SEV Biblia, Chapter 1:3
¶ Amados, por la gran solicitud que tenía de escribiros acerca de la comn salud, me ha sido necesario escribiros amonestndoos que os esforcis a perseverar en la fe, que ha sido una vez dada a los santos.
Clarke's Bible Commentary - Jude 1:3
Verse 3. When I gave all diligence] This phrase, pasan spoudhn poioumenov, is a Grecism for being exceedingly intent upon a subject; taking it up seriously with determination to bring it to good effect. The meaning of the apostle seems to be this: "Beloved brethren, when I saw it necessary to write to you concerning the common salvation, my mind being deeply affected with the dangers to which the Church is exposed from the false teachers that are gone out into the world, I found it extremely necessary to write and exhort you to hold fast the truth which you had received, and strenuously to contend for that only faith which, by our Lord and his apostles, has been delivered to the Christians." Some think that St. Jude intimates that he had at first purposed to write to the Church at large, on the nature and design of the Gospel; but seeing the dangers to which the Churches were exposed, because of the false teachers, he changed his mind, and wrote pointedly against those false doctrines, exhorting them strenuously to contend for the faith. The common salvation] The Christian religion, and the salvation which it brings. This is called common because it equally belongs to Jews and Gentiles; it is the saving grace of God which has appeared to every man, and equally offers to every human being that redemption which is provided for the whole world.
John Gill's Bible Commentary
Ver. 3. Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you , etc.] The apostle calls the persons he writes unto beloved; as they were of God, and by him and other saints; and he signifies his diligence in writing to them: and the subject of his writing was, of the common salvation ; which designs either the Gospel, sometimes called salvation, in opposition to the law, which is a ministration of condemnation; and because it is a declaration of salvation, and a means of it; and may be said to be common, because preached to all, Jews and Gentiles: or Jesus Christ the Saviour himself, who is also sometimes called salvation, because he was called and appointed to it, and undertook it, and is become the author of it; and may be said to be a common Saviour, not of all men, but of all his people; of his whole body, the church, and every member of it, and of all sorts of men, in all nations: or else that spiritual and eternal salvation wrought out by him, which is common, not to all men, for all are not saved with it, but to all the elect of God, and true believers in Christ; the love of God is common to them all alike; the choice of them to eternal salvation is the same; the covenant of grace, the blessings and promises of it, are equally shared by them; and they are bought with the same price of Christ's blood, and are justified by the same righteousness, and are regenerated, sanctified, and called by the same grace, and shall possess the same glory: there is but one way of salvation, and that is not confined to any nation, family, community, or sect among men. The Alexandrian copy and two of Beza's, and the Syriac version, read, our common salvation; and two other of Beza's copies and the Vulgate Latin version read, your common salvation; the sense is the same: it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort [you], that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints ; by the faith is meant the doctrine of faith, in which sense it is used whenever faith is said to be preached, obeyed, departed, or erred from, or denied, or made shipwreck of, or when exhortations are made to stand fast, and continue in it, or to strive and contend for it, as here; and which is sometimes called the word of faith, the faith of the Gospel, the mystery of faith, or most holy faith, the common faith, and, as here, faith only; and designs the whole scheme of evangelical truths to be believed; such as the doctrine of the Trinity, the deity and sonship of Christ, the divinity and personality of the Spirit; what regards the state and condition of man by nature, as the doctrines of the imputation of Adam's sin to his posterity, the corruption of nature, and the impotence of men to that which is good; what concerns the acts of grace in the Father, Son, and Spirit, towards, and upon the sons of men; as the doctrines of everlasting love, eternal election, the covenant of grace, particular redemption, justification by the imputed righteousness of Christ, pardon and reconciliation by his blood, regeneration and sanctification by the grace of the Spirit, final perseverance, the resurrection of the dead, and the future glory of the saints with Christ. This is said to be delivered to the saints: it was delivered by God the Father to Christ as Mediator, and by him to his apostles, who may more especially be meant by the saints, or holy men; who were chosen to be holy, and to whom Christ was made sanctification, and who were sanctified by the Spirit of God; and this faith, being a most holy faith, is fit for holy men, and only proper to be delivered to them, and preached by them; and by them it was delivered to the churches, both by word and writing; and this delivery of it supposes that it is not an invention of men, that it is of God, and a gift of his, and given in trust in order to be kept, held forth, and held fast; and it was but once delivered, in opposition to the sundry times and divers manners in which the mind of God was formerly made known; and designs the uniformity, perfection, and continuance of the doctrine of faith; there is no alteration to be made in it, or addition to it; no new revelations are to be expected, it has been delivered all at once: and therefore should be earnestly contended for; for could it be lost, another could not be had; and the whole of it is to be contended for; not only the fundamentals, but the lesser matters of faith; and not things essential only, but also what are circumstantial to faith and religion; every truth, ordinance, and duty, and particularly the purity of faith, and its consistency: and this contention includes a care and solicitude for it, to have it, own it, and hold it fast, and adorn it; and for the preservation of it, and for the spread of it, and that it might be transmitted to posterity: and it denotes a conflict, a combat, or a fighting for it, a striving even to an agony: the persons to be contended with on account of it, are such who deny, or depreciate any of the Persons in the Godhead, the assertors of the purity and power of human nature, and the deniers of sovereign, efficacious, and persevering grace: the persons who are to contend with them are all the saints in general, to whom it is delivered; which they may do by bearing an experimental testimony to it, by praying for the continuance and success of it, by standing fast in one spirit in it, and by dying for it; and particularly the ministers of the Gospel, by preaching it boldly, openly, fully, and faithfully, by disputing for it, and writing in the defence of it, and by laying down their lives, when called for: the manner in which this is to be done, is earnestly, heartily, in good earnest, and without deceit, zealously, and constantly.
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 1-4 - Christians are called out of the world, from the evil spirit and tempe of it; called above the world, to higher and better things, to heaven things unseen and eternal; called from sin to Christ, from vanity to seriousness, from uncleanness to holiness; and this according to the Divine purpose and grace. If sanctified and glorified, all the honou and glory must be ascribed to God, and to him alone. As it is God wh begins the work of grace in the souls of men, so it is he who carrie it on, and perfects it. Let us not trust in ourselves, nor in our stoc of grace already received, but in him, and in him alone. The mercy of God is the spring and fountain of all the good we have or hope for mercy, not only to the miserable, but to the guilty. Next to mercy i peace, which we have from the sense of having obtained mercy. From peace springs love; Christ's love to us, our love to him, and ou brotherly love to one another. The apostle prays, not that Christian may be content with a little; but that their souls and societies may be full of these things. None are shut out from gospel offers an invitations, but those who obstinately and wickedly shut themselve out. But the application is to all believers, and only to such. It is to the weak as well as to the strong. Those who have received the doctrine of this common salvation, must contend for it, earnestly, no furiously. Lying for the truth is bad; scolding for it is not better Those who have received the truth must contend for it, as the apostle did; by suffering with patience and courage for it, not by makin others suffer if they will not embrace every notion we call faith, or important. We ought to contend earnestly for the faith, in oppositio to those who would corrupt or deprave it; who creep in unawares; wh glide in like serpents. And those are the worst of the ungodly, wh take encouragement to sin boldly, because the grace of God ha abounded, and still abounds so wonderfully, and who are hardened by the extent and fulness of gospel grace, the design of which is to delive men from sin, and bring them unto God.
Greek Textus Receptus
αγαπητοι 27 πασαν 3956 σπουδην 4710 ποιουμενος 4160 5734 γραφειν 1125 5721 υμιν 5213 περι 4012 της 3588 κοινης 2839 σωτηριας 4991 αναγκην 318 εσχον 2192 5627 γραψαι 1125 5658 υμιν 5213 παρακαλων 3870 5723 επαγωνιζεσθαι 1864 5738 τη 3588 απαξ 530 παραδοθειση 3860 5685 τοις 3588 αγιοις 40 πιστει 4102
Vincent's NT Word Studies
3. Beloved. Occurring at the beginning of an epistle only here and 3 John 2.
When I gave all diligence (pasan spoudhn poioumenov). Lit., making all diligence; the phrase found only here. In Heb. vi. 11, we find "shew diligence" (endeiknusqai); and in 2 Pet. i. 5, "adding diligence." See note there.
The common salvation. The best texts add hJmwn, of us. So Rev., "our common salvation."
It was needful (anagkhn escon). Lit., I had necessity. Alford, I found it necessary. Rev., I was constrained.
Earnestly contend (epagwnizesqai). Only here in New Testament.
The faith. The sum of what Christians believe. See on Acts vi. 7.
Once (apax). Nor formerly, but once for all. So Rev., "No other faith will be given," says Bengel.
