_Salutation_. Jude a servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James, to those who have received the divine calling, beloved of the Father, kept safe in Jesus Christ. May mercy, peace and love be richly poured out upon you! 1. Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ δοῦλος. The same phrase is used by St. James in the Inscripti... [ Continue Reading ]
For the Salutation see my note on χαίρειν, James 1:1, and Hort's excellent note on 1 Peter 1:2, χάρις … πληθυνθείη. We find ἔλεος and εἰρήνη joined in Galatians 6:16, and with the addition of χάρις in 1 Timothy 1:2 2 Timothy 1:2, 2 John 1:3. The mercy of God is the ground of peace, which is perfecte... [ Continue Reading ]
ἀγαπητοί occurs in Jude 1:17; Jude 1:20, also in 2Pe 3:1; 2 Peter 3:8; 2 Peter 3:14; 2Pe 3:17, 1 Peter 2:11; 1 Peter 4:12 and James. It is common in the Epistles of John and of Paul, sometimes with μου attached, as in 1 Corinthians 10:14; Philippians 2:12, and is often joined to ἀδελφοί, especially... [ Continue Reading ]
_Reasons for Writing_. He had been intending to write to them on that which is the common interest of all Christians, salvation through Christ, but was compelled to abandon his intention by news which had reached him of a special danger* [783] threatening the Gospel once for all delivered to the Chu... [ Continue Reading ]
_Nature of the Threatened Danger_. It is stealthy; it is serious enough to have been predicted long ago; its characteristic is impiety, showing itself in the antinomian misuse of the Gospel of God's free grace, and in the denial of God and Christ. Jude 1:4. παρεισεδύησαν γάρ τινες ἄνθρωποι. For this... [ Continue Reading ]
ὑπομνῆσαι δὲ ὑμᾶς βούλομαι, εἰδότας ὑμᾶς πάντα. [786] _Cf._ 2 Peter 1:12, διὸ μελλήσω ὑμᾶς ἀεὶ ὑπομιμνήσκειν καίπερ εἰδότας, 2 Peter 1:13, διεγείρειν ὑμᾶς ἐν ὑπομνήσει, 2 Peter 3:1, διεγείρω ὑμῶν ἐν ὐπομνήσει τὴν εἰλικρινῆ διάνοιαν, Romans 15:14, πέπεισμαι δὲ ὅτι καὶ αὐτοὶ μεστοί ἐστε ἀγαθωσύνης, πε... [ Continue Reading ]
_Illustrations of Sin and Judgment Derived from History and from Nature_. The judgment impending Over these men is borne witness to by well-known facts of the past, and may be illustrated from the phenomena of nature. God showed His mercy in delivering the Israelites from Egypt, but that was no guar... [ Continue Reading ]
ἀγγέλους τε τοὺς μὴ τηρήσαντας τὴν ἐαυτῶν ἀρχὴν … εἰς κρίσιν … τετήρηκεν.] _Cf._ Clem. Al. _Adumbr._ “Angelos qui non servaverunt proprium principatum, scilicet quem acceperunt secundum profectum.” This of course supplies an even more striking instance of the possibility of falling away from grace,... [ Continue Reading ]
ὡς Σόδομα καὶ Γόμορρα καὶ αἱ περὶ αὐτὰς πόλεις. The 3rd example of Divine judgment differs from the two others, as it tells only of the punishment, not of the fall from grace. Hence the difference of connexion ἀγγέλους τε.… ὡς Σόδομα. _Cf._ 2 Peter 2:6, πόλεις Σοδόμων καὶ Γομόρρας καταστροφῇ κατέκρι... [ Continue Reading ]
ὁμοίως μέντοι καὶ οὗτοι. Notwithstanding these warnings the libertines go on in similar courses. ἐνυπνιαζόμενοι σάρκα μιαίνουσιν Compare Acts 2:17 (a quotation from Joel 2:28), οἱ πρεσβύτεροι ὑμῶν ἐνυπνίοις ἐνυπνιασθήσονται, of those that see visions: and so Spitta (holding that Jude copied from 2 P... [ Continue Reading ]
ὁ δὲ Μιχαὴλ ὁ ἀρχάγγελος. The term ἀρχ. occurs in the N.T. only here and in 1 Thessalonians 4:16. The names of seven archangels are given in Enoch. The story here narrated is taken from the apocryphal _Assumptio Mosis_, as we learn from Clem. _Adumbr. in Ep. Judae_, and Orig. _De Princ._ iii. 2, 1.... [ Continue Reading ]
οὗτοι δὲ ὅσα μὲν οὐκ οἴδασιν βλασφημοῦσιν. The libertines do the contrary of what we are told of the respect shown by the angel even towards Satan: they speak evil of that spiritual world, those spiritual beings, of which they know nothing, _cf._ 2 Peter 2:12. The common verb βλασφ. shows that the δ... [ Continue Reading ]
οὐαὶ αὐτοῖς, ὅτι τῇ ὁδῷ τοῦ Καὶν ἐπορεύθησαν. For the use of the aorist see note on Jude 1:4. παρεισεδύησαν : for the phrase _cf._ Blass, _Gr._ p. 119, and 2 Peter 2:15, ἐξακολουθήσαντες τῇ ὁδῷ τοῦ Βαλαάμ. The phrase οὐαί, so common in Enoch, especially in cc. 94 to 100, and in the Gospels and Apoca... [ Continue Reading ]
οὖτοί εἰσιν [οἱ] ἐν ταῖς ἀγάπαις ὑμῶν σπιλάδες συνευωχούμενοι. Dr. Chase quotes Zechariah 1:10 f., Revelation 7:14, Enoch xlvi. 3, _Secrets of Enoch_, vii. 3 xviii. 3, xix. 3, etc., for the phrase οὗτοί εἰσιν, adding that it was probably adopted by St. Jude from apocalyptic writings, for which he cl... [ Continue Reading ]
κύματα ἄγρια θαλάσσης ἐπαφρίζοντα τὰς ἑαυτῶν αἰσχύνας. _Cf._ Cic. _Ad Hercnn._ iv. 55, _spumans ex ore scelus_. The two former illustrations, the reefs and the clouds, refer to the specious professions of the libertines and the mischief they caused; the third, the dead trees, brings out also their o... [ Continue Reading ]
ἐπροφήτευσεν δὲ καὶ τούτοις ἕβδομος ἀπὸ Ἀδὰμ Ἑνώχ. “It was for these also (as well as for his own contemporaries) that the prophecy of Enoch was intended, far as he is removed from our time, being actually the sixth (by Hebrew calculation, seventh) descendant from Adam.” For Enoch compare the allusi... [ Continue Reading ]
_The Prophecy of Enoch_. The ancient prophecy, to which reference has been already made, was intended for these men as well as for the prophet's own contemporaries, where he says “The Lord appeared, encompassed by myriads of his holy ones, to execute justice upon all and to convict all the ungodly c... [ Continue Reading ]
ποιῆσαι κρίσιν κατὰ πάντων. Follows exactly the Greek translation of Enoch given above, _cf._ Ael. _V. H._ ii. 6, Κρίτων ἔπειθεν αὐτὸν ἀποδρᾶναι καὶ τὴν κατʼ αὐτοῦ κρίσιν διαφθεῖραι. On the distinction between the active ποιεῖν κρίσιν “to execute judgment” (as in John 5:27) and the periphrastic midd... [ Continue Reading ]
οὖτοί εἰσιν γογγυσταί, μεμψίμοιροι. Charles thinks that we have here another case of borrowing from the _Assumption of Moses_, see his Introd. on Apocryphal Quotations. The word γογγυστής is used in the LXX, Exodus 16:8; Numbers 11:1; Numbers 11:14-27; Numbers 11:29. The verb γογγύζω is found in Joh... [ Continue Reading ]
ὑμεῖς δὲ, ἀγαπητοί, μνήσθητε τῶν ῥημάτων τῶν προειρημένων ὑπὸ τῶν ἀποστόλων. The writer turns again, as in Jude 1:20 below, to the faithful members of the Church (Jude 1:3) and reminds them, not now of primeval prophecy, but of warning words uttered by the Apostles. Some have taken this as a quotati... [ Continue Reading ]
_The Faithful are bidden to call to mind the warnings of the Apostles_. The Apostles warned you repeatedly that in the last time there would arise mockers led away by their own carnal lusts. It is these that are now breaking up the unity of the Church by their invidious distinctions, men of unsancti... [ Continue Reading ]
ἐπʼ ἐσχάτου χρόνου ἔσονται ἐμπαῖκται. The parallel in 2 Peter 3:3 is ἐλεύσονται ἐπʼ ἐσχάτων τῶν ἡμερῶν ἐν ἐμπαιγμονῇ ἐμπαῖκται, where see note on the use of the article with ἔσχατος, _etc._ For ἐπί, _cf._ Arist. _Pol._ iv. 3, ἐπὶ τῶν ἀρχαίων χρόνων. The prophecy of this mocking, as a mark of the fut... [ Continue Reading ]
οὗτοί εἰσιν οἱ ἀποδιορίζοντες. “These are they that make invidious distinctions.” See Introduction on the Text. The rare word ἀποδιορίζοντες is used of logical distinctions in Aristotle, _Pol._ iv. 43, ὥσπερ οὖν εἰ ζῴου προῃρούμεθα λαβεῖν εἴδη, πρῶτον ἂν ἀποδιωρίζομεν ὅπερ ἀναγκαῖον πᾶν ἔχειν ζῷον ... [ Continue Reading ]
ὑμεῖς δὲ, ἀγαπητοί. Contrasted with the libertines, as in Jude 1:17. ἐποικοδομοῦντες ἐαυτοὺς τῇ ἁγιωτάτῃ ὑμῶν πίστει. For the spiritual temple, _cf._ 1 Peter 2:3-5; Colossians 1:23; Ephesians 2:20-22, ἐποικοδομηθέντες ἐπὶ τῷ θεμελίῳ τῶν ἀποστόλων καἰ προφητῶν, ὄντος ἀκρογωνιαίου αὐτοῦ Χριστοῦ Ἰησοῦ... [ Continue Reading ]
_The Final Charge to the Faithful_. Use all diligence to escape this danger. Make the most of the privileges vouchsafed to you. Build yourselves up on the foundation of your most holy faith by prayer in the Spirit. Do not rest satisfied with the belief that God loves you, but keep yourselves in His... [ Continue Reading ]
ἑαυτοὺς ἐν ἀγάπῃ Θεοῦ τηρήσατε. In Jude 1:1 the passive is used: those who are addressed are described as kept and beloved (_cf._ Jude 1:24, τῷ δυναμένῳ φυλάξαι): here the active is used and emphasised by the unusual order of words; each is to keep himself in the love of God, cf. James 1:27, ἄσπιλον... [ Continue Reading ]
οὓς μὲν ἐλέγχετε διακρινομένους. On the reading see the Introduction. For the form ὃς μέν instead of ὁ μέν, _cf._ Matthew 13:8; Matthew 22:5; Luke 23:33; Acts 27:44; Romans 14:5 1 Corinthians 7:7; 1 Corinthians 11:21; 2 Corinthians 2:16;... [ Continue Reading ]
σώζετε. Here again a word which is strictly applicable to God is transferred to him whom God uses as His instrument, _cf._ 1 Peter 4:11 and notes on τηρήσατε, ἐλέγχετε above, especially James 5:20, ὁ ἐπιστρέψας ἁμαρτωλὸν ἐκ πλάνης ὁδοῦ αὐτοῦ σώσει ψυχὴν ἐκ θανάτου. ἐκ πυρὸς ἁρπάζοντες. The expressio... [ Continue Reading ]
τῷ δὲ δυναμένῳ φυλάξαι ὑμᾶς ἀπταίστους. Apparently a reminiscence [801] of Romans 16:25 f., τῷ δὲδυναμένῳ ὑμᾶς στηρίξαι … μόνῳ σοφῷ Θεῷ διὰ Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, ᾧ ἡ δόξα εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώ, ων. Similarly the noble doxology in Ephesians 3:20, commences τῷ δὲ δυναμένῳ. The reading ὑμᾶς is confirmed by... [ Continue Reading ]
_Final Benediction and Ascription_. I have bidden you to keep yourselves in the love of God; I have warned you against all impiety and impurity. But do not think that you can attain to the one, or guard yourselves from the other, in your own strength. You must receive power from above; and that it m... [ Continue Reading ]
μόνῳ Θεῷ σωτῆρι ἡμῶν. See above on Jude 1:4, τὸν μόνον δεσπότην. God is called σωτήρ in Isaiah 45:15, σὺ γὰρ εἶ Θεὸς … ὁ Θεὸς τοῦ Ἰσραῆλ σωτήρ, Isaiah 45:21, Sir 51:1, αἰνέσω σε Θεὸν τὸν σωτῆρά μου, Philo, _Confus. Ling._ §20, 1. p. 418 _fin._, τίς δʼ οὐκ ἂν … πρὸς τὸν μόνον σωτῆρα Θεὸν ἐκβοήσῃ (? -... [ Continue Reading ]