In Jude’s short letter, he often writes in triads, listing three items or offering three examples. He does this with such regularity that when he deviates from this in verse 12, I thought I had misread the text. Consider the following triplets:
- three actions of God: called, loved, and kept (and if you implicitly see the Holy Spirit in doing the calling, then the Trinity is implied here as well: Holy Spirit, Father, and Jesus); verse 1.
- three blessings: mercy, peace, and love; verse 2.
- three historic warnings: leaving Egypt, deserting angels, and Sodom and Gomorrah; verses 5-7.
- three negative actions: pollute their bodies, reject authority, and slander angels; verse 8.
- three bad examples: Cain, Balaam, and Korah; verse 11.
- five negative allusions: shepherds who feed only themselves, clouds without rain, dead autumn trees, wild waves, wandering stars; verse 12.
- three characteristics of ungodly men in the church: cause division, follow natural instincts, and do not have the Spirit; verse 19.
- three prescriptions: build up your faith, pray in the Holy Spirit, and stay in God’s love; verses 20-21.
- three ways to show mercy: help doubters, save others from destruction, and carefully rescue others without being taken down; verse 22.
- three attributes of God: keeps us from falling, presents us without fault, and has great joy; verse 24.
- four praises for God: glory, majesty, power, and authority; verse 25.
As someone who also has a propensity of writing in threes, Jude’s style is especially appealing to me.
A lifelong student of the Bible, Peter DeHaan, PhD, wrote the 700-page website ABibleADay.com to encourage people to explore the Bible. His main blog and many books urge Christians to push past the status quo and reconsider how they practice their faith in every area of their lives.
