YUD 1:21 Parallel Verse View

Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible—click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed as a tool for doing comparisons of different translations—the older translations are further down the page (so you can read up from the bottom to trace the English translation history). The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible—please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.

Text critical issues=small word differences Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal (All still tentative.)

Key: khaki:verbs, orange:accusative/object, pink:genitive/possessor, cyan:dative/indirect object.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).

ULT keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life.

UST keep living in a way that enables you to experience God’s love. Do this while expecting the merciful return of our Lord Jesus the Messiah, which will result in living eternally with him.

BSB keep yourselves in [the] love of God as you await the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring [you] eternal life.

BLB keep yourselves in the love of God, awaiting the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.

AICNT keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life.

OEB and keep within the love of God, while waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ, to bring you to eternal life.

WEBBE Keep yourselves in God’s love, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life.

WMBB Keep yourselves in God’s love, looking for the mercy of our Lord Yeshua the Messiah to eternal life.

MSG ^(20-21)But you, dear friends, carefully build yourselves up in this most holy faith by praying in the Holy Spirit, staying right at the center of God’s love, keeping your arms open and outstretched, ready for the mercy of our Master, Jesus Christ. This is the unending life, the real life!

NET maintain yourselves in the love of God, while anticipating the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that brings eternal life.

LSV keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ [resulting] in continuous life;

FBV keep yourselves safe in God's love, and wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ who brings eternal life.

TCNT must keep yourselves in the love of God as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life.

T4T Keep conducting your lives in a way that is appropriate for those whom God loves. Keep constantly expecting that our Lord Jesus Christ will act mercifully toward you. Keep expecting that until the time when we begin living eternally with him.

LEB No LEB YUD (JUD) 1:21 verse available

BBE Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for life eternal through the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Moff so keeping yourselves within the love of God and waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that ends in life eternal.

Wymth must keep yourselves safe in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ which will result in the Life of the Ages.

ASV keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.

DRA Keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ, unto life everlasting.

YLT yourselves in the love of God keep ye, waiting for the kindness of our Lord Jesus Christ — to life age-during;

Drby keep yourselves in the love of [fn]God, awaiting the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.

1.21 Elohim

RV keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.

SLT Keep yourselves in the love of God, awaiting the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life,

Wbstr Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life.

KJB-1769 Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.

KJB-1611 Keepe your selues in the loue of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Iesus Christ vnto eternall life.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above)

Bshps And kepe your selues in the loue of God, lokyng for the mercie of our Lord Iesus Christe, vnto eternall lyfe.
(And keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Yesus/Yeshua Christ, unto eternal life.)

Gnva And keepe your selues in the loue of God, looking for the mercie of our Lord Iesus Christ, vnto eternall life.
(And keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Yesus/Yeshua Christ, unto eternal life. )

Cvdl and kepe youre selues in the loue of God, lokinge for the mercy of oure LORDE Iesus Christ, vnto eternall life.
(and keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our LORD Yesus/Yeshua Christ, unto eternal life.)

TNT and kepe youre selves in the love of God lokinge for the mercy of oure lorde Iesus Christ vnto eternall lyfe.
(and keep your(pl) selves in the love of God looking for the mercy of our lord Yesus/Yeshua Christ unto eternal life. )

Wycl and kepe you silf in the loue of God, and abide ye the merci of oure Lord Jhesu Crist in to lijf euerlastynge.
(and keep yourself in the love of God, and abide ye/you_all the mercy of our Lord Yhesu Christ in to life everlasting.)

Luth und behaltet euch in der Liebe Gottes und wartet auf die Barmherzigkeit unsers HErr’s JEsu Christi zum ewigen Leben.
(and keept you in the/of_the love(n) God’s and waits on/in/to the compassion ours LORD’s Yesu Christi for_the eternal life.)

ClVg vosmetipsos in dilectione Dei servate, exspectantes misericordiam Domini nostri Jesu Christi in vitam æternam.
(you(pl)metipsos in/into/on with_love of_God keepse, waiting mercy Master our Yesu of_Christ in/into/on life eternal. )

UGNT ἑαυτοὺς ἐν ἀγάπῃ Θεοῦ τηρήσατε, προσδεχόμενοι τὸ ἔλεος τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν, Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, εἰς ζωὴν αἰώνιον.
(heautous en agapaʸ Theou taʸraʸsate, prosdeⱪomenoi to eleos tou Kuriou haʸmōn, Yaʸsou Ⱪristou, eis zōaʸn aiōnion.)

SBL-GNT ἑαυτοὺς ἐν ἀγάπῃ θεοῦ τηρήσατε προσδεχόμενοι τὸ ἔλεος τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ εἰς ζωὴν αἰώνιον.
(heautous en agapaʸ theou taʸraʸsate prosdeⱪomenoi to eleos tou kuriou haʸmōn Yaʸsou Ⱪristou eis zōaʸn aiōnion.)

RP-GNT ἑαυτοὺς ἐν ἀγάπῃ θεοῦ τηρήσατε, προσδεχόμενοι τὸ ἔλεος τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ χριστοῦ εἰς ζωὴν αἰώνιον.
(heautous en agapaʸ theou taʸraʸsate, prosdeⱪomenoi to eleos tou kuriou haʸmōn Yaʸsou ⱪristou eis zōaʸn aiōnion.)

TC-GNT ἑαυτοὺς ἐν ἀγάπῃ Θεοῦ τηρήσατε, προσδεχόμενοι τὸ ἔλεος τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ εἰς ζωὴν αἰώνιον.
(heautous en agapaʸ Theou taʸraʸsate, prosdeⱪomenoi to eleos tou Kuriou haʸmōn Yaʸsou Ⱪristou eis zōaʸn aiōnion. )

Key for above GNTs: yellow:punctuation differs (from our SR-GNT base).

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 20–23: Jude encouraged believers to trust God and to help other people to trust him

In verses 20–21 Jude told his readers to keep experiencing God’s love for them (21a), while waiting for Jesus to give them eternal life (21b–c). They were to do this by depending more and more on the truth that Christians believe (20b), and by praying with the help of the Holy Spirit (20c).

In verses 22–23 Jude told his readers how they were to act toward three types of people.Jude instructed the Christians to:(a) show mercy to people who were uncertain about what to believe,(b) quickly rescue those who were beginning to follow the fake Christians,(c) while being very careful, show mercy to those who were already following these fake Christians. The fake Christians were harming these people through their false teaching and the sinful things that they did.

Paragraph 20–21

Jude wanted his readers to continue in fellowship with God, as they waited to experience the eternal life that Jesus had provided for them.

21

In this verse, Jude told his readers to maintain/keep themselves in God’s love, using the means that he described in verse 20. They were to continue to do this as they waited for the Lord, Jesus Christ, to return so that they could live forever with him.

21a

keep yourselves in the love of God

maintain yourselves^(plur) in God’s love for you^(plur),
keep experiencing God’s love for you^(plur),
stay constantly aware that God loves you^(plur),

keep yourselves in the love of God: This clause means “continue to experience God’s love.” It indicates that Jude’s readers should always remember that God loves them. They should live in such a way that they enjoy that knowledge. They should not do anything that would hinder them from experiencing his love or from receiving his blessings. Some ways to translate this are:

maintain yourselves in God’s love.

keep experiencing God’s love for you.

always remain in God’s love for you.

keep: Jude frequently used the Greek verb tēreō, which the BSB translates as keep. He used a form of tēreō in 1f, 6a, 6c, 13d (where the BSB translates it as “reserved”), and here in 21a. It was possible for Jude to use one verb in all these contexts in Greek because tēreō could be used in many different ways.

In other languages, including English, it may not be natural or possible to use the same verb in all these contexts. In each context, you should use a verb that expresses the meaning in a natural way.

the love of God: The Greek phrase that the BSB translates as love of God in this context probably refers to God’s love for them, rather than to their love for God.Some English versions indicate this explicitly, including CEV, GW, JBP, NCV, NIV, NJB, and NLT. English versions which are ambiguous are: BSB, KJV, NASB, NET, NRSV, REB, RSV, and GNT. See love, Meaning 1, in the Glossary. Here is another way to translate this verse part:

Live in such a way that God’s love can bless you. (NLT)

The phrase love of God is then parallel in meaning to “the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ” in 21c. These two phrases together are similar in meaning to what Jude wrote in 1e and 1f:

loved by God the Father and kept by Jesus Christ:

21b

as you await

as you^(plur) wait
as you^(plur) wait/hope for
as you^(plur) keep looking forward to

21c

the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you eternal life.

to be transformed in order to live forever, because of the mercy that our^(incl) Lord, Jesus Christ has shown us^(incl).
the time/day when our^(incl) Lord, Jesus Christ will return, so that you^(plur) will live with him forever, because he had mercy on us^(incl).
the return of our^(incl) Lord, Jesus Christ. Then you^(plur) will live together with him forever because he is merciful/compassionate toward us.^(incl)

21b–c

as you await the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you eternal life: A literal translation of 21b–c is: “anticipating the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life.” It can be difficult in English to show how the ideas in 21b–c are related to each other, and English versions differ in the ways they translate them. It may be easier to understand the meaning if the ideas are expressed in a different order. For example:

^21cOur Lord Jesus Christ is merciful to you. Because of his mercy, he will give you eternal life. ^21bYou are expecting/waiting-for him to do that.

Below are some ways that English versions have expressed the meaning. Notice that in each version a different idea follows the verb. These ideas are underlined.

as you wait for our Lord Jesus Christ in his mercy to give you eternal life. (GNT)

as you wait for the eternal life that our Lord Jesus Christ in his mercy is going to give you. (NLT)

as you look forward to the day when our Lord Jesus Christ in his mercy will give you eternal life.

These are not different interpretations. Instead, they are different ways to express the same interpretation in a clear and natural way. Use a natural way to express the idea in your language.For example, in English, the objects “Jesus Christ” and “the day” are most natural when a form of the verb “wait” is used. The objects “eternal life” and “the day” work well in English with “look forward to.” However, while “the mercy” follows the form of the Greek wording, it is less natural with these verbs in English.

as you await: The Greek word that the BSB translates as you await is related to the verb “keep” in Jude 21a. Scholars have different views about exactly how it relates to this verb:

It relates to the time of the verb “keep.” The action of the verb (await) happens at the same time as the action “keep.” For example:
keep…as you wait (GNT)
maintain…while anticipating (NET)
Remain…as you look for (GW) (BSB, CEV, GW, KJV, NASB, NCV, NET, NIV, NLT, GNT)
It is another command, like the verb “keep.” The waiting was another thing that Jude told his readers to do. For example:
keep…and wait for (NJB)
Keep…and look forward to (REB) (JBP, NJB, NRSV, REB, RSV)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1), as the majority of the English versions do.

A general comment on 21b–c at the end of these notes for 21b–c gives suggestions for how to relate the parts of 21b–c to each other in a translation.

await: In the Bible, waiting and anticipation are often associated with the end times, and that is true here. Jude already referred to the end times in verses 6e and 14c–15. In this context, the Greek verb that the BSB translates as await means “expect” or “anticipate.” The English expression await is also used here with that meaning.

the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ: The mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ is the kindness that Jesus would show toward Jude’s readers. He would show this mercy to them specifically by giving them eternal life when he returned.

mercy: The Greek word that the BSB translates as mercy is also discussed in a note for verse 2. See mercy, Meaning 2, in the Glossary.

our Lord Jesus Christ: Jude used the phrase our Lord Jesus Christ to indicate the relationship that he and his readers had with their master Jesus Christ. This same phrase is also used in 4f and 17b. See Lord in the Glossary.

to bring you eternal life: The Greek phrase that the BSB translates here as to bring you eternal life is literally, “to/for eternal life.” The English versions have supplied a verb,For example, the BSB supplied to bring. Many English versions supply the verb “give.” (CEV, GW, NCV, NJB, NLT, REB, GNT). When considering whether a verb such as “give” should be supplied as implied information, you may wish to make sure that it does not imply that believers do not, in any way, have eternal life during their time on earth, because in one sense they do (John 3:36, John 5:24, and John 6:47). because it is required in English for the translation to be natural and clear.

eternal life: Here, eternal life is life that never ends. Jesus made eternal life possible by paying the penalty for people’s sins when he suffered and died on the cross. In one sense, Christians receive eternal life when they first believe in Jesus Christ as their Savior. However, in another sense, they will experience it fully only when Jesus returns. Then they will be transformed, and there will no longer be any sin or death.

Here Jude was talking about this time when Jesus returns.Here eternal life refers specifically to the life without end that believers experience following the resurrection of the dead that will take place when Jesus returns. It is not recommended that you include such details in your translation.

General Comment on 21b–c

A translator must determine the best way to write about the connection that Jude intended to express between his readers “awaiting,” “Jesus Christ,” “mercy,” and “eternal life.” The ways that English versions have expressed this may not fit your language. Here are some examples of other ways to express the relationship between the parts of 21b–c:

as you wait to be transformed in order to live forever, because our Lord Jesus Christ had mercy on us^(incl).

as you look forward to the return of our Lord Jesus Christ. Then you will enjoy the life that does not end, because he is compassionate toward us^(incl).

General Comment on 20–21

In English, this paragraph sounds more natural if its parts are reordered so that the main verb (BSB: “keep”) comes before the verbs of verse 20 (BSB: “building…up” and “praying”). Here are examples of how this might be done:

^20a But you, my dear friends, ^21a you should maintain yourselves in God’s love. ^20b Do this by building your lives upon the foundation of the uniquely holy truths that you believe, ^20c and by praying with the Holy Spirit as your guide, ^21b as you wait ^21cto live forever because of the mercy our Lord Jesus Christ shows us.

^20a My friends, ^21a continue to experience God’s love for you. ^20b Do this by basing your lives more and more on the most sacred truths you have believed ^20c and by praying with the guidance of the Holy Spirit. ^21b Keep doing this while you wait ^21cfor the day when our Lord, Jesus Christ, will return. Then you will live forever, because he had mercy on us.

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: translate-versebridge

ἑαυτοὺς ἐν ἀγάπῃ Θεοῦ τηρήσατε

(Some words not found in SR-GNT: ἑαυτούς ἐν ἀγάπῃ Θεοῦ Τηρήσατε προσδεχόμενοι τό ἔλεος τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ εἰς ζωήν αἰώνιον)

If your language would put the command at the front of the sentence and before other modifying clauses, then you could create a verse bridge by moving this clause to the previous verse, placing it just before “building yourselves up in your most holy faith”. You would need to present the combined verses as 20–21.

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

ἑαυτοὺς ἐν ἀγάπῃ Θεοῦ τηρήσατε

Jude speaks of remaining able to receive the love of God as if one were keeping oneself in a certain place. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state this metaphor explicitly. Alternate translation: [keep yourselves able to receive the love of God]

Note 3 topic: grammar-connect-time-simultaneous

προσδεχόμενοι τὸ ἔλεος τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν

waiting_for (Some words not found in SR-GNT: ἑαυτούς ἐν ἀγάπῃ Θεοῦ Τηρήσατε προσδεχόμενοι τό ἔλεος τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ εἰς ζωήν αἰώνιον)

This clause occurs at the same time as the clause that precedes it. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state this connection explicitly. Alternate translation: [while waiting for the mercy of our Lord] or [while expecting the mercy of our Lord]

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns

τὸ ἔλεος τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν, Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ

Here, mercy could refer to: (1) the mercy Jesus will show to believers when he returns to earth. Alternate translation: [our Lord Jesus Christ to return and act mercifully] (2) Jesus’ continued acts of mercy toward believers in general. Alternate translation: [our Lord Jesus Christ to act mercifully]

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / possession

τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν

˱of˲_the Lord ˱of˲_us

Here, our Lord means “the person who is lord over us” or “the person who rules over us.” See how you translated this expression in verse [17](../01/17.md). Alternate translation: [of the person who rules over us,]

Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / exclusive

ἡμῶν

˱of˲_us

Here, our refers to all believers.

Note 7 topic: grammar-connect-logic-result

τὸ ἔλεος τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν, Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, εἰς ζωὴν αἰώνιον

Jude is using to to introduce the result of the mercy. If it would be helpful to your readers, you could express this explicitly. Alternate translation: [the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ, which brings eternal life]

Parallel YUD 1:21

Section 20–23: Jude encouraged believers to trust God and to help other people to trust him

Paragraph 20–21

21

21a

21b

21c

21b–c

General Comment on 21b–c

General Comment on 20–21