¹⁴ Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about them: “See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones ¹⁵ to judge everyone, and to convict all of them of all the ungodly acts they have committed in their ungodliness, and of all the defiant words ungodly sinners have spoken against him.” ¹⁶ These people are grumblers and faultfinders; they follow their own evil desires; they boast about themselves and flatter others for their own advantage.
(Jude vv. 14-16 NIV)

In our last time together, Jude used three more Old Testament examples and six comparisons to call out the dire consequences of disobedience to the Lord.

In today’s text, Jude reminds the saints in the church about the coming judgment of these false teachers.  This is not a new thought, but rather, a continuation of his previous thoughts from verses 11 – 13.

Jude begins by quoting the extrabiblical writings of Enoch.  Jude was referring to Enoch, the seventh in line counting from Adam (Genesis 5:1-18 – Adam, Seth, Enosh, Cainan, Mahalalel, Jared, Enoch), not to be confused with Enoch, Cain’s son (Genesis 4:17-18).

The number seven is often used to denote completeness.  In this case, Enoch was the seventh generation of humans on the earth as we noted above.  We know that Enoch walked with God – he was faithful and pleasing to the Lord (see Genesis 5:24 and Hebrews 11:5).  Enoch (the seventh generation from Adam through Seth) was a shining example of a life lived for the Lord, while Lamech (the seventh generation from Adam through Cain) was the opposite – a life of lawlessness and ungodliness (Genesis 4:18-24).

Jude was not putting Enoch’s ancient writings on the same level as God’s Word – he was simply saying that even before the flood, godly men like Enoch had prophesied that evil men like Lamech and the false teachers of Jude’s day were already judged and sentenced for their blatant sins.

And what were those sins that brought God’s judgment?  Their ungodly acts (their sexual sins that Jude referred to earlier in his letter) as well as their defiant, harsh words toward God Himself and God’s people.

Jude goes on to say that these people are:

• grumblers
  they are discontented, unhappy souls, angry about every aspect of their life; no willingness to be part of the solution, only complain about the problem.
• faultfinders
  everything that happens to them or someone else is blamed on something or someone else; no personal responsibility or desire to help others.
• following their own evil desires
  no sense of the greater good of their family, community, or world, only looking out for themselves and what might satisfy them or make them happy, primarily in a sexual or sensual way.
• boasting about themselves
  their sense of self and pride and ego is overwhelming, to the point of being arrogant and obnoxious; a narcissist.
• flattering others for their own advantage
  they offer insincere words of praise and honor to others in order to get something for themselves.

May we speak the truth in love (Ephesians 4:15), and humbly ask the Lord for wisdom to discern God’s Word and ways from Satan’s lies and temptations.

In our next few times together, Jude will share the truth of God’s Word with us and show us a better way to live and love and remain centered on the Lord.

Blessings,
~kevin