Jude 1:16 — meaning, Hebrew and Greek word study, commentary
Jude 1:16
These are murmurers, complainers, walking after their own lusts; and their mouth speaketh great swelling words, having men’s persons in admiration because of advantage.
the he (she or it) · demonstrative pronoun — nominative plural masculine
are
εἰσίeisí
G1526
they are
murmurers
γογγυσταὶgongustai
G1113
a grumbler · noun — nominative plural masculine
complainers
μεμψίμοιροι,mempsimoiroi
G3202
akin to the base of G3313 (μέρος)) · adjective — nominative plural masculine
walking
πορευόμενοι,poreuomenoi
G4198
to traverse · verb — present middle or passive deponent participle, nominative plural masculine
after
κατὰkata
G2596
(prepositionally) down (in place or time) · preposition
own
αὐτῶνautōn
G846
the reflexive pronoun self · personal pronoun — genitive plural masculine
lusts
ἐπιθυμίαςepithumias
G1939
a longing (especially for what is forbidden) · noun — accusative plural feminine
and
καὶkai
G2532
and · conjunction
their
αὐτόςautós
G846
the reflexive pronoun self
mouth
στόμαstoma
G4750
the mouth (as if a gash in the face) · noun — nominative singular neuter
speaketh
λαλεῖlalei
G2980
to talk · verb — present active indicative, 3rd person singular
swelling
ὑπέρογκα,huperogka
G5246
bulging over · adjective — accusative plural neuter
having
θαυμάζοντεςthaumazontes
G2296
to wonder · verb — present active participle, nominative plural masculine
men’s persons
πρόσωπαprosōpa
G4383
the front (as being towards view) · noun — accusative plural neuter
admiration
θαυμάζωthaumázō
G2296
to wonder
of
χάριν.¶charin
G5484
through favor of · preposition
advantage
ὠφελείαςōpheleias
G5622
usefulness · noun — genitive singular feminine
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
2 Peter 2:18 For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were cle…
Philippians 2:14 Do all things without murmurings and disputings:
2 Peter 2:10 But chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness, and despise government. Presumptuous are they, selfwilled, they are n…
1 Timothy 6:5 Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself.
1 Corinthians 10:10 Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer.
James 1:14-15 But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.
1 Peter 2:11 Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul;
1 Peter 4:2 That he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God.
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Jude 1:16–end
Here, I. The apostle enlarges further on the character of these evil men and seducers: they are murmurers, complainers, etc., Jde 1:16. Observe, A murmuring complaining temper, indulged and expressed, lays men under a very bad character; such are very weak at least, and for the most part very wicked. They murmur against God and his providence, against men and their conduct; they are angry at every thing that happens, and never pleased with their own state and condition in the world, as not thinking it good enough for them. Such walk after their own lusts; their will, their appetite, their fancy, are their only rule and law. Note, Those who please their sinful appetites are most prone to yiel…
murmurers--in secret: muttering murmurs against God's ordinances and ministers in Church and state. Compare Jde 1:8, "speak evil of dignities"; Jde 1:15, "hard speeches"; against the Lord.
complainers--never satisfied with their lot (Num 11:1; compare the penalty, Deu 28:47-48).
walking after their own lusts-- (Jde 1:18). The secret of their murmuring and complaining is the restless insatiability of their desires.
great swelling words-- (Pe2 2:18).
men's persons--their mere outward appearance and rank.
because of advantage--for the sake of what they may gain from them. While they talk great swelling words, they are really mean and fawning towards those of wealth and rank.
Adam Clarke on Jude 1:16
These are murmurers - Grudging and grumbling at all men, and at all things; complainers, μεμψιμοιροι, complainers of their fate or destiny - finding fault with God and all his providential dispensations, making and governing worlds in their own way; persons whom neither God nor man can please.
Walking after their own lusts - Taking their wild, disorderly, and impure passions for the rule of their conduct, and not the writings of the prophets and apostles.
Great swelling words - Ὑπερογκα. See the explanation of this term in Pe2 2:18.
Having men's persons in admiration - Time-servers and flatterers; persons who pretend to be astonished at the greatness, goodness, sagacity, learning, wisdom; e…
These people have no confidence in their own teaching. For how can it not be dangerous to spread it with such wickedness and blasphemy?
These are murmurers, grumblers, etc. The more anyone murmurs and grumbles about the present labors of the Church, the less they have extinguished the desires of the flesh within themselves. But on the contrary, holy Daniel and other men of heavenly desires, as diligently as they only desire the things above, so much more scornfully do they despise all passing things that seem adverse.
These are grumblers, complainers, walking according to their own lusts; and their mouth speaks great swelling words, flattering people to gain advantage. After this, however, having been freed from the accommodation of these ungodly ones, Jude now also addresses the matter itself, accusing their vices, calling them grumblers and complainers. There is indeed a grumbler, one who, under his breath and without speaking out, complains to the one who is displeased. The complainer, on the other hand, always and constantly engages in contempt. These wretched ones are murmurers and complainers, Jude says. For they do not have the boldness to engage in their teaching through shameful means. For it is not without danger to publicly proclaim recklessness with wickedness and blasphemy. And they are complainers, slandering both other people and the truth, in order to set up their own evils and obscenity as if they were something good. As he has said concerning Balaam, that they have poured themselves out for profit just like him, he now states more clearly that they flattering people to gain advantage, admiring indeed, by flattering those in authority, but the profit is actually the gain.
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
John Gill on Jude 1:16
These are murmurers,.... That is, at others; secretly, inwardly, in a muttering way, grunting out their murmurs like swine; to which, for their filthiness and apostasy, false teachers may be filly compared: and their murmurs might be both against God and men; against God, against the being of God, denying, or at least wishing there was no God, and uneasy because there is one; against the perfections of God, particularly his sovereignty over all, his special goodness to some, his wisdom, justice, truth, and faithfulness; against his purposes and decrees, both with respect to things temporal, spiritual, and eternal; against the providence of God and his government of the world, and the unequal…
Jude 14-16
14. And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints,
14. Prius autem etiam de iis vaticinatus est septimus ab Adam Enoch, dicens, Ecce venit Dominus in sanctis millibus suis,
15. To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him.
15. Ut faciat judicium adversus omnes, et redarguat ex eis omnes impios de factis omnibus impietatis quae impie patrarunt deque omnibus duris quae loquuti sunt adversus Deum peccatores impii.
16. These are murm…
The Kenites were a southern desert tribe associated with Moses’ in-laws, who were also called Midianites (Exod 18:1; Num 10:29). Moses offered them a share in the covenant blessing (Num 10:29-32). At least one clan of Kenites accepted the offer and was adopted into Judah, though members of the clan later shifted allegiance to King Jabin of Hazor (Judg 4:11, 17).