Jude 1:17

Exhortation to the Faithful

1:17 But you, dear friends – recall the predictions ¹  foretold by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. ² 

Jude 1:19

1:19 These people are divisive, ³  worldly, ⁴  devoid of the Spirit. ⁵ 

Psalms 78:8-10

78:8 Then they will not be like their ancestors,

who were a stubborn and rebellious generation,

a generation that was not committed

and faithful to God. ⁶ 

78:9 The Ephraimites ⁷  were armed with bows, ⁸ 

but they retreated in the day of battle. ⁹ 

78:10 They did not keep their covenant with God, ¹⁰ 

and they refused to obey ¹¹  his law.

Psalms 78:57

78:57 They were unfaithful ¹²  and acted as treacherously as ¹³  their ancestors;

they were as unreliable as a malfunctioning bow. ¹⁴ 

Ezekiel 20:18-21

20:18 “‘But I said to their children ¹⁵  in the wilderness, “Do not follow the practices of your fathers; do not observe their regulations, ¹⁶  nor defile yourselves with their idols. 20:19 I am the Lord your God; follow my statutes, observe my regulations, and carry them out. 20:20 Treat my Sabbaths as holy ¹⁷  and they will be a reminder of our relationship, ¹⁸  and then you will know that I am the Lord your God.” 20:21 “‘But the children ¹⁹  rebelled against me, did not follow my statutes, did not observe my regulations by carrying them out (the one who obeys ²⁰  them will live by them), and desecrated my Sabbaths. I decided to pour out ²¹  my rage on them and fully vent my anger against them in the wilderness.

Zechariah 1:4

1:4 “Do not be like your ancestors, to whom the former prophets called out, saying, ‘The Lord who rules over all says, “Turn now from your evil wickedness,”’ but they would by no means obey me,” says the Lord.

Acts 7:51-52

7:51 “You stubborn ²²  people, with uncircumcised ²³  hearts and ears! ²⁴  You are always resisting the Holy Spirit, like your ancestors ²⁵  did! 7:52 Which of the prophets did your ancestors ²⁶  not persecute? ²⁷  They ²⁸  killed those who foretold long ago the coming of the Righteous One, ²⁹  whose betrayers and murderers you have now become! ³⁰ 

[1:17]  ¹ tn Grk “words.” In conjunction with προεῖπον (proeipon), however, the meaning of the construction is that the apostles uttered prophecies.

[1:17]  ² sn This verse parallels 2 Pet 3:2 both conceptually and in much of the verbiage. There is one important difference, however: In 2 Pet 3:2 the prophets and apostles speak; here, just the apostles speak. This makes good sense if Jude is using 2 Peter as his main source and is urging his readers to go back to the authoritative writings, both OT and now especially NT.

[1:19]  ³ tn Grk “these are the ones who cause divisions.”

[1:19]  ⁴ tn Or “natural,” that is, living on the level of instincts, not on a spiritual level (the same word occurs in 1 Cor 2:14 as a description of nonbelievers).

[1:19]  ⁵ tn Grk “not having [the] Spirit.”

[78:8]  ⁶ tn Heb “a generation that did not make firm its heart and whose spirit was not faithful with God.” The expression “make firm the heart” means “to be committed, devoted” (see 1 Sam 7:3).

[78:9]  ⁷ tn Heb “the sons of Ephraim.” Ephraim probably stands here by synecdoche (part for whole) for the northern kingdom of Israel.

[78:9]  ⁸ tn Heb “ones armed, shooters of bow.” It is possible that the term נוֹשְׁקֵי (noshÿqey, “ones armed [with]”) is an interpretive gloss for the rare רוֹמֵי (romey, “shooters of”; on the latter see BDB 941 s.v. I רָמָה). The phrase נוֹשְׁקֵי קֶשֶׁת (noshÿqey qeshet, “ones armed with a bow”) appears in 1 Chr 12:2; 2 Chr 17:17.

[78:9]  ⁹ sn They retreated. This could refer to the northern tribes’ failure to conquer completely their allotted territory (see Judg 1), or it could refer generally to the typical consequence (military defeat) of their sin (see vv. 10-11).

[78:10]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “the covenant of God.”

[78:10]  ¹¹ tn Heb “walk in.”

[78:57]  ¹² tn Heb “they turned back.”

[78:57]  ¹³ tn Or “acted treacherously like.”

[78:57]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “they turned aside like a deceitful bow.”

[20:18]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “sons,” reflecting the patriarchal idiom of the culture.

[20:18]  ¹⁶ tn Or “standard of justice.” See Ezek 7:27.

[20:20]  ¹⁷ tn Or “set apart my Sabbaths.”

[20:20]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “and they will become a sign between me and you.”

[20:21]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “sons.”

[20:21]  ²⁰ tn Or “carries them out.”

[20:21]  ²¹ tn Heb “and I said/thought to pour out.”

[7:51]  ²² sn Traditionally, “stiff-necked people.” Now the critique begins in earnest.

[7:51]  ²³ tn The term ἀπερίτμητοι (aperitmhtoi, “uncircumcised”) is a NT hapax legomenon (occurs only once). See BDAG 101-2 s.v. ἀπερίτμητος and Isa 52:1.

[7:51]  ²⁴ tn Or “You stubborn and obstinate people!” (The phrase “uncircumcised hearts and ears” is another figure for stubbornness.)

[7:51]  ²⁵ tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”

[7:52]  ²⁶ tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”

[7:52]  ²⁷ sn Which…persecute. The rhetorical question suggests they persecuted them all.

[7:52]  ²⁸ tn Grk “And they.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[7:52]  ²⁹ sn The Righteous One is a reference to Jesus Christ.

[7:52]  ³⁰ sn Whose betrayers and murderers you have now become. The harsh critique has OT precedent (1 Kgs 19:10-14; Neh 9:26; 2 Chr 36:16).