The Pulpit Commentary — Jude — Section 43

easily satisfied. And, in murmnring and com1llaiuing, "their mouth epeakelh groat RWelling words;" they reflect on God for not making their lot better, they seek to imprese men with the great things they are entitled to. While thus they exalt themselves tl1ey can demean themselves far enough in fawning upon persons from whom they hop~ to obt11in an odvantllge. IX. Al'.°sroLic TEACHING. 1. Its contents. "But ye, beloved, remember ye tho words which have bee• spoken before by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ· how that they said to you, In the last time there shall be mockers, walking after thei'r own ungodly lusts." The prophecy of Enoch was of most ancient date; he uow refers his readers to what was within their own recollection. '!'hey had not beard our Lord Jesus Christ; but they had beard his apostles. 'l'hey were thus very near the highest source. Those apostles spoke of the last time, i.e. the period immediately preceding the com- ]Jletion of the kingdom of God. They spoke of mockers then. Of all classes of men these are the worst. They are not satisfied with ignoring holy things-they turn them into ridicule. They are representoo. by the free-thinkers of the present day, who are increasingly ~ggressive. There is this to be said that where there is an earnest Chris- tianity, dislike of it takes the form of mocking. In the last time there will be an earnest Christianity such as we have not yet seen; and we may also expect that infidelity will then be most bitter when its utter defeat is near. We have the authority of the apostles here for saying that infidelity and libertinism go together. Mockers, they say, "walking after their own lusts of ungodliness." 'l'he explanation of the infidelity of many ie their di!Jike of godly restraints. 2. Its appUcation. "'l'heseare-they who make separations, sensual, having not the Spirit." It is very difficult to fix the meaning of the first part of this description. It is against the old translation, "they who separate themselves," that the men in question were present at the love-feasts. Neither does it appear that they were connected with a Christian society to "make separations," as the Revised translation bears. The idea of mocking is not lost s.ight of, as appears from the following yerse. But, as if mocking were already asserted of these men, the thought proceeds, •· These mockers are they." What, then, are we to make of the word which has given so much trouble? Taking the literal meaning to be" to put the limit away from," we would translate, "they who ta.kc excess of liberty." 'l'his is in accordance with the second idea in the apostolic saying. '!'here is an easy transition then to "psychical." "The' psychical' of Script11re are those in whom the spirit, as the organ of the Divine Spirit, is suppressed, dormant, for the time as good as extinct ; whom the operations of the Divine Spirit have never lifted into the region of spiritual things" ('l'rench). Hence it is added, "having not the Spirit." These mockers make their own bounds, because under natural impulses instead of the Spirit's infl.11ences. X. ExBOBTATlON TO READERS B.EGABDING THEMSELVES. 1. Connection of life with faith. " But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith." 'l'here is a couplet which is taken to convey this meaning-that one mode of faith is just as good u another. "For modes of faith let graceless zealots fight; His can't be wrong, whose life is in the right." It is true that Lis mode of faith can't be wrong, whose life is in the right; but it is also true that his life can't be in the right, whose mode of faith is wrong. What we believe b the foundation; what we build on it is our life. This is in the line of Jude's _thought. He Las characte1ized mockers as libertines. And, having recorded this charge against the iufidels or scoffers of his day (even within the pale of the Church), he turns to his own true brethren in the faith, and says to them, addressing them by an endearing title, " But ye, beloved, buildin"' up yourselves on your most holy faith." As if he ea.id, "Ye han a most holy faith, lcl your life (to correspond with it) also be most holy." "faith" here is equivalent to the Object of faith. Wedo not build upon our act of faith; that i, 1he heresy of buildiu"' on ourselves. We build on the Object of our faith. Now, the great Object of our faiLh is God. We believe in God-that is the first article of our creed. We are theists, and not atheists. But more definitely we are Christian believers-we believe in a God identified with the Christian manifestation. We believe in a God to whom sin was so heinous that nothing but the blood of his incarnate Son could suffice to take it away. Should there not, then, be an awful sanctity about our 1-26.] THE GENERAL EPISTLE OF JUDE. 43