Section 20–23
Jude encouraged believers to trust God and to help other people to trust him
In verses 20–21 Jude told his readers to keep experiencing God’s love for them (21a), while waiting for Jesus to give them eternal life (21b–c). They were to do this by depending more and more on the truth that Christians believe (20b), and by praying with the help of the Holy Spirit (20c).
In verses 22–23 Jude told his readers how they were to act toward three types of people. (Jude instructed the Christians to:(a) show mercy to people who were uncertain about what to believe,(b) quickly rescue those who were beginning to follow the fake Christians,(c) while being very careful, show mercy to those who were already following these fake Christians.) The fake Christians were harming these people through their false teaching and the sinful things that they did.
Paragraph 20–21
Jude wanted his readers to continue in fellowship with God, as they waited to experience the eternal life that Jesus had provided for them.
20–21
building yourselves up…praying…keep: The Greek verbs that the Berean Standard Bible translates as building…up (20b) and praying (20c) relate to keep in Jude 21a. Scholars have different views about exactly how these words relate to keep. (Scholars have different opinions concerning the relationship of the participles in verse 20 to the main verb in verse 21, which the Berean Standard Bible translates as “keep.” Some scholars and versions interpret these participles as imperatives, because the main verb is imperative. Others interpret them as attendant circumstance, and still others as means.) The Notes takes the view that they express the means by which Jude’s readers could keep themselves in God’s love. The NET Bible says: (The NET Bible contains the following note for verse 20.“The participles in v. 20 have been variously interpreted. Some treat them imperativally or as attendant circumstance to the imperative in v. 21 (‘maintain’): ‘build yourselves up…pray.’ But they do not follow the normal contours of either the imperatival or attendant circumstance participles, rendering this unlikely. A better option is to treat them as the means by which the readers are to maintain themselves in the love of God. This both makes eminently good sense and fits the structural patterns of instrumental participles elsewhere.”)
20But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith, by praying in the Holy Spirit, 21maintain yourselves in the love of God…. (NET Bible)
In some languages, it may be necessary to reorder parts of verses 20 and 21 in order to express means. For example, it may be more natural for the verb keep to come before these two verbs. A general comment on 20–21 at the end of the notes for 21b–c gives examples.
20a
But you, beloved: The Greek words that the Berean Standard Bible translates here as But you, beloved are the same words that begin 17a.
These words begin a new section. They indicate that what Jude said in verses 20–21 was especially important.
But you: The Greek word de that the Berean Standard Bible translates here as But shows that this paragraph contrasts with the paragraph that precedes it.
The pronoun you is emphatic and implies a contrast between the fake Christians and Jude’s readers.
beloved: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates here as beloved was a normal way for Jude to address Christian friends whom he loved. It is used in the same way in 3a and 17a. See the note on 17a.
20b
by building yourselves up in your most holy faith: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates here as building…up is literally “building…upon.” (This idiom may have well have been focusing on the foundation that was built upon, rather than on the exact nature of the building that was built upon it. Some versions make the building metaphor more explicit, by adding “foundation.” Their faith was something to build upon, like a foundation. This corresponds well with the case of the noun, pistei, which is dative.) The word can be used in a literal way to refer to constructing a building on a foundation. In this verse it is used in a figurative way. It implies that the Christians should use their holy faith as the foundation or basis for their lives (for their thoughts and actions).
In some languages a literal translation of the figure of speech may not be clear. Other ways to express the idea are:
by building your lives on the foundation of your holy faith.
-or-
use your most holy faith to grow. (God’s Word)
-or-
by depending on your most holy faith as the basis for your lives.
building yourselves up: This was a metaphor. It was based on constructing a building. In the New Testament, this metaphor was commonly used. However, it had been used so much by Jude’s time that the saying probably had a set meaning. (It had become a “dead metaphor.”) In that case, people may have no longer thought of constructing an actual building. In many languages it may be best to express the meaning here without the metaphor of building. For example:
By using your most holy faith to grow…
-or-
By trusting even more the most holy truths that you believe…
building…up: The form of the Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates here as building…up indicates that the action should be continuing. (The same is true for the other participles and verbs in this paragraph.) It was something that Jude wanted his readers to keep doing; it was not an action that they would do only once. Some ways to indicate this in English are:
continue to build… (New Living Translation (2004 Revision))
-or-
keep building… (Contemporary English Version)
In some languages, as in Greek, there is a verb form that indicates that an action is continuing. Look for the most natural way in your language to express this idea.
As stated in the note on 20–21, in this context building…up expresses a means or way by which Jude’s readers could keep themselves in God’s love (21a).
yourselves: Scholars interpret yourselves in different ways in this context:
(1) Jude meant that each individual Christian should build himself or herself up.
(2) Jude meant that the Christians were to build each other up.
If your language requires you to distinguish between these two interpretations, it is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). (While interpretation (1) may have been Jude’s primary meaning here, he certainly would have favored building others up as well.)
in your most holy faith: In some languages, it may be more natural to translate this idea without using a preposition like in or “on.” For example:
by continuing to use your most holy faith to build your lives
-or-
by basing your life/actions/thought more and more on the true teachings that you believe
your…faith: Here, your…faith refers to the true Christian teachings that Jude’s readers had been taught. The Greek form that the Berean Standard Bible translates as your is plural. As Christians, this faith was something that they all believed.
most holy faith: Jude described their faith as most holy, because:
(a) God (God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.) is holy, and God had revealed this faith to them.
(b) This faith was about how God saved us by providing a holy sacrifice for our sins, Jesus Christ.
(c) Nothing is more holy than God.
Jude was not comparing their faith to other faiths here. He was expressing the unique holiness of their faith. Other ways to translate most holy faith are:
most sacred faith (Revised English Bible)
-or-
the truth about God that you believe
-or-
the unique beliefs that you received from God
20c
and praying in the Holy Spirit: The note on 20–21 mentioned that the verb praying is related to the verb “keep” in 21a. Praying in the Holy Spirit was a means/way by which Jude’s readers were to keep themselves in God’s love (21a).
Praying in the Holy Spirit implies that they should be praying with the help and guidance of the Holy Spirit. Two ways to translate this are:
pray with the Holy Spirit helping/directing you.
-or-
praying with the Holy Spirit as your guide.
praying: The form of the Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates here as praying indicates that the action should be continuing. (The same is true for the other participles and verbs in this paragraph.) Jude meant for his readers to continue to pray. Refer to the note on “building…up” in 20b. For example:
by continuing to pray as you are directed by the Holy Spirit.
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All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible. BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.