Jude Series: Jude 14-Jude Quotes Enoch’s Prophecy of the Second Advent of Jesus Christ

Jude 14 Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about them: “See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones 15 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.” (NIV)

Jude 14-15 contain a quotation from 1 Enoch 1:9 and a prophecy concerning the Second Advent of Jesus Christ and they also compose a single sentence and thought.

These verses are composed of declarative statement followed by a purpose clause.

The former asserts that Enoch, who is the seventh in genealogical descent from Adam, prophesied against individuals like these unregenerate Jewish Zealots living in the first century A.D.

The latter presents the purpose of the former and asserts that the Lord will judge every unrepentant, unregenerate human being living on the earth at the time of His Second Advent.

Consequently, these verses serve to emphasize with the Christian community in Judaea that these unregenerate Jewish Zealots will be judged if they do not repent by trusting in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.

Therefore, Jude 14 is marking a transition from a description of these individuals in Jude 8-13 to a prophecy of the judgment of every unrepentant, unregenerate human being living on the earth at the time of the Second Advent of Jesus Christ, which is described in Jude 14-16.

The judgment of these individuals is comparable to the judgment of these Zealots.

As we noted, Jude is quoting from 1 Enoch 1:9, which we noted is a non-canonical work.

1 Enoch 1:9 Behold, he will arrive with ten million of the holy ones in order to execute judgment upon all. He will destroy the wicked ones and censure all flesh on account of everything that they have done, that which the sinners and the wicked ones committed against him.”

The fact that Jude 14-15 quotes from 1 Enoch 1:9 simply verifies that the event recorded by the latter is prophetic and by no means indicates that the church was verifying the inspiration of this pseudepigraphic work.

Jude wrote this epistle under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit and thus, the Holy Spirit moved him to quote from 1 Enoch 1:9, which speaks of the Second Advent of Jesus Christ.

This verifies that 1 Enoch 1:9 and this event is prophetic and not that 1 Enoch as a whole is prophetic and inspired by God.

The story of Enoch is recorded in Genesis chapter five, which reveals that Enoch’s father was Jared (Gen. 5:18) and he was the father of Methuselah (Gen. 5:21).

Genesis 5:22 asserts that he walked with God for three hundred years after becoming the father of Methuselah, whose name means “when he dies, then it shall be sent,” which is a reference to the flood in the days of Noah.

Thus, by giving this name to his son, Enoch was prophesying about the flood which took place during the days of Noah.

Jude 14-16 makes clear that Enoch was a prophet as well.

Thus, like Noah, he proclaimed the gospel during the antediluvian period when the fallen angels of Satan possessed the bodies of unregenerate men in order to have sex with unregenerate women in order to prevent the incarnation of the Son of God who would destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8).

It is significant that Enoch prophesied about midway between Adam and Abraham according to Jude 14, and Elijah about midway between Abraham and Christ, and that both Enoch and Elijah ministered in times of deep apostasy.

Genesis 5:24 asserts that he disappeared because God took him away from the earth.

Enoch was also in the genealogy of Jesus Christ (Lk. 3:37) and he was also commended by God for his faith in Hebrews 11:5.

Hebrews 11:5 By faith Enoch was taken up so that he did not see death, and he was not to be found because God took him up. For before his removal he had been commended as having pleased God. (NET)

Jude 14 describes Enoch as being “the seventh from Adam.”

Specifically, it describes him as being seventh in genealogical descent from Adam, who of course, is a reference to the progenitor of the human race. His wife was Eve and like Enoch, he was also in the genealogy of Jesus Christ (Lk. 3:38).

Adam died at 930 years of age (Gen. 5:5).

This description of Enoch, that he was the seventh in descent from Adam, is inclusive which means that it is counting Adam as the first because in actuality, Enoch was the eighth son of Adam after the birth of Cain and Abel, who were actually the first two sons of Adam and Eve.

After Cain murdered Abel, Adam fathered Seth (Gen. 5:3), who fathered Enosh (Gen. 5:6), who in turn fathered Kenan (Gen. 5:9) and he fathered Mahalalel (Gen. 5:12) who fathered Jared (Gen. 5:15) and then lastly, he fathered Enoch (Gen. 5:18).

Thus, this expression hebdomos apo Adam Henōch (ἕβδομος ἀπὸ Ἀδὰμ Ἑνὼχ), “that is, the seventh from Adam” indicates that Enoch was seventh in genealogical descent from Adam with Adam being counted as the first.

Jude 14 also asserts that accompanying the Lord to the earth at His Second Advent will be a countless number of His holy ones, which is a reference to the elect angels of Jesus Christ who will return with Him at His Second Advent.

It does not refer to church age believers since the church age was a mystery, which means that it was not known to Old Testament saints like Enoch whose prophecy Jude quotes here in Jude 14-15 (cf. Rom. 16:25; Eph. 5:32).

The teaching of the New Testament makes clear that elect angels will accompany the Lord Jesus Christ to planet earth at His Second Advent (cf. Matt. 13:41; 25:31; Mk. 8:38; 13:27).

Like Jude 12 and 13, Jude 14 is using the figure of simile.

Therefore, Jude 14-15 are asserting that “In fact, Enoch, who is the seventh from Adam in descent, prophesied against individuals likethese, namely, by asserting, “Look! The Lord is coming with a countless number of His holy ones in order to execute judgment on all, and to convict every person of all their thoroughly ungodly deeds that they have committed, and of all the harsh words that ungodly sinners have spoken against him.”[1]

[1] William E. Wenstrom Jr. (n.d.). Exegesis and Exposition of Jude.