(wThoi xai fiZjfioi) They are spots in themselves ; disgraces , which provoke others to blame the Church itself. As spots most shame- fully disfigure the brightest objects, so do these men disgrace your love-feasts. — evrpupuvreg) sporting themselves , so that they indulge themselves, and mock at others. The verb has a middle sense. It is used in the Septuagint, followed by sv, Isa. lv. 2, lvii. 4. — acra- ratg1) deceivings. Jude 12, iv rcug ayuncug u/awv, in your feasts : Peter, making an important alteration in the letters, iv roug dnurcug avruv, in tlieir deceivings. An anonymous writer in MS. Catena, praised by Mill : ov 5/’ ATAIIHN xa/' r'o /ueruXctBiTv aXuvy ffvvevuj-
yoxivrui vfitv, dXXd bid rb xa/pbv svplffxeiv rJjg <rpbg yvvcuxag ATIATH2 itfirrjbsiov : It is not , he says , for the sake of LOVE, and of sharing your salt , that they feast with you , hut that they may find a convenient opportunity of deceit with regard to your wives. At any rate, it is evident from this, that Peter alludes to the love-feasts ; because each of them adds, feasting with you , and the one, sporting themselves , the other, feeding themselves. — <rwsvu%ov/xsvoi v/iTv) feasting with you. E uw%/a, a splendid feast, especially a sacred one ; dnb roD tZ ’iyziv ro vg ffuviovrag e/g svtppoffvvriv n/x/j rov 6riov, xa/ s/g cutiGiv eavroug xaOievcu : from the fact , that those who assemble at a feast in honour of the god , have good cheer , and give themselves to indulgence. See Eust., fol. 281, ed. Pom.
14. Moi^aXibog, of an adulteress ) An adulteress has gained posses- sion of their eyes, that is, alluring desire. The parallel word is, from sin. — beXedfyvrsg, enticing) with those eyes to disgraceful deeds of the flesh. — xupbi av, the heart) Besides the eyes , mention is also made of the heart : Ezek. vi. 9. — xurdpug, of cursing) not of blessing in Christ, 1 Pet. iii. 9. Cursing especially follows covetousness. See the following verses.
15. ’’Ei'ctxoXovdrjffoivTtg cbui rov BaXocd/u following the way of Balaam) See note on Jude 8, from Isa. lvi. — B ocop, Bosor) This and Beor are synonyms. Hill. Onom., pp. 700, 763, 774. Lightfoot (Hor. in Act., p. 270) thinks that sigma was written by Peter among the Babylonians by a Clialdaism for V.
16. 'Yftofvyiov d(f>uvor Kpopyrou, a dumb beast : of the prophet) A fine antithesis. So great was the madness of Balaam, that an ass must speak, rather than it should pass unreproved. — d<p uvov) without a voice of man.
1 ’A TTuroitg is supported by A corrected, C, Memph. and later Syr., and so R.ec. Text and Tisch. ; but dyotnuii by A later corrected, B Vulg. Theb. Syr. : and so Lachm- — E.