Notes on Jude 1:7-13

Sodom and Gomorrah - Jude 1:7

just like This is the third example of God's judgment whereby Jude continued with the theme of sexual immorality. The prideful rejection of God's order by the people of Sodom and Gomorrah is similar to the angels' rebellion in the previous verse. sexual immorality This sin includes homosexuality (Gen. 19:4-9) as well as other perversions of God's order for the world. examples Sodom and Gomorrah are commonly used in Scripture as examples of God's judgment against sin (Deut. 29:23, Isa. 1:9; Jer. 49:17-18; Luke 17:29-30; Rom. 9:29). WCF 3.7; WLC 27.

Application of Examples to False Teachers. - Jude 1:8-10

Just as surely as God judged these well-known instances of ungodliness, God will also judge the false teachers troubling Jude's readers.

Dreamers - Jude 1:8

dreamers The false teachers may have claimed to have visionary experiences or to have received revelation. They may have added to or changed orthodox Christian doctrine to allow for their own immorality. pollute … bodies These false teachers prompted a lifestyle that likely involved some kind of sexual immorality, maybe homosexuality in particular (see vv. 4 and 7). reject authority Rebellion against God's order and commands is common to all of Jude's examples so far. This disobedience is synonymous with a rejection of Jesus's Lordly authority. WLC 151. say slanderous things against the glorious ones This charge suggests again that the false teachers were rebelling against God's proper order for creation. In light of the next verse, perhaps they were usurping judging authority only God can grant his people (1 Cor. 6:3). WCF 23.4; BC 36.

The archangel Michael - Jude 1:9-10

To expose the false teachers' pride, Jude drew on a story from The Assumption of Moses. This non-biblical Jewish work adds to the story of Moses's burial (Deut. 34:5-6). In this story, the archangel Michael argued with the devil over possession of the body of Moses. Even Michael, a leader of the angels, did not presume to judge even the devil himself, who was clearly guilty of slander. Instead, he appealed to the authority of God. Michael the archangel is a leader of the angels. He guards God's people (Dan. 10:13, 21; 12:1), and he leads the armies of heaven against the devil (Rev. 12:7). The false teachers may have claimed a higher spiritual understanding. However, they were actually ignorant of spiritual things. The one thing they really "understood" was likely sexual desire. Their perversion will lead to their destruction in God's judgment.

The Ungodly Influence of False Teachers. - Jude 1:11-13

Jude added three more examples of ungodly lives (11). He then showed how such lives lead to ruin (12-13).

Examples of Ungodly Influence - Jude 1:11

Jude appealed to three famous examples from the OT of God's judgment on ungodly leaders and those they lead astray. Cain The first example of ungodly influence comes from the story of Cain, which is recorded in Gen. 4:3-12 (cf. Heb. 11:4; 1 John 3:12). In the book of Genesis, Cain stood at the head of a long line of unrepentant rebellion against God. To “walk in the way” of someone means to follow their example (1 Kgs. 15:26; 2 Kgs. 8:18; 2 Chron. 11:17). According to Jewish tradition, Cain also directly led others to sin, much like the false teachers (Josephus, Ant. 1.52–62; Posterity of Cain 38-39). Balaam’s error Jude mentions Balaam as second example of ungodly influence. In Num. 31:16, Balaam was associated with advising the Moabites to lead the Israelites into the sexual sin and idolatry of the Ba’al Peor incident (Num. 25:1-3). for profit In Deut. 23:4 and Neh. 13:2, Balaam performed his divination for money, and Jewish tradition implied that his advice to the Moabites (Num. 31:16) brought him personal gain. Korah’s rebellion The third example of ungodly influence comes from the story of Korah who was a Levite leader (Exod. 6:21). In Numbers 16, Korah led a rebellion against Moses and Aaron. This rebellion brought Korah, the other leaders, and 250 Israelite men into sudden divine judgment. Likewise, Jude indicated that God’s judgment will fall on those false teachers and on those whom they lead into error.

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