The Race of Faith

12 Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, ^(A)let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and ^(B)let us run ^(C)with endurance the race that is set before us, ² looking unto Jesus, the ^[a]author and ^[b]finisher of our faith, ^(D)who for the joy that was set before Him ^(E)endured the cross, despising the shame, and ^(F)has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

The Discipline of God^(G)

^3 (H)For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, ^(I)lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls. ^4 (J)You have not yet resisted to bloodshed, striving against sin. ⁵ And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to sons:

^7 (M)If^[d] you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what ^(N)son is there whom a father does not chasten? ⁸ But if you are without chastening, ^(O)of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and not sons. ⁹ Furthermore, we have had human fathers who corrected us, and we paid them respect. Shall we not much more readily be in subjection to ^(P)the Father of spirits and live? ¹⁰ For they indeed for a few days chastened us as seemed best to them, but He for our profit, ^(Q)that we may be partakers of His holiness. ¹¹ Now no ^[e]chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields ^(R)the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.

Renew Your Spiritual Vitality^(S)

¹² Therefore ^(T)strengthen the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees, ¹³ and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be dislocated, but rather be healed.

^14 (U)Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, ^(V)without which no one will see the Lord: ¹⁵ looking carefully lest anyone ^(W)fall short of the grace of God; lest any ^(X)root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled; ¹⁶ lest there be any ^(Y)fornicator or ^[f]profane person like Esau, ^(Z)who for one morsel of food sold his birthright. ¹⁷ For you know that afterward, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was ^(AA)rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought it diligently with tears.

The Glorious Company

¹⁸ For you have not come ^[g]to ^(AB)the mountain that may be touched and that burned with fire, and to blackness and ^[h]darkness and tempest, ¹⁹ and the sound of a trumpet and the voice of words, so that those who heard it ^(AC)begged that the word should not be spoken to them anymore. ²⁰ (For they could not endure what was commanded: ^(AD)“And if so much as a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned ^[i]or shot with an arrow.” ²¹ And so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, ^(AE)“I am exceedingly afraid and trembling.”)

²² But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, ²³ to the ^[j]general assembly and church of ^(AF)the firstborn ^(AG)who are registered in heaven, to God ^(AH)the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men ^(AI)made perfect, ²⁴ to Jesus ^(AJ)the Mediator of the new covenant, and to ^(AK)the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things ^(AL)than that of Abel.

Hear the Heavenly Voice

²⁵ See that you do not refuse Him who speaks. For ^(AM)if they did not escape who refused Him who spoke on earth, much more shall we not escape if we turn away from Him who speaks from heaven, ²⁶ whose voice then shook the earth; but now He has promised, saying, ^(AN)“Yet once more I ^[k]shake not only the earth, but also heaven.” ²⁷ Now this, “Yet once more,” indicates the ^(AO)removal of those things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain.

²⁸ Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we ^[l]may ^(AP)serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. ²⁹ For ^(AQ)our God is a consuming fire.

Concluding Moral Directions

13 Let ^(AR)brotherly love continue. ^2 (AS)Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing ^(AT)some have unwittingly entertained angels. ^3 (AU)Remember the prisoners as if chained with them—those who are mistreated—since you yourselves are in the body also.

^4 (AV)Marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled; ^(AW)but fornicators and adulterers God will judge.

⁵ Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, ^(AX)“I will never leave you nor forsake you.” ⁶ So we may boldly say:

Concluding Religious Directions

⁷ Remember those who ^[m]rule over you, who have spoken the word of God to you, whose faith follow, considering the outcome of their conduct. ⁸ Jesus Christ is ^(AZ)the same yesterday, today, and forever. ⁹ Do not be carried ^[n]about with various and strange doctrines. For it is good that the heart be established by grace, not with foods which have not profited those who have been occupied with them.

¹⁰ We have an altar from which those who serve the tabernacle have no right to eat. ¹¹ For the bodies of those animals, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are burned outside the camp. ¹² Therefore Jesus also, that He might ^[o]sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered outside the gate. ¹³ Therefore let us go forth to Him, outside the camp, bearing ^(BA)His reproach. ¹⁴ For here we have no continuing city, but we seek the one to come. ^15 (BB)Therefore by Him let us continually offer ^(BC)the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, ^(BD)the fruit of our lips, ^[p]giving thanks to His name. ^16 (BE)But do not forget to do good and to share, for ^(BF)with such sacrifices God is well pleased.

^17 (BG)Obey those who ^[q]rule over you, and be submissive, for ^(BH)they watch out for your souls, as those who must give account. Let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you.

Prayer Requested

^18 (BI)Pray for us; for we are confident that we have ^(BJ)a good conscience, in all things desiring to live honorably. ¹⁹ But I especially urge you to do this, that I may be restored to you the sooner.

Benediction, Final Exhortation, Farewell

²⁰ Now may ^(BK)the God of peace ^(BL)who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, ^(BM)that great Shepherd of the sheep, ^(BN)through the blood of the everlasting covenant, ²¹ make you ^[r]complete in every good work to do His will, ^(BO)working in ^[s]you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.

²² And I appeal to you, brethren, bear with the word of exhortation, for I have written to you in few words. ²³ Know that our brother Timothy has been set free, with whom I shall see you if he comes shortly.

²⁴ Greet all those who ^[t]rule over you, and all the saints. Those from Italy greet you.

²⁵ Grace be with you all. Amen.

Greeting to the Called

¹ Jude, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, and ^(A)brother of James,

To those who are ^(B)called, ^[a]sanctified by God the Father, and ^(C)preserved in Jesus Christ:

² Mercy, ^(D)peace, and love be multiplied to you.

Contend for the Faith

³ Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you ^(E)concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting ^(F)you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints. ⁴ For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord ^[b]God and our Lord Jesus Christ.

Old and New Apostates

⁵ But I want to remind you, though you once knew this, that ^(G)the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe. ⁶ And the angels who did not keep their ^[c]proper domain, but left their own abode, He has reserved in everlasting chains under darkness for the judgment of the great day; ⁷ as ^(H)Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities around them in a similar manner to these, having given themselves over to sexual immorality and gone after strange flesh, are set forth as an example, suffering the ^[d]vengeance of eternal fire.

^8 (I)Likewise also these dreamers defile the flesh, reject authority, and ^(J)speak evil of ^[e]dignitaries. ⁹ Yet Michael the archangel, in ^[f]contending with the devil, when he disputed about the body of Moses, dared not bring against him a reviling accusation, but said, ^(K)“The Lord rebuke you!” ^10 (L)But these speak evil of whatever they do not know; and whatever they know naturally, like brute beasts, in these things they corrupt themselves. ¹¹ Woe to them! For they have gone in the way ^(M)of Cain, ^(N)have run greedily in the error of Balaam for profit, and perished ^(O)in the rebellion of Korah.

Apostates Depraved and Doomed

¹² These are ^[g]spots in your love feasts, while they feast with you without fear, serving only themselves. They are clouds without water, carried ^[h]about by the winds; late autumn trees without fruit, twice dead, pulled up by the roots; ^13 (P)raging waves of the sea, ^(Q)foaming up their own shame; wandering stars ^(R)for whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever.

¹⁴ Now Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men also, saying, “Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of His saints, ¹⁵ to execute judgment on all, to convict all who are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have committed in an ungodly way, and of all the ^(S)harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.”

Apostates Predicted

¹⁶ These are grumblers, complainers, walking according to their own lusts; and they ^(T)mouth great swelling words, ^(U)flattering people to gain advantage. ^17 (V)But you, beloved, remember the words which were spoken before by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ: ¹⁸ how they told you that ^(W)there would be mockers in the last time who would walk according to their own ungodly lusts. ¹⁹ These are ^[i]sensual persons, who cause divisions, not having the Spirit.

Maintain Your Life with God

²⁰ But you, beloved, ^(X)building yourselves up on your most holy faith, ^(Y)praying in the Holy Spirit, ²¹ keep yourselves in the love of God, ^(Z)looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.

²² And on some have compassion, ^[j]making a distinction; ²³ but ^(AA)others save ^[k]with fear, ^(AB)pulling them out of the ^[l]fire, hating even ^(AC)the garment defiled by the flesh.

Glory to God