Most Christians know of Jude’s admonition to “contend for the faith” (Jude 1:3). And many have seen in Jude’s words a motivation or command to fight heresy to uphold the faith.
It makes sense. Jude undoubtedly spends considerable time warning his audience against those who would pervert the grace of God in their sensuality (Jude 1:4, 5–19). But the question is whether or not Jude’s polemics represent what it means to contend for the faith or if Jude might have something else in mind.
In my view, the structure of Jude’s letter and the meaning of his words lead to the conclusion that contending for the faith centres on a Trinitarian confession that expresses itself in prayer, love, and mercy.
Structure
While many have read Jude as a loose set of citations in need of an argument, in 1978 E. Earle Ellis argued instead that Jude carefully structured his argument in his Prophecy and Hermeneutic in Early Christianity. He pointed to Jude using regular patterns of textual citation and application using either “these” or “these are” (Jude 1:8, 10, 12, 14, 19) to apply these texts to his opponents.
It is through this pattern of citation and application, common to Midrashic interpretation, that Jude outlines his threefold characterization of his opponents from Jude 1:4: “For certain people have crept in unnoticed (1) who long ago were designated for this condemnation, (2) ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and (3) deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.”
Contending for the faith centres on our Trinitarian faith practically expressed in prayer, love, and the threefold mercy of Christ.
Importantly then, Jude warns his readers about certain ungodly people (1) whom the prophecies in Jude 5–19 show have been condemned long ago because (2) of their sensuality or libertine acts which amount to (3) a denial of Christ, their master.
How does Jude 1:3 then relate to this portion of the text’s body? The answer is in an indirect way because Jude returns to his main point in Jude 1:20–23 after warning his readers about the libertine acts of the ungodly in verses 4–19.
Jude points to his desire to “contend for the faith” in Jude 1:3 which he picks up on in verse 20 and following: “But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith…” (Jude 1:20). Structurally then, we might see Jude’s argument looking like this:
| Topic | Discussion |
| 1:3 — the Faith | 1:20–23 – the Faith expounded |
| 1:4 — the Ungodly | 1:5–19 – the Ungodly described |
Suffice it to say, the faith that we must contend for is not described in the condemnations that Jude makes in Jude 1:5–19. These descriptions warn Jude’s readers about a libertine perversion of God’s grace. After that warning, Jude emphasizes the importance of keeping in the faith and avoiding such perversions in 1:20–23.
Meaning
In 1:20–23, Jude positively describes how to contend for the faith. The warnings of verses 5–19 matter because they show what it looks like to pursue ungodliness—the key term that Jude uses to describe his opponents in Jude 1:4 and develops in the body of the letter:
Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of his holy ones, to execute judgment on all and to convict all the ungodly of all their deeds of ungodliness that they have committed in such an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things that ungodly sinners have spoken against him (Jude 1:14–15).
Jude warns against this ungodliness and instead wants his readers to contend for the faith which he describes in Jude 1:20–23:
But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life. And have mercy on those who doubt; save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh.
Jude’s contention for the faith involves prayer in the Spirit, the love of God the Father (see Jude 1:1), and the threefold mercy of Christ (vv. 20–23). Note the trinitarian structure to the faith Jude exposits: (1) praying in the Holy Spirit, (2) the love of God [the Father], and (3) the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ (vv. 20–21).
Notice also that Jude’s main goal is to preserve those who doubt, those who are in the fire, and those who are stained by sin. Likely, Jude speaks of those unduly influenced by the ungodly and the remedy for their rescue centres on the mercy of Christ.
Given this emphasis, we might have to change our expectations as to what contending for the faith looks like!
Conclusion
Jude brackets his letter around the notion of contending for the faith (Jude 1:3, 20–23). The reason why Jude wants his audience to contend for the faith in this way is because of certain ungodly ones who have “crept in unnoticed.” Jude warns against their perversion of “the grace of our God into sensuality” (Jude 1:4).
Afterwards, Jude lays out how to contend for the faith through a trinitarian faith that involves prayer, love, and the threefold mercy of Christ (Jude 1:20-23). Rather than a clarion call to polemicists everywhere, Jude instead outlines contending for the faith through a trinitarian structure of prayer, love, and mercy.
Nothing here suggests that we should avoid warning against false teaching (Jude does!). What is being said is that contending for the faith centres on our Trinitarian faith practically expressed in prayer, love, and the threefold mercy of Christ.
