Jude 1

1From Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and a brother of James.

To those who are called, loved by God the Father, and kept safe for Jesus Christ.

2May you have great mercy, peace and love.

A Warning Against the Sin of Ungodly People

3Dear friends, I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share. But I felt that I had to write and urge you to stand up for the faith that God’s holy people have been trusted with once and for all time. 4Certain people have secretly slipped in among you. Long ago it was written that they would be found guilty. They’re ungodly people who misuse the grace of our God as an excuse for sexual sins. They deny Jesus Christ, our only Lord and King.

5I want to remind you about some things you already know. The Lord saved his people when he brought them out of Egypt. But later he destroyed those who didn’t believe. 6Some of the angels abandoned their positions of authority and didn’t stay where they belonged. The Lord is keeping those angels in darkness, bound with chains that last forever, until judgment day. 7The people of Sodom and Gomorrah and the towns around them did immoral and unnatural things. Those people are an example of those who are punished with fire that never goes out.

8In the very same way, these ungodly people act on their dreams and make their own bodies impure. They reject authority and say insulting things about heavenly beings. 9But even Michael, the leader of the angels, didn’t dare to say anything insulting about the devil. They were arguing about who would get the body of Moses. Michael just said, “May the Lord stop you!” 10But these people say insulting things about whatever they don’t understand. And the only things they do understand will destroy them. They’re like wild animals who can’t think for themselves and live only by instinct.

11Woe to them! They’ve followed the way of Cain. Because they love money, they’ve rushed into the same mistake Balaam made. They’ve rebelled just like Korah, and they’re going to be destroyed just as he was.

12These ungodly people are like stains at the meals you share. They’re shepherds who shamelessly feed only themselves. They’re like clouds without rain, blown along by the wind. They’re like trees that haven’t produced any fruit by the fall and are pulled out of the ground. That makes them dead in two ways. 13They’re like wild waves of the sea—their shame rises up like foam. They’re like stars that don’t stay in place. God has reserved very great darkness for them forever.

14Enoch, the seventh man in the family line of Adam, gave a prophecy about these people. He said, “Look! The Lord is coming with thousands and thousands of his holy ones. 15He’s coming to judge everyone. He will find them guilty for all the ungodly acts that they’ve done in ungodly ways and for all the defiant things they’ve said against him.” 16These people follow their own evil desires. They grumble and complain about others, but they brag about themselves and praise others to get what they want.

Remain in God’s Love

17Dear friends, remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ said would happen. 18They told you, “In the last days, some people will mock the truth. They’ll follow their own ungodly desires.” 19These are the people who create divisions among you. They live only by instinct and they’re not led by the Holy Spirit.

20But you, dear friends, build yourselves up in your most holy faith. Let the Holy Spirit guide you when you pray. 21Keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you eternal life.

22Show mercy to those who doubt. 23Save some by pulling them out of the fire. To others, show mercy mixed with fear of sin. Hate even the clothes that are stained by the sins of those who wear them.

Praise to God

24Now God is able to keep you from falling and bring you with great joy into his heavenly glory without any fault. 25So may the only God, our Savior, receive glory, majesty, power, and authority through Jesus Christ our Lord—before all time, now, and forever! Amen.

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