rev. by Matthew L. Skinner (03/2023)
SUMMARY
A pastoral leader in the early church delivers a constructive but firm warning to a community under his care to be prepared and vigilant in confronting false teachers. Selfish in their motivations, distorters of sound doctrine, and immoral in character, these teachers are to be vigorously opposed and resisted, rather than listened to or welcomed. Vivid examples of similar challenges from the past are cited from both canonical and noncanonical literature, with the aim of providing models of constancy, faithfulness, and resilience within the community. The author lifts up the love, mercyMercy is a term used to describe leniency or compassion. God’s mercy is frequently referred to or invoked in both the Old and New Testaments. More, and steadfastness of God as a foundation for hope and celebration.
SO WHAT?
The Letter of Jude offers an unusually vivid snapshot of the dynamics of life in an early Christian community: everything is still in formative stages; everything is at the same time fresh and vulnerable. In the same way, the energies and passions of the writer in expressing both his protective instincts of the flock and his resolute opposition to the false teachers are unfiltered by decorum or the accumulated wisdomWisdom encompasses the qualities of experience, knowledge, and good judgment. The Old Testament book of Proverbs, which sometimes invokes a Woman as the personification of Wisdom, is a collection of aphorisms and moral teachings. Along with other biblical passages, it teaches, “The fear of the… More of experience. This is raw conflict and pastoral care as practiced “in the arena.” As we read, there is no avoiding the sense that everything is on the line.
WHERE DO I FIND IT?
The Letter of Jude is the 26th book in the New Testament. It is the last in the section of books typically referred to as the “Catholic Letters” (James through Jude)–“catholic” in the sense that they appear to be generally applicable beyond the specific circumstances of a single community of faith.
WHO WROTE IT?
There are two views: either the author is in fact the brother or half-brother of Jesus (which is what ancient Christian traditions asserted) or he is a pseudonymous writer who felt it fitting to employ the authority and name of Jude in dealing with doctrinal conflict.
WHEN WAS IT WRITTEN?
If the author is (according to the letter’s first verse) “Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James,” a likely date of authorship is between 50 and 60 C.E. If this is a case of pseudonymous authorship, the date could be later, probably near the end of the first century.
WHAT’S IT ABOUT?
An early Christian community receives an urgent warning to be on its guard against false teachers, to heed the warnings and examples from the past, and to rely on the graceGrace is the unmerited gift of God’s love and acceptance. In Martin Luther’s favorite expression from the Apostle Paul, we are saved by grace through faith, which means that God showers grace upon us even though we do not deserve it. More and steadfastness of God to prevail against falsehood and immorality.
HOW DO I READ IT?
As with any correspondence, in reading a New Testament letter we are being permitted a glimpse into someone else’s life, times, and circumstances. We have no way of knowing whether this letter constitutes part of a longer sequence of correspondence, or whether it stands entirely on its own. Likewise, we are left to wonder how (if at all) the recipients responded to the content of the letter. But we have enough in this short letter to impress upon us something of the relationship between writer and recipients and the issues at hand for this community in its formative stages.
