JUDE

Part Three

Survival in the Day of Apostasy

By Michael K. Farrar, O.D.

© God’s Breath Publications

 

Jude has continually warned us of false teachers. Now we continue to read his descriptive warnings of their sinful life, deceptive beliefs and selfish motives.

 

In the second part of verse twelve and thirteen he continues with his, divinely inspired, creative analogies of their horrible character. He states:

 

12b-13 “They are clouds without rain, blown along by the wind; autumn trees, without fruit and uprooted — twice dead. They are wild waves of the sea, foaming up their shame; wandering stars, for whom blackest darkness has been reserved forever.”

 

Notice the four descriptive examples from creation Jude uses to illustrate the worthlessness of these false teachers.

 

First he compares them to clouds without rain that are blown about by the wind. Rain clouds bring precious rain to crops and creatures. Water is a requirement for life on our planet. Clouds that have no rain in them are simply collections of dust particles that have no value to sustain life. They are easily blown about by whatever wind might carry them away. Jude is saying that these false spiritual leaders are worthless when it comes to insights or instruction for guidance in the spiritual life. Worse yet, they are blown about easily by any wind of doctrine (Ephesians 4:14). Because they do not have the Holy Spirit to guide them, they put their confidence in their fleshly passions and worldly insights, thus they not only entertain strange unholy doctrine, they encourage others to follow after them.

 

Next Jude compares them to fruitless and rootless trees. Every tree produces either fruit or seed to perpetuate life and supply food for creatures. But these false teachers, Jude exclaims, are fruitless trees. They bear no spiritual fruit. They are barren when it comes to encouraging life in the Spirit or stimulating spiritual growth. Not only are they fruitless, they are also rootless. A tree without roots can be easily toppled. Trees rely upon their root system not only for obtaining much needed nourishment but also for stability to withstand storms and wind. These false teachers are not only dead “once” because they are fruitless, they are dead “twice” because they have no root in the things of God. They are totally and absolutely useless dead trees. It seems that Jude is almost literally shouting when he writes that they are “twice dead!” They have no stability in their lives because they are not grounded in the Word of God, they lack the guidance of the Holy Spirit and they reject the authority of God. “Twice dead” is a harsh but accurate description of their spiritual condition.

 

Now Jude compares these shifty characters to not just regular waves of the sea but “WILD” waves of the sea. “Wild waves” implies a lack of control or out of control behavior. The behavior of these false teachers is not only erratic, it is also powerfully destructive. Because of their wild sinful and unholy lifestyle they wreak havoc on those who are attempting to live godly lives. If you’ve ever walked the beach in the morning after a storm at sea you will find on the beach all sorts of garbage; dead seaweed, animal carcasses, garbage made up of wood and human trash not to mention driftwood. This is the excrement of a storm that is deposited on the beach. Jude is using this analogy to illustrate the garbage that accumulates in the lives of these false teachers and how this refuse ends up polluting the church. These “wild men” if you will, “throw up” or “expel” their error and sin into the local church and upon righteous Christians.

 

Jude’s fourth description of these false teachers is that they are wandering stars. There are several possible explanations for this comparison. Possibly Jude is describing the false teachers as wandering stars such as meteorites. These appear in the sky as falling stars. They flash before our eyes and are wonderful to see, but eventually they burn out and crash to earth to cause great damage. These false teachers could be compared to meteorites because they are charismatic and flashy in their presentation and talk, but eventually they burn out and their sin and lies reveal their true nature. Another possible explanation for this description is that men often used the stars to navigate. Certain constellations appear in specific parts of the heavens and can be used to gain a bearing for directing one’s path. But wandering stars pose a problem. Without a stable orbit or fixed pattern, wandering stars would throw those using them for guidance way off their path. Jude is saying that these men cannot be depended upon to guide one’s life in spiritual matters. They may sound good, but they will lead unsuspecting Christians down an ungodly path that eventually ends in destruction. The last part of this verse has a tone of dark foreboding.

 

Jude states that these “wandering stars” have a “blackest darkness” reserved for them. This judgment that is waiting to be placed upon them is a darkness that is so black that it can be literally felt. It could be compared to what is called a “black hole” in astronomy.  A “black hole” is a region of space exhibiting such strong gravitational effects that nothing, not even particles and electromagnetic radiation such as light can escape from inside it. I remember being in the Subway Caves of Northern California at a men’s retreat once. We went deep into the caves and then turned off all our flashlights. It was so dark you couldn’t see your hand inches from your face. It was a piercing deep dense darkness. This may be something like the black darkness of judgment that not only awaits these false teachers but also anyone that follows their lies and lifestyle.

 

Earlier in this commentary, I mentioned how Jude quotes “apocryphal” books to more effectively communicate to those whom he was writing. We learned that an apocryphal book was a book that was not divinely inspired nor approved to be included in the Bible, but one that many people would read for enjoyment. Here in verses fourteen and fifteen we see another apocryphal quote, this time from the Book of Enoch.