20 Dear friends, you must become strong in your most holy faith. Let the Holy Spirit lead you as you pray. 21 Keep yourselves in the love of God. Wait for life that lasts forever through the loving-kindness of our Lord Jesus Christ. 22 Have loving-kindness for those who doubt. 23 Save some by pulling them out of the fire. Have loving-kindness for others but also fear them. Be afraid of being led into doing their sins. Hate even the clothes that have touched sinful bodies. 24 There is One Who can keep you from falling and can bring you before Himself free from all sin. He can give you great joy as you stand before Him in His shining-greatness. 25 He is the only God. He is the One Who saves from the punishment of sin through Jesus Christ our Lord. May He have shining-greatness and honor and power and the right to do all things. He had this before the world began, He has it now, and He will have this forever. Let it be so.
The letter ends on a more positive note, with the author once again calling his audience “beloved” (NIV: “dear friends”). They are Christians in whom the Holy Spirit resides and Jude concludes by blessing them according to Christian traditions. He ends with references to the basic ideas of Christianity, notably the trinity. He exhorts the community to follow the Christian life of faith, prayer and love. Hope is also implied here in verse 21, for they are to wait for eternal life. They should recognize that they are blessed now with God’s love and mercy and should behave accordingly.
Jude concludes by telling them to reach out to other Christians, especially those who may be doubting. Some people may be lost to the intruders (Jude’s adversaries) but some can be saved. However, we are to behave as Jesus did and show mercy to those who disagree with us. Note that, although Jude has been extremely critical of his opponents until now, he finishes with a call to mercy. The intruders are dangerous because they can lead others astray and they should not be part of the community. So, Christians should show mercy to such people but it should be mixed with fear. Of course, people like the intruders exist in every age, today as much as then. Arrogance and sin are part of everyone’s life and we may each also exhibit characteristics of Jude’s opponents. But God will support us and help us to overcome such people and things.
Note the concluding doxology (doxology means “a word of praise”). As is common, it has four different parts: someone to be praised; the praise, “glory” which is what doxa means; a mention of eternity “forever” and a response by the listeners, “amen”. The letter warns us that we will find opponents but also presents the ideals of Christian life, which are based on faith, hope, and love. Prayer is vital to maintain that life. But we should show compassion to others and be missionaries. All our life should be directed to God whom we should praise and thank. That is the final message of the letter of Jude.
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