercy differentiates between the saved and the
lost!
23 And others save with
fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the
flesh.
When
you tell others about Christ and they respond through the power of the Holy
Spirit, you have in effect pulled them out of flames of the Lake of Fire!
In
that life exchange, their fleshly garments of unrighteousness were exchanged
for the righteous garments of Christ!
24 Now unto him that is able
to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of
his glory with exceeding joy,
Christ is able to keep us!
Romans 11:29 For the
gifts and calling of God are without
repentance.
Christ shall present you in a blameless state to God
as His!
And,
He shall do so with “exceeding joy” (Gr. agalliasis- ἀγαλλίασις)
in what the Father has accomplished through the Son’s sacrifice!
25 To
the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty,
dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.
God
the Father is our ultimate Savior through God the Son by means of God the Holy
Spirit!
When
we read, in this context, “God our Savior” we must not mentally eliminate a
single member of the triune God-head!
This
closing literally means, “Even at this present time, and for all the ages! Truthfully!”