Look-ahead:  Along those lines, it’s hard to understand what Enoch (and his great-grandson, Noah) went through. They were surrounded by people who had been utterly, irreversibly corrupted by the enemy.  The point that I’m trying to make is that, if I can remind myself in the middle of a trial with difficult people, that at least they aren’t as bad as the crew in Noah’s day, it helps me put some decent perspective on things.  Knowing that they are still redeemable helps me refocus on the fact that it’s my job to point them to the Redeemer.    דניאל – God will judge.  Ez 24:14

Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about them: “See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones 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.”   These people are grumblers and faultfinders; they follow their own evil desires; they boast about themselves and flatter others for their own advantage.  Jude 1:14-16

Jude continues to reference the difficult people in the Christian community who are one of the intended targets of his epistle.  “The seventh from Adam” is considered to be Enoch, great-grandfather of Noah…who may have prophesied about this type of people around 4000 BC.  It’s even possible that Enoch encountered this brand of ungodly people himself, as the LORD found it necessary to do a total factory default reset with the Flood ~500 years later. 

(Side Note:  Today I was watching a Max Lucado video on Facebook and he was elaborating on the rapture, and the departure of the Holy Spirit and the Christians who have been restraining evil on earth.  The thought occurred to me that the percentage of this brand of ungodly/difficult people in the general populace could radically increase post-rapture.  So it might be pre-flood-depravity all over again.  Lots of fun! 🙂 )

The Jude 1:14 prophecy was perhaps captured in the noncanonical scroll called, The Book of Enoch.  However, the earliest written version of this book dates to the 4^th century A.D., well beyond Jude’s lifetime.  So one theory is that Enoch’s teachings may have been part of the Oral Tradition that was preserved for centuries by word of mouth; this could explain why Jude was familiar with them.  (But this passage of Enoch was also echoed somewhat in Deuteronomy 33:2,3, so it’s definitely Biblical.) 

Enoch’s version additionally appears to include some eschatological references, as, according to his prophecy, there were going to be thousands upon thousands of holy ones.  I’m not sure if this means holy Christians who were going to convict and judge these ungodly/difficult people.  This really wouldn’t compute for me because as Christians, we are told to turn the other cheek, love/pray for our enemies, judge not, and leave vengeance to the LORD; so I don’t think that He would then turn us loose on these difficult people as the agents of their condemnation.  Bible Hub Cambridge Commentary says, “The latter words run in the Greek literally, with His holy myriads, probably with a reference to Deuteronomy 33:2, the ‘saints’ or ‘holy ones’ here being not the disciples of Christ, but the ‘innumerable company of angels’ (Hebrews 12:22; Psalm 68:17).” However, a couple of the Bible Hub commentators did view this as a reference to Jesus’ Second Coming in Revelation 19:14; and Christians, robed in fine white linen, may participate in that event.  Taking that tangent further, there are those who believe that the proscription is actually something supernatural, and not hand-to-hand combat between the saints and the sinners; the destruction happens when Jesus speaks the Word in Revelation 19:21.  Regardless, Jude 1:14 doesn’t say that the LORD and the holy ones are coming to slay the difficult people—He is coming to judge and convict them.  So maybe the Great White Throne Judgment?

My euphemistic portrayal aside, this does not mean that it’s going to be a walk in the park for the sinners.  However, it’s not like He hasn’t given us warning after warning after warning that judgment ultimately will happen.

Getting back on the main trail, Jude continues to describe the characteristics of this type of person who is creating havoc in “Jude’s church.” These people are ungodly sinners who are speaking defiant words so they are creating a toxic environment.  In v. 15, three versions are used—noun, adverb, and verb forms—of the root word, asebéō, meaning to act profanely, to act impiously (ungodly), to boldly defy what God deems sacred.  In actuality, this seemingly liberal use of asebéō quickly summarizes critical components of this type of difficult person:  they are profane in their hearts, in their minds, and in their souls; sounds like unregenerate and unrepentant to me.

Last week’s blog post addresses the fact that this type of difficult person is often in stealth mode; the previous two posts address the fact that this type will frequently say some highly slanderous things.  Basically, they are very rebellious and directly attack authority at every opportunity.  Jude 1:17 additionally introduces two new characteristics—they are grumblers and they are constantly finding fault.

Goggustés – grumbler, murmurer, one who discontentedly complains.

Mempsímoiros – blaming, finding fault, complaining about allotted portion, complaining of one’s lot, complaining of one’s fate, disconnected, querulous. 

These people have a blame culture—and God is at the very top of their list.  They are consummate liars, never taking accountability for the part they themselves play in their “lot in life,” and they are never satisfied.  Their envy, jealousy, and lust drive the slanderously detrimental attacks that they unleash against their victims, as well as the subterranean tactics to cause their competition to crash and burn.  In addition to lying about themselves, they lie to their victims about God and His Saving Grace; and they lure vulnerable believers into their fan club through false flattery.  Jesus summed it up perfectly with a “Woe to you!” Woe to the perps and woe to the poor people who fall victim to their sick, slick sales approach:  You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when you have succeeded, you make them twice as much a child of hell as you are.  Matt 23:15

But their worst characteristic is pride.  They don’t have one ounce of respect for—or fear of—the One Who is the end-game-intended-target of their vitriolic criticism.  Jude zeroes in on the fact that these people aren’t just self-absorbed; they are people who are inherently evil. 

How about a Selah Pause?  I believe that we should take time to re-assess if the difficult people who we are dealing with in our walks of life—and who are giving us the biggest headaches—are inherently evil. I can honestly say that I’ve never directly encountered a person like that firsthand, i.e., someone whom I sincerely thought was beyond redemption.  Nor have I been caught in the evil orbits of monsters like Hitler, Stalin, Pol Pot, and Idi Amin (thank the Dear LORD and I do not take this lightly!).  But an individual does not have to kill 20,000,000 people to give themselves over to the enemy completely.  Also, these people can be found anywhere in our walks of life—on death row (for killing the body)…or sitting in the pew next to us (busily trying to kill the mind and soul). 

(NB:  Our military and criminal justice system professionals have probably often stared evil in the face and witnessed its devastating effects, and they deserve/have my undying gratitude.)

Along those lines, it’s hard to understand what Enoch (and his great-grandson, Noah) went through. They were surrounded by people who had been utterly, irreversibly corrupted by the enemy.  The point that I’m trying to make is that, if I can remind myself in the middle of a trial with difficult people, that at least they aren’t as bad as the crew in Noah’s day, it helps me put some decent perspective on things.  Knowing that they are still redeemable helps me refocus on the fact that it’s my job to point them to the Redeemer.    דניאל – God will judge.  Ez 24:14