Jude Series: Jude 8-Three Descriptions of the Unregenerate Jewish Zealots

Jude 8 Nevertheless, despite this, in a similar manner, these also on the one hand, are defiling their bodies, while on other hand, they are rejecting human governmental authority, and on the other hand, they are disrespecting angelic beings because they are delusional to their own detriment. (Lecturer’s translation)

As we noted, Jude 8 contains four declarative statements.

The first asserts that these unregenerate Jewish Zealots in Jude’s day and age in the first century A.D. and were rebelling against Rome were defiling their bodies.

The second asserts that they were also rejecting human governmental authority.

The third asserts that they were disrespecting angelic beings.

These three declarative statements form a correlative clause.

The fourth declarative statement presents the reason for this correlative clause and asserts that these unregenerate Jewish Zealots were delusional.

As we noted, the first three declarative statements which appear in Jude 8 form a correlative clause, which means that these three statements are being united by the writer.

Thus, the concepts of defiling the flesh, rejecting human governmental authority and disrespecting angelic beings are being united with each other by the writer.

This correlative clause presents three more descriptions of the unregenerate Jewish Zealots in Jude’s day and age in the first century A.D. who were rebelling against Rome in order to bring the kingdom of God on earth.

In fact, Jude 8 contains the fourth triad or triplet, which we have come across in our study of the epistle of Jude.

The first two appear in Jude 1-2 and the third appears Jude 5-7.

These three descriptions of these unregenerate Jewish Zealots in Jude’s day and age in the first century A.D. are an addition to the five, which are presented in Jude 4.

The first description presented in Jude 8 of these unregenerate Jewish Zealots in Jude’s day and age in the first century A.D. is that they are defiling their human bodies by their criminal behavior.

This interpretation is indicated by the statement in Jude 4 that these individuals were exchanging the grace of God for practicing criminal behavior.

The second description asserts that these Jewish Zealots are rejecting human government authority, and which authority would refer to the Roman Empire since in Jude’s day and age Rome occupied Judaea.

The noun kuriotēs (κυριότης) pertains to the state of possessing majestic dominion or ownership through legal authority including both human and preternatural dominance.

Here it speaks of the governmental authority of the Roman Empire which ruled Judaea in the first century A.D. and which authority was given to Rome by God (cf. Rom. 13:1-7).

Also, the verb atheteō pertains to refusing to recognize the validity of something.[1]

This verb speaks of rejecting by not recognizing something or someone.[2]

Therefore, this verb atheteō is expressing the idea of these Jewish Zealots rejecting the authority of Rome over Judaea in the sense that they refused to recognize this authority over them.

This governmental authority of the Roman Empire which ruled Judaea in the first century A.D. and which authority was given to Rome by God (cf. Rom. 13:1-7).

These Jewish Zealots rejected Rome’s authority in the sense that they refused to recognize this authority over them.

This rebellion against Rome was the head of the list of sins that the Zealots were committing according to the contents of the epistle of Jude.

The Zealots were attempting to establish the kingdom of God on earth without Jesus Christ.

The apostles and Jesus taught that He would personally establish the kingdom of God on earth by force (cf. Matt. 24-25; 2 Thess. 2:1-12; Rev. 19:11-20:3).

Therefore, the epistle of Jude discusses the results of rejecting the governmental, angelic authority, apostolic authority and ultimately the sovereign rulership of Jesus Christ.

The Scriptures teach that God has delegated authority to certain people to govern the affairs of certain members of the human race and to carry out capital punishment of those individuals who commit capital crimes.

These people are servants of God according to Romans 13:1-7.

The third and final description of these unregenerate Jewish Zealots in Jude 8 asserts that they were disrespecting the fallen angels of Satan.

They did this by rejecting the authority of Rome over Judaea since Satan and these angels have received delegated authority from God to rule over the nations of the earth with exception of Israel (cf. 2 Cor. 4:4; 1 John 5:19).

These fallen angels led by Satan temporarily possess delegated authority over the human race as a result of the fall of Adam and Eve.

However, this authority will come to an end at the Second Advent of Jesus Christ who at that time will establish His millennial reign on the earth.

So therefore, these Jewish Zealots disrespected the delegated authority of angelic beings and which authority they had received from God.

The immediate context supports this interpretation of the third description of the Zealots in Jude 8 since Jude 9-10 presents the elect angel Michael as an example to follow in regard to the temporary delegated authority of Satan over the nations of the earth.

Jude 1:9 But even when Michael the archangel was arguing with the devil and debating with him concerning Moses’ body, he did not dare to bring a slanderous judgment, but said, “May the Lord rebuke you!” 1:10 But these men do not understand the things they slander, and they are being destroyed by the very things that, like irrational animals, they instinctively comprehend. (NET)

Thomas Schreiner writes “Some commentators see a reference here to good angels, arguing that Jude would not be worried about scorn heaped on evil angels.[3]But the parallel with v. 9, where Michael refused to pronounce his own judgment on the devil, suggests that Jude referred to evil angels in v. 8.[4]Jude’s argument runs as follows: The intruders insult demons, but the archangel, Michael, did not even presume to blaspheme the devil himself but left his judgment to God. If Michael as an angel with high authority did not even presume to judge Satan, how can the opponents be so filled with pride that they insult demons, who have a certain glory, even though they have subsequently sinned?”[5]

[1] Louw, J. P., & Nida, E. A. (1996). In Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament: based on semantic domains(electronic ed. of the 2nd edition., Vol. 1, p. 681). United Bible Societies. [2] Arndt, W., Danker, F. W., Bauer, W., & Gingrich, F. W. (2000). In A Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament and other early Christian literature (3rd ed., p. 24). University of Chicago Press. [3] E.g., Bauckham, Jude, 2 Peter, 57. [4] Green, 2 Peter and Jude, 168–69; Moo, 2 Peter, Jude, 245–46. But we cannot read into this Gnostic dualism (against Fuchs and Reymond, 2 Pierre, Jude, 167). [5] Schreiner, T. R. (2003). 1, 2 Peter, Jude (Vol. 37, p. 457). Broadman & Holman Publishers.