¹From Jude, servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James— To those who have been called by God, who live in the love of God the Father and the protection of Jesus Christ:

²May mercy, peace, and love be yours in full measure.

False Teachers

³My dear friends, I was doing my best to write to you about the salvation we share in common, when I felt the need of writing at once to encourage you to fight on for the faith which once and for all God has given to his people.

⁴For some godless people have slipped in unnoticed among us, persons who distort the message about the grace of our God in order to excuse their immoral ways, and who reject Jesus Christ, our only Master and Lord. Long ago the Scriptures predicted the condemnation they have received.

⁵For even though you know all this, I want to remind you of how the Lord once rescued the people of Israel from Egypt, but afterward destroyed those who did not believe.

⁶Remember the angels who did not stay within the limits of their proper authority, but abandoned their own dwelling place: they are bound with eternal chains in the darkness below, where God is keeping them for that great Day on which they will be condemned.

⁷Remember Sodom and Gomorrah, and the nearby towns, whose people acted as those angels did and indulged in sexual immorality and perversion: they suffer the punishment of eternal fire as a plain warning to all.

⁸In the same way also, these people have visions which make them sin against their own bodies; they despise God's authority and insult the glorious beings above.

⁹Not even the chief angel Michael did this. In his quarrel with the Devil, when they argued about who would have the body of Moses, Michael did not dare condemn the Devil with insulting words, but said, “The Lord rebuke you!”

¹⁰But these people attack with insults anything they do not understand; and those things that they know by instinct, like wild animals, are the very things that destroy them.

¹¹How terrible for them! They have followed the way that Cain took. For the sake of money they have given themselves over to the error that Balaam committed. They have rebelled as Korah rebelled, and like him they are destroyed.

¹²With their shameless carousing they are like dirty spots in your fellowship meals. They take care only of themselves. They are like clouds carried along by the wind, but bringing no rain. They are like trees that bear no fruit, even in autumn, trees that have been pulled up by the roots and are completely dead.

¹³They are like wild waves of the sea, with their shameful deeds showing up like foam. They are like wandering stars, for whom God has reserved a place forever in the deepest darkness.

¹⁴It was Enoch, the seventh direct descendant from Adam, who long ago prophesied this about them: “The Lord will come with many thousands of his holy angels

¹⁵to bring judgment on all, to condemn them all for the godless deeds they have performed and for all the terrible words that godless sinners have spoken against him!”

¹⁶These people are always grumbling and blaming others; they follow their own evil desires; they brag about themselves and flatter others in order to get their own way.

Warnings and Instructions

¹⁷But remember, my friends, what you were told in the past by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ.

¹⁸They said to you, “When the last days come, people will appear who will make fun of you, people who follow their own godless desires.”

¹⁹These are the people who cause divisions, who are controlled by their natural desires, who do not have the Spirit.

²⁰But you, my friends, keep on building yourselves up on your most sacred faith. Pray in the power of the Holy Spirit,

²¹and keep yourselves in the love of God, as you wait for our Lord Jesus Christ in his mercy to give you eternal life.

²²Show mercy toward those who have doubts;

²³save others by snatching them out of the fire; and to others show mercy mixed with fear, but hate their very clothes, stained by their sinful lusts.

Prayer of Praise

²⁴To him who is able to keep you from falling and to bring you faultless and joyful before his glorious presence—

²⁵to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, might, and authority, from all ages past, and now, and forever and ever! Amen.

¹From Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by God's will, sent to proclaim the promised life which we have in union with Christ Jesus—

²To Timothy, my dear son: May God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord give you grace, mercy, and peace.

Thanksgiving and Encouragement

³I give thanks to God, whom I serve with a clear conscience, as my ancestors did. I thank him as I remember you always in my prayers night and day.

⁴I remember your tears, and I want to see you very much, so that I may be filled with joy.

⁵I remember the sincere faith you have, the kind of faith that your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice also had. I am sure that you have it also.

⁶For this reason I remind you to keep alive the gift that God gave you when I laid my hands on you.

⁷For the Spirit that God has given us does not make us timid; instead, his Spirit fills us with power, love, and self-control.

⁸Do not be ashamed, then, of witnessing for our Lord; neither be ashamed of me, a prisoner for Christ's sake. Instead, take your part in suffering for the Good News, as God gives you the strength for it.

⁹He saved us and called us to be his own people, not because of what we have done, but because of his own purpose and grace. He gave us this grace by means of Christ Jesus before the beginning of time,

¹⁰but now it has been revealed to us through the coming of our Savior, Christ Jesus. He has ended the power of death and through the gospel has revealed immortal life.

¹¹God has appointed me as an apostle and teacher to proclaim the Good News,

¹²and it is for this reason that I suffer these things. But I am still full of confidence, because I know whom I have trusted, and I am sure that he is able to keep safe until that Day what he has entrusted to me.

¹³Hold firmly to the true words that I taught you, as the example for you to follow, and remain in the faith and love that are ours in union with Christ Jesus.

¹⁴Through the power of the Holy Spirit, who lives in us, keep the good things that have been entrusted to you.

¹⁵You know that everyone in the province of Asia, including Phygelus and Hermogenes, has deserted me.

¹⁶May the Lord show mercy to the family of Onesiphorus, because he cheered me up many times. He was not ashamed that I am in prison,

¹⁷but as soon as he arrived in Rome, he started looking for me until he found me.

¹⁸May the Lord grant him his mercy on that Day! And you know very well how much he did for me in Ephesus.

A Loyal Soldier of Christ Jesus

¹As for you, my son, be strong through the grace that is ours in union with Christ Jesus.

²Take the teachings that you heard me proclaim in the presence of many witnesses, and entrust them to reliable people, who will be able to teach others also.

³Take your part in suffering, as a loyal soldier of Christ Jesus.

⁴A soldier on active duty wants to please his commanding officer and so does not get mixed up in the affairs of civilian life.

⁵An athlete who runs in a race cannot win the prize unless he obeys the rules.

⁶The farmer who has done the hard work should have the first share of the harvest.

⁷Think about what I am saying, because the Lord will enable you to understand it all.

⁸Remember Jesus Christ, who was raised from death, who was a descendant of David, as is taught in the Good News I preach.

⁹Because I preach the Good News, I suffer and I am even chained like a criminal. But the word of God is not in chains,

¹⁰and so I endure everything for the sake of God's chosen people, in order that they too may obtain the salvation that comes through Christ Jesus and brings eternal glory.

¹¹This is a true saying: “If we have died with him, we shall also live with him.

¹²If we continue to endure, we shall also rule with him. If we deny him, he also will deny us.

¹³If we are not faithful, he remains faithful, because he cannot be false to himself.”

An Approved Worker

¹⁴Remind your people of this, and give them a solemn warning in God's presence not to fight over words. It does no good, but only ruins the people who listen.

¹⁵Do your best to win full approval in God's sight, as a worker who is not ashamed of his work, one who correctly teaches the message of God's truth.

¹⁶Keep away from profane and foolish discussions, which only drive people farther away from God.

¹⁷Such teaching is like an open sore that eats away the flesh. Two men who have taught such things are Hymenaeus and Philetus.

¹⁸They have left the way of truth and are upsetting the faith of some believers by saying that our resurrection has already taken place.

¹⁹But the solid foundation that God has laid cannot be shaken; and on it are written these words: “The Lord knows those who are his” and “Those who say that they belong to the Lord must turn away from wrongdoing.”

²⁰In a large house there are dishes and bowls of all kinds: some are made of silver and gold, others of wood and clay; some are for special occasions, others for ordinary use.

²¹Those who make themselves clean from all those evil things, will be used for special purposes, because they are dedicated and useful to their Master, ready to be used for every good deed.

²²Avoid the passions of youth, and strive for righteousness, faith, love, and peace, together with those who with a pure heart call out to the Lord for help.

²³But keep away from foolish and ignorant arguments; you know that they end up in quarrels.

²⁴As the Lord's servant, you must not quarrel. You must be kind toward all, a good and patient teacher,

²⁵who is gentle as you correct your opponents, for it may be that God will give them the opportunity to repent and come to know the truth.

²⁶And then they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the Devil, who had caught them and made them obey his will.

Advice to a King

¹These are the solemn words which King Lemuel's mother said to him:

²“You are my own dear son, the answer to my prayers. What shall I tell you?

³Don't spend all your energy on sex and all your money on women; they have destroyed kings.

⁴Listen, Lemuel. Kings should not drink wine or have a craving for alcohol.

⁵When they drink, they forget the laws and ignore the rights of people in need.

⁶Alcohol is for people who are dying, for those who are in misery.

⁷Let them drink and forget their poverty and unhappiness.