An Overview of the Epistles of Jude
The epistle of Jude has a special place among the New Testament books because it opposes the false teachers and their teachings which were wide-spread in the early church. Jude has a very special message for the Church today regarding the importance of living a faithful and committed life by upholding the purity of Christian doctrine and working for the expansion of the Church until His return.
Title of the Book
The title of the epistle is simply mentioned as ‘The Epistle of Jude’ or simply as ‘Jude.’
Date of Writing
The epistle is written approximately AD 70. It is very certain that there are perceptible similarities between the epistle of Jude and the epistle of 2 Peter, especially in Jude 2:1 – 3:4. Hence, it is not clear who wrote first Peter or Jude. Some early Church fathers claim that Jude was familiar with the writings in the Second Epistle of Peter at the time he wrote the epistle of Jude and, thus, he re-emphasized some of the important areas.
Authorship of the Epistle
According verse 1, the author introduces himself simply as Jude, “a servant of Jesus Christ and a brother of James.” The name Judas or Jude had been very popular among the early Jews as well as among the early Christians. The New Testament introduces at least six people who had their names as Judas/Jude, and they are:
- Judas Iscariot, the betrayer of Jesus (Matthew 10:4, 27:3-4; Acts 1:16-20
- Judas, called Lebbaeus who was nicknamed as Thadddaeus, the brother of apostle James (Matthew 10:3 KJV; Mark. 3:18) [It is believed that the same Judas is mentioned as Judas, son of James, in Acts 1: 13).
- Judas, the Galilean (Acts 5:37)
- Judas who lived on Straight Street at Damascus – Acts 9: 11 (where Saul [Paul] spent his time in prayer after his encounter with Jesus (Acts 9:1-19)
- Judas called Barsabbas (Acts 15: 22) – probably the brother of Joseph (known as Barsabbas or Justus) whose name was suggested along with Matthias to take the place of Judas Iscariot – Acts 1:23
- Judas, one of the brothers of Jesus (Matthew 13:55, Mark 6:3) – It is widely accepted among the early Church fathers that Judas, the brother of Jesus, wrote the epistle of Jude
Jude introduces himself as a servant (Greek: δοῦλος –doulos) of Jesus Christ, which was the only title of honor he would claim. δοῦλος means, a bond slave or servant. A servant is a person, male or female, that attended to another in regard to domestic service. In this case, Jude used the term ‘servant’ for himself as a sign of respectful self-depreciation before the Lord. Also, Jude wrote of himself as the brother of James. This James could be the brother of Jesus, who wrote ‘The Epistle of James.’ These brothers of Jesus were not included among the Twelve. Remember, Jesus’ brothers did not believe that He is the Messiah while He was with them (John 7:5). However, after His resurrection they believed in Him, became His dedicated followers (Acts 1:14), and served Him whole-heartedly for the rest of their lives. It is said that Jude preached the gospel to the scattered Jews in Palestine and in Egypt and the authority in his command shows that he might have become one of the key leaders in the early Church.
Recipients of the Epistle
The epistle of Jude is addressed to the Jewish Christians in Palestine and in Egypt. It is, particularly, addressed to “those who are called by God, those who are loved by God, and those who are kept by Christ (v.1b).
Purpose of Writing
The epistle is written to:
- warn the followers of Christ against false teachers who were compromising with the standard of this world because their teachings caused division in the church regarding ‘what to believe’ (vv. 19a, 22) and ‘how to behave’ (vv. 4, 8, 16)
- warn the readers about the threat of false teachers (specified as ungodly [v.15]) who rejected the lordship of Christ, denied the authority of the teachings of the apostles about the person and nature of Jesus Christ and the influence of the apostles in the church
- condemn the false teachers who undermined the faith of others and misled them by saying that salvation by grace allowed them to sin without condemnation (v. 4)
- encourage the believers to stand against all false teachings and to live in unity
- inspire Christ’s followers to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints (v.3)
Major Teachings of the Epistle
The book strongly warns against false teachers and their teachings and, at the same time, inspires Christ’s followers to defend their faith in Jesus Christ by living it out. Jude, being a preacher among the people, realized the dangers of false doctrine among newly converted Christians. On one hand, he cautions Christians everywhere to keep themselves away from false teachers as well as from all kinds of godless teachings, and on the other hand, he encourages them to live as devoted Christians rather than living as nominal Christians.
General Outline of the Epistle
- Greetings (vv. 1-2)
- Purpose of writing (vv.3-4)
- Exposing the danger of false teachers and their consequences (vv. 5-16)
- The Consequences based on the Past Experience (vv. 5-7)
- The Experience of Israel (v.5)
- The Experience of Rebellious Angels (v.5)
- The Experience of Sodom and Gomorrah (v.7)
- Their Characteristics (vv. 8-16)
- Abusive Speech (vv. 8-10)
- Unholy character (v.11)
- Guilty Conduct (vv. 12-16)
- The Consequences based on the Past Experience (vv. 5-7)
- The Duty of the True Believers to Preserve the Apostolic Teachings (vv. 17-25)
- Remember to follow the Apostolic Teachings (vv. 17-19)
- Practice God’s Love (vv. 20-21)
- Encouragement to have compassion mixed with Fear (vv. 22-23)
- Concluding Blessing (vv. 24-25)
