The False teachers of Jude 8-16

Commentary on Jude 8-16 with Class Handout

By Eric Landstrom

Outline of Jude¹

1-Writer and readers
2-Greetings
3-4-The Writer's Purpose
5-7-Three Warning Reminders of Condemnation

5-Unbelievers perish
6-The angels who left their place
7-The Sodomites and Gomorhaites seeking strange flesh

8-10-Brazen Ignorance

8-Defile the flesh
8-Despise authority
8-Speak evil of dignities
9-Illustration of Michael's obedience
10-The wicked reason as beasts

11-Three Examples of Wickedness

11-The way of Cain
11-The error of Balaam
11-The rebellion of Korah

12-13-Wicked Infiltrators Exposed

12-As hidden reefs
12-Without fear
12-As selfish
12-Without direction as the wind
12-Without fruit
12-As twice dead
12-As without roots or foundation
13-As casting shame
13-As false guides
13-For whom darkness will be their reward

14-16-Doom Prophesied by Enoch

14-The Lord will come
15-To judge the ungodly

17-19 Peril Foretold by Apostles
20-23 Call to Persevere
24-25 Doxology

Introduction

Jude's main purpose for writing this epistle is to combat the false teachers who have "crept in" unawares to the church (v. 4). It is thought that verses 5-16 are Jude's elaboration of his thoughts in verse 4² and the parallels between Jude 5-16 and 2 Peter are obvious.³ Jude establishes his authority to speak upon the subject of false teachers not by making an appeal to his blood-relationship with Jesus Christ as one may expect, but instead prefers to appeal to nothing other than the faith that has been received as his foundation (v. 3). This faith, Jude argues, must be contended for against determined opposition,⁴ and it is because of false teachers that Jude feels as though he is compelled to write (v. 3). Although Jude does not offer to the reader the identities of those who have "crept in," in his brevity, he spares the reader no details regarding the nature of their sin, their motives, their fruit, as well as a description of their final judgment by our Lord when he comes in power.

Throughout his epistle, Jude draws from the Old Testament and two other traditional sources familiar to his contemporary readers as Dr. Moo illustrates in the following table:

Sections of Jude Old Testament/Traditional Material Application

vv. 5-10 vv. 5-7 (9) vv. 8 ("these") and 10

vv. 11-13 v. 11 vv. 12-13 ("these")

vv. 14-16 vv. 14-15 v. 16 ("these")⁵

By relating false teachers with notorious sinners, Jude's strategy becomes obvious: It is Jude's desire that his readers regard the false teachers with horror and so reject them.⁶ In this regard "Jude's letter stands as an example of negative preaching."⁷

Jude 1:8 Yet in the same manner these men, also by dreaming, defile the flesh, and reject authority, and revile angelic majesties.

Moo, as well as many other commentators, point out that Jude has a fondness for literary triads in that he uses "three Old Testament examples of judgment in the proceeding verses (vv. 5-7) and three specific sins committed by the false teachers in the subsequent verses (vv. 8-10)."⁸

Although some exegetes prefer to relate verse eight with the subsequent passages, it can be argued that verse eight should be thought of as a summary of verses 4-7.⁹ In verse 4 Jude first introduces us to "certain persons" (the false teachers) who have "crept in unnoticed" and it is in verse eight that Jude describes these false teachers as being "dreamers." More so, if we follow the line of thought from the proceeding three illustrations of condemnation that Jude has made in the prior three verses-the unbelievers who were delivered from Egypt (v. 5), the angels who left their God-appointed place (v.6), and the Sodomites and Gomorrahites who defiled themselves by seeking after "strange flesh"-it is natural to relate "defile the flesh" (v. 8) to the condemnation of the Sodomites (v. 7), the "rejecting of authority" (v. 8) to the angels who left their natural place (v. 6) and the "rejection of angelic majesties" (v. 8) to the grumbling and disbelievers who our Lord had delivered from Egypt (v. 5), and these sins cumulatively are a blatant denial of Jesus Christ as Lord and Master (v. 4). Or, as Dr. Hillyer has said, "'Dreamers' applies to all three following clauses."¹⁰

It is said, "'Dreaming' probably refers to the dreams of false prophets, who produce falsehood while claiming to speak the truth."¹¹ Here the false teachers can be likened to sleepwalkers in that they, deluded by their own dreams, stumble about from one thing to another without a firm foundation. Clement of Alexandria said of them, "These deluded people imagine that their lusts and terrible desires are good and pay no attention to what is truly good and beyond all good."¹² It is likely that Hillyer was correct when he stated, "Jude is therefore referring to men who falsely claim to have visionary revelations to justify their teaching and actions."¹³

What the reader is to walk away with is that these "dreamers" have involved themselves in a life of licentiousness ("defile the flesh"),¹⁴ they have rejected our Lord's authority ("reject authority")¹⁵ and they grumble and complain against the law or standards of God ("revile angelic majesties").¹⁶

Jude 1:9 But Michael the archangel, when he disputed with the devil and argued about the body of Moses, did not dare pronounce against him a railing judgment, but said, "The Lord rebuke you."

Jude nine presents the reader with something of an extended, or perhaps, secondary illustration. Although Jude is continuing his line of thinking first begun in verse 4, here he introduces the story of Michael contending for the body of Moses to illustrate his major thought that the false teachers, through their blasphemies, have spoken against the received faith. And by doing so, they have assumed an authority that is not rightfully theirs.

Although the story of Michael contending for the body of Moses has been lost to us in history, several church fathers claimed that the story came from a book then available to them that was alternately called The Assumption of Moses or The Testament of Moses. By way of background,

Jewish literature tells of a struggle over Moses' body. One writing in particular, the apocryphal Assumption of Moses, refers to the devil claiming the right to Moses' body because of his sin of murder (Ex 2:12) or because he (the devil) considered himself the lord of the earth.¹⁷

The question the story itself should raise in the mind of the reader is why Michael did not rebuke the devil? In answer to this question we can rule out that Michael was showing respect towards the devil as some in the past have considered because this would, in essence, assign the devil some level of authority that he is lacking. Rather than accepting that impasse, the key teaching to be drawn from the illustration is that Michael did not rebuke the devil when he had every right to do so¹⁸ because Michael knew that ultimately it was not his place to do so. For it is the Lord's place to rebuke the devil and he is the one who has declared, "Vengeance is mine, I will repay" (Rom. 12:19).

Thus we have the illustration of Michael, who without complaint or doubt, accepts the Lord's authority and remains obedient even within the context of trying circumstances.¹⁹ This meaning has stayed with us down through the centuries as we note from Bede, who writes in his commentary on verse 9, "If the archangel Michael refrained from cursing the devil and dealt gently with him, how much more should we mere mortals avoid blaspheming, especially as we might offend the majesty of the Creator by an incautious word" (cf. James 3:1-12).²⁰

Jude's use of the story of Michael keeping his place and not rebuking Satan implies a close link to the problems that Jude is writing to warn of.

Jude 1:10 But these men revile the things which they do not understand; and the things which they know by instinct, like unreasoning animals, by these things they are destroyed.

Following the thought drawn from the illustration of Michael who held his tongue and the contrast of the false teachers who speak blasphemies, Jude proclaims that these false teachers hold in contempt the things which they do not understand. It is here that Jude likens their powers of reasoning to that of brute beasts.²¹ The NIV Commentary is typical:

"[But] these men" connotes contempt. They, unlike Michael, presume to speak evil against what they know nothing about (cf. v. 19, where Jude explains that they do not have the Spirit). These "dreamers" do have knowledge, but only on the instinctual level of animal passion. So like "unreasoning animals," they are destroyed (by God) through the things they practice.²²

The false teachers, then, betray themselves by their contemptible and contrite hearts that they do not understand any spiritual thing. Rather, all they understand is what they may draw from their natural instincts and these sensual motives will ultimately destroy them and lead to their ruin.²³

Jude 1:11 Woe to them! For they have gone the way of Cain, and for pay they have rushed headlong into the error of Balaam, and perished in the rebellion of Korah.

There are two ways we may understand Jude's opening pronouncement, "Woe to them": Is Jude personally condemning the false teachers or is he expressing his personal sorrow over them? It is important that we visit each way the passage has been understood because unless we correctly understand how Jude himself is applying the phrase toward the false teachers he writes of, we may miss an important aspect of the Christian response towards false teachers.

The first way we may understand Jude's pronouncement of woe--as the NIV Commentary argues--is that of Jude's uttering a personal condemnation upon the false teachers.²⁴ This would fit within the framework of Jude's repeated references to the approaching judgment and condemnation that awaits them. But if Jude is uttering a personal pronouncement of condemnation upon these false teachers, then this would fly in the face of his prior illustration of Michael keeping his place in verse 9. If this were in fact true, then it would seem that Jude is himself taking on an aspect of the attitude that the false teacher's themselves display and contradicting his illustration of Michael holding his tongue and keeping his place (v. 9). Therefore, a second viewpoint is often expressed: That by Jude's stating, "Woe to them!" he is not uttering a personal condemnation toward the false teachers, but is in fact, expressing his personal grief toward the false teachers spiritual blindness that is leading them and their followers to their eternal destruction in the coming judgment. This latter understanding appears to best fit the context of the verses leading up to the pronouncement of woe as well as the subsequent citing of the Lord coming to judge in verses 14-15.

Following Jude's declaration of "woe," we have for the second time in the epistle his turning to the Old Testament for a triad of illustrations of persons whose actions were contrary to their calling, their place, and our Lord's desire. By drawing into the memory of the reader three unpopular characters from the Old Testament, Jude allows the reader to draw their own conclusions as to the nature of these character's sins and then to relate this to the nature of the sins that the false teachers are engaging in. Therefore, Jude allows the reader to relate the application of his words directly to the situation that the readers may find themselves involved in.

Cain
Jude's first example is Cain who through envy rejected the Lord's counsel and murdered his brother Abel (Gen. 4:1-16; cf. 1 John 3:11). The end result is that as Abel died at the hands of his unlawful brother, so too do false teachers reject the counsel of the Lord and murder the souls of their followers.²⁵ Dr. Hillyer offers the additional observation that, "Jude may [also] be implying that the false teachers in his sights are Cain's spiritual descendants and nothing better than the destroyers of souls."²⁶ Although reasonable, the primary message the reader should take away with them is that one who shares the attitude of Cain feels free to do whatever he or she wishes and that Jude draws from Jewish tradition to use Cain as the archetypal false teacher.

Balaam
Jude's second example is Balaam who sought after wealth by compromising our Lord's command. Here Jude implies that false teachers rush after private gain and cast aside all other concerns in pursuit of their goal. Hillyer provides the background as to the nature of Balaam's sin, writing,

Comparing Numbers 25:1-2 with Numbers 31:16 suggests that Balaam was guilty of inciting Israel to lie with Moabite women, who in turn seduced Israel into worshiping Baal. That broke the first of the Ten Commandments, "You shall have no other gods before me" (Exod. 20:3).²⁷

By the time of the events and writing of the New Testament "the name of Balaam [had become] a byword for antinomianism (Rev. 2:14)"²⁸ within Jude's culture. Therefore it is not unexpected that all references to Balaam's error in the New Testament always refer to deceit in morals or faith (Matt. 27:64; Rom. 1:27; Eph. 4:14; 1 Thes. 2:3; Jam. 5:20; 2 Pet. 2:18; 3:17).²⁹

It is important to note that Jude's descriptive word "rushed" can be understood as conveying a sense of urgency. In the context of Balaam's error, we may understand the word as communicating the sense of dropping everything else for the sake of greed. Another sense we may consider is that the false teachers are rushing like a tidal wave into Balaam's error, sweeping everything before it and without regard to any other concerns.

Korah
The rebellion of Korah was to grumble against and promote unrest against the authority of the Lord's appointed leaders. In this regard, Jude relates the false teachers to the rebellion of Korah who presumed himself to speak out of turn and sought to lure others with himself to destruction. Again Hillyer provides the background to the nature of Korah's sin and judgment, writing:

As in the case of Korah and his confederates, the false teachers of Jude's day may well have been showing unrest and promoting discontent against the authority of church leaders. Korah, with Reubenites Dothan and his brother Abiram, and On, and two hundred and fifty other agitators, had rebelled against the divinely appointed authority of Moses and Aaron (Num. 16). The mutineers' punishment was swift and dramatic-the earth gave way beneath their feet and swallowed them alive. Some sort of fearful fate for the false teachers is as certain."³⁰

Again, as with all of the illustrations Jude uses, the contemporary audience that Jude first wrote to was familiar with the telling of Korah's rebellion as was all Jewry since the rebellion: "Even in Moses' day," writes Moo, "Korah became a warning example to those who might be tempted to resist the Lord and his appointed leaders (cf. Num. 26:9-10)."³¹

Jude 1:12 These men are those who are hidden reefs in your love feasts when they feast with you without fear, caring for themselves; clouds without water, carried along by winds; autumn trees without fruit, doubly dead, uprooted;
Jude 1:13 wild waves of the sea, casting up their own shame like foam; wandering stars, for whom the black darkness has been reserved forever.

Here Jude launches an extended description of the false teachers that presents the reader with ten different vantage points from which to view false teachers. Jude describes them as:

1) As hidden reefs that shipwreck faith (v. 12)
2) Without fear (v. 12)
3) As selfish (v. 12)
4) Without direction as the wind (v. 12)
5) Without fruit (v. 12)
6) As twice dead (v. 12)
7) As without roots or foundation (v. 12)
8) As casting shame (v. 13)
9) As false guides (v. 13)
10) For whom darkness will be their reward (v. 13)

Hidden Reefs
Here Jude uses a nautical reference and applies it to describe false teachers as a danger so great that they will shipwreck whole boatloads of others should they fail to navigate their vessels away from these hidden dangers. Two noteworthy observations we may draw from this short description: (1) Upon the surface of the water, it may appear to be clear sailing but hidden under the surface lays the dangerous deception. Appearances can be deceiving. (2) Vessels often time set sail with many people aboard and should a vessel become lost all those who are aboard that vessel will be lost as well. Therefore the phrase has a corporate sense and application that we should not lose or disregard. Commenting on this verse, Bede writes, "Jude calls heretics blemishes [hidden reefs] because not only do they eat and drink their way to damnation but they also lead others along the same path."³²

Feasting with you without fear, caring for themselves
Jude tells us that the false teachers sit selfishly among us without fear, feeding only themselves (lit., "shepherding themselves"). The figure of speech "shepherds who feed only themselves" was familiar to Jude's contemporary audience and one "that points to all the biblical warnings against the false shepherds who care nothing for the flock (e.g., Ezek. 34:8; John 10:12-13)."³³

The expression "love feast"³⁴ was "synonymous with a fellowship meal, with believers incorporating the Communion established by Jesus into the end of their meals together. Eventually that combination of a fellowship meal and Communion became known as the love feast (Jude 12)."³⁵ These dignified meals³⁶ had been corrupted through the perverted and superfluous teachings of those who had "crept in" (v. 4).

Writing of these deceptive souls, Hillyer says they "take advantage of what was intended to be a fellowship of Christian love, and threatening to wreck it by their perfidious teaching. Yet they are acting quite shamelessly, eating with you without the slightest qualm-shepherds who feed only themselves."³⁷

Clouds without water
Here Jude describes the false teachers as waterless clouds that promise life-giving rains but fail to deliver upon that promise. Of this figure, Moo writes, "The image is a natural one for people who promise what they will not, or cannot, deliver. See Proverbs 25:14: 'Like clouds and wind without rain is a man who boasts of gifts he does not give.'"³⁸ And Hillyer sharply ridicules these deceivers, writing of them, "All they do is obscure the light. Just as clouds are blown along by the wind, so these men are carried along by their own verbosity, and their words supply no life-giving refreshment."³⁹ "Consequently, the false teachers are devoid of refreshment, promise, and performance."⁴⁰

Carried along by winds
Perhaps Jude has in mind the winnowing process of separating out the chaff from the grain through his use of this metaphor, or perhaps he is considering the aimless flight of waterless clouds or the directionless guidance of the false teachers. Perhaps he is inferring a teaching similar to that of the apostle Paul, who says of those who cause disunity within the body of Christ, that they are "tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive" (Eph. 4:14). However Jude meant his readers to understand his use of the metaphor one thing is certain: those who have "crept in" are untrustworthy guides.

Autumn trees without fruit
False teachers are like autumn trees, at a time that ripe for harvest, they are disappointingly without fruit. They are barren and yield nothing.

Twice dead
False teachers are said to be twice dead:

These men are worse off because they have rejected the forgiveness of their past sins and so they bear them personally. Indeed they have incurred even greater culpability by flouting that gospel after having once known it, and thus they have rejected the only source of salvation.⁴¹

Andreas, commenting on the false teachers killing themselves a second time, writes:

These are people who by their wicked life and ungodliness have killed their souls with false doctrines. Before they believed, they were dead in their ungodliness, but when they turned to the gospel they found life. However, they gave themselves up again to ungodliness and lust, thereby killing themselves a second time.⁴²

Although citations like Andreas are sometimes used by systematicians to support the idea that one can loose his or her salvation, I am not convinced that this line of thought captures Jude's meaning whatsoever. Rather, I suggest that we are best served by understanding the contrast brought to light through the understanding that believers participate in two resurrections.

John wrote, "Blessed and holy are those who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them" (Rev. 20:6) and Jesus said that those who believe in him have already "crossed over from death to life" (John 5:24). According to our Lord's own words, the first resurrection occurs in the midst of the believer's lifetime. Riddlebarger writing on the subject of two resurrections states:

Because believers have been raised with Christ and are united to him through faith, they now participate in his resurrection as citizens of the age to come.
Christ's bodily resurrection entailed two subsequent resurrections for all Christian believers. The first of these is a spiritual resurrection which occurs when believers are united to Christ through faith. This union with him also assures their bodily resurrection at the end of the age. By virtue of this first resurrection, believers now participate in the resurrection age to come (Luke 20:34-37). They await the resurrection of their bodies when the age to come is fully consummated.⁴³

"This certainly seems to fit with Jesus' view as recorded in John's Gospel, namely, that those who trust in him have already crossed over from death to life."⁴⁴

Of further interest regarding the two resurrections of believers and with reference to Ephesians 2:7, the church as it lives in this age looks forward to the age of future consummation. Although the saved exist in this age, they are born from above as new creatures at the moment of their salvation. Now is the dawn of a new age for them while they live in an age that is yet to end. These believers also look forward to the next age in which they will be raised incorruptible, conformed to the image of Christ (ref. Romans 8:29). Therefore when Ephesians 2:7 speaks of believers participating in two ages, it speaks rightly because Christians who are born from above participate in two ages with the blessings of the Lord-the end of this age, and the coming kingdom of God.

Based upon these and similar arguments, I hold that Jude is saying that false teachers neither participate in the spiritual resurrection of their souls experienced in this life and neither will they experience the heavenly resurrection in the life to come. They are twice dead.

Wild waves of the sea, casting up their own shame like foam
Jude may have had Isaiah 57:20 in mind ("But the wicked are like the tossing sea, For it cannot be quiet, And its waters toss up refuse and mud") when he wrote this metaphor. To the ancient mind waves were an "image of casting up the filth of sin."⁴⁵ "For modern people, the sea is often a thing of beauty; to ancient people, it was a terror (cf. Isa 57:20; also Rev 21:1, with its promise of no more sea)."⁴⁶

Like the unbridled seas, Jude by this metaphor describes false teachers as restless, untamed, undisciplined, and out of control. The result of their feverish churning is to cast upon the shore the foam of their shame. Thus the fruit of their delusional teaching is as dead fish and rotting seaweed cast up from the depths.

Wandering stars, for whom the black darkness has been reserved forever.
This last metaphor comes from the ancients looking up to the heavens and observing the planets uneven and disorderly course through the heavens. Jude's use of the metaphor implies a contrast between the righteous who are like fixed stars in the heavens and the unrighteous, who, like the planets, wander off course and abandon the Lord and truth. False teachers like a "wandering star"⁴⁷ provide no guidance for navigation. They are "useless and untrustworthy. Their doom is the eternal darkness that is reserved for them (cf. 2 Pet. 2:4)."⁴⁸ Regarding the darkness reserved for the false teachers, Moo has noted that "darkness" was a common description of describing divine judgment in the ancient mind.⁴⁹

Summary of Jude 12-13
In verses 12-13 Jude has exposed the wicked infiltrators as hidden reefs that shipwreck the faith that has been received. They serve only to block out the light as waterless clouds. They are without fear. They act without concern and are consumed by self-serving lusts. They are as directionless as the winds. They disappoint and are without fruit. They are twice dead without roots or foundation. They cast their shame as flotsam upon the shore. They are false guides for whom darkness will be their reward.⁵⁰

Jude 1:14 And about these also Enoch, in the seventh generation from Adam, prophesied, saying, "Behold, the Lord came with many thousands of His holy ones,
Jude 1:15 to execute judgment upon all, and to convict all the ungodly of all their ungodly deeds which they have done in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him."

In this pericope, "Jude quotes, nearly verbatim, from the book of Enoch."⁵¹ The book of Enoch is extra-biblical in nature and because of Jude's extended quotation, the epistle of Jude was not received into the cannon until a late date. Bede writes of the book of Enoch, stating:

The book of Enoch, from which this quotation is taken, belongs to the Apocrypha, not because the sayings of that prophet are of no value or because they are false but because the book which circulates under his name was not really written by him but was put out by someone else who used his name. For if it were genuine, it would not contain anything contrary to sound doctrine. Indeed, it was precisely because Jude quotes [Enoch] for a long time that his letter [the Epistle of Jude] was rejected by many as being uncanonical. Nevertheless it deserves to be included in the canon because of its author, its antiquity and the way in which it has been used, and particularly because this passage which Jude takes from Enoch is not itself apocryphal or dubious but is rather notable for the clarity with which it testifies to the true light.⁵²

Here Jude interprets "Behold, the Lord cometh with many thousands of His holy ones," as applying to the as yet future second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ in power. Here Jude rests upon his confidence that the Lord will exercise righteous judgment upon the ungodly. Our Lord will judge the false ones for their ungodly acts and for their blasphemous words, convicting them of their sins. From John 5:27-30 we understand that the judge is the Son, Jesus Christ, to whom the Father has given the authority to do so.

Jude 1:16 These are grumblers, finding fault, following after their own lusts; they speak arrogantly, flattering people for the sake of gaining an advantage.

Grumblers: "These menJude is saying, are complaining against God and his directions for living, preferring their own way-but then blaming God for anything that goes wrong for them."⁵³

"They follow their own evil desires, for they reject divine authority. 'To them self-discipline and self-control are nothing; to them the moral law is only a burden and a nuisance; honor and duty have no claim upon them; they have no desire to serve and no sense of responsibility.'"⁵⁴

Loud Boasters: They boast of themselves because they have no confidence that their teachings are of God and so they promote themselves to their shame.

Of grumblers and malcontents (fault finders): Ocumenius has said, "Grumblers are people who mutter against others under their breath, whereas malcontents are those who are always looking for ways in which they can attack and disparage everything and everybody."⁵⁵

Application
The Epistle of Jude is a general letter written to the whole church and is to be corporately observed. Nevertheless, it cannot be overlooked that Jude's illustrations and descriptions can also apply to individual believers serving as a check for personal motives, ambitions and goals in our service toward the body of Christ.

Against the blasphemies spoken by false teachers, "Christians also should not speak authoritatively on secret or esoteric matters God has not chosen to reveal (cf. Deut. 29:29)."⁵⁶ Neither should Christians seek to justify their sins as the deceivers do.

On False Teachers
Abstracted from the total teaching from the Bible about false teachers, we may say:

1) They secretly introduce destructive heresies. Much like the frog who grows accustomed to warming water until it is too late and boils, heresies can only lead to destruction.
2) Ultimately, false teachers deny the Lord's sovereignty, for they presume themselves to speak when they have not been spoken to. False teachers, are not ones who have innocently been led astray, but are persons to whom God has revealed the truth and the false teachers have willfully rejected this knowledge and walked a path of their own choosing.
3) They are bold and arrogant. They presumptuously speak with conceited self-gratification. They are not swayed by the challenges of logic, common-sense, responsibility, or decency. They do or say as they please.
4) They do not fear who they slander, be it the children of God or our Lord himself.
5) They speak blasphemous upon matters they do not understand and are more spiritually dull than the lowest of beasts.
6) They are not satisfied by their own deception but seek to lure others and prey upon the gullible.
7) They shall have their reward.

Four characteristics of false teachers:
1) The motive of false teachers is greed. Be it for possessions or other worldly lusts, false teachers seek gain at the expense of others.
2) The method of false teachers is to exploit others with stories they have made up. They mix truth with lies and seek to serve themselves.
3) The effect of false teachers is to lead others astray and so bring dishonor upon our Lord.
4) The end result of false teachers is their inevitable destruction.⁵⁷

Overview of the closing verses: "It is not enough merely to identify and condemn the heretics. Christians had to provide a credible alternative, and Jude devotes the closing section of his letter to outlining what that was. Christians were not surprised by the presence of error in the church or to regard it as anything unusual, because the apostles had predicted this situation. The only way to deal with it was to maintain an orthodox faith, life a pure life and evangelize others as thoroughly as possible."⁵⁸

Bibliography

W. Barcley, The Letters of James and Peter, Revised ed., Philadelphia: Westminster, 1975.

Gerald Bray, Ed., Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture: James, 1-2 Peter, 1-3 John, Jude, Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 2000.

Norman Hillyer, New International Biblical Commentary: 1 and 2 Peter, Jude, Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1992.

Craig S. Keener, The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament, Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 1993.

John MacArthur, Pastoral Ministry, Dallas, TX: Word Publishing, 1995.

Douglas J. Moo, NIV Application Commentary: 2 Peter, Jude, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1996.
-Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary, vol 4, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan 2002.

Kim Riddlebarger, A Case for Amillennialism, Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2003.

William Whiston, translator, The Works of Flavius Josephus, Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, reprint 1998.

NIV Commentary, Accordance Module, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Interactive.

Endnotes

1 Outline abstracted and quoted from Norman Hillyer, New International Biblical Commentary: 1 and 2 Peter, Jude, Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1992, pp. 231-69. Sub-points added by author.
2 Dr. Moo has observed that Jude 5-16 is an expansion of the meaning of Jude's description and condemnation of false teachers in verse 4 (cf. Douglas J. Moo, NIV Application Commentary: 2 Peter, Jude, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1996, p. 238).
3 Gerald Bray, Ed., Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture: James, 1-2 Peter, 1-3 John, Jude, Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 2000, p. 247.
4 Dr. Gerald Bray notes that the opposition to the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints stems "from godless persons who twist Scripture wickedly, who have secretly come into the church pretending to preach the gospel. Their judgment was decreed long ago and they have condemned themselves by their actions" (Ibid., p. 247).
5 Douglas J. Moo, NIV Application Commentary: 2 Peter, Jude, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1996, p. 238.
6 Ibid., p. 239.
7 Douglas J. Moo, Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary, vol 4, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan 2002, p. 238.
8 Douglas J. Moo, NIV Application Commentary: 2 Peter, Jude, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1996, pp. 239.
9 "Many English versions (such as the NIV) and commentators divide verses 5-10 into two separate paragraphs. But the rhetorical pattern just outlined suggests that we should keep together the Old Testament examples of verses 5-7 with their application in verses 8-10. To be sure, this application is complicated by an interruption: Jude's reference to the apocryphal tradition about Michael fighting with Satan for the body of Moses (v. 9). But this allusion seems to be a secondary illustration rather than a new example deserving its own paragraph" (Ibid., pp. 239).
10 Norman Hillyer, New International Biblical Commentary: 1 and 2 Peter, Jude, Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1992, p. 247.
11 Craig S. Keener, The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament, Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 1993, p. 754.
12 Gerald Bray, Ed., Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture: James, 1-2 Peter, 1-3 John, Jude, Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 2000, p. 251.
13 Norman Hillyer, New International Biblical Commentary: 1 and 2 Peter, Jude, Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1992, p. 247.
14 Defile the flesh: "Apparently the false teachers had based their immoral behavior upon visions or dreams they claimed to have received. Through the use of the phrase "defile the flesh," Jude associates these false teachers with the Sodomites [v. 7]" (Douglas J. Moo, NIV Application Commentary: 2 Peter, Jude, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1996, pp. 245).
"In Jude's day, apopular tradition about angels who sinned was associated with the enigmatic reference in Genesis 6:1-4 to 'sons of God' who came down to earth and cohabited with 'the daughters of men.' Jewish interpreters had built an elaborate story on the basis of this text, identifying the "sons of God" with angels and attending much (or even all) evil in the world to their pernicious influence. These stories find there greatest elaboration in the intertestamental book 1 Enoch, and since Jude quotes from this very book in verses 14-15, we are almost certainly correct in identifying this story as the one he had in mind in verse 6." (Ibid., p. 241).
15 Reject authority: "Here some commentators believe that the false teachers were rejecting order and government be it leadership from the body of Christ or secular in nature but Jude has already told us that these false teachers 'deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ' (v. 4, NASB)" (Ibid., p. 245.
16 "Revile angelic majesties" "or literally 'glories' is a term used in Jewish literature for angels because angels were said to share or reflect the glory of our Lord" (Norman Hillyer, New International Biblical Commentary: 1 and 2 Peter, Jude, Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1992, p. 250).
"Here Jude says that the false teachers slander God and his messengers. It is thought that certain proto-Gnostics claimed that the angels and messengers of God served an inferior god. Alternatively, it is also considered that the false teachers, through their rejection of "God and his law, may have indirectly been attacking angels as well, who were thought to be the mediators and guardians of the law (see Acts 7:38; Gal. 3:19-20)" (Douglas J. Moo, NIV Application Commentary: 2 Peter, Jude, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1996, pp. 245).
"All three accusations in verse 8 concern the rejection of the moral order, so the "slander" [or alternatively "revile angelic majesties"] probably relates to the angels' function as mediators of the law of Moses (Acts 7:38, 53; Gal. 3:19; Heb. 2:2; Jubilees 1:27-29; Josephus, Ant. 15.136) and as guardians of creation (1 Cor. 11:10)" (Norman Hillyer, New International Biblical Commentary: 1 and 2 Peter, Jude, Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1992, p. 248).
17 NIV Commentary, Accordance Module, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Interactive.
18 "Jewish tradition saw the angles as having a critical role in the judgment[and] angels were considered to be the guardians of the law (cf. Acts 7:38; Gal. 3:19-20)." (Douglas J. Moo, Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary, vol 4, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan 2002, p. 238.)
19 By way of background, the fallen angles were not considered wicked by Jewish tradition because of their origin but because they failed to hang onto their origin. Likewise it seems as though Jude has inferred that the false teachers are wicked because they too have failed to adhere to their foundation and with self-serving lusts followed a different path that will only lead to their destruction.
Compare the deference between Michael's response towards Satan in Jude 9 with Jesus' direct rebuke of "Away from me Satan" in Matthew 4:10.
20 Gerald Bray, Ed., Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture: James, 1-2 Peter, 1-3 John, Jude, Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 2000, p. 253. More contemporary commentaries say essentially the same: "Yet in spite of Michael's power and dignity, he dared not bring a 'slanderous accusation' against the devil but referred the dispute to the sovereignty of God. So if he, a mighty archangel, had respect for celestial powers, Jude says, how much more should the mere human false teachers do so!" (NIV Commentary, Accordance Module, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Interactive).
21 Andreas writes of verse ten, "Not knowing the true doctrine, these people concoct blasphemies for themselves. They are so caught up in lust that they are no different from dumb animals" (Gerald Bray, Ed., Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture: James, 1-2 Peter, 1-3 John, Jude, Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 2000, p. 253).
22 NIV Commentary, Accordance Module, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Interactive.
23 Cf., Norman Hillyer, New International Biblical Commentary: 1 and 2 Peter, Jude, Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1992, p. 249.
24 The NIV Commentary states of the "woe": "Because of their coming judgment, [Jude] pronounces 'woe' on the false teachers, just as Jesus did on the scribes and Pharisees (Mt 23:13, 15-16, 23, 25, 27, 29)." NIV Commentary, Accordance Module, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Interactive.
25 In Jewish tradition Cain was viewed as both a skeptic who acted as though there would be no judgment and as the corrupter of mankind. In the latter respect, Josephus described Cain as being remembered as one who became the instructor of wickedness for all mankind (William Whiston, translator, The Works of Flavius Josephus, Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, reprint 1998, pp. 70-72).
26 Norman Hillyer, New International Biblical Commentary: 1 and 2 Peter, Jude, Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1992, p. 251.
27 Ibid., p. 252.
28 Ibid., p. 252.
29 "By the first century A.D., Balaam was considered a notorious character in Jewish tradition" (Ibid., p. 252).
30 Ibid., p. 252.
31 Douglas J. Moo, Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary, vol 4, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan 2002, p. 239.
32 Quoting On Jude, Gerald Bray, Ed., Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture: James, 1-2 Peter, 1-3 John, Jude, Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 2000, p. 254.
33 NIV Commentary, Accordance Module, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Interactive.
34 "The 'love feasts' were meals in which the early church ate together and observed the Lord's Supper. 'Eating with you' has the idea of sumptuous eating and is better translated 'feasting with you.' 'Without the slightest qualm' (lit., 'without fear') means that the false teachers do not recognize the terror of the Lord against those who mock his Son's death shown in the Supper (cf. 1Co 11:27-32; Heb 10:26-31)" (NIV Commentary, Accordance Module, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Interactive).
35 John MacArthur, Pastoral Ministry, Dallas, TX: Word Publishing, 1995, p. 353. See also Craig S. Keener, The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament, Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 1993, p. 755.
36 "The Lord's supper is a memorial to the One who lived and died for us, a time of communion with Him, a proclamation of the meaning of His death, and a sign of our anticipation of His return. The sacred and comprehensive nature of Communion behooves us to treat it with the dignity it deserves" (John MacArthur, Pastoral Ministry, Dallas, TX: Word Publishing, 1995, pp. 353, 354).
37 Norman Hillyer, New International Biblical Commentary: 1 and 2 Peter, Jude, Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1992, p. 254.
38 Douglas J. Moo, Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary, vol 4, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan 2002, p. 239. See also Craig S. Keener, The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament, Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 1993, p. 755.
39 Norman Hillyer, New International Biblical Commentary: 1 and 2 Peter, Jude, Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1992, p. 255.
40 NIV Commentary, Accordance Module, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Interactive.
41 Norman Hillyer, New International Biblical Commentary: 1 and 2 Peter, Jude, Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1992, p. 205.
42 Gerald Bray, Ed., Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture: James, 1-2 Peter, 1-3 John, Jude, Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 2000, p. 254.
43 Kim Riddlebarger forwards the case for the two resurrection model of interpretation in his book, A Case for Amillennialism, Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2003, p. 115.
44 Ibid., p. 117.
45 Craig S. Keener, The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament, Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 1993, p. 755. Cf., Dead Sea Scrolls.
46 NIV Commentary, Accordance Module, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Interactive.
47 "'Wandering stars' referred to the erratic orbits of the planets, sometimes attributed to disobedient angels, who were to be imprisoned under God's judgment and are called 'stars' in 1 Enoch. Judgment as eternal darkness appears in 1 Enoch and elsewhere." Craig S. Keener, The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament, Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 1993, p. 755. Cf., Norman Hillyer, New International Biblical Commentary: 1 and 2 Peter, Jude, Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1992, p. 255.
48 NIV Commentary, Accordance Module, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Interactive.
49 Douglas J. Moo, NIV Application Commentary: 2 Peter, Jude, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1996, pp. 241.
50 It is also interesting to note that many have observed that four of the images Jude uses-clouds, tress, waves, and wandering stars-follow the pattern of an ancient division of the four regions of the earth: the air, the earth, the sea, and the heavens. Whether this was done intentionally by Jude or not is left to speculation.
51 Norman Hillyer, New International Biblical Commentary: 1 and 2 Peter, Jude, Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1992, p. 257.
52 Quoting On Jude, Gerald Bray, Ed., Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture: James, 1-2 Peter, 1-3 John, Jude, Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 2000, p. 255.
53 Norman Hillyer, New International Biblical Commentary: 1 and 2 Peter, Jude, Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1992, p. 258.
54 Ibid., p. 258, quoting Barcley, W., The Letters of James and Peter, Revised ed., Philadelphia: Westminster, 1975 p. 198.
55 Quoting Commentary on Jude, Gerald Bray, Ed., Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture: James, 1-2 Peter, 1-3 John, Jude, Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 2000, p. 255.
56 Craig S. Keener, The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament, Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 1993, p. 755.
57 Four characteristics abstracted from Norman Hillyer, New International Biblical Commentary: 1 and 2 Peter, Jude, Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1992, pp. 183-84.
58 Gerald Bray, Ed., Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture: James, 1-2 Peter, 1-3 John, Jude, Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 2000, p. 256.

Class Handout

The False Teachers of Jude 8-16 Presented by Eric Landstrom

Jude predicates his whole argument not upon his blood-relationship with Jesus, but upon the faith that has been received. It is thought that Jude 5-16 is Jude's expanding upon the ideas he first presented in verse 4.

5-7-Three Illustrations of past condemnation
5-Unbelievers and grumblers who perished in the wilderness
6-The angels who left their place
7-The Sodomites and Gomorhaites who sought after "strange flesh"
8-10-Brazen Ignorance of the False Teachers
8-Defile the flesh refers back to the illustration of the Sodomites (v. 7)
8-Despise authority refers back to the illustration of the angels who left their natural place (v. 6)
8-Revile angelic majesties refers back to the disbelievers that had been delivered from Egypt (v. 5)
9-Secondary Illustration of Michael's obedience (extra-biblical source: alternately called The Assumption of Moses or The Testament of Moses) is given to show that false teachers, through their blasphemies, have spoken against the received faith. And by doing so, they have assumed an authority that is not rightfully theirs.
10-The wicked reason as beasts (spiritually blind, sensual lusts)
11-Three Examples of Wickedness: The way of Cain was by envy. The error of Balaam was by greed. The
rebellion of Korah was by false assumption of authority.
12-13-Wicked Infiltrators Exposed: As hidden reefs that shipwreck faith. As without fear. As selfish. Without direction as the wind. Without fruit. As twice dead. As without roots or foundation. As casting shame. As false guides. For whom darkness will be their reward.
14-16-Doom Prophesied by Enoch (extra-biblical source: I Enoch, quoted nearly verbatum)
14-The Lord will come
15-To judge the ungodly

On False Teachers
1) They secretly introduce destructive heresies. Much like the frog who grows accustomed to warming water until it is too late and boils, heresies can only lead to destruction.
2) Ultimately, false teachers deny the Lord's sovereignty, for they presume themselves to speak when they have not been spoken to. False teachers, are not ones who have innocently been led astray, but are persons to whom God has revealed the truth and the false teachers have willfully rejected this knowledge and walked a path of their own choosing.
3) They are bold and arrogant. They presumptuously speak with conceited self-gratification. They are not swayed by the challenges of logic, common-sense, responsibility, or decency. They do or say as they please.
4) They do not fear who they slander, be it the children of God or our Lord himself.
5) They speak blasphemous upon matters they do not understand and are more spiritually dull than the lowest of beasts.
6) They are not satisfied by their own deception but seek to lure others and prey upon the gullible.
7) They shall have their reward.

1 Four characteristics abstracted from Norman Hillyer, New International Biblical Commentary: 1 and 2 Peter, Jude, Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1992, pp. 183-84.

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Sections of Jude	Old Testament/Traditional Material	Application
vv. 5-10	vv. 5-7 (9)	vv. 8 ("these") and 10
vv. 11-13	v. 11	vv. 12-13 ("these")
vv. 14-16	vv. 14-15	v. 16 ("these")⁵