Jude Goes Old School

“Woe to them! For they walked in the way of Cain and abandoned themselves for the sake of gain to Balaam’s error and perished in Korah’s rebellion” (v11).

Everybody loves the classics. Classic rock. Classic cars. Classic movies. But here Jude uses classic villains of the Old Testament to describe the false teachers he’s warning about. Jesus’ kid brother goes old school because their sin is old school. They’re just like Cain, the first killer. They’re just like Balaam, the profitable prophet. They’re just like Korah, leader of the coup to overthrow Moses. These religious con artists are bad news to the Good News. Their sin is of biblical proportions. So Jude goes old school.

This isn’t the first time Jude has flipped through the pages of the OT to warn believers about this crew of hucksters. The false teachers are weaseling they way into local churches and dispensing a perverted message (Jude 4). He reassures us that God knew how to handle the rebellious Israelites (Num 14:22-23, 29-30, 35,37; Jude 5), the renegade angels (Gen 6:1-5; Ezek 28:14-17; Jude 6), and the Twin Sin Cities of Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen 18:20-33; 19:1-14, 23-28; Jude 7). He’ll certainly take care the false teachers.

Before turning the the OT triple play of Cain-to-Balaam-to-Korah, Jude lets us know just what a kind of disaster is going on. “Woe to them!” (v11). By saying “woe,” the author uses the Greek word (Gr. ouai) that means disaster, calamity, horror, and distress. It describes how awfully one will suffer and what terrible pain will come. Remember the infamous words Kurtz in the classic film “Apocalypse Now.” “The horror…the horror!” Jude is letting us all know just how horrible it will be for these con artists once His big Brother gets ahold of them! Jesus had identical dire warnings for those who were spiritually arrogant (Mt 23:13, 15, 16, 23, 25, 27, 29). Forget any movie by George Romero. This is a real horror story. This is an epic disaster. Yeah, it stinks to be them!

He compares them to three big time bad guys from the OT. Cain, Balaam, and Korah. Leading off is Adam and Eve’s oldest. He’s the first murderer to walk the planet. You’ve probably heard the story (Gen 4:1-15). Apparently Cain brought God leftovers as an offering while his kid brother Abel was eager to give the Creator his first and best. When Yahweh didn’t think much of Cain’s offering, he blew his top. Instead of taking this up with God, he took it out on his little brother. Cain mugged and murdered Abel when they were out on the farm. The Apostle John says that if you’re looking for examples from Scripture, we need to steer clear of Cain. “We should not be like Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own deeds were evil and his brother’s righteous” (1Jn 3:11-12). Jude tells us that the false teachers “walked in the way of Cain” (v11). We don’t know if they were stingy givers or murderers. Whatever the case, it’s never a good thing when someone writing a book of the Bible slaps the Cain label on you. Jude goes old school because their sin is old school.

If that’s not bad enough, these false teachers have “abandoned themselves for the sake of gain to Balaam’s” (v11). They’re out to make a fast buck at the expense of others. They’re just like Balaam, the profitable prophet. You can read all about this spiritual hired gun in Numbers 22-25. His soothsaying services were available to the highest bidder. If you’ve got the cash, he’s got your prophecy. The leader of the apostles also compares these shysters to the prophet-for-hire. “Forsaking the right way, they have gone astray. They have followed the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved gain from wrongdoing” (2Pet 2:15). 

“Balaam-itis” spreads from church to church like a cancer. The resurrected Jesus told his buddy John to write a letter to the church in Pergamum warning them that “you have some there who hold to the teaching of Balaam” (Rev 2:14). Jesus tells John that they’ve caused believers to trip and fall by eating food used in pagan worship and hop in the sack with folks other than their own spouses. There was a strong sexual content to the teaching of the false teachers that Jude warned about (Jude 4, 7-8). That’s because sex sells, even in the church. ESPECIALLY in the church! Like Balaam, the false teachers know that there’s no business like God’s business. One of God’s prophets drops the hammer on preaching for profit among the people of God. “Its heads give judgment for a bribe; its priests teach for a price; its prophets practice divination for money; yet they lean on the LORD and say, ‘Is not the LORD in the midst of us? No disaster shall come upon us’” (Mic 3:11). Preaching for profit is an age old problem. Jude goes old school because their sin is old school.

Jesus’ little brother completes the triple play by comparing the false teachers to the rebel leader who attempted to take over from Moses. We’re talking about “Korah’s rebellion” (v11). Korah clearly thought he could do a much better job of leading God’s people than the Big Mo. There was only one little problem with that. God handpicked Moses to be their leader. The writer of Numbers spends an entire chapter on this failed coup (Num 16). Korah rallied a team of 250 Jewish top dogs to challenge Moses’ leadership. Yeah, this didn’t end well for the rebels. The ground underneath the feet of Korah and his fam “opened its mouth and swallowed them up” (Num 16:31). Moments later fire rained from heaven to kill Korah’s 250 coconspirators (Num 16:35). You would think that would have put an end to the revolution. But the very next day every single Israelite whined and complained to Moses and his brother Aaron about what had just happened. As a result, God sent a plague to put down another 14,700 people (Num 16:41). 

There are a handful of huge lessons to learn from Korah and his failed rebellion. First, be very, very careful when you challenge those in authority. We’re called to live in submission (Eph 5:21). We’re called to live under authority. Second, remember that God has placed every leader where they are (Rom 13:1). Protesting against our leaders may actually be a protest against God (Rom 13:2). Third, rebellion comes at a cost. There’s collateral damage. Korah’s failed coup didn’t just cost him his life. It’s cost him the lives of his family. It cost the lives of the 250 rebels. It eventually cost the lives of another 14,700 sympathizers. And don’t miss Jude’s point that the false teachers have also “perished in Korah’s rebellion” (v11). Their rebellion has sealed their fate. Once again we see that these con artists aren’t up to anything new. Jude goes old school because their sin is old school.

We each need to be careful not to fall into this age old trap. At all costs, avoid following Cain’s example. Failing to give God our first and best can lead to jealousy…and MUCH worse! Don’t fall into the money pit of Balaam’s blunder. Money is a blessing from God. But it can be a curse if we worship the gift more than the Giver. Don’t get caught up in Korah’s mutiny. Challenging God’s authority will never end well for you and me.