Dearly beloved, taking all care to write unto you concerning your common salvation, I was under a necessity to write unto you: to beseech you to contend earnestly for the faith once delivered to the saints.
αγαπητοι πασαν σπουδην ποιουμενος γραφειν υμιν περι της κοινης σωτηριας αναγκην εσχον γραψαι υμιν παρακαλων επαγωνιζεσθαι τη απαξ παραδοθειση τοις αγιοις πιστει
9 Church Fathers comment on this verse
Here the Apostle indicates the reason for writing the Epistle. He writes this present Epistle out of concern for the salvation of believers, lest through simplicity they be carried away by the most vile heretics. He writes so that, by describing the corrupt life of the heretics, he may expose them and make them manifest to those who do not know them.
“Contend.” That is, upon the foundation that Paul laid when he said: “No one can lay another foundation than that which has been laid.”
He calls those who have once received Christ the Savior and believed in Him to contend. That is, they must not settle into slackness, but must strain themselves and apply even greater diligence to this.
All the elect are one community, the salvation of faith and the love of Christ.
“Giving all diligence to write to you concerning your common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you.” From Jude’s words some conclude that he wrote, or promised to write, a special work concerning the common salvation, but that it has not come down to us. Others think that the Apostle was hindered in this intention by the appearance of false teachers, who required immediate rebuke. But the Apostle’s words may be understood more simply. Caring for the common salvation, he made it his duty to write to Christians whenever the need for a written word arose. And now, when false teachers appeared, he considered it necessary to fulfill his intention.
"Beloved": with this loving address the Apostle turns to his readers (cf. 1 Jn 3:21; 1 Jn 4:1 and parallels), so that their heart may be opened to the apostolic word, exhortation, edification, and warning.
"Having all diligence to write... I found it necessary to write." By a special prompting from the Holy Spirit, I had and have zeal not only to proclaim to you orally the Gospel of Christ, as I have proclaimed it, but also to write to you about the common salvation.
Salvation here means the whole work of men's salvation. In a general sense it is the redemption of mankind, the whole fullness of God's counsel concerning the redemption of the world and the salvation of all men. The concept of common salvation embraces the salvation of all people without distinction, Jews and Gentiles alike, if only they turn to faith in Christ and enter His gracious Kingdom, the Church of Christ.
"I found it necessary to write to you": partly by the duty of an Apostle, as a herald of faith in Christ and of apostolic teaching (1 Cor 9:16), and partly in view of the danger threatening Christians from false teachers who had intruded into the Church (Jude 1:4; cf. 2 Tim 2:17).
Since the Apostles, teachers and guides of the whole Christian community, could not always be everywhere, while the Churches planted by them needed instruction, counsel, admonition, and teaching, it was necessary to write to them.
The Apostle's manner of speech is such that he seems first to have intended to set forth in detail the proclamation about Christ and the work of the world's salvation accomplished by Him. The present Epistle seems only a brief outline or note from that more extensive writing.
But perhaps it was not pleasing to the Holy Spirit that such an intention be fulfilled. Likewise, for unknown reasons, the Holy Spirit did not permit Paul and Timothy to preach the Gospel of Christ in Asia and Bithynia (Acts 16:6-7).
"Exhortation": more precisely from the original, as in the Slavonic text, "beseeching, asking, imploring," which is stronger than exhorting.
"To contend for the faith": to act with zeal, diligence, and effort, without weakening, overcoming every obstacle, and enduring struggle, suffering, and every kind of hindrance.
"For the faith": by faith here is meant the whole Gospel teaching, or all Christianity, both in its theoretical and practical aspects (cf. Acts 14:27; 1 Tim 4:1; Gal 1:23).
It was once and for all, without any alteration, delivered as the greatest treasure (1 Cor 11:23; 1 Cor 15:3; 2 Tim 1:12) from the Lord Jesus Christ through His holy Apostles and teachers of the Church to the saints, that is, to believing Christians (Heb 12:14).
"Once": a small word with the greatest significance. The faith delivered once must be preserved by believers in the Church forever, unto the ages of ages. It must be preserved without any alteration, without addition or omission, as it was taught by the Lord Himself (Gal 1:7-8; 2 Thess 2:15).
Although the Epistle of the Holy Apostle Jude consists of one continuous discourse and treats only one subject, its contents may be more readily grasped and remembered if the following separate points are kept in mind.
I. The introduction. In it the writer calls himself “a servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James.” He greets his readers with the wish that “mercy, peace, and love may be multiplied” to them.
He also sets forth the reasons for writing the epistle. He says that, “having all diligence to write to them concerning the common salvation, he found it necessary to write exhorting them to contend for the faith once delivered to the saints, for certain men have crept in,” and so forth.
Intending to write in support of those striving for salvation through holiness of life, the Apostle briefly states his purpose. He then turns directly to rebuking the impious men who oppose this aim.
They especially trouble the zealots of piety by turning the common work of salvation, and many particular gracious ordinances, into occasions for impiety through distortion and abuse. The Apostle later points to one such case, namely the abuse of the love feast (verse 12).
The general abuse of the grace of salvation consisted in this: the heretics, the Nicolaitans, considered everything permissible for themselves. The second fearful abuse of the heretics was their rejection of God Himself as the one Creator and Provider of the world. The third was their rejection of Jesus Christ as a divine Person and Savior.
The Apostle Peter partly indicated the second of these errors among the heretics, though not so clearly (see 2 Pet 2:1; 2 Pet 3:4). One may say that the heretics denounced by Jude were utterly impious men.
Covering the vileness of their deeds with the name of Christian freedom, they surrendered themselves to every kind of licentiousness. They taught not as the Word of God teaches, and not as the Holy Church explains it, but as they pleased and as the spirit of their life required.
The statement about the ancient appointment of heretics to destruction may be understood in this sense. According to the ancient law and examples, all apostates must be subjected to punishment. In the judgments of the foreknowing Judge, this has certainly already been determined.
This idea of the ancient law as condemning impious apostates to destruction is confirmed first by an event from the life of the Jewish people under the Law. Their history was so well known to Christians from among the Jews.
In secular courts, those “appointed beforehand to condemnation” were persons whose names, as accused, were posted in a public place, and whose punishment could not be delayed (cf. 2 Pet 2:3).
These words indicate the purpose of the Epistle. It is to move believers to contend for the faith once delivered to the saints. Everyone who has believed in the truth of the Gospel teaching, delivered once for all to Christians, the saints, must stand firmly for it and hold to it, even to the point of readiness to suffer for it.
This truth is unchangeable. Therefore it must be preserved in unchanging purity, yielding to no false speculations. The Apostles of Christ are called to remind Christians of this sacred obligation. They planted the faith, and they must also uphold the faith that was planted.
Jude, as one of the Apostles of Christ, always had zeal to write to the Christians of Asia Minor about the salvation common to all and intended for all. But now he is called to this by a special need. They are in danger of being shaken in the faith because of the snares of the enemies of truth, whom he indicates in the following words.
Passages read together with this verse.
Greek text, 23 words with lemma, transliteration and Strong’s number. Tap to expand.
THEOSIS