Jude 1:12 kjv

These are spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear: clouds they are without water, carried about of winds; trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots;

Jude 1:12 nkjv

These are spots in your love feasts, while they feast with you without fear, serving only themselves. They are clouds without water, carried about by the winds; late autumn trees without fruit, twice dead, pulled up by the roots;

Jude 1:12 niv

These people 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.

Jude 1:12 esv

These are hidden reefs at your love feasts, as they feast with you without fear, shepherds feeding themselves; waterless clouds, swept along by winds; fruitless trees in late autumn, twice dead, uprooted;

Jude 1:12 nlt

When these people eat with you in your fellowship meals commemorating the Lord's love, they are like dangerous reefs that can shipwreck you. They are like shameless shepherds who care only for themselves. They are like clouds blowing over the land without giving any rain. They are like trees in autumn that are doubly dead, for they bear no fruit and have been pulled up by the roots.

Jude 1 verses

Jude 1 12 Meaning

Jude 1:12 powerfully describes the destructive and deceptive nature of false teachers, using a series of five vivid metaphors from the natural world to illustrate their emptiness, unfruitfulness, instability, moral defilement, and ultimate condemnation. These individuals infiltrate sacred communal gatherings, behaving with impious audacity, primarily concerned with their own selfish gratification rather than serving God or others. They offer nothing of spiritual substance or refreshment and are ultimately destined for eternal separation from God’s light.

Jude 1 12 Context

Jude's epistle is a fervent call for believers to contend earnestly for the faith against insidious false teachers who have stealthily infiltrated the Christian community. Written probably between A.D. 60-80, the letter functions as an urgent warning, asserting that these individuals pose a grave spiritual danger. Jude draws heavily on both Old Testament narratives and apocalyptic literature, along with parallels to 2 Peter chapter 2, to demonstrate the historical patterns of rebellion and the certain judgment awaiting those who pervert God's grace and indulge in moral depravity.

Verse 12 falls within Jude's detailed exposé (verses 8-16) of the character and conduct of these ungodly intruders. Having introduced them as those who "pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ" (v. 4), and illustrated their inevitable doom with examples from ancient history (the wilderness generation, rebellious angels, Sodom and Gomorrah), Jude then turns to a series of powerful, condemning metaphors. These metaphors, including their appearance at love feasts, graphically portray the emptiness, instability, lack of fruit, moral uncleanness, and destined judgment of these deceivers, contrasting sharply with true Christian living and the holy purpose of the church.

Jude 1 12 Word analysis

• These: Refers back to the "ungodly people" mentioned in verse 4 and subsequently described, highlighting their inherent moral and spiritual nature.
• are blemishes: Greek: spilades (σπιλάδες). This word primarily means "rocks" or "reefs," especially submerged ones. It implies hidden dangers, treachery, and elements that could cause a spiritual shipwreck within the fellowship. While some ancient manuscripts use spiloi (σπῖλοι), meaning "spots" or "stains" (as in 2 Pet 2:13), spilades intensifies the warning from mere defilement to active, concealed peril.
• on your love feasts: Greek: agapais (ἀγάπαις). These were communal meals shared by early Christians, signifying fellowship, unity, and shared love, often preceding or including the Lord's Supper. For the false teachers to desecrate these gatherings points to their deep-seated irreverence and self-serving motives.
• as they feast with you: Underscores their insidious presence and participation within the community, making their defilement even more insidious as they operate from within, appearing to be one of the believers.
• without fear: Lacking appropriate reverence, awe, or respect for God, sacred observances, or divine judgment. This highlights their brazen impiety and spiritual arrogance.
• caring for themselves: Greek: heautous poimainontes (ἑαυτοὺς ποιμαίνοντες), literally "shepherding themselves." This is a strong condemnation. True shepherds (spiritual leaders) are called to care for the flock of God (1 Pet 5:2); these individuals, by contrast, exploit the flock for their own gain, pleasures, and desires.
• waterless clouds: Clouds signify expectation of rain, which brings life and refreshment. "Waterless clouds" promise spiritual blessing or knowledge but deliver nothing of substance. They are deceptive and barren, incapable of providing what is needed.
• swept along by winds: Greek: hypo anemōn parapheromenai (ὑπὸ ἀνέμων παραφερόμεναι). Lacking inner stability or truth, they are driven erratically by external influences—their own sinful desires, prevailing societal trends, or false doctrines—rather than being guided by the steadfast Spirit of God.
• fruitless trees: Trees are expected to bear fruit as a sign of life and purpose. These teachers produce no spiritual fruit (like righteousness, godliness, or love) that validates genuine faith, highlighting their spiritual emptiness and unproductivity.
• in late autumn: Greek: phthinopōrina (φθινοπωρινά). Autumn is the season for harvesting fruit. The description emphasizes their failure to produce anything even when expected, reinforcing their long-term barrenness.
• twice dead: This vivid phrase denotes a profound, intensified state of spiritual deadness. It might suggest they were once seemingly alive or professing faith, but have apostatized and are now utterly devoid of true spiritual life and have become irrecoverable. It also foreshadows their eternal spiritual death, which is separate from their physical death.
• uprooted: Greek: ekrizōthenta (ἐκριζωθέντα). This signifies their final and irreversible removal and complete separation from the source of life. Like a tree detached from its roots, they have no connection to God and are destined for complete destruction.
• wild waves of the sea: The sea often symbolizes chaos, instability, and uncontrolled forces in biblical imagery. "Wild waves" characterize these teachers as turbulent, unrestrained, and destructive in their behavior and teachings.
• casting up their own shame like foam: Greek: epaphrizonta tas heautōn aischynas (ἐπαφρίζοντα τὰς ἑαυτῶν αἰσχύνας). Like seafoam, which often carries filth and is ephemeral, their unrestrained words and actions overtly expose their inherent moral impurity, corrupt character, and disgraceful behavior. Their depravity is not hidden but openly displayed.
• wandering stars: Greek: asteres planētai (ἀστέρες πλανῆται). Literally "planets" in the sense of stars that do not follow a fixed course in ancient cosmology, unlike other stars. This metaphor describes them as erratic, deviating from God's established order and truth, leading others astray with their unstable doctrines and deceptive practices, much like a star that offers no reliable navigational guidance.
• for whom the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved forever: Greek: hois ho zophos tou skotous eis aiōna tetērētai (οἷς ὁ ζόφος τοῦ σκότους εἰς αἰῶνα τετήrētai). This climactic image refers to eternal judgment. "Gloom of utter darkness" is the deepest, most terrifying form of darkness, symbolizing eternal punishment, absolute spiritual blindness, and complete exclusion from the light and presence of God. "Reserved forever" emphasizes its certainty, its fittingness as a punishment, and its unending nature.

Words-group Analysis

• Blemishes on your love feasts, as they feast with you without fear, caring for themselves: This cluster directly attacks their deceptive presence within Christian gatherings. It portrays them as selfish, disrespectful parasites who turn sacred communal meals into opportunities for self-indulgence and spiritual danger, revealing their false pretense of godliness.
• Waterless clouds swept along by winds; fruitless trees in late autumn, twice dead, uprooted: These metaphors collectively emphasize spiritual barrenness and utter lack of substance. They are deceptive in promising spiritual benefits they cannot deliver (like rain), yield no genuine fruit of the Spirit, and are cut off from the source of life, signaling complete spiritual death and irreversible judgment.
• Wild waves of the sea, casting up their own shame like foam; wandering stars, for whom the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved forever: These final two vivid images underscore the moral corruption, instability, and inevitable doom of the false teachers. They publicly display their vile character, erratically mislead others, and are justly destined for the deepest, eternal spiritual darkness and separation from God.

Jude 1 12 Bonus section

• The progression of the four core similes (clouds, trees, waves, stars) often found together, signifies an escalating descent from emptiness to inevitable eternal condemnation. They are increasingly disconnected from God’s life and order, leading to increasing chaos and ultimate judgment.
• The striking parallels between Jude and 2 Peter 2 (especially regarding the "waterless clouds" and "gloomy darkness") suggest either literary dependence or a common stock of condemnatory imagery circulating in the early church against these dangerous apostates. This emphasizes the unified apostolic stance against such false teaching.
• The accusation that they are "caring for themselves" stands in direct contrast to the biblical mandate for true spiritual leaders to serve and feed the flock, highlighting their gross perversion of the pastoral office (e.g., Acts 20:28; 1 Pet 5:2).
• The concept of "wandering stars" or planētai was significant in ancient cosmology, as fixed stars provided navigation and reliability, whereas objects that "wandered" (planets/comets) were often viewed with suspicion or associated with omens of disorder. This underscores the treacherous nature of these false guides who steer people off the course of truth.

Jude 1 12 Commentary

Jude 1:12 provides a searing denunciation of false teachers by likening them to five powerful, negative images from nature, progressively revealing their emptiness and corruption. They are insidious dangers (blemishes/reefs) infiltrating Christian communal meals (love feasts), displaying blatant self-interest ("shepherding themselves") and irreverence ("without fear"). Spiritually, they are empty promises (waterless clouds), offering no refreshment, and devoid of genuine good (fruitless trees), ultimately severed from life itself ("twice dead, uprooted"). Their destructive character is seen in their moral depravity that becomes evident through their behavior ("wild waves... casting up their own shame like foam"), and they are deceptive, misleading influences ("wandering stars"). The terrifying climax of these descriptions is their certain and eternal condemnation: "the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved forever" for them, highlighting the severe judgment awaiting those who lead others astray and pervert divine truth.