I, John, your brother and companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. "I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, "who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty. Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of him. So shall it be! Amen. And has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father--to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen." And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood.
John, To the seven churches in the province of Asia: Grace and peace to you from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits before his throne. Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near. Who testifies to everything he saw--that is, the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John.
"To the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore!" Amen. To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy. Snatch others from the fire and save them; to others show mercy, mixed with fear--hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh. Be merciful to those who doubt; Keep yourselves in God's love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life. But you, dear friends, build yourselves up in your most holy faith and pray in the Holy Spirit.
These are the men who divide you, who follow mere natural instincts and do not have the Spirit. They said to you, "In the last times there will be scoffers who will follow their own ungodly desires." But, dear friends, remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ foretold. These men are grumblers and faultfinders; they follow their own evil desires; they boast about themselves and flatter others for their own advantage. to judge everyone, and to convict all the ungodly of all the ungodly acts they have done in the ungodly way, and of all the harsh words ungodly sinners have spoken against him."
Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men: "See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones They are wild waves of the sea, foaming up their shame; wandering stars, for whom blackest darkness has been reserved forever. These men are blemishes at your love feasts, eating with you without the slightest qualm--shepherds who feed only themselves. They are clouds without rain, blown along by the wind; autumn trees, without fruit and uprooted--twice dead. Woe to them! They have taken the way of Cain; they have rushed for profit into Balaam's error; they have been destroyed in Korah's rebellion. Yet these men speak abusively against whatever they do not understand; and what things they do understand by instinct, like unreasoning animals--these are the very things that destroy them. But even the archangel Michael, when he was disputing with the devil about the body of Moses, did not dare to bring a slanderous accusation against him, but said, "The Lord rebuke you!" In the very same way, these dreamers pollute their own bodies, reject authority and slander celestial beings. In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire.
And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their own home--these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day. Though you already know all this, I want to remind you that the Lord delivered his people out of Egypt, but later destroyed those who did not believe For certain men whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are godless men, who change the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord. Dear friends, although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share, I felt I had to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints.
Mercy, peace and love be yours in abundance.
Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and a brother of James, To those who have been called, who are loved by God the Father and kept by Jesus Christ.
They were looking for me!
