1 From Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and the brother of James.
To all who are chosen and loved by God the Father and are kept safe by Jesus Christ.
2 I pray that God will greatly bless you with mercy, peace, and love!
False Teachers
3 My dear friends, I really wanted to write you about God's saving power at work in our lives. But instead, I must write and ask you to defend the faith that God has once for all given to his people. 4 Some godless people have sneaked in among us and are saying, “God treats us much better than we deserve, and so it is all right to be immoral.” They even deny we must obey Jesus Christ as our only Master and Lord. But long ago the Scriptures warned that these godless people were doomed.
5 Don't forget what happened to those people the Lord rescued from Egypt. Some of them did not have faith, and he later destroyed them. 6 You also know about the angels who didn't do their work and left their proper places. God chained them with everlasting chains and is now keeping them in dark pits until the great day of judgment. 7 We should also be warned by what happened to the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah and the nearby towns. Their people became immoral and committed all sorts of sexual sins. Then God made an example of them and punished them with eternal fire.
8 The people I am talking about are behaving just like those dreamers who destroyed their own bodies. They reject all authority and insult angels. 9 Even Michael, the chief angel, didn't dare to insult the devil, when the two of them were arguing about the body of Moses. All Michael said was, “The Lord will punish you!”
10 But these people insult powers they don't know anything about. They are like senseless animals that end up getting destroyed, because they live only by their feelings. 11 Now they are in for real trouble. They have followed Cain's example and have made the same mistake that Balaam did by caring only for money. They have also rebelled against God, just as Korah did. Because of all this, they will be destroyed.
12 These people are filthy minded, and by their shameful and selfish actions they spoil the meals you eat together. They are like clouds blown along by the wind, but never bringing any rain. They are like leafless trees, uprooted and dead, and unable to produce fruit. 13 Their shameful deeds show up like foam on wild ocean waves. They are like wandering stars forever doomed to the darkest pits of hell.
14 Enoch was the seventh person after Adam, and he was talking about these people when he said:
Look! The Lord is coming with thousands and thousands of holy angels 15 to judge everyone. He will punish all those ungodly people for all the evil things they have done. The Lord will surely punish those ungodly sinners for every evil thing they have ever said about him.
16 These people grumble and complain and live by their own selfish desires. They brag about themselves and flatter others to get what they want.
More Warnings
17 My dear friends, remember the warning you were given by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. 18 They told you that near the end of time, selfish and godless people would start making fun of God. 19 And now these people are already making you turn against each other. They think only about this life, and they don't have God's Spirit.
20 Dear friends, keep building on the foundation of your most holy faith, as the Holy Spirit helps you to pray. 21 And keep in step with God's love, as you wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to show how kind he is by giving you eternal life. 22 Be helpful to all who may have doubts. 23 Rescue any who need to be saved, as you would rescue someone from a fire. Then with fear in your own hearts, have mercy on everyone who needs it. But hate even the clothes of those who have been made dirty by their filthy deeds.
Final Prayer
24-25 Offer praise to God our Savior because of our Lord Jesus Christ! Only God can keep you from falling and make you pure and joyful in his glorious presence. Before time began and now and forever, God is worthy of glory, honor, power, and authority. Amen.
1 IVde a seruaunt of Iesus Christ, and brother of Iames, to them which are called and sanctified of God the Father, and returned to Iesus Christ: 2 Mercie vnto you, and peace and loue be multiplied. 3 Beloued, when I gaue al diligece to write vnto you of the common saluation, it was needful for me to write vnto you to exhort you, that yee should earnestly contend for the maintenace of ye faith, which was once giuen vnto the Saintes. 4 For there are certaine men crept in, which were before of olde ordeined to this condemnation: vngodly men they are which turne the grace of our God into wantonnesse, and denie God the onely Lord, and our Lord Iesus Christ. 5 I wil therfore put you in remebrance, forasmuch as ye once knew this, how that the Lord, after that he had deliuered the people out of Egypt, destroied them afterward which beleeued not. 6 The Angels also which kept not their first estate, but left their owne habitation, hee hath reserued in euerlasting chaines vnder darkenesse vnto the iudgement of the great day. 7 As Sodom and Gomorrhe, and the cities about them, which in like maner as they did, committed fornication, and followed strange flesh, are set foorth for an ensample, and suffer the vengeance of eternall fire. 8 Likewise notwithstanding these sleepers also defile the flesh, and despise gouernment, and speake euill of them that are in authoritie. 9 Yet Michael the Archangell, when hee stroue against the deuill, and disputed about the body of Moses, durst not blame him with cursed speaking, but sayd, The Lord rebuke thee. 10 But these speake euill of those thinges, which they know not: and whatsoeuer things they know naturally, as beasts, which are without reason, in those things they corrupt them selues. 11 Wo be vnto them: for they haue followed the way of Cain, and are cast away by the deceit of Balaams wages, and perish in the gainsaying of Core. 12 These are rockes in your feasts of charitie when they feast with you, without al feare, feeding themselues: cloudes they are without water, caried about of windes, corrupt trees and without fruit, twise dead, and plucked vp by ye rootes. 13 They are the raging waues of the sea, foming out their owne shame: they are wandring starres, to whome is reserued the blackenesse of darkenesse for euer. 14 And Enoch also the seuenth from Adam, prophecied of such, saying, Beholde, the Lord commeth with thousands of his Saints, 15 To giue iudgement against al men, and to rebuke all the vngodly among them of all their wicked deeds, which they haue vngodly committed, and of all their cruel speakings, which wicked sinners haue spoken against him. 16 These are murmurers, complainers, walking after their owne lustes: Whose mouthes speake proud things, hauing mens persons in admiration, because of aduantage. 17 But, yee beloued, remember the wordes which were spoken before of the Apostles of our Lord Iesus Christ, 18 How that they told you that there should be mockers in ye last time, which should walke after their owne vngodly lustes. 19 These are they that separate them selues from other, naturall, hauing not the Spirit. 20 But, yee beloued, edifie your selues in your most holy faith, praying in the holy Ghost, 21 And keepe your selues in the loue of God, looking for the mercie of our Lord Iesus Christ, vnto eternall life. 22 And haue compassion of some, in putting difference: 23 And other saue with feare, pulling them out of the fire, and hate euen that garment which is spotted by the flesh. 24 Nowe vnto him that is able to keepe you, that ye fall not, and to present you faultlesse before the presence of his glorie with ioy, 25 That is, to God only wise, our Sauiour, be glorie, and maiestie, and dominion, and power, both nowe and for euer, Amen.