Hypertext Bible

World English Bible: Jude

English Bible TranslationsModern Bible TranslationsNew Testament

Summary only - full text stays on its own separately-gated source. Read the full text at the source »

This is the Epistle of Jude, a short letter from the New Testament of the Christian Bible, belonging to the genre of early Christian epistolary literature. Written by Jude, who identifies himself as a servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James, the letter is addressed to Christian communities and driven by an urgent polemical purpose: defending orthodox faith against infiltrators who have distorted Christian teaching, particularly by treating grace as a license for sexual immorality and rejecting spiritual authority. Jude marshals a striking array of biblical and extra-biblical precedents to condemn these false teachers — drawing on the Exodus, the fall of angels, Sodom and Gomorrah, the stories of Cain, Balaam, and Korah, and notably quoting the Book of Enoch (a non-canonical Jewish text), which is distinctive and unusual among New Testament writings. The letter characterizes these opponents through vivid metaphorical language — "clouds without water," "wandering stars," "wild waves" — painting them as spiritually empty and destined for judgment. It closes with pastoral exhortation, urging believers to build themselves up in faith, show compassion toward the wavering, and trust in God's power to preserve them. Anyone interested in early Christian controversies over doctrine and ethics, Jewish apocalyptic influences on the New Testament, or the defense of communal boundaries in nascent Christianity will find this brief but dense text rewarding.

World English Bible: Jude

Related pages View as graph →