Read
Jude

New Testament

Jude

Contend for the faith once delivered to the saints against ungodly men who crept in.

Overview

Who

Written by "Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James" (1:1). Traditionally he is the Judas named among Jesus' brothers, alongside James (Matthew 13:55, Mark 6:3).

Written to "Them that are sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ, and called" (1:1): believers the letter does not locate, among whom false teachers had "crept in unawares" (1:4).

When

Traditional view: About AD 65-80, by Jude the brother of James and of Jesus.

Scholarly view: Views range from the 50s to the early second century. Some scholars think it was written in Jude's name by a later follower; others defend Jude's authorship.

Where

Written to Not stated. Its many references to Israel's history and Jewish tradition suggest readers who knew them well.

Written from Not stated.

Why

To urge believers to "earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints" (1:3), to expose ungodly men who turned God's grace into an excuse for immorality and denied the Lord (1:4), and to call the readers to build themselves up in faith and keep themselves in God's love (1:20-23).

Jude draws on Israel's history (the exodus, the angels who left their place, Sodom and Gomorrha, Cain, Balaam, Korah) and quotes a prophecy of Enoch (1:14-15) and an account of Michael disputing with the devil over Moses' body (1:9). These last two are found in Jewish writings outside the Bible (1 Enoch, and a work early Christians called the Assumption of Moses). Much of Jude is closely paralleled in 2 Peter 2.

Outline

  1. 1:1-2 Greeting
  2. 1:3-4 Why Jude writes: contend for the faith
  3. 1:5-16 Examples of judgment, and a portrait of the ungodly
  4. 1:17-23 Remember the apostles' words; keep yourselves in God's love
  5. 1:24-25 Doxology: him that is able to keep you

Key themes

  • The faith was "once delivered" and is to be defended (1:3).
  • God's grace is never a license for sin (1:4).
  • God judges, as Israel's history shows (1:5-7).
  • Believers keep themselves in God's love while he keeps them from falling (1:21, 1:24).

From the letter's own text, compared with the Scriptures it draws on and 2 Peter; authorship and dating views summarized from standard introductions.

Chapters

  1. 1

The world around the text

About AD 65-80. This follows the traditional date. The letter gives no date or place; scholars' dates range from the 50s to the early second century.

MACEDONIAACHAIAASIAGALATIASYRIAMediterranean SeaAegean SeaBlack SeaJerusalemNazarethEGYPTSodomRomeCaesarea
Places in and around the letter. Ancient region names are approximate.

Who ruled

  • Roman emperorsNero, then Vespasian and TitusAD 54-68, 69-79, 79-81

    Nero's death in AD 68 was followed by civil war. Vespasian, the general fighting in Judea, won the throne in AD 69, and his son Titus finished the war and later succeeded him. Suetonius, Vespasian 4-6Tacitus, Histories 1.2Josephus, Jewish War 4.588-604

  • Jewish client kingHerod Agrippa IIc. AD 50-90s

    Ruled territories north and east of Galilee under Rome. He tried to talk Jerusalem out of revolt in AD 66 and stayed on Rome's side. Acts 25:13Josephus, Jewish War 2.345-407

  • Rulers of the provinceRoman governors of JudeaAD 44-66, then from AD 70

    Judea was ruled by Roman governors until the revolt. After AD 70 it became a separate province with a Roman legion stationed in ruined Jerusalem. Josephus, Jewish War 2.271-308Josephus, Jewish War 7.1-5

What was happening

  1. AD 62
    The churchJames, Jude's brother, is killed

    The high priest Ananus had "James, the brother of Jesus who was called Christ" stoned in Jerusalem. Jude names himself "brother of James." Josephus, Antiquities 20.197-203Jude 1:1Galatians 1:19

  2. AD 64
    The churchNero blames the Christians for Rome's fire

    After the Great Fire of Rome, Nero put a "vast multitude" of Christians to death. Tacitus, Annals 15.38-44

  3. AD 66
    WarThe Jewish revolt begins

    Jerusalem rose against Rome after the governor Florus seized money from the temple treasury. Josephus, Jewish War 2.293-308, 2.409-410

  4. AD 68-69
    RulersThe Year of the Four Emperors

    After Nero's suicide, Galba, Otho and Vitellius each seized power and fell within months, until Vespasian won. Tacitus, Histories 1.1-2Suetonius, Galba, Otho, Vitellius

  5. AD 70
    WarJerusalem and its temple destroyed

    Titus took Jerusalem after a five-month siege and the temple was burned, as Jesus had foretold. Josephus, Jewish War 6.249-287Luke 19:41-44Luke 21:20-24

  6. AD 73 or 74
    WarThe fall of Masada

    The last rebels held out on the desert fortress of Masada above the Dead Sea until a Roman siege ramp reached its walls. Josephus, Jewish War 7.252-406

  7. August AD 79
    DisasterVesuvius buries Pompeii

    The eruption of Vesuvius buried Pompeii and Herculaneum in Italy. Pliny the Younger, Letters 6.16, 6.20

  8. AD 80
    BuildingThe Colosseum opens

    Titus opened the great amphitheater in Rome, built partly with spoils from the Jewish war. Suetonius, Titus 7.3Cassius Dio, Roman History 66.25

  9. c. AD 81-96
    The churchJude's grandsons before Domitian

    An early church historian records that Domitian summoned two grandsons of Jude, "the brother of the Lord," as descendants of David. Finding them poor farmers with hard hands, he let them go. Eusebius, Church History 3.19-20 (citing Hegesippus)

Sodom and Gomorrha

Named by Jude as an example of judgment. Cities of the plain near the Dead Sea, destroyed in Abraham's day.

What Genesis records
The LORD rained fire and brimstone on Sodom and Gomorrha after the men of Sodom tried to seize the two angels staying with Lot. Genesis 19:1-11Genesis 19:24-25
An example through Scripture
The prophets, Jesus and Peter all point back to Sodom and Gomorrha as a warning of judgment. Isaiah 1:9Ezekiel 16:49-50Matthew 10:152 Peter 2:6
Where they stood
Genesis places them in the plain of Jordan near the Salt Sea (the Dead Sea). Their exact sites have never been agreed. Genesis 13:10-12Genesis 14:2-3

Daily life and culture

Jesus' brothers · 1:1
The Gospels name Jesus' brothers as James, Joses, Simon and Judas (Jude). They did not believe in him during his ministry, but after the resurrection they were with the disciples praying. Matthew 13:55Mark 6:3John 7:5Acts 1:141 Corinthians 9:5
Michael and the body of Moses · 1:9
Deuteronomy says no one knows where Moses was buried. The story of Michael disputing with the devil over his body is not in the Old Testament; early Christian writers say it came from a Jewish book called the Assumption of Moses. Michael appears in Scripture as a chief angel. Deuteronomy 34:5-6Daniel 10:13Daniel 12:1Revelation 12:7Origen, On First Principles 3.2.1
The prophecy of Enoch · 1:14-15
Genesis records Enoch, seventh from Adam, who "walked with God." The words Jude quotes match a passage of 1 Enoch, a Jewish book widely read at the time; Aramaic fragments of it were found among the Dead Sea Scrolls. Genesis 5:18-24Hebrews 11:51 Enoch 1:9Dead Sea Scrolls, Qumran Cave 4 (Enoch fragments)
Cain, Balaam and Core · 1:11
Each name points to an Old Testament story: Cain killed his brother, Balaam was hired to curse Israel, and Korah (Core) led a rebellion against Moses. Genesis 4:3-8Numbers 22:5-7Numbers 31:16Numbers 16:1-3Numbers 16:31-33
Feasts of charity · 1:12
Early Christians shared common meals when they met, along with the Lord's Supper. Paul rebukes the Corinthians for selfishness at these meals. Acts 2:461 Corinthians 11:20-222 Peter 2:13
Out of Egypt · 1:5
The LORD brought Israel out of Egypt, yet that generation died in the wilderness because they did not believe. Numbers 14:26-351 Corinthians 10:1-5Hebrews 3:16-19

Scripture first, then ancient writers on these years (Josephus, Tacitus, Suetonius, Eusebius) and on the Jewish writings Jude draws on. Drafted by Claude and not yet reviewed by a person.