CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
The Letter of Jude

Orientation

Given its brevity, the Letter of Jude contains several fascinating elements. It is written by a half brother of Jesus. It quotes one nonbiblical text and alludes to another. It is full of Old Testament references to people who sinned and faced judgment. It is nearly entirely plagiarized by 2 Peter. And the letter is overwhelmingly negative and harsh.

The Historical Origins of Jude

Despite these elements, Jude is written out of love. His compassion becomes evident at the end of the letter as he encourages believers to be built up in the faith and to care for others whose faith may be failing. This reveals the ultimate concern of the letter: to protect the true faith and to protect true believers. Jude’s negativity and harshness are necessary to achieve this positive, loving end.

Who Was Jude?

Jude and 2 Peter

Jude	2 Peter
4	2:1
4	2:2
4	2:3
6	2:4
6	2:9
7	2:6
7b, 8	2:10
9	2:11
10	2:12
11	2:15
12a	2:13
12b, 13	2:17
16	2:18
17	3:1–2
18	3:3
24	3:14
25	3:18

Exploration—Reading Jude

Contend for the Faith

READ JUDE 1–4

Jude identifies himself as a servant of Christ and a brother of James (v. 1a) (see the sidebar “Jude’s Lord and Brother”). He writes to all who are called and loved by the Father and kept for the Son (v. 1b). This presents the Father as the initiator of salvation, calling his people because of love, while Jesus is presented as the one for whom they are called and kept. Belonging to Jesus is the ultimate goal and purpose of our calling.

Jude’s Lord and Brother

Jude begins by identifying himself as “a servant of Jesus Christ and a brother of James” (v. 1). Both of these descriptions are interesting if the traditional belief about this letter is accepted. According to tradition, Jude is a younger half brother of Jesus, and therefore also of James. So it is striking that he calls himself a servant of Jesus—his brother! He does not draw attention to the fact of their brotherhood, perhaps out of a sense of humility, or of not expecting special treatment because of his familial closeness to his Lord. Though he does not mention that he is Jesus’s brother, he does reveal his brotherly relationship to James. Again, perhaps this is done out of humility: being the brother of James identifies him as that Jude but avoids directly drawing attention to the fact that Jesus is his brother.

After a standard greeting (v. 2), Jude indicates that though he intended to write a more positive letter about their common salvation, it was necessary to write something more defensive. He calls his readers to contend for the faith: they must battle and wrestle for the true body of beliefs that have been handed down to the church (v. 3). The reason for this defensive stance is that some people have been perverting the grace of God. He describes these people as ungodly, as having infiltrated the church, and—most disturbing of all—they have already been designated for the judgment of God (v. 4a). Their crime is to take the grace of God as an excuse for “sensuality,” no doubt meaning that they give themselves over to sexual immorality and other things, while excusing their behavior on account of God’s grace. They reason that if God will forgive it, they might as well do it. According to Jude, this is totally unacceptable.

The Structure of Jude

The Problem

READ JUDE 5–16

Jude then appeals to the history of Israel, looking back to God’s saving work when he delivered his people out of slavery in Egypt (Exod. 12). The pertinent point here is that although God is in the business of saving people, he also destroys those who reject him—as was the case with Israel (v. 5). Even angels who rebelled were subjected to God’s judgment (v. 6). And the story of Sodom and Gomorrah stands as a chilling warning of what God is willing to do to destroy evil (v. 7; cf. Gen. 18:16–19:29).

Figure 28.1. Plaque of St. Jude (twelfth century) [The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Gift of George Blumenthal, 1941.]

Jesus Saved Israel?

It is very striking that Jude describes Jesus as the savior of Israel out of Egypt (v. 5), since he was not born until centuries later. Some ancient scribes clearly found that too weird and changed their manuscripts to read “Lord” or “God” instead of “Jesus.” If the original text says “Jesus,” however, it means that Jude regards the ministry of Jesus as existing before his incarnation. While the Old Testament depicts God, or Yahweh, as Israel’s deliverer, Jude identifies Jesus with that divine figure. In other words, Jesus is part of the divine identity, and Yahweh’s saving deeds include his activity.

Jude draws a parallel between these examples and the false teachers he is currently combating. They rely on their dreams instead of God’s word, and they defile, reject, and slander (v. 8). To show how wrong it is to slander, Jude uses an example about the archangel Michael and the devil, who apparently had an argument about Moses’s body (v. 9a). Such a story is not found in the Old Testament and there is much speculation about it, but the main point becomes clear: even in that context, Michael did not slander the devil, but instead rebuked him in the Lord’s name (v. 9b). Unlike Michael’s self-control, these false teachers act according to instinct like animals (v. 10) and have chosen the wrong path like Cain, Balaam, and Korah (v. 11).

Michael and the Devil?

In this bizarre reference to a dispute between the archangel Michael and the devil, it is possible that Jude is drawing on a Jewish text known as the Assumption of Moses. It is difficult to be certain, however, because we have no copies of this text, and we rely on the claim of the church father Clement of Alexandria, who believed that Jude quoted from it. On the other hand, there is a book called the Testament of Moses, which does exist but is missing its ending. It is possible that the lost ending includes the story that Jude here refers to. There is a tradition of angels disputing with the devil beginning with Zechariah 3:2, and it becomes part of Jewish literature.

Figure 28.2. St. Michael Standing on the Devil (artist unknown) copied by Wändemmu Gashaw in Anaphora of Mary [The Walters Art Museum. Gift of Mr. Daniel M. Friedenberg, 1993.]

Cain, Balaam, and Korah

Jude draws on three Old Testament “villains” as illustrations of taking the wrong path. Cain is the first recorded murderer, who took his brother’s life because of jealousy (Gen. 4:1–16). Balaam was a diviner who sabotaged the Israelites as they entered the promised land (Num. 22–24) by enticing them with sin (Rev. 2:14), which led to God’s judgment on the Israelites (Num. 31:16). Korah (not to be confused with the Korah of Psalms) was a Levite leader who led a rebellion against Moses and Aaron, motivated by lust for authority (Num. 16). In judgment, Korah and all the rebels were swallowed by the earth, taking them straight to Sheol (Num. 16:31–33). All three took the wrong path, leading to their judgment.

In verses 12–13 Jude employs a series of metaphors to convey how dangerous and futile these people are. They are like dangerous reefs that cause shipwreck; shepherds who don’t care about the sheep but only about themselves; waterless clouds, which do not offer the nourishment of rain that clouds are designed for; trees that are not only fruitless but also uprooted (v. 12). Their wildness is like the waves of the sea, with their deeds coming up to the surface like the surf; they are like stars in the night sky whose home is permanent darkness (v. 13).

Then Jude appeals to a nonbiblical Jewish text known as 1 Enoch. According to that book, Enoch prophesied about the coming of God’s judgment, alongside tens of thousands of angels, to condemn ungodly people for their ungodly deeds and ungodly words (vv. 14–15). Instead of being grateful to God, such people grumble and complain. Instead of living according to godliness, they follow their own desires. Instead of speaking out of humility and love, they speak arrogantly and seek their own interests (v. 16).

Why Does Jude Quote 1 Enoch?

The longest actual quotation in Jude is not from the Old Testament but from 1 Enoch, a Jewish text whose parts date from the third century through to the first century BC. Jude seems to cite 1 Enoch authoritatively, which raises questions about whether Jude regarded it as Scripture or as inspired by God. While the issues are complex, it is best to recognize that one may cite a source authoritatively without regarding it as Scripture, as we do today all the time. The confusion comes in when we expect quotations to come from the Old Testament—from Scripture—and not from other sources. But there is no need to restrict the biblical authors’ frame of reference. There is, in principle, no reason why Jude could not quote from a nonscriptural source. He does not call it Scripture, so we should not assume that he regards it as such.

But Not You, Friends

READ JUDE 17–25

Jude reminds his readers that the apostles pointed forward to this time, when ungodly scoffers would show themselves as worldly, divisive, without the Spirit (vv. 17–19). Their existence should come as no surprise. This means that believers ought not be discouraged, as though God is not in control. The reality of such people was anticipated ahead of God’s judgment; there is no reason to doubt his authority or control.

The Influence of Jude on the Canon

Because Jude quotes 1 Enoch, some Christians regarded the latter as Scripture and included it in the canon. This is true of the Epistle of Barnabas and several early church fathers, such Clement of Alexandria, Irenaeus, and Tertullian. While the church at large later rejected the canonicity of 1 Enoch, it remained part of the canon for the Ethiopic Orthodox Church and the Eritrean Orthodox Church. Regardless, most church denominations today accept 1 Enoch as holding some historical and theological interest, even though it is not regarded as Scripture.

Finally, Jude returns to something more positive, as he sees his readers building their faith, praying by the Spirit, keeping inside the love of God, and waiting for their promised eternal life in Christ (vv. 20–21). But even as their faith strengthens, some among them may experience doubt or stumble in their walk with Christ. Believers ought to show mercy to such people and seek to save them from a worse fate. But as they show mercy, they need to watch themselves too so that they are not also defiled (vv. 22–23).

The letter concludes with a doxology that praises God, who can protect believers and cause them to stand in his glory without defect and with joy—to him is glory, majesty, power, and authority for all time (vv. 24–25).

Implementation—Reading Jude as Christian Scripture Today

Without question, Jude is a dominantly negative letter. This fact no doubt contributes to its lack of popularity compared to other parts of the New Testament. There does not seem to be much about the letter that is uplifting, nor would we feel comfortable today saying such harsh things about our opponents.

Nevertheless, Jude serves an important role in the canon. It is not the only text that warns about false teaching and false believers. Several letters do that. The key difference, however, is that those other letters generally address other things too and are not focused solely on combating error. One of Jude’s contributions is to show us that sometimes it is necessary to focus on combating error—and urgently so. Some distortions of the truth are so significant that opposing them must take top priority. We can benefit from Jude, with all its negativity and harshness, by taking seriously the importance of safeguarding the truth and protecting believers from falsehood. Our churches need occasionally to do the uncomfortable work of pointing out serious error and encouraging believers to fight for the faith once and for all delivered to the saints.

Though Jude is harsh toward his opponents, he is gentle toward genuine believers who are wavering in the faith. On a personal, one-to-one level, believers ought to take care with one another, showing one another mercy and watching out for the safety of each. In this way, we see that strong opposition to error is not to be our only mode of operation. No one likes combative Christians. Guarding the faith must be tempered by mercy and love.

Christian Reading Questions

Put into your own words the error of Jude’s opponents.
Make a list of all the references to Old Testament characters and stories in Jude’s letter. Then read all the relevant Old Testament texts. How do you think these stories support Jude’s argument?
If you were to preach the Letter of Jude, how would you avoid sounding overly negative?
How would you explain Jude’s use of noncanonical texts to someone disturbed by the fact that he uses texts not found in the Bible?

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT The Letter of Jude

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
The Letter of Jude