Transcript Jude - Weebly

• Jude was the author of the book that bears his name, which is a
short form of Judas. In verse 1 the author says he is “a servant
of Jesus Christ, and a brother of James.” The latter reference
makes sense only if James was well-known to Jude’s readers, so
probably Jude was the brother of the James who was the
leader of the church at Jerusalem, the writer of the letter that
bears his name, and the half brother of Jesus. He is mentioned
in Matthew 13:55 and Mark 6:3 in the lists of Jesus’ siblings,
where he is called Judas.
• Like his brother James, Jude was probably not a believer until
after Jesus’ resurrection. The similarity of Jude’s writing to
Peter’s and John’s can be explained by their close association
after Jesus’ ascension, when all the believers stayed in
Jerusalem.
• The book of Jude is a letter written to believers possibly in a
number of churches familiar to the author. Verse 3 contains
Jude’s purpose: “I felt I had to write and urge you to contend
for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints.” As
Peter does (in 2 Peter), Jude warns his readers about a heresy
that is attacking the young church.
• Scholars do not know precisely where or when the book of Jude
was written. The Expositor’s Bible Commentary (Gaebelein
1984) says that the date could be anywhere from A.D. 40 to
80, with A.D. 60 to 65 being the most probable. The place
where Jude wrote his letter is unknown, but Palestine and Egypt
are common guesses.
• Jude’s theme, that believers should “preserve the true faith,” is
expressed in verse 20, “But you, dear friends, build yourselves
up in your most holy faith and pray in the Holy Spirit.”
• The following is a simplified outline of Jude:
1. Introduction (1-2)
2. Contend for the faith (3-16)
3. Build yourselves up (17-23)
4. Doxology (24-25)