2 Chronicles 25:16-20

25:16 While he was speaking, Amaziah ¹  said to him, “Did we appoint you to be a royal counselor? Stop prophesying or else you will be killed!” ²  So the prophet stopped, but added, “I know that the Lord has decided ³  to destroy you, because you have done this thing and refused to listen to my advice.”

25:17 After King Amaziah of Judah consulted with his advisers, ⁴  he sent this message to the king of Israel, Joash son of Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, “Come, face me on the battlefield.” ⁵  25:18 King Joash of Israel sent this message back to King Amaziah of Judah, “A thorn bush in Lebanon sent this message to a cedar in Lebanon, ‘Give your daughter to my son as a wife.’ Then a wild animal of Lebanon came by and trampled down the thorn bush. ⁶  25:19 You defeated Edom ⁷  and it has gone to your head. ⁸  Gloat over your success, ⁹  but stay in your palace. Why bring calamity on yourself? Why bring down yourself and Judah along with you?” ¹⁰ 

25:20 But Amaziah did not heed the warning, ¹¹  for God wanted to hand them over to Joash because they followed the gods of Edom. ¹² 

Deuteronomy 2:30

2:30 But King Sihon of Heshbon was unwilling to allow us to pass near him because the Lord our ¹³  God had made him obstinate ¹⁴  and stubborn ¹⁵  so that he might deliver him over to you ¹⁶  this very day.

Jude 1:4

1:4 For certain men ¹⁷  have secretly slipped in among you ¹⁸  – men who long ago ¹⁹  were marked out ²⁰  for the condemnation I am about to describe ²¹  – ungodly men who have turned the grace of our God into a license for evil ²²  and who deny our only Master ²³  and Lord, ²⁴  Jesus Christ.

Jude 1:1

Salutation

1:1 From Jude, ²⁵  a slave ²⁶  of Jesus Christ and brother of James, ²⁷  to those who are called, wrapped in the love of ²⁸  God the Father and kept for ²⁹  Jesus Christ.

Jude 1:25

1:25 to the only God our Savior through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, power, and authority, before all time, and now, and for all eternity. Amen.

Jude 1:1

Salutation

1:1 From Jude, ³⁰  a slave ³¹  of Jesus Christ and brother of James, ³²  to those who are called, wrapped in the love of ³³  God the Father and kept for ³⁴  Jesus Christ.

Jude 1:15

1:15 to execute judgment on ³⁵  all, and to convict every person ³⁶  of all their thoroughly ungodly deeds ³⁷  that they have committed, ³⁸  and of all the harsh words that ungodly sinners have spoken against him.” ³⁹ 

Jude 1:24

Final Blessing

1:24 Now to the one who is able to keep you from falling, ⁴⁰  and to cause you to stand, rejoicing, ⁴¹  without blemish ⁴²  before his glorious presence, ⁴³ 

Jude 1:20

1:20 But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith, by praying in the Holy Spirit, ⁴⁴ 

Isaiah 19:14

19:14 The Lord has made them undiscerning; ⁴⁵ 

they lead Egypt astray in all she does,

so that she is like a drunk sliding around in his own vomit. ⁴⁶ 

Acts 2:23

2:23 this man, who was handed over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you executed ⁴⁷  by nailing him to a cross at the hands of Gentiles. ⁴⁸ 

Acts 4:28

4:28 to do as much as your power ⁴⁹  and your plan ⁵⁰  had decided beforehand ⁵¹  would happen.

[25:16]  ¹ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Amaziah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[25:16]  ² tn Heb “Stop yourself! Why should they strike you down?”

[25:16]  ³ tn The verb יָעַץ (ya’ats, “has decided”) is from the same root as יוֹעֵץ (yo’ets, “counselor”) in v. 16 and עֵצָה (’etsah, “advice”) later in v. 16. The wordplay highlights the appropriate nature of the divine punishment. Amaziah rejected the counsel of God’s prophet; now he would be the victim of God’s “counsel.”

[25:17]  ⁴ tn The words “with his advisers” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[25:17]  ⁵ tn Heb “let us look at each other [in the] face.” The expression refers here not to a visit but to meeting in battle. See v. 21.

[25:18]  ⁶ sn The thorn bush in the allegory is Judah. Amaziah’s success had deceived him into thinking he was on the same level as the major powers in the area (symbolized by the cedar). In reality he was not capable of withstanding an attack by a real military power such as Israel (symbolized by the wild animal).

[25:19]  ⁷ tn Heb “you say [to yourself], ‘look, you have defeated Edom.’”

[25:19]  ⁸ tn Heb “and your heart is lifted up.”

[25:19]  ⁹ tn Heb “to glorify.”

[25:19]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “Why get involved in calamity and fall, you and Judah with you?”

[25:20]  ¹¹ tn Heb “did not listen.”

[25:20]  ¹² tn Heb “because it was from God in order to give them into the hand because they sought the gods of Edom.”

[2:30]  ¹³ tc The translation follows the LXX in reading the first person pronoun. The MT, followed by many English versions, has a second person masculine singular pronoun, “your.”

[2:30]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “hardened his spirit” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV); NIV “made his spirit stubborn.”

[2:30]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “made his heart obstinate” (so KJV, NASB); NRSV “made his heart defiant.”

[2:30]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “into your hand.”

[1:4]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “people.” However, if Jude is indeed arguing that Peter’s prophecy about false teachers has come true, these are most likely men in the original historical and cultural setting. See discussion of this point in the note on the phrase “these men” in 2 Pet 2:12.

[1:4]  ¹⁸ tn “Among you” is not in the Greek text, but is obviously implied.

[1:4]  ¹⁹ tn Or “in the past.” The adverb πάλαι (palai) can refer to either, though the meaning “long ago” is more common.

[1:4]  ²⁰ tn Grk “written about.”

[1:4]  ²¹ tn Grk “for this condemnation.” τοῦτο (touto) is almost surely a kataphoric demonstrative pronoun, pointing to what follows in vv. 5-18. Otherwise, the condemnation is only implied (in v. 3b) or is merely a statement of their sinfulness (“ungodly” in v. 4b), not a judgment of it.

[1:4]  ²² tn Grk “debauchery.” This is the same word Peter uses to predict what the false teachers will be like (2 Pet 2:2, 7, 18).

[1:4]  ²³ tc Most later witnesses (P Ψ Ï sy) have θεόν (qeon, “God”) after δεσπότην (despothn, “master”), which appears to be a motivated reading in that it explicitly links “Master” to “God” in keeping with the normal NT pattern (see Luke 2:29; Acts 4:24; 2 Tim 2:21; Rev 6:10). In patristic Greek, δεσπότης (despoth") was used especially of God (cf. BDAG 220 s.v. 1.b.). The earlier and better witnesses (Ì^72,78 א A B C 0251 33 81 323 1241 1739 al co) lack θεόν; the shorter reading is thus preferred on both internal and external grounds.

[1:4]  ²⁴ tn The terms “Master and Lord” both refer to the same person. The construction in Greek is known as the Granville Sharp rule, named after the English philanthropist-linguist who first clearly articulated the rule in 1798. Sharp pointed out that in the construction article-noun-καί-noun (where καί [kai] = “and”), when two nouns are singular, personal, and common (i.e., not proper names), they always had the same referent. Illustrations such as “the friend and brother,” “the God and Father,” etc. abound in the NT to prove Sharp’s point. For more discussion see ExSyn 270-78. See also Titus 2:13 and 2 Pet 1:1

[1:1]  ²⁵ tn Grk “Judas,” traditionally “Jude” in English versions to distinguish him from the one who betrayed Jesus. The word “From” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to indicate the sender of the letter.

[1:1]  ²⁶ tn Though δοῦλος (doulos) is normally translated “servant,” the word does not bear the connotation of a free individual serving another. BDAG notes that “‘servant’ for ‘slave’ is largely confined to Biblical transl. and early American times…in normal usage at the present time the two words are carefully distinguished” (BDAG 260 s.v.). At the same time, perhaps “servant” is apt in that the δοῦλος of Jesus Christ took on that role voluntarily, unlike a slave. The most accurate translation is “bondservant” (sometimes found in the ASV for δοῦλος), in that it often indicates one who sells himself into slavery to another. But as this is archaic, few today understand its force.

[1:1]  ²⁷ sn Although Jude was half-brother of Jesus, he humbly associates himself with James, his full brother. By first calling himself a slave of Jesus Christ, it is evident that he wants no one to place stock in his physical connections. At the same time, he must identify himself further: Since Jude was a common name in the 1st century (two of Jesus’ disciples were so named, including his betrayer), more information was needed, that is to say, brother of James.

[1:1]  ²⁸ tn Grk “loved in.” The perfect passive participle suggests that the audience’s relationship to God is not recent; the preposition ἐν (en) before πατρί (patri) could be taken as sphere or instrument (agency is unlikely, however). Another possible translation would be “dear to God.”

[1:1]  ²⁹ tn Or “by.” Datives of agency are quite rare in the NT (and other ancient Greek), almost always found with a perfect verb. Although this text qualifies, in light of the well-worn idiom of τηρέω (threw) in eschatological contexts, in which God or Christ keeps the believer safe until the parousia (cf. 1 Thess 5:23; 1 Pet 1:4; Rev 3:10; other terms meaning “to guard,” “to keep” are also found in similar eschatological contexts [cf. 2 Thess 3:3; 2 Tim 1:12; 1 Pet 1:5; Jude 24]), it is probably better to understand this verse as having such an eschatological tinge. It is at the same time possible that Jude’s language was intentionally ambiguous, implying both ideas (“kept by Jesus Christ [so that they might be] kept for Jesus Christ”). Elsewhere he displays a certain fondness for wordplays; this may be a hint of things to come.

[1:1]  ³⁰ tn Grk “Judas,” traditionally “Jude” in English versions to distinguish him from the one who betrayed Jesus. The word “From” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to indicate the sender of the letter.

[1:1]  ³¹ tn Though δοῦλος (doulos) is normally translated “servant,” the word does not bear the connotation of a free individual serving another. BDAG notes that “‘servant’ for ‘slave’ is largely confined to Biblical transl. and early American times…in normal usage at the present time the two words are carefully distinguished” (BDAG 260 s.v.). At the same time, perhaps “servant” is apt in that the δοῦλος of Jesus Christ took on that role voluntarily, unlike a slave. The most accurate translation is “bondservant” (sometimes found in the ASV for δοῦλος), in that it often indicates one who sells himself into slavery to another. But as this is archaic, few today understand its force.

[1:1]  ³² sn Although Jude was half-brother of Jesus, he humbly associates himself with James, his full brother. By first calling himself a slave of Jesus Christ, it is evident that he wants no one to place stock in his physical connections. At the same time, he must identify himself further: Since Jude was a common name in the 1st century (two of Jesus’ disciples were so named, including his betrayer), more information was needed, that is to say, brother of James.

[1:1]  ³³ tn Grk “loved in.” The perfect passive participle suggests that the audience’s relationship to God is not recent; the preposition ἐν (en) before πατρί (patri) could be taken as sphere or instrument (agency is unlikely, however). Another possible translation would be “dear to God.”

[1:1]  ³⁴ tn Or “by.” Datives of agency are quite rare in the NT (and other ancient Greek), almost always found with a perfect verb. Although this text qualifies, in light of the well-worn idiom of τηρέω (threw) in eschatological contexts, in which God or Christ keeps the believer safe until the parousia (cf. 1 Thess 5:23; 1 Pet 1:4; Rev 3:10; other terms meaning “to guard,” “to keep” are also found in similar eschatological contexts [cf. 2 Thess 3:3; 2 Tim 1:12; 1 Pet 1:5; Jude 24]), it is probably better to understand this verse as having such an eschatological tinge. It is at the same time possible that Jude’s language was intentionally ambiguous, implying both ideas (“kept by Jesus Christ [so that they might be] kept for Jesus Christ”). Elsewhere he displays a certain fondness for wordplays; this may be a hint of things to come.

[1:15]  ³⁵ tn Grk “against” (κατά [kata] + genitive). English usage is satisfied with “on” at this point, but the parallel is lost in the translation to some degree, for the end of v. 15 says that this judgment is meted out on these sinners because they spoke against him (κατά + genitive).

[1:15]  ³⁶ tn Or “soul.”

[1:15]  ³⁷ tn Grk “of all their works of ungodliness.” The adverb “thoroughly” is part of the following verb “have committed.” See note on verb “committed” later in this verse.

[1:15]  ³⁸ tn The verb in Greek does not simply mean “have committed,” but “have committed in an ungodly way.” The verb ἀσεβέω (asebew) is cognate to the noun ἀσέβεια (asebeia, “ungodliness”). There is no easy way to express this in English, since English does not have a single word that means the same thing. Nevertheless, the tenor of v. 15 is plainly seen, regardless of the translation.

[1:15]  ³⁹ sn An apparent quotation from 1 En. 1:9. There is some doubt as to whether Jude is actually quoting from the text of 1 Enoch; the text here in Jude differs in some respects from the extant text of this pseudepigraphic book. It is sometimes suggested that Jude may instead have been quoting from oral tradition which had roots older than the written text.

[1:24]  ⁴⁰ tn The construction in Greek is a double accusative object-complement. “You” is the object and “free from falling” is the adjectival complement.

[1:24]  ⁴¹ tn Grk “with rejoicing.” The prepositional clause is placed after “his glorious presence” in Greek, but most likely goes with “cause you to stand.”

[1:24]  ⁴² tn The construction in Greek is a double accusative object-complement. “You” is the object and “without blemish” is the adjectival complement.

[1:24]  ⁴³ tn Or “in the presence of his glory,” “before his glory.”

[1:20]  ⁴⁴ tn The participles in v. 20 have been variously interpreted. Some treat them imperativally or as attendant circumstance to the imperative in v. 21 (“maintain”): “build yourselves up…pray.” But they do not follow the normal contours of either the imperatival or attendant circumstance participles, rendering this unlikely. A better option is to treat them as the means by which the readers are to maintain themselves in the love of God. This both makes eminently good sense and fits the structural patterns of instrumental participles elsewhere.

[19:14]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “the Lord has mixed into her midst a spirit of blindness.”

[19:14]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “like the going astray of a drunkard in his vomit.”

[2:23]  ⁴⁷ tn Or “you killed.”

[2:23]  ⁴⁸ tn Grk “at the hands of lawless men.” At this point the term ἄνομος (anomo") refers to non-Jews who live outside the Jewish (Mosaic) law, rather than people who broke any or all laws including secular laws. Specifically it is a reference to the Roman soldiers who carried out Jesus’ crucifixion.

[4:28]  ⁴⁹ tn Grk “hand,” here a metaphor for God’s strength or power or authority.

[4:28]  ⁵⁰ tn Or “purpose,” “will.”

[4:28]  ⁵¹ tn Or “had predestined.” Since the term “predestine” is something of a technical theological term, not in wide usage in contemporary English, the translation “decide beforehand” was used instead (see L&N 30.84). God’s direction remains as the major theme.