Scriptures for Today
Jude 1:8-14
Likewise also these filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities. 9 Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee. 10 But these speak evil of those things which they know not: but what they know naturally, as brute beasts, in those things they corrupt themselves. 11 Woe unto them. for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core. 12 These are spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear: clouds they are without water, carried about of winds; trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots; 13 Raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame; wandering stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever. 14 And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints,
Filthy Dreamers and Rebellion
Jude 1:8
Likewise also these filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities.
They are called filthy dreamers because they operate out of their own imagination instead of God’s Word. Their thinking produces behavior, and their behavior is corrupt. Who are we talking about here?
Unbelieving Israelites, angels which kept not their first estate, Sodom and Gomorrha giving themselves over to fornication. These are people who reject God and leave their proper place. The judgment of God is the result.
They defile the flesh, meaning they live in sin. They despise dominion, meaning they reject authority. They speak evil of dignities, meaning they attack those placed in positions by God.
Michael, the Devil, and the Body of Moses
Jude 1:9
Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee.
This is a real conflict between Michael the archangel and the devil. Angels contend with each other, and this shows there is a real spiritual battle taking place beyond what we see.
In Daniel 10, an angel is sent to Daniel. The angel is withstood for 21 days. Michael the archangel comes to help. This is another angel to angel contention. In Revelation 12, we see Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon fought and his angels. So we see this same angel to angel fight here in Jude.
The subject of the dispute or contention is the body of Moses. God buried Moses, and his body was hidden, yet there was enough significance for the devil to contend over it. This shows that even physical things can have spiritual importance.
So, many preachers will add things to this story that aren’t in the Bible. From the Scriptures alone, we know God buried Moses, the location was hidden from man, and there was dispute between Michael and the devil about the body of Moses.
Michael is the archangel, a being of great authority and power—an angel of God. Yet even in direct conflict with the devil, he does not step outside of order.
He does not bring a railing accusation. And all of us need to watch out for those things constantly. We cannot do those things. That means he does not speak a direct, personal condemnation in his own authority. Instead, he says, “The Lord rebuke thee,” placing judgment in God’s hands.
For example, many people will say things about our President that they don’t know if true or not. That’s a railing accusation. Many people believe it’s okay to do that to anyone when they don’t know. They weren’t there. But they make railing accusations—false accusations constantly.
Speaking Without Understanding
Jude 1:10
But these speak evil of those things which they know not: but what they know naturally, as brute beasts, in those things they corrupt themselves.
These men speak about things they do not understand. They speak boldly, but without knowledge. For example, people will say that God didn’t create the world and everything in it within 6 days. God says that He did. HE WAS THERE. These people speak about it like they were there. “God didn’t do that.” He was there. He says that He did. He’s not a liar. You’re the liar and making railing accusations against THE ALMIGHTY GOD.
“But these speak evil of those things which they know not.” They don’t know, but they act like they do. You should never act that way.
“But what they know naturally, as brute beasts, in those things they corrupt themselves.” They have knowledge that comes from the flesh, natural desires, and human instinct but it’s not coming from God, Scripture, or a spiritual understanding. They live according to natural instincts.
Like brute beasts, they follow desires instead of truth, and that leads to corruption. Animals operate by instinct, desire, and reaction. Animals, and especially dogs, don’t reason spiritually, submit to truth, or understand God. These men function like animals.
They speak evil of things they don’t understand but in areas they do understand it is only a natural, flesh level understanding. That leads to corruption. They understand lust to they follow it. They understand power so they pursue control. They understand money so they chase gain. They do not understand truth, authority, of God’s word. Everything they do is driven by a natural desire and not spiritual truth.
Again, their entire way of operating is like animals. Reaction instead of submission. Desire instead of obedience. Corrupting themselves in what they pursue. This is why they are corrupted. They are not guided by truth.
The Way of Cain, Balaam, and Core
Jude 1: 11
Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core.
“Woe unto them” is a declaration of judgment. This is not a warning that something might happen. This is God pronouncing that these people are already on a path that leads to destruction. And it’s not going to change.
You see three things they have done. 1) For they have gone in the way of Cain. 2) Ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward. 3) Perished in the gainsaying of Core.
“For they have gone in the way of Cain” shows the starting point. Cain approached God on his own terms instead of God’s terms. He brought an offering, but not what God required, and that is the foundation of false religion. They make their own way and don’t follow God’s ways.
“And ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward” shows what drives them. They are not slow or hesitant. They are eager and driven by gain, using spiritual things to benefit themselves.
Balaam knew the truth but chose reward over the truth. That is the error. Many pastors do this. Truth is not unknown, it is ignored for personal benefit. I know a pastor that knows the truth that Jesus can’t be corrupted, but he can’t admit that he preached heresy. He can’t look bad to his own congregation. He knows the truth, but he chooses reward over the truth.
“And perished in the gainsaying of Core” shows where it ends. Core openly rejected God’s authority and tried to take a position that was not his. He was not the leader chosen by God. But he tried to be. He directly rebelled against God.
This verse gives the full pattern of how people do this. It begins with rejecting God’s way, moves into using religion for gain, and ends in open rebellion against the true authority. That path always leads to God’s judgment. And it will come.
Spots in Your Feasts
Jude 1:12
These are spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear: clouds they are without water, carried about of winds; trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots;
Spots in your feasts of charity. Church events. Feasts of charity. These people are spots or stains, blemishes, and hidden corruption. Spots don’t belong. Spots ruin what was clean. Spots are dangerous but not always obvious. Sometimes we miss the spots and stains. These people, the subject people in these Scriptures, are stains within the fellowship of the church.
They are present in the church, they sit among believers, they participate outwardly, but inwardly they corrupt, they defile, and they damage what should be pure. They are inside, not outside. They sit among believers and take part, but they are a hidden danger in the middle of it.
“Feeding themselves without fear” shows their focus. Everything is for themselves, and there is no fear of God controlling what they do. If everything you do is for yourself, you might be one of these people. If you must profit yourself off of everything you do, you might be one of these people.
For example, someone stole drinks out of the refrigerator this past Sunday. They aren’t yours. Are you one of these people? You care about yourself only? Now I have to lock everything in a church! People will go into the kitchen and just start taking things without asking. Don’t do it.
“clouds they are without water, carried about of winds”
They appear to bring something, but there is nothing there. Like clouds that should bring rain but do not, they promise something but produce nothing. They continue to promise to do something but never do it. You don’t want to resemble these people.
“Carried about of winds” shows they are unstable. They move with whatever direction benefits them. If they get something for themselves, they go that way.
“Trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots.” There is no lasting fruit. What appears does not remain.
“Twice dead” shows complete deadness. “plucked up by the roots” shows there is nothing holding them in place. They don’t have the root of Jesus Christ who is permanent and not able to be plucked up. These men are completely dead. They will see the second death of hell. They are twofold more the child of hell as Matthew 23:15 says.
This means they are destined for judgment. They are aligned with lies and the rejection of the truth. They are 100% completely dead without everlasting life.
Raging Waves and Wandering Stars
Jude 1:13
Raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame; wandering stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever.
Their actions expose them. Like raging waves throwing up foam, their own behavior reveals their shame and their corruption.
Wandering stars have no fixed path. They are lost and wandering all over the place. They move without direction and lead others off course too. Their end is already determined as darkness. “To whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever.” That’s their end. And it’s a sad end. But they won’t humble themselves to God. They think themselves to be too good to do that.
Enoch’s Prophecy
Jude 1:14
And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints,
This was not new. From the earliest times, God warned about these kinds of people. Judgment is coming. It is certain, and it will not be avoided. The Lord Jesus Christ is coming with His saints to execute judgment upon all.
Enoch was the seventh from Adam. All the way back to Genesis 5, we see 1) Adam, 2) Seth, 3) Enos, 4) Cainan, 5) Mahalaleel, 6) Jared, and 7) Enoch. This is the same Enoch that walked with God: and he was not; for God took him. Enoch prophesied of Jesus coming back one day.
This shows the connection between the Old and New Testament—they match perfectly. We are in the second to last book of the Bible and it ties back to the first book of the Bible perfectly.
What This Means in Jude 1:8-14
The most dangerous people are not always outside. They are often inside, influencing others while rejecting truth. So please be careful at all times. People will reject the truth at times. And then they will try to spread lies at other times.
They follow a pattern of false worship, greed, and rebellion, and their lives eventually expose them.
Practical Applications
- Do not assume everyone around you is walking in truth. Pay attention to what they produce.
- Do not follow people who reject authority and speak without understanding.
- Watch for those who use spiritual things for personal gain.
- Stay grounded in truth so you are not led off course by unstable voices.
Conclusion
These people spoken about in Jude will reject truth, elevate themselves, and influence others. Their pattern is clear, and their end is certain. Hell is their destination 100% without a doubt. The Bible warns us about these people over and over again.
The question is simple as we end. Are you grounded in truth, or are you being influenced by the most dangerous people?
Let’s pray.
Leave a Reply