Jude study section
Jude word studies
A handful of Greek words carry the theology of Jude. Tap the speaker next to any word to hear it pronounced.
Key words
πίστις (pistis) — “Faith”
Usage: Jude 3, 20
Meaning: Faith — here used objectively of “the faith,” the body of Christian truth once delivered.
Theological Significance: “The pistis that was once for all delivered to the saints” is the fixed gospel deposit, to be contended for and built upon. It is not evolving opinion but the settled truth entrusted to the church, guarded against corruption (Jude 3, 20; Galatians 1:23; 1 Timothy 6:20).
ἐπαγωνίζομαι (epagōnizomai) — “To Contend Earnestly”
Usage: Jude 3
Meaning: To contend, struggle, or fight earnestly for something — an athletic and military image. Used only here.
Theological Significance: Believers are to epagōnizomai for the faith, striving to defend and uphold the gospel against those who would distort it. Guarding the truth requires effort, courage, and perseverance, not passivity (Jude 3; 1 Timothy 6:12; Philippians 1:27).
ἀσεβής (asebēs) — “Ungodly”
Usage: Jude 4, 15 (and the noun asebeia, “ungodliness”)
Meaning: Ungodly, impious, without reverence for God.
Theological Significance: Asebēs characterizes the false teachers, whose lives and teaching show contempt for God. Jude’s repeated use underscores that their error is not merely intellectual but a godlessness that faces certain judgment, “to execute judgment on all the asebeis” (Jude 4, 15; Romans 1:18).
ἔλεος (eleos) — “Mercy”
Usage: Jude 2, 21-23
Meaning: Mercy, compassion, pity toward the needy or guilty.
Theological Significance: Eleos frames the letter: Jude greets his readers with mercy, calls them to wait for “the eleos of our Lord Jesus Christ,” and to show eleos to the doubting and wavering. Even amid a call to contend, mercy toward those caught in error is essential (Jude 21-23; Matthew 5:7).
τηρέω (tēreō) — “To Keep, Guard, Preserve”
Usage: Jude 1, 6, 21, 24
Meaning: To keep, guard, watch over, preserve.
Theological Significance: Tēreō weaves through the letter with a striking contrast: the fallen angels are “kept” in chains for judgment, while believers are “kept for Jesus Christ” and called to “keep yourselves in the love of God” — because God “is able to keep you from stumbling.” Our keeping rests ultimately on Him (Jude 1, 21, 24; John 17:11-12; 1 Peter 1:5).
My notes
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