Proving Jesus Is God In Jude

The greetings found in the epistles of the New Testament often ignite theological debates, particularly surrounding the divinity of Jesus Christ. For instance, in a typical epistle greeting such as “…Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ our Savior.” (Titus 1:4, NKJV). This structure is absent in Hebrews, Revelation, Romans, 1 John, 3 John, and Jude is notable. However, the crux lies not only in the structure of the greeting but also in the significance of the word “Lord” used for Jesus Christ, particularly in the Greek language. In Greek, the term translated as “Lord” in these greetings is “Κύριος” (kýrios), a word of profound importance found in both the Septuagint (the Greek rendition of the Old Testament) and the New Testament. Within the New Testament context, “Κύριος” is frequently employed to indicate Jesus Christ, authority, sovereignty, and divine essence.

This isn’t a matter of “divine agency” or “theological attribution,” particularly considering the specific context within the Book of Exodus. Nowhere in the text of Exodus is Jesus referenced as being directly involved in the events attributed to God in the Old Testament. Instead, it’s figures like Moses and Aaron who are highlighted as conduits for divine acts. In Exodus 11:9-10, Moses and Aaron are depicted as performing wonders before Pharaoh, yet it’s explicitly stated that these wonders are to be carried out by God in verse 9. Even prior to Moses’s mission to liberate his people from Pharaoh, in Exodus 3:20, God promises to reveal his wonders. Notably, Jesus isn’t mentioned in the Exodus narrative, making any notion of divine agency on his part unfounded. Instead, it’s Jesus as God who liberates his people; the notion of divine agency isn’t limited solely to the Father.

In verses 4-5 of the book of Jude, a clear distinction is made between the Lord God and the Lord Jesus. However, within this context, Jesus Christ is understood as divine. Notably, in the P72 manuscript, the earliest known manuscript of Jude. In verse 5, the phrase “God Christ” is used, written in Greek as θεός (Theós) Χριστὸν (Christon), while the term “Lord God” is absent. Although some other early manuscripts use “Jesus” (Ἰησοῦς – Iēsous) in verse 5, the essence of the message remains consistent throughout Jude (Manuscript- p72). Some minor discrepancies exist in the Greek text of verse 5 as well. While some translations, like the ESV, use “Jesus (Ἰησοῦς – iēsous),” others may translate it as “the Lord” (κύριος – kýrios) in English. However, regardless of these variations, the intended meaning of verse 5 underscores the identity of Jesus. Even if you go with translations that say kýrios. The meaning remains the same, because the kýrios in verse 4 is identified as Jesus Christ. Drawing parallels between Jesus and the LORD Jehova God (Strong’s H308 – יְהֹוָה – Yᵊhōvâ) in the Old Testament Torah, particularly in Exodus, sheds light on this understanding. The term “Lord” is commonly used for God in English translations. For further exploration of this topic…

Strong’s G2962 – κύριος kýrios

Strong’s G1203 – δεσπότης despotēs

Note Jesus for the ESV translation it will say Jesus, which is correct.

Strong’s G2424 – Ἰησοῦς iēsous

“4 For certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord (κύριος kýrios), Jesus Christ. 5 Now I want to remind you, although you once fully knew it, that Jesus (Ἰησοῦς iēsous), who saved a people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe.” – Jude 4-5 (ESV, Interlinear, 4, 5)
“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 (δεσπότης despotēs) God and our Lord (κύριος kýrios) Jesus Christ. 5 But I want to remind you, though you once knew this, that the Lord (κύριος kýrios), having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe.” Jude 4-5 (NKJV, Interlinear, 4, 5)

It’s evident that Jesus was present, being God, saving his people in the Exodus narrative. This underscores Yahweh’s direct intervention and the deliverance of his people from slavery, climaxing in the crossing of the Red Sea. Furthermore, it portrays Jesus as the executor of judgment upon those who lacked faith, thus assuming the role of the earth’s judge (Genesis 18:25). However, within the Exodus context, there’s no explicit mention of Jesus as the sole savior of the Israelites; rather, it highlights the LORD and the Angel of the LORD (articles *, *, *). This understanding is affirmed by Paul in 1 Corinthians 10:1-4.

“10 For I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, 2 and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, 3 and all ate the same spiritual food, 4 and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ.” – 1 Corinthians 10:1-4 (ESV)

Was it an actual Rock that followed them? Certainly not, but the Lord God who is Christ.

A specific Example of the Physical Rock that Moses struck in one location in Exodus and in another location in Numbers.

“1 All the congregation of the people of Israel moved on from the wilderness of Sin by stages, according to the commandment of the LORD, and camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. 17 All the congregation of the people of Israel moved on from the wilderness of Sin by stages, according to the commandment of the LORD, and camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. 2 Therefore the people quarreled with Moses and said, “Give us water to drink.” And Moses said to them, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the LORD?” 3 But the people thirsted there for water, and the people grumbled against Moses and said, “Why did you bring us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?” 4 So Moses cried to the LORD, “What shall I do with these people? They are almost ready to stone me.” 5 And the LORD said to Moses, “Pass on before the people, taking with you some of the elders of Israel, and take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. 6 Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock at Horeb, and you shall strike the rock, and water shall come out of it, and the people will drink.” And Moses did so, in the sight of the elders of Israel. 7 And he called the name of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the quarreling of the people of Israel, and because they tested the LORD by saying, “Is the LORD among us or not?” – Exodus 17:1-7 (ESV)

The second instance when Moses was instructed to address the rock carries symbolic weight. The rock symbolizes Christ, who was struck once for the world’s redemption. However, Moses, driven by anger, struck the rock twice (Numbers 20:7-12). This incident parallels the narrative of Jesus Christ. In certain instances, prophecies about Jesus manifest not only through explicit verbal messages from prophets but also through the events within the stories themselves. For example, when Moses is commanded to stand on the rock as his foundation to witness God’s glory again (Exodus 33:21-23), it reflects a deeper message. Moses’s act of anger against God led to his punishment, barring him from entering the promised land.

“1 And the people of Israel, the whole congregation, came into the wilderness of Zin in the first month, and the people stayed in Kadesh. And Miriam died there and was buried there…6 Then Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the entrance of the tent of meeting and fell on their faces. And the glory of the LORD appeared to them, 7 and the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 8 “Take the staff, and assemble the congregation, you and Aaron your brother, and tell the rock before their eyes to yield its water. So you shall bring water out of the rock for them and give drink to the congregation and their cattle.” 9 And Moses took the staff from before the LORD, as he commanded him. 10 Then Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock, and he said to them, “Hear now, you rebels: shall we bring water for you out of this rock?” 11 And Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock with his staff twice, and water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their livestock. 12 And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not believe in me, to uphold me as holy in the eyes of the people of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land that I have given them.” – Numbers 20:6-12 (ESV)

Scriptures on the ROCK being God as a solid foundation. The rock is only contributed to God who is Christ.

“4 As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious,” – 1 Peter 2:4 (ESV)
“8 and ‘A stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense.’ They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do.” – 1 Peter 2:8 (ESV)
“2 There is none holy like the LORD: for there is none besides you; there is no rock like our God.” – 1 Samuel 2:2 (ESV)
“4 The Rock, his work is perfect, for all his ways are justice. A God of faithfulness and without iniquity, just and upright is he.” – Deuteronomy 32:4 (ESV)
“18 You were unmindful of the Rock that bore you, and you forgot the God who gave you birth.” – Deuteronomy 32:18 (ESV)
“5 a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;” – Ecclesiastes 3:5 (ESV)
“24 “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. 26 And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.” – Matthew 7:24-27 (ESV)