Comments for December 20

26 v. 7 - This was a remarkable thing for someone with no knowledge of modern science. Job must surely have spoken these remarkably accurate words by the spirit of God. The increasing distance between Job and his friends as this argument develops lends further proof to how close Job was to his maker. Sadly, it seems, his friends, though learned, were not. They were very like the Pharisees.

Job 25 - Bildad responds for the third time

25:4 Bildad questions Job's status before God. Whilst He described Job as just and good Job 1:8 Bildad questions whether man - and by implication Job - can be just.

Job 26 -Job responds

He asked how he has been helped by his friends. The implication again is that he has not been helped.

Job 27 - Job continues

27:2-6 So Job maintains his claims to integrity.
27:11-23 And Job asserts that he will instruct his friends according to God's words.

27 v.3-5 - Do we have the faith to believe in ourselves in God's strength like this even in the light of such fierce opposition? Job talks here as though his three 'friends' are trying to persuade him to fall from grace and to fulfil their words as if they were some sort of prophecy against him. He (quite rightly) refuses. The temptation to give up when things get bad is quite great though. We have a lesson to learn from his example of determination and patience with his friends.

Job 25 So Bildad did not know that Abraham was justified by faith - Did Job live before Abraham? Or was Bildad saying that Job did not believe God's promises - for that is why Abraham was justified - He believed God (Romans 4:21)

26:8-13 Job seems to be describing the things that God created before saying that they are only part (26:14) of His work.

27:5 But Job will not plead for his friends. He is convinced that their reasoning is false - though later he would pray for them (42:8)

25:5 One wonders what Bildad meant when he said the stars are not pure in God's sight. There is no Scripture language which supports this idea. Bildad is using his own words and ideas and imposing them on God. We should be careful that our own 'shorthand' does not get in the way of our understanding of God, or worse still, how we present our understanding to others.

26:12 So this is why Job is speaking of God's work - so that he can assert that God will 'smite through' his friends!

27:2 This assertion that God has taken away his judgement is one of the many words of Job which Elihu (34:5) throws back at him.

JOB 25. In this 3rd. cycle of speeches Job had clearly silenced his friends. Bildad’s speech was only 5 short verses, and we note that Zophar choose not to address Job the third time.

Job 26:7. This verse not only shows us how close Job was to the creator, it also proves the theory of creation. How could the earth just hang in space, other than being part of creation.

OUTER FRINGE OF HIS WORKS
 
Job takes eight verses in this short chapter to show us some of the works of God.  At the conclusion of them he says this, "And these are but the outer fringe of his works."  (Job 26:14)
 
If we read over Job's summary of God's works quickly, we can feel a little bit Ho-hum about what Job tells us about God.  After all, we, like Job was, are so familiar with God's creation that we can take it for granted.  But let's just take a look at one of the things that Job brings to our attention.  "He wraps up the waters in his clouds, yet the clouds do not burst under their weight." (v.8) 
 
When we put an aeroplane into the air we fill it with fuel and design it to stay in the air all the time it is moving.  The aeroplane weighs several tons and it stays up while it is provided with lift, speed and energy.  But clouds weigh much much more.  they are made up of water droplets which just sit in the sky and are blown around by the wind.  They are not brought down by their weight or by their temperature, and they are by no means aerodynamic.  Yet God holds these countless tons of water just suspended in the air with none of the requirements it takes for us to put an object into the air.  Thinking about it is awesome!  Yet this is one of those things that is only the outer fringe of God's works.  Many others are even more mind boggling.
 
We certainly do have an awesome God!

The three friends (so called), seem to slowly dry up.  Their speeches get shorter.  Eliphaz and Bildad gave three talks each, but Zophar only two - and in today's chapter, Job 25, his speech is only 5 verses long. Bildad uses two different words for "worm" in Job 25:6. The first one is a worm that eats dead bodies, speaking of the destruction that comes to sons of Adam; and the second word, at the end of the verse, is a cossus worm, as used in Psa 22:6, probably referring to the red dye extracted from it. Also see Bro Cyril Tennant "The Book of Job" (CMPA 1991) where he describes the second word as expressing insignificance (page 93).

Bildad asserts that a man cannot be clean (pure) (25:4). He does not look at Job and see that he typifies the man of ultimate Godly integrity who will follow. Bildad does not understand that the LORD would provide a sinless man to be the Messiah (Heb 4:15). It is interesting that he calls man a worm (25:6). That is the description given to God's son; both the national offspring (Isa 41:14), and His only begotten Son Jesus (Psa 22:6). Worm is translated from the Hebrew tola which is actually a maggot. When this maggot is crushed it oozes a crimson/scarlet liquid. This commodity was used for dying clothes. The colour of the crushed maggot is significant when we realize that it is a symbol for sin (Isa 1:18). The colour scarlet comes from the Hebrew shani which is properly understood as the colour used for dying, which is derived from an insect (crushed).

Rooted in the Mosaic Law is the use of blood as a sin offering, the most important of which occurs on the Day of Atonement (Exo 30:10). That sacrifice foreshadowed the sacrifice of our Lord at Golgotha. The Spirit speaks through David, allowing Jesus to call himself a worm in Ps. 22. The shed blood of our Lord overcame (scarlet) sin as an atoning sacrifice for us (2Cor 5:21). Isaiah describes Jesus as having been bruised for our iniquities (Isa 53:5). The word bruised is translated from the Hebrew word daka which can mean crushed. And so, the significance of the Lord’s use of worm becomes clearer.

25:6  Whatever Bildad meant about the stars he wishes to make a comparison with Job. If the inanimate creation if not ‘pure’ then you certainly cannot be pure’ seems to be what Bildad is saying. He uses a word which Scripture does not use when speaking of man to make his point. He is moving outside Biblical language and so leaves himself open to being misunderstood.

26:5  ‘dead things’ is ‘Rephaim’ < 07496> and is not simply speaking of dead things. It is a word which has religious overtones of false worship, probably associated with giants.

27:4  Not only does Job claim to be righteous. He says he will never say anything wrong. What a claim!

26:2 The question ‘how hast thou helped …?’ is a rhetorical question. Job does not wait for a response. He proceeds to tell Bildad about God creative power. Striking really when this is the issue God raises with Job when He finally speaks Job 38:4

25:4 Man cannot be just by his own actions. He can be justified, however, by God. Gen 15:6 shows that Abraham was justified by faith. That is he believed that God would keep His word about the promised child. Likewise any man, even though he is a child of Adam, can be just before God – but not by his own merits. It is God that justifies Rom 8:33

26:5-14 Job now provides a number of elements of God’s activities as an indication that Eliphaz does not understand how God works. Job will be confronted with the same sort of challenge from God at the end of the book.

26:4 In asking ‘whose spirit came from thee’ Job is questioning that authority of Bildad’s competence to comment.

Job 25:1-3 - God's omnipotence: Bildad makes no attempt to address Job's last challenge (Job 24:25); V3 - no limit to God's power, armies, light and universal influence.

Job 25:4-6 - man's impotence: V4 - God is so great that no one can be innocent before him and thus Job is not as righteous as he claims (Job 23:10;9:17); V5 - nothing is pure before God (Job 4:17-19;15:14-15) - this negates the significance of exact retribution; V6 - KJV - "How much less 'man' [Heb. "enosh" (582) means "man, mortal"], that is a 'worm' [Heb. "rimmah" (7415) means maggot of decay, worm" - 'rimmah' (also used in Job 7:5;17:14;21:26;24:20) perhaps reminds us of the results/wages of man's original sin (Gen 2:16-17;3:17-19;Eze 18:4;Rom 6:23)]? And the son of 'man' [Heb. "adam" (120) means "ruddy, a human being" - perhaps this reminds us of Jesus who is sometimes referred to as the "son of man"], which is a 'worm' [Heb. "tola" (8438) means "a worm, specifically the crimson grub of the insect 'coccus ilicis', used for crimson, scarlet dye" - some feel it conveys "weak, insignificant, abasement" - 'tola' (also used in Psa 22:6;Isa 41:14) perhaps reminds us of sinful inclination and the shed blood sacrifice that can reconcile (Rom 5:10-11) man's impotence]?"

Job 26:1-4 - Job's scornful reproof of Bildad: V4 - perhaps an inference that Bildad is parroting Eliphaz (Job 4:12-16).

Job 26:5-14 - the incomprehensible majesty and power of God: V7 - uncanny scientific accuracy demonstrated by the Bible long before Columbus, Galileo or Newton - the northern sky is stretched out over empty space, the earth is hung upon nothing - the earth appears as a circle (Isa 40:22); V8 - God binds up the waters in his clouds yet the burdened clouds do not rip open; V10 - God has encompassed or made a circle of the waters with bounds that mark day and night; V11 - the pillars of heaven (perhaps a reference to mountains on the earth or the earth itself) tremble at the rebuke of God; V12 - "He 'divideth' [Heb. "raga" (7280) means "suddenly churns and calms", etc.] the sea with his 'power' [Heb. "koach" (3581) means "force, ability, power", etc.] and by his 'understanding' [Heb. "tabun" (8394) means "intelligence, understanding, wisdom", etc.] he 'smiteth through' [Heb. "machats" (4272) means "to dash asunder, crush, smash, violently plunge, dip, pierce (through), smite (through), wound", etc.] 'the proud' [Heb. "rahab" (7293) means "proud, pride, blusterer, arrogance", etc. - thought to have possible alignment as an epithet for prideful Egypt (Egypt is symbolic of sin. Egypt defied Yahweh by trying to keep His people in bondage and it was through water that His people were saved and the power of Egypt was crushed) and/or a mythical sea monster - previous mention of 'rahab' (Job 9:13)]"; V13 - wondering if there is any linkage to a possible celestial serpent constellation and the land serpent representing sin - KJV "hath formed" [Heb. "chalal" (2490) means "to bore, to wound, to profane, defile, desecrate, pierce, to be slain, to begin, to be begun", etc.], "the crooked" [Heb. "bariyach" (1272) means "a fugitive, as fleeing, serpent constellation, crooked, noble, piercing"]; V14 - we can't comprehend God's ways (Isa 55:8-9).  

I. Job's first monologue - chapters 27-28.

     A. Job's conclusion - chapter 27.

          1. Job 27:1-6 - I am right, you are wrong Job essentially says to his friends.

          2. Job 27:7-12 - some view these verses as a part of Job summarising the arguments of his friends while others feel Job now considers his tormenting accusers as the enemy : V8 - while inferring the godless have no hope when they die does this infer Job believes the godly do have hope when their life is cut off? 

         3. Job 27:13-23 - this is a confusing section - some view Job here as summarising the arguments of his friends (this may be the most likely), some feel Job is throwing back the theory of exact retribution on his tormenting friends, while others suggest it is the voice of Zophar, etc.   

26:14 Having spoken about God’s ways Job now asserts that only a little is known of his ways – by implication it is his friends who Job is saying only understand a little of God’s ways.

27:8  We should conclude that Job is describing his friends as the “hypocrite”.

DOMINION AND AWE

"Dominion and awe belong to God."(Job 25:2) In saying this, Job's friend Bildad gave Job a very deep thought to think about. Dominion and awe belong to God.

God owns the whole world. He is the One True God and everyone in the world should worship him and obey him. He has dominion over the plants, animals and almost everything else in all creation. The one exception to the dominion of God are the hearts of many people.

What about our heart? Does he have dominion in our lives? We might not be able to change anyone else, but we can make sure God rules in our lives. That means we obey God in everything. It means that his will, whether it is preaching, praying, showing compassion, giving, encouraging, or helping out, is our desire. If God has dominion over our whole lives, then we will have hidden nothing from him and have no secrets we don't want him to discover.

Awe belongs to God too. Like dominion in the hearts of most people, awe for God has long been neglected. But let us develop an awe for God that honours, respects and loves him in the deepest and most conscious parts of our lives.

Dominion and awe belong to God. Let us give them to him.

 Job 27:11-23.

When compared with a number of things Job has previously said about God's dealing with the wicked in this life, what he says here seems very different. What is the explanation for this?

It is a seriously wrong thing to do to add to or take away from the words of Scripture. I'll try and keep my own warning in mind as I present a couple of possible solutions to this difficulty. Job in his previous speech in ch. 21 actually sets out the absolute opposite point about the wicked - saying, for example, that they live long lives (v. 7) while their children are established around them (v. 8), their homes safe and free from fear (v. 9), etc., etc. He seems to me to be overstating this point - due to its being true a part of the time but not all the time, by any means. But this is his take on these things. So why would he do a 180 on this, so to speak? Also we know he was absolutely unconvinced by any of the reasoning of the 3 at this stage due to what he says at the beginning of ch. 26 where he resorts to major sarcasm in his critique of Bildad's arguments in ch. 25.

So based on this, it seems logical to me that this section (ch. 27:11-23) may be the missing speech of Zophar. I know there is no verse of the sort - "Then Zophar replied...". But the argument is so much like that of the 3. Plus there have been 3 complete rounds for Eliphaz and Bildad (in order) and 2 rounds for Zophar but no 3rd round. So, in other words, some symmetry would be there if Zophar gets his 3rd speech in. And the theme of these verses do match up with what he says elsewhere.

The other alternative may be that if Job is the speaker, he is recounting an argument of the 3 that he doesn't believe in. The problem with that, as I see it, is this: in what follows in ch. 28 there is no rebuttal to these points. Instead there is a beautifully worded speech comparing man's search for natural treasures with what he should be continuously searching for - i.e. God's wisdom.

Note too there is what the writer states in ch. 29:1 - "Job continued his discourse", which might be interpreted as him starting up again after listening to one of the three and what he has to say. So the easiest solution to my way of thinking is to think of this section continuing through ch. 28 as Zophar's missing speech with Job's response continuing in ch. 29-31. But I don't actually have any textual evidence for that conclusion.

25:5    Bildad, in commenting about the star is only repeating similar things to what Eliphaz has said – Job 4:18 and Job 15:15

Job had said this in Job 23:7

"There the righteous might dispute with him; so should I be delivered for ever from my judge."

Which could be what Bildad responds to when he asks:
 

"How then can man be justified with God? or how can he be clean that is born of a woman?" Job 25:4

This has been a mystery to mankind for millenia, right up until the time of Jesus. Faithful men (like Job), correctly surmised that as long as they had faith in God, they would be made righteous, even though they were sketchy on the details. How privileged we are to know exactly how this works!

for some further reading on how we can be justified (made righteous), see Rom 4 and Gal 3

26:13 The creation record says “God said ...” so here we see the way in which Job sees that action – through His spirit. 

27:8-9  Job seems to understand a principle here when he says that God will not listen to the hypocrite – Prov 15:8, 28:9

26:3   Do we think that Job had, in his own eyes, “no wisdom”? Doubtless he did no. So he is speaking ironically to Bildad.

26:13       Job’s comments about God garnishing the heavens is a rebuke of Bildad who said –  25:5 – that even the heavens are not pure

27:13-17         A recurring aspect of the reasoning of Job’s friends is that righteous men are materially well off and sinners are not. Here Job explains that even though sinners seem wealthy – and by implication blessed by God – their wealth will all vanish away when God judges them.

26:2 Job’s question is just the question we should be asking ourselves when we are trying to help fellow believers by talking to them about their problems. Unless we can, from their viewpoint, see we have been helpful we have probably made matters worse.

27:9-13 Exasperated by his friends’ inability to see Job’s situation as he sees it Job implies that God will instruct them.

27:9-13 Exasperated by his friends’ inability to see Job’s situation as he sees it Job implies that God will instruct them.

25:4 Bildad is returning to the sort of reasoning used by Eliphaz – 15:14-16. However Job was justified by faith and so it was not possible, by looking at what was happening in his life, to conclude God was not happy with Job.

25:4 Is “being clean” the same as being “justified”? Blidad seems to confuse the two thinking that they are the same. However they are not. Man can be “unclean” in that he is a sinner but still be “justified” because of his faith just like Abraham – Gen 15:6

27:3-6 The way that Job starts his comments is commendable. If only we could say “my lips will not speak wickedness”. Sadly Job then uses this feature of his behaviour to attempt to justify himself. We need to appreciate any righteousness we have does not come from our actions but from our belief in God’s promises just like Abraham – Gen 15:6.

2 v.7 - Here we see the contrast - Zion - the city that represents those who are of God, and Babylon that represents those who are not. The situation here is that of Lot in Sodom. Get out and don't look back. Each of us must do this every time we find ourselves wrapped in something of this life.

2:1 measuring line in his hand Ezekiel 40:3 Revelation 21:16
2:4 towns without walls Ezekiel 38:11
2:6 spread you abroad Deuteronomy 28:64
2:8 apple of his eye Deuteronomy 32:10
2:10 I will dwell in the midst of thee Ezekiel 37:27
2:12 And the Lord shall inherit Judah Deuteronomy 32:9

2:1 The measuring line picks up the words and ideas of Ezekiel in his description of the temple. Highly relevant given that during the days of Zechariah a temple was being built.
A question that should recur over and over again in the prophets after the exile is 'How did the people who received the message understand what they heard?' Did they see what they were involved in as the fulfilment of the earlier prophecies?

3:2 The Lord rebuke thee Jude 9
3:2 plucked out of the fire Jude 23
3:3 filthy garments Isaiah 64:6 Jude 23
3:5 mitre [heb diadem] Ezekiel 21:26
3:7 shall walk with me Revelation 3:4
3:9 seven eyes Revelation 5:6
 

3:5 mitre picking up the restorations element of Ezekiel 21:26 and 3:10 under ... vine ... fig tree picking up language of the kingdom from Micah 4:4 and the description of the kingdom in the days of Solomon

3:1 - must be a picture of the temptations of Jesus

2:12 And shall choose Jerusalem quotes Isaiah 14:1. Isaiah 14 speaks of the destruction of Babylon. Zechariah is speaking after Babylon has been destroyed. The people would, therefore, have seen in the return from Babylon a fulfilment of Isaiah 14.

3:1 The 'Satan' of this verse is (Ezra 4:1) the adversaries of Judah. This passage in Zechariah has an historical basis - it is the events recorded in Ezra.

2:12 'and shall choose Jerusalem' quotes Isaiah 14:1 - further encouragement about the overthrow of Babylon.

3:2 'hath chosen Jerusalem' quotes again Isaiah 14:1. Not only were the words of Isaiah going to be fulfilled. They had actually been fulfilled in the days of the returning exiles. The returning exiles may well have viewed the overthrow of Babylon as a natural event, after all Assyria had fallen. Zechariah is at great pains to show them that in fact their liberation was a direct fulfilment of Scripture. It is so easy for us to be complacent about the way that God is working in the world today. We should realise that He is always working out His purpose --and we can see it happening if we are willing.

Zech 2:1. This chapter is the final vision dealing with the prosperity for Judah and Jerusalem. In the first vision,(1:7-17) the prophet saw how through His Divine army God would redeem Israel. In the 2nd.(1:18-21) Zechariah was shown how the Gentiles would be overthrown. He is now shown that Jerusalem’s down treading is limited.  v.4 ”Jerusalem shall be inhabited.”

Zech 2:8. “The apple of His eye.” This is God’s eye, or as it should be the pupil, it is the tenderest part of the eye, and the eye is the most tender part of the body, the member of our body which we guard and protect more than any other part; We have all had a speck of dust in our eye at one time or another and know how it felt. It is the one part of the body that feels the slightest injury. What the prophet is saying is: No one can touch the people of God without paying a high price or cost.

Zech 3:1 The theme of the visions now changes to that of purification, and we begin in this chapter with a New High Priest, whose qualifications and nature are revealed to us in this chapter.

Zech 3:8. A branch has no beginning what we can see. With God as his Father, the new High Priest is a sprout of God. Here the brANCH is revealed as a servant, but after this series of night visions is concluded we see the brANCH revealed as a king. Zech 6:12. 

2:4 In speaking of Jerusalem being 'without walls' Zechariah is drawing of the language of Ezekiel who spoke to these same men and women when they were in captivity (Eze 38:11) giving them a message of hope.

3:8 The 'branch' would take the hearers back to, amongst other places Jer 23:5 where Jeremiah was speaking of the time after Israel would return from Babylon - so Zechariah is telling the people that the words of Jeremiah are being fulfilled in their own days.

2:5 The second (1:18-21) and the third (2:1-13) visions guarantee the safety of Jerusalem. God is both dealing with potential enemies and protecting His people, in the same way and on the same covenant basis as He did at the Exodus.

2:8 Apple of his eye (see also Psa 17:8; Prov 7:2). Israel is the apple of Yahweh’s eye. The word apple is translated from the Hebrew word ishon which means little man. As with all small, delicate, and vulnerable things (like a child), protection is paramount. And so, the apple must be protected from any intrusion. It is easy to understand this in a physical application, but it is also meant as a spiritual application. The apple (synonymous with the pupil) lets in light which carries with it the premier source of information. Spiritually useful as well as spiritually damaging instruction both enter through the same portal. The pupil, hence the brain, hence, the heart, hence the spirit, must be protected from harmful influences.

The third vision (Zech 2) is the man with the measuring line. But why measure the city? There are so many Jews going to return to it that they will spill over, and fill the land. Whilst the prophecy has an obviously local application for Zerubbabel and Joshua, it also speaks of the Kingdom, when God’s glory will dwell in the land (Zech 2:10-13).  Then the fourth vision (Zech 3), tells of a High Priest who will change his soiled clothes into new clean ones. Locally, of-course, this is the physical work of rebuilding, which the High Priest and his fellows were employed in. Soon, the work would be over, and the priesthood restored as it should be. For the future, this vision speaks of Jesus who used to be human, with man-made clothes, but in the Kingdom will be completely “The Son of God” with power.

2:4 In speaking of Jerusalem being ‘without walls’ his words must have seemed rather unrealistic to those returning exiles who eventually had to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem because of the opposition of their adversaries during the days of Ezra and Nehemiah..

3:10 In telling the people that there was coming a time when they would sit ‘under the vine and under the fig tree’ Zechariah is reminding them of what it was like in the days of Solomon – 1Kin 4:25– and what Micah had said it would be like when the kingdom was re-established upon earth – Mic 4:4.

2:6-9 These verses summon the remnant to return to their land in the day when all that God has promised is about to be fulfilled. Morally, they will still be dwelling with Babylon, for  Gentile domination was established with Nebuchadnezzar, and the powers that have succeeded him are all of his spirit and character.

3:1 The showing of ‘Joshua’ to Zechariah forces the immediate fulfilment of this prophecy.

2:6  ‘I have spread you abroad’ quotes Deut 28:64. The prophet is saying that the curses of Deuteronomy will be reversed.

Joshua, the high priest, is representative of Jesus the Messiah. Jesus is the brANCH of 3:8 (cf. Isa 11:1). The name Jesus is actually Joshua (yehoshua) which means Yahweh delivered. The one stone (3:9) describes Jesus as the foundation of salvation (Eph 2:20). Seven eyes rest upon this stone. The seven eyes represent the Spirit of the LORD (seven being the number of completion) (Rev 5:6). And so, the Spirit of the LORD rested on Jesus (Matt 3:16; John 3:34). The stone had the words saith the LORD of hosts inscribed upon it. This indicated that when Jesus spoke, His words were those of His Father (John 17:8). The LORD promised to remove the iniquity of the land in one day. Jesus died on the cross a sinless man. Because of His perfect obedience, His Father raised Him to everlasting life. He now became the way whereby humankind could be saved. On that day, iniquity was removed (Psa 2:7; Heb 1:1-5).

2:5 In saying that God will be a ‘wall’ the prophet is echoing the idea of Isa 26:1

These two chapters have messianic and kingdom on earth millennial applications. Christ overcame sin and had a change of raiment; faithful believers will also have a change of raiment - Zech 3:4;Luke 24:12,4;Mark 9:3;Rev 3:5.

As previously mentioned, Jesus is the chief corner stone and foundation of our salvation; He and the kingdom he will bring is the stone that will fill the earth when he returns -Zech 3:9;Dan 2:34-35,44-45;Eph 2:20-21;1Pet 2:4-6. Also in Zech 3:9 we have mention of 7 eyes on that one stone - Zech 4:10;Rev 5:6.

In the Jerusalem of the kingdom age the Lord and the lamb will be the temple - Zech 2:1-5;Rev 21:10-22;Eze 40:2-3.

2:4 The description of Jerusalem ‘without walls’ sets the scene for the children playing in the streets – Zech 8:5

3:5   In speaking of the ‘mitre’ being given to Joshua doubtless there were those who heard the words of the prophet and thought that the ‘one who comes’  Eze 21:27 who had the right was now here.

3:4   The way in which the verse speaks of the removal of iniquity confirms that the “filthy garments” represent sinfulness.

2:12     In stating that “the Lord hath chosen Jerusalem” we are reminded again of what the prophet said in Zech 1:17 and reminded again of the words of the prophet – Isa 14:1 – which is a prophecy of the end of Babylonian domination of Israel.

3:9      In speaking to the returning exiles the mention of the “stone” might well have brought to their minds the “stone which the builders refused”  - Psa 118:22, speaking of their Messiah. 

Zech 2:8 The apple of the eye is the pupil. Imagine someone touching it. It makes you move involuntarily to protect it - your eyelid closes, your hand comes up to protect it. God is saying that this is the way with Him and His people Israel if anyone touches His city, Jerusalem.

A CHANGE OF CLOTHES

Joshua was a high priest. There was no ore important position in Israel that he could have. But in Zechariah's vision, Joshua was shown to be wearing filthy clothes. He was not at all in a fit state to be doing the work he was called to do. We are told that the filthy clothes represented sin.

We all sin - even Joshua the high priest, and in that sinful state we are not able to follow through with God's calling for us. Like Joshua, we need to be rid of our sin and to put on the new clothes of God's righteousness.

There is nothing in ourselves that can get us from sinful to sinless, but in the love of God we can be forgiven, and in his strength we can put on a new attitude and a new character that flees from sin and does what is right out of love for God.

It was not until Joshua had been changed from his filthy old clothes to the new clothes of God's righteousness, that he was given his task for the LORD. It is the same for us. At the outset we are clothed with sin. We need to repent and allow God in his grace to clothe us in righteousness. We need to allow Him to change our attitudes to become attitudes that honour God. Once that process has begun, we can begin to live out our calling for God.

2:8    In speaking of “you” as “the apple of his eye” Zechariah is reminding his hearers of God’s long standing relationship with Israel as spoken of in Deut 32:10

2:9       So the people, when they were able to rebuild the walls despite the opposition should have realised that Zechariah was a true prophet  for in Deut 18:22 we learn that those who claim to be prophets whose words do not come to pass are actually false prophets.

3:2-3 The phrase “plucked out of the fire” and “filthy garments” are drawn upon by Jude – verse 23. The historical event Zechariah speaks of is the basis for Jude’s exhortation .

2:4-5    God is telling Israel, just after the return from Babylon when their enemies were all around them, that because of His care for them they would not need walls even though at this time they were living in a walled city – Jerusalem.

3:6-7  Joshua was faithful. However Yahweh reminds him of what he will be able to do if he is faithful.

WOW!

Here is a promise God made to Israel: “For behold, I come and I will dwell in your midst, declares the LORD.” (Zech 2:10). The exciting thing is that this promise will also be a promise for us. The promise continues this way: “And many nations shall join themselves to the LORD in that day, and shall be my people. And I will dwell in your midst, and you shall know that the LORD has sent me to you.” (v.11).

This same promise is repeated in Revelation, saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain any more, for the former things have passed away.” Rev 21:3-4).

What an amazing promise – and the more we think about it, the better it gets! God will live with us. We will live with God. The power! The glory! The majesty! This hope should really put a smile on our faces.

And that brings us back to where we began. These are the words just before the promise: “Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion, for behold, I come and will dwell in your midst.” (Zech 2:10).

So let us also sing and rejoice because of the awesome hope we have in God.
 

2:12 the way that the prophet invokes silence from the inhabitants of the earth is seen earlier in Hab 2:20

3:1-2 Whilst it is possible to identify the “Satan” that was opposing Joshua there is possibly more benefit in reflecting on how Yahweh dealt with the matter. Joshua’s enemies were trying to stop the word but the work was for God. It related to rebuilding Jerusalem. So Yahweh intervened on Joshua’s part to issue the rebuke through the prophet. When we are involved in doing things that relate to the work of our Heavenly Father do we ever consider that, in response to prayer, He intervenes on our behalf in our case in unseen ways?

2:5 the way that God would protect Jerusalem is an echo of what an earlier prophet said – Isa 4:5-6

3:9 The eyes that Zechariah saw in the vision speak of what Ezra spoke of –Ezra 5:5 – when he speaks of God watching over Jerusalem. Seeing Zechariah’s words against the historical details on Ezra and Nehemiah will bring his words to life.

2:12 In encouraging the returning captives the prophet was inspired to remind the nation of the words of Solomon as he was dedicating he temple –2Chron 6

Zech 2:8

“For thus saith the LORD of hosts; After the glory hath he sent me unto the nations which spoiled you: for he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of his eye.”

In Deut 32, we read how endearingly God had watched over Israel and why. “Remember the days of old … For the LORD’s portion is his people; Jacob is the lot of his inheritance… he led them about, he instructed him, he kept him as the apple of his eye” (Deut 32:7-10). Sadly, Deut 32 is a lament because Israel became a faithless and perverse generation (Deut 32:5; Matt 17:17). It was even so in Christ’s day and he pronounced this sentence upon them. “… Behold, your house is left unto you desolate till ye shall say, Blessed is he who cometh in the name of the Lord;” (Matt 23:38,39; cf. Acts 3:22-24; Phil 2:15).

David, a man after God’s own heart, prayed: “Keep me as the apple of your eye, hide me under the shadow of thy wings” (Psa 17:8, NIV). We read in Prov 7:2: “Keep my commandments, and live; and my law as the apple of thine eye.”  We are to keep God’s commands and watch over them so carefully as we would the pupil of our eyes wherein the light enters! Israel failed, but will be restored - when? Jesus told us, “… till ye shall say, Blessed is he who cometh in the name of the Lord.”

As with David, we ought to pray that God keep us as the apple of His eye! It is individual and dependent on whose we really are. The apple of God’s eye is, of course, His Son. Spiritual Jews who believe and accept His son along with spiritual believers from Gentile nations, grafted into the Israelitish olive tree, are also the apple of God’s eye IF they continue in His goodness: otherwise, they shall be “cut off,” too (Rom 11:11-22; cf. Num 15:30,31).  Note also Lev 20 and unless we repent, we, too, shall be “cut off” and join the fate of Israel after the flesh (1Cor 10:18-22).

Zechariah’s prophecy concerning the nations is: “And many nations shall be joined to Yahweh in that day, and shall be my people: and I will dwell in the midst of thee, and thou shalt know that Yahweh of hosts hath sent me unto thee. And Yahweh shall inherit Judah his portion is the holy land, and shall choose Jerusalem again” (Zech 2:11,12).  Note future tenses.

Zech 2 is a prophecy concerning the redemption of the daughters of Zion in Zion. It is not a prophecy of present-day national Israel and the Jewish people. Zechariah prophesied of a time when God would restore them and live in the midst of Zion (Zech 2:10). This will happen “in that day,” when, the remnant of Israel will look on him whom they pierced and mourn for him (Zech 12:10-13; cf. John 19:37; cf. Matt 23:38,39).

The apple of God’s eye does not consist of one ethnic group, nor will it be a single nation, and certainly the present-day majority of the Israelis have not repented, are crooked and perverse, being God and His Son’s own description of them, yet we are to believe they are the apple of God’s eye!?  

Our God is a moral God. Therefore, the interpretation of Zech 2:8 has huge moral implications - the very essence of who God is! It is a dangerous practice to pull out a verse out of its context and give an interpretation based on a false premise. To teach that Zech 2:8 refers only to the present-day fleshly Israelites living in ancient Israel regardless of their rejection of Christ, is to demonstrate total disrespect to who God is, to who His son, Yahoshua Messiah, is and what the Word actually teaches! Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father (1John 2:23; note vv. 2:24-26). How then are they the apple of His eye?

Cf. https://www.jewishawareness.org/israel-the-apple-of-gods-eye/

v.12 - We are constantly reminded of the possibility of corruption from within. It seems that all of the early churches had this problem, so there is no reason to assume that we have not. Let us always be watchful of ourselves, lest we find that we are teaching contrary to the commandments of the Lord.

Notice the use of Old Testament examples
1:5 The deliverance from Egypt
1:6 The uprising of Korah Dathan and Abiram
1:7 Sodom and Gomorra
1:9 The adversaries opposing Joshua at the time of the return from Babylon
1:11 Cain
1:11 Balaam
1:11 Corah [again]

So we see that New Testament writers, under the guidance of the spirit, see that Old Testament examples are relevant to ecclesial life today.

:21-23 Dealing with those in error can be very difficult. The easy option is to ignore them. Jude's counsel is that some of them are to be helped. They are to be pulled 'from the fire' but care has to be exercised lest we be burnt with the same fire.

1:18 Jude quotes Peter (2Pet 3:3) showing both that Peter wrote his letter before Jude and that it was known to the recipients of his letter. 'mockers' <1703> is only found here and as 'scoffers' in 2Pet 3:3.

V.25 The more we contemplate the vision which these words produce in our minds, the closer we are drawn to our Heavenly Father, and to His Son, who has made such a destiny possible for each one of us. May we include this among those true and lovely things  upon which Paul advises us to concentrate our thoughts.

V.19 Jude characterises the heretics as persons who created divisions in the ecclesia. In a few words Jude has put the godless men in their place. They follow the natural ways of man and there is no place in the ecclesia for them.

Jude's exhortation was intended to guard the brethren from the Gnostics who had infiltrated the ecclesia. Gnostics believed that material things were evil while spiritual things were good. Therefore, they rationalised that if they pursued spiritual goals, then the flesh was free to do anything it liked.

There are connections to Jude with our readings in Zechariah. Take v.9 for example which is not a supernatural tussle between an angel and the devil of popular belief. It is referring to the situation after the Jews returned from Babylon (see my note on Jude for June 20; and my note of Ezra 5,6 for Nov 10). Could it also be referring to Christ? Compare v.9 with that of Zech 3:1,2. Joshua represents Jesus (see my note above on Zech. 3). Michael, which means one who is like God, is also a synonym for Jesus. Here He is arguing with the devil, the instrument of His temptation in the wilderness (Matt 4:1). The dispute over the body of Moses is referring to the Law, but more particularly to the authority of the High Priest. The Lord answers every temptation by quoting Deuteronomy, which would constitute a rebuke from Yahweh (via His Word).

V.14 quotes Enoch. This quote is not found in the Old Testament, but it is found in the apocryphal Book of Enoch. The Apocrypha is not recognized as scripture as it was written in the period of spiritual darkness between the Old and New Testaments (Amos 5:18-20) (Christ broke that spiritual darkness after a gap of some 400 years (Isa 9:2; Matt 4:16)). It has to be assumed then that Enoch's statement was made but not recorded in the Old Testament, but, nevertheless, confirmed in Jude.

V.3-5 - In v.3, contending for the faith doesn't mean we have to be contentious. We must earnestly strive to keep a high standard. In v.4 we read of people taking advantage of God's grace and turning it into a license to sin. We don't want to get caught in the trap of saying to ourselves, "I'm great at sinning and God is great at forgiving and thus perhaps we have a nice fit." Rom 6:15; Heb 10:26

1:6         In speaking of those who ‘kept not their first estate’ Jude is speaking of Korah and company  - Num 16 – being unhappy with their position they sought to usurp Moses’  position.

4 Solutions to Ecclesial Problems

1. "building up yourselves (v.20)

2. "praying" (v.20)

3. "Keep yourselves in the love of God" (v.21)

4. "looking for the mercy" (v.21)

1:8-9  The example of the opposition of the gentiles to the rebuilding work described in Ezra, forming the basis for this comment here, serves to show that those brethren who oppose the gospel are no better than people like those who opposed the restoration work of those returning from Babylon under Ezra.

As we read the final two verses of this short letter, we wonder if it is possible for any one of us (yes, you and me) to understand the full meaning of being "presented faultless"; yet the more we think on these thoughts, we believe draws us closer to Christ and our Heavenly Father 

1:10       In saying that they ‘speak evil of those things they know not’  Jude is, using the example of Korah and company, highlighting the dangers of forming judgements without having all the fact to hand or when some of the facts are ignored in order to elevate oneself.

When joining other churches seems so appealing

The letter of Jude is all about those who "left their own abode" or "did not keep their proper domain" (v6). This seems like an insignificant issue, until we look at the examples Jude gives in the chapter:

Sodom and Gomorrah who wanted more than the "natural use of the woman" which God had provided (Rom 1:27).

Balaam who greedily wanted more than the words God gave him to say, and to be paid for it.

Cain, who could not bear to simply offer what God asked him to offer.

Korah and his friends could not be content with their leading role in the service of God, and decided to challenge Moses' leadership.

Israel who, having been saved from the land of Egypt, were not content to be "a kingdom of priests, a holy nation" (Exo 19:6) but wanted to create their own god who allowed them to do whatever they wanted (Rom 1:22-25).

If ever we find ourselves contemplating attending other churches, we should read this chapter and ask ourselves: Who decided to serve God in a different way than He specified originally, like Cain? Who is condoning gay marriage, like Sodom? Who has ministers who want to be paid for their words, like Balaam? Who has replaced Jesus as their only vicar, as Korah tried to displace Moses? Who wants to create a God who will allow them to sing and dance in euphoria, and do whatever they want in His worship, as Israel did? It should then be abundantly clear to us who Jude is talking about. May we keep our own abode, however humble.

1:2 Mercy, peace and love are also to be found in John’s greeting – 2John 1:3

1:11  In speaking about running ‘greedily’ after the error Balaam we see an indication of the problem. It was the love of money. Jude is not the only one to highlight the fact that there were believers who sought for gain in the Church. 1Tim 6:5

1:13      When speaking of those who are in error Jude, by using the word ‘foaming’ likens those he is speaking of to the last king of Israel – Hoshea – of whom Hosea speaks – Hos 10:7

JUDE'S LESSON

Why is it that we almost always lose the whole point of the letter Jude wrote? Each time we read it, the things that most often seem to get discussed are the technical details of who it was that was bound with chains in darkness; why Michael disputed the body of Moses with the devil; and who were the men who were blemishes at the love feasts, and what were they doing? But this is not the point of Jude's letter.

Jude very plainly says what he wants us to get out of his letter. "I felt I had to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints." (Jude 3) Jude wants us to stand strong in our faith.

The point of all the examples we get carried away with, is that these people are examples of those who had opportunities to know God, and do the right thing, but they refused and were caught up in God's judgements on them. We don't want to be like them! Instead, he urges us to "Build yourselves up in your most holy faith and pray in the Holy Spirit. Keep yourselves in God's love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you eternal life." (v.20-21)

So let us take note of the lesson Jude is trying to get through to us. Let us turn to God, avoid the punishment of judgement, build up our faith, pray and keep ourselves in God's love.

1:1    In saying that he is writing to the “called” Jude emphasises the high calling of those to whom he writes. We are amongst his audience. Do we reflect on the privilege of our position if baptised in to Christ?

:4       Peter – 2Pet 2:1-2 – had warned of future problems in the churches. Jude now says that those things Peter had spoken of were already manifest.

:13-14    “wandering” catches Gen 4:16  which describes Cain’s behaviour after murdering his brother Abel. “Nod” means “wandering”

:16     The      murmurers echoes Num 14:29

                     Complainers echoes Num 11:1 and , Num 14:29

The Bible provides numerous examples of how not to behave!

1:14    In calling Enoch ‘the seventh from Adam’ Jude is identifying which of the Enoch’s in Genesis. His is speaking of the Enoch of Gen 5:22, not the Enoch of Gen 4:17

:11   Those of whom Jude is speaking copied Biblical examples. Doubtless they never considered that they were living out the behaviour of a Godless man – Balaam. This should serve as a warning to us. We can so easily behave in Godless ways without even considering what we are doing. We must always review our behaviour against the backcloth of Biblical characters that the Father has put on record for our learning.

:11      Those of whom Jude is speaking copied Biblical examples. Doubtless they never considered that they were living out the behaviour of a Godless man – Balaam. This should serve as a warning to us. We can so easily behave in Godless ways without even considering what we are doing. We must always review our behaviour against the backcloth of Biblical characters that the Father has put on record for our learning.

Further to Bro. Peter's comment above on verse 11: Num 31:8 records that Balaam perished with the Midianites. It strongly appears from the record of Balaam in Numbers chs. 22-31, that his love of wealth and all the trappings that come with it had proven too strong for Balaam to resist and had ultimately brought about his untimely end by the sword of Israel's armies.

To bring the lesson of Balaam home to us today, the 21st century attitude to wealth accumulation among the affluent  nations highlights the spiritual dangers of wealth accumulation to us; in that the more wealth one has, the more one feels "legitimately entitled" to accumulate even more. Or to remove the worldly veneer of respectability from that: "grab all you can to the disadvantage of others".

The Bible on the other hand, teaches us in such passages as Prov 23:4 not not make wealth our aim in life. James 5:1 clearly highlights the spiritual dangers to us that wealth can bring, but 1Tim 6:10 states very clearly that it's not money, but the love of money that is the root of all evil.

And one does not necessarily have to be wealthy in order to love money!

:5      In verse 1 we saw that those to whom Jude wrote were sanctified, preserved and called. They are not called “saved”. This is important because despite the high calling salvation is not guaranteed. It is contingent upon faithfulness to the end of the journey.

Jude 1:3

“… and exhort that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.”

This and the following verses reveal that there was a danger of losing the Truth. We read throughout the New Testament about great faith (Matt 8:10) and weak faith (Rom 14:1), etc., but more frequently, faith expresses a doctrine (Acts 6:7; Gal 1:23; 1Tim 4:1), and it is this latter sense that Jude uses “the faith.” Faith is in the singular; there is only one faith (Eph 4:5), not many faiths that prevail in the denominational world. This one faith was “once for all” delivered to the saints - God's true children. The Truth was fully and finally given and there was no need adding or taking away from it.

Contending for the faith is not about being contentious, or legalistic - placing burdens upon others with bludgeoning techniques (cf. Matt 23:4). Contending for the faith is not about backstabbing those who disagree with us (cf. Gal 2:11); it is not characterized by favouritism (1Tim 5:21), which we so often witness increasingly with vehement insults!

Preaching the Faith has never been easy. Dr. John Thomas wrote in 1867, “The truth has had great difficulties to contend with there [in Britain], as well as in other parts of the Fourth Beast Habitable, for the past 1260 years. The enemy without, and the worse enemy within, have inflicted upon it a downtreading which had almost trampled it out of existence among the sons of men. The ‘wise and ‘prudent’ of the outer darkness, and the hypocrites and traitors within the pale, have been almost too much for ‘the blessed who fear Jehovah, and walk in His ways.’” (Emphasis added)

We face assaults on many fronts and that with increasing hostility. Despite it all, we must continue just as the apostle Paul told Timothy, who in the midst of persecutions faced many challenges, himself, to continue “in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of…” from the “holy scriptures” (2Tim 3:14,15 cf. 2Tim 2:14)! 2Tim was Paul’s last epistle before being executed by the cruel Emperor Nero. Paul was clear and to the point, speaking forcefully and practically about the challenges they faced within and without.

Paul warned of continuing godlessness in the last days (2Tim 3:1-4), in which we are called and expected to fight the good fight of the faith (1Tim 6:12). Paul’s last message applies as much to us in the 21^st Century, as it did in the 1^st. This message also entrusted to us is absolutely vital to obey (cf. 2Tim 4:1,2,5)! Jude makes this very point - that is, every genuine believer’s duty is to preserve the purity of the Truth.

1:1      We reads through the greetings to the sanctified, preserved and called so quickly. However a moment’s thought on each of these words will help us to understand the highly exalted status of those to whom Jude was inspired to write. The descriptions, and benefits, can be applied to any faithful believer in the risen Jesus. From this we should take great comfort and read the words carefully. 

1:17 Whilst Genesis focusses on Sodom and Gomorrah it is clear that there were other cities in the same area which had the same problems – and were destroyed also. It would appear that there was interaction between all of those cities. The lesson is clear. The company that one keeps affects one’s behaviour – 1Cor 15:33

1:4 in saying that certain were “crept in” indicates that they were not really disciples in the first place. Rather, it seems, they were individuals who wanted to subvert the Christians. Maybe Ananias and Sapphira were in that category also. – Acts 5:2-9

1:4       ThosActs 5:1-10 who had “crept in” are rather like Ananias ad Sapphira – Acts 5:1-10 – and those spoken of in Gal 2:4

:23 When trying to restore one who has strayed it is the actions and beliefs that we hate, not the person. The actions are spoken of here as “the garments spotted by the flesh”

Okay, so a couple of things need to be said about the Enoch content in Jude, and particularly verse 14. 

FIRST - GREEK DATIVE, "TO THEM" not "CONCERNING THEM"

The first is that the Greek text clearly says in all manuscripts "prophesied TO them" (AUTOIS dative), and not prophesied ABOUT them (which would be PERI AUTWN). Since there is no manuscript variation here in any manuscript a copying error can be ruled out, and in any case it is a basic rule of textual criticism that perceived and real errors are corrected by copyists either inadvertently or deliberately. To compensate for this some grammars of New Testament Greek have listed Jude 1:14 as an exceptional use of the dative "to" to mean "concerning", with the obvious problem that there is no evidence for any such use in other Greek texts of the period, nor of previous or following periods. Against this a few commentators have considered the dative as it stands and mentioned the possibility that Jude is saying that Enoch metaphorically prophesied TO the false teachers of Jude's day. Which is rather difficult to justify if one reads that "Enoch" here is a man, the pre-flood Enoch, and then explain how the pre-flood Enoch could in any sense prophesy to false teachers thousands of years later in Jude's day.

There is a simpler explanation for the "unique" use of the dative "prophesied TO THEM" that does not require any explanation, and takes the Greek as the author wrote it.

Simply, this "Enoch" is not a man but a book. Or more exactly, a 200-100BCE reinvention of the historic pre-flood Enoch as a character in a fiction known to, and probably used as a holy book by, those same false teachers to whom, Jude says, the Book of Enoch, or the Enoch in the Book of Enoch, prophesies. Grammatical problem solved.


SECOND - THE WORDS OF MOSES, NOT THE REAL ENOCH

Secondly it is a hard fact that the quote from 1 Enoch 1:9 in Jude 1:14 is not by any Enoch, but is a midrash of the words of Moses in Deuteronomy 33:2. There is 100% certainty of this fact since much of the whole chapter of 1 Enoch 1 is a midrash based on Deuternomy 33. The section of 1 Enoch 1:9 cited by Jude as prophesying TO, not ABOUT, his opponents, is an integral part of an extended midrash, with other content based on Moses' words in Deuteronomy 33 found in 1 Enoch 1 on either side of the words excerpted by our Lord's half-brother in his epistle. This second fact about the Deuteronomy 33 origin of 1 Enoch chapter 1 is as well known and well documented in scholarly commentaries on 1 Enoch as the grammatical problem of our first point mentioned above is documented in textual commentaries on Jude. However, although the Deuteronomy 33 origin of the so-called Enoch's words was already commented on earlier by German scholars, it only became widely known to English-speaking readers when the formidable Irish Anglican scholar, and later Archdeacon of Westminster, R.H. Charles published his first edition translation of 1 Enoch in 1912.


DID JUDE KNOW THAT WHAT HE WAS QUOTING WAS FROM MOSES NOT ENOCH?

The work of R.H. Charles is the foundation on much of the subsequent scholarship on 1 Enoch rests, and his conclusions were confirmed by the discovery of Aramaic versions of 1 Enoch among the Dead Sea Scrolls.  Disappointingly however, what is taken as obvious by most scholars of Pseudepigrapha - that the quote in Jude 1:14 is originally from Moses, and not from the real Enoch, is not credited as being obvious to the author Jude. Almost all scholars assume that Jude couldn't spot it, and that Jude was hoodwinked by the Jewish myth into believing that Enoch not Moses was the source. 

Against this, Jude's use of "prophesied TO THEM", rather than "prophesied ABOUT the false teachers", suggests that the author of Jude knew Deuteronomy as well as R.H. Charles. And the author of Jude probably also expected his readers to be able to recognise the words of Moses - even in the somewhat stretched and distorted midrash form preserved in the Book of Enoch. One reason why it would be reasonable to assume such intelligence on the part of Jude and his intended original readers is that the letter claims to be - by quoting 2 Peter in the past tense - a continuation of 2 Peter's message against the same false teachers who "slandered celestial beings" (2 Peter 2:10-11). Which is exactly what 1 Enoch does. So effectively Jude presents itself as 3 Peter. The past tense may also imply that Peter was already dead. This is important. If Jude was hoodwinked by 1 Enoch, that would mean that Peter was also hoodwinked. But 2 Peter 2 is evidently negative in its comment on the angels that sinned myths as slander. Which means that if Jude follows Peter, Jude was also aware that the myth is slander.  Which again the first grammatical point - that the book prophecies TO the false teachers, not to Jude's followers, supports.

The only objection to reading Jude as having the same insight as R.H. Charles on the Deuteronomy 33 origin of the 1 Enoch 1 text would be Jude's qualification "Enoch, the Seventh from Adam". However this phrase is not from Genesis, and not from Moses either, but is a section from 1 Enoch 60:8. Although doubts about the composite history of 1 Enoch, mean that it is possible that chapter 60 might post-date Jude, the "Seventh from Adam" is still from Enochic myth not the Bible. And whatever the date of 1 Enoch 60:8, 1 Enoch 1:9 is found in Qumran in scrolls competently dated at least a hundred years before Jude was born.

This is a short comment. A longer version of this appeared in a series of articles on 'Not Giving Heed to Jewish Myth' parts 4 and 5 in the Christadelphian Tidings magazine October 2000, and in condensed form in a booklet 'The Angels that Sinned - Slandering Celestial Beings' Printland, Hyderabad, 2000.  

There are also related answers on the angels that sinned, and also on the unrelated and complex origin of the Michael opposing Satan material in Jude, on the BibleQ website - to be found using the search funtion.



  






 

:2 Jude is going to warn his audience that they had not taken heed to the warnings that Peter particular in his second letter had given about departure from the faith. However he was inspired to speak of the desire that they would, by implication, grow in grace.

How often, when dealing with a fellow believer who has strayed, do we speak of a desire for them to grow in in grace? How often are we at pains to show them that they are wrong before speaking of our desire for their spiritual health?

CALLED IN LOVE

If God had a nick-name for you, what do you think it might be? Couples often have pet names for each other: Darling, Dear, Love, Babe, Honey-Bun, Sugar... and I'm sure you could add a few more. The thing is, we don't know what name God wants to call us. Later on, all will be revealed when Jesus gives his overcomers "a white stone, with a new name written on the stone that no one knows except the one who receives it." (Rev 2:17). In the meantime, despite not having (or knowing) our new name, we can be sure that we are loved by God.

Jude wrote to believers just like you and me. There is no address or date on his letter, so it could well have been written personally to us. This is how he addresses us: "To those who are called, beloved in God the Father and kept for Jesus Christ." (Jude v.1). We are beloved to God. We are kept in him because he loves us. We are called by him because he sees potential in us.  The new name, showing the really close relationship between us and God, is coming. 

In the meantime, we know that we are loved, called and kept. If we can go through life knowing this with all our heart, we will live holy and beautiful lives for him.

1:4 We should be careful not to assume that those who were “ordained” to condemnation were created by God solely for the purpose of destroying them. The ordination spoken of is the consequences of their actions are certain.

There is always room for repentance and forgiveness. Those spoken of here are those whose lives are set on doing evil.