Jude 1:1

Salutation

1:1 From Jude, ¹  a slave ²  of Jesus Christ and brother of James, ³  to those who are called, wrapped in the love of ⁴  God the Father and kept for ⁵  Jesus Christ.

Psalms 37:14-15

37:14 Evil men draw their swords

and prepare their bows,

to bring down ⁶  the oppressed and needy,

and to slaughter those who are godly. ⁷ 

37:15 Their swords will pierce ⁸  their own hearts,

and their bows will be broken.

Psalms 68:23

68:23 so that your feet may stomp ⁹  in their blood,

and your dogs may eat their portion of the enemies’ corpses.” ¹⁰ 

Psalms 92:10-11

92:10 You exalt my horn like that of a wild ox. ¹¹ 

I am covered ¹²  with fresh oil.

92:11 I gloat in triumph over those who tried to ambush me; ¹³ 

I hear the defeated cries of the evil foes who attacked me. ¹⁴ 

Psalms 149:6-9

149:6 May they praise God

while they hold a two-edged sword in their hand, ¹⁵ 

149:7 in order to take ¹⁶  revenge on the nations,

and punish foreigners.

149:8 They bind ¹⁷  their kings in chains,

and their nobles in iron shackles,

149:9 and execute the judgment to which their enemies ¹⁸  have been sentenced. ¹⁹ 

All his loyal followers will be vindicated. ²⁰ 

Praise the Lord!

Luke 18:7

18:7 Won’t ²¹  God give justice to his chosen ones, who cry out ²²  to him day and night? ²³  Will he delay ²⁴  long to help them?

Revelation 6:10

6:10 They ²⁵  cried out with a loud voice, ²⁶  “How long, ²⁷  Sovereign Master, ²⁸  holy and true, before you judge those who live on the earth and avenge our blood?”

[1:1]  ¹ 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]  ² 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]  ³ 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]  ⁴ 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]  ⁵ 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.

[37:14]  ⁶ tn Heb “to cause to fall.”

[37:14]  ⁷ tn Heb “the upright in way,” i.e., those who lead godly lives.

[37:15]  ⁸ tn Heb “enter into.”

[68:23]  ⁹ tc Some (e.g. NRSV) prefer to emend מָחַץ (makhats, “smash; stomp”; see v. 21) to רָחַץ (rakhats, “bathe”; see Ps 58:10).

[68:23]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “[and] the tongue of your dogs from [the] enemies [may eat] its portion.”

[92:10]  ¹¹ sn The horn of the wild ox is frequently a metaphor for military strength; the idiom “to exalt/lift up the horn” signifies military victory (see 1 Sam 2:10; Pss 75:10; 89:24; Lam 2:17).

[92:10]  ¹² tn The Hebrew verb בָּלַל (balal) usually has the nuance “to mix.” Here it seems to mean “to smear” or “to anoint.” Some emend the form to בַּלֹּתַנִי (ballotaniy; a second person form of the verb with a first person suffix) and read, “you anoint me.”

[92:11]  ¹³ tn Heb “my eye gazes upon those who watch me [with evil intent].” See also Pss 5:8; 27:11; 56:2. The form שׁוּרָי (shuray) should be emended to שׁוֹרְרָי (shorÿray).

[92:11]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “those who rise up against me, evil [foes], my ears hear.”

[149:6]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “[May] praises of God [be] in their throat, and a two-edged sword in their hand.”

[149:7]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “to do.”

[149:8]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “to bind.”

[149:9]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “they”; the referent (the enemies of the people of God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[149:9]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “to do against them judgment [that] is written.”

[149:9]  ²⁰ tn Heb “it is honor for all his godly ones.” The judgment of the oppressive kings will bring vindication and honor to God’s people (see vv. 4-5).

[18:7]  ²¹ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[18:7]  ²² sn The prayers have to do with the righteous who cry out to him to receive justice. The context assumes the righteous are persecuted.

[18:7]  ²³ tn The emphatic particles in this sentence indicate that God will indeed give justice to the righteous.

[18:7]  ²⁴ sn The issue of delay has produced a whole host of views for this verse. (1) Does this assume provision to endure in the meantime? Or (2) does it mean God restricts the level of persecution until he comes? Either view is possible.

[6:10]  ²⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[6:10]  ²⁶ tn Grk “voice, saying”; the participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated here.

[6:10]  ²⁷ tn The expression ἕως πότε (ews pote) was translated “how long.” Cf. BDAG 423 s.v. ἕως 1.b.γ.

[6:10]  ²⁸ tn The Greek term here is δεσπότης (despoths; see L&N 37.63).