Five Metaphors
Devotions for Growing Christians
Five Metaphors
Jude 12-13 - These men are those who are hidden reefs in your love feasts when they feast with you without fear, caring for themselves; clouds without water, carried along by winds; autumn trees without fruit, doubly dead, uprooted; 13wild waves of the sea, casting up their own shame like foam; wandering stars, for whom the black darkness has been reserved forever.
Metaphors are word pictures. Technically speaking, a metaphor is a form of figurative language in which a word denoting one subject or activity is used in place of another to suggest a likeness between them. We use metaphors all the time. They’re so woven into the English language that we use them without even realizing it. There! We just used a metaphor. "Woven," used in reference to the activity of putting words together, is a metaphor that comes from the action of weaving thread into cloth. Occasionally we consciously use a metaphor to more vividly convey a thought or point we want to make. At those times we carefully select the best word picture to convey our message. That’s the reason for the five metaphors in the book of Jude.
Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Jude purposely chose five metaphors to describe certain individuals who had infiltrated into some of the churches near the end of the 1st century. Hidden reefs, clouds without water, trees without fruit, wild waves of the sea and wandering stars are all metaphors Jude used to vividly portray the men who had crept into those churches (v4).
Background
Who were the infiltrators? Most likely these false teachers held the philosophical ideas that gradually grew into the Christian heresy known as Gnosticism in the 2nd century AD. Without going into a long discussion on early Gnosticism, these false teachings denied the full deity and lordship of Christ, and turned the grace of God into an excuse for indulging the desires of the flesh (v4).
Since they’re described as being devoid of the Holy Spirit (v19), these infiltrators were definitely not believers. At least some of them were involved in the sin of homosexuality (v8). In the context of verses 6-7, the words "in the same manner" (v8) lead us to this conclusion. We aren't told whether this segment in the early churches was practicing homosexuality openly or secretly, but there is no doubt that their sin is denounced in the strongest terms. It is linked with the gross immorality of Sodom and Gomorrah (v7).
Undoubtedly some of these false teachers and their followers had grown up "in the church" and considered themselves Christians, but they had turned away from apostolic teaching. These false teachers considered themselves superior to the ignorant masses, because they believed that their self-proclaimed "gnosis" (Greek for "knowledge") gave them spiritual, esoteric knowledge of ultimate reality and God. They felt that their superior knowledge of the spiritual realm so far outweighed any behavior of the physical body that indulgence of fleshly desires was not considered sin, and was even encouraged! Although these people thought that they were a special class of spiritual elites, God denounced them as people who didn’t understand spiritual realities at all. They were destroying themselves through their instinctual behavior, like unreasoning animals (v10).
The five metaphors not only denounce the infiltrators, but they also expose their deceptive characteristics and insidious tactics. The metaphors reveal the nature of these 1st century heretics. And they vividly portray the character and tactics of false teachers and apostates within the Church today.
Hidden Reefs
The first metaphor, "hidden reefs," could also be translated as "spots" or "blemishes" (compare 2 Peter 2:13). However, "hidden reefs" relates well to the other four metaphors, all of which come from nature, and that is probably what Jude had in mind. The image of a hidden reef is quite graphic. Think of a sailboat clipping along in open waters, with no indication of danger from a reef hidden under the surface of the water ahead. But suddenly and without warning disaster strikes, with major damage and destruction.
Like hidden reefs, these apostates operated under the surface by participating in the fellowship - even in the suppers ("love feasts") of the local church. But they were the hidden means of shipwreck for unsuspecting believers. These selfish pseudo-believers pushed their distortions of the truth at every opportunity. In the same way, false teachers who are hidden in churches today could easily shipwreck the faith of the unwary believer.
Most cults don't look dangerous on the surface. They have nice buildings and pleasant smiles, and they emphasize the importance of loving God and doing good. But below the surface they are like hidden reefs that will cause the shipwreck of unsuspecting seekers. Cults, by definition, deny the deity of Christ and, in the final analysis, practice a works-oriented religion. They skillfully present their false teachings to those who have not carefully checked out the waters for hidden danger. Although the cults (such as Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormons, Christian Science, and Unitarians) consider themselves to be within the Christian Church, they are not true believers. Let's warn inexperienced sailors to be aware of these dangerous hidden reefs. Remind them to always check the waters by reading the "Navigational Chart" God has given us!
Clouds Without Water, Carried Along by Winds
The second metaphor used for the apostates of Jude's day is "clouds without water, carried along by winds." This metaphor is very descriptive, especially in the Middle East. After the dry season, the thirsty land craves the coming of the autumn rains. How disappointing, then, when fast-moving clouds arrive without water. They give every impression of promise, but they produce no rain.
How descriptive of the false teachers in Jude's day, and of many within Christendom today. They give the impression that they have water for thirsty souls, but there is no substance to their message. Think of the flood of religious literature, internet sites, and TV programs and that are available today. From the titles it appears that the contents should bring nourishing and refreshing rain. Helps promised for just about every psychological, physiological, or spiritual problem. Although some of it may claim to be biblically based, a lot of it is the empty product of "clouds without water." Many seekers have been disappointed to find, after investing a lot of time and money, that the promise of "rain" does not materialize.
A characteristic of the clouds without water is that they are carried along by winds. This part of the metaphor suggests that the apostates were governed by the prevailing winds of the culture. False teachers today are likewise carried along by the prevailing ideas of the culture in which they operate. Tolerant attitudes towards greed and materialism are a direct reflection of our success-driven western culture. Distorted information on the roles of men and women in the Church can be traced to today's culture.
Believers must always be sensitive to the culture, and should thoughtfully seek to "understand the times" in which we live. (See 1 Chronicles 12:32.) We must constantly be open to discussion and reexamination of the Scriptures to make sure that our thinking is biblical, and not just governed by tradition. However, we dare not get caught up in the winds of culture to the extent of revising Scriptur. We must beware of manufacturing interpretations to suit our desires or to meet current trends in our culture! Satan knows if he can capture the culture, it won't be long before his false teachers can slip unbiblical ideas into the Church. Believers in every generation are called on to withstand the satanic winds of the culture in which they live.
Trees Without Fruit
"Autumn trees without fruit, doubly dead, uprooted," is the third metaphor that Jude uses to expose the unbelievers and their false teachings. In the Middle East, if a fruit tree hasn't produced fruit by autumn, it's obvious that something is wrong. If a further examination shows that the tree has no root system, that tree is dead. In fact, it's doubly dead - no fruit and no root.
What an accurate picture of unbelieving religious teachers - then and now! The typical unbelieving "Christian" minister, for example, has plenty of good activity going on in the church, but over the long haul that church produces no real spiritual fruit. Where are the testimonies of those who have left “the broad road leading to destruction," and acknowledged Jesus Christ as the "narrow gate that leads to life"? (Matthew 7:13-14.) Where are the conversions resulting from preaching that that Jesus Christ is the only way to God and the only escape from God’s judgment? (See John 3:18 & 36, John 5:24; John 14:6, for example.) Where are the members who are “growing in grace and in the knowledge of Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18)?
A further examination of the tree of unbelieving liberal professing Christianity reveals that they have no root system. They are not rooted and grounded in biblical truth. The reason that salvation in Christ alone is not preached is that they don’t believe it! Warnings about the judgment to come are not proclaimed because these ministers don't believe that there is a coming judgment or a literal hell! God's verdict on such fruitless and rootless trees is that they are doubly dead.
Wild Waves of the Sea
The fourth metaphor for the heretics within the Church is "wild waves of the sea, casting up their own shame like foam." Jude was probably thinking of waves that crash against a rocky coast, sending their spray up in all directions. These violent waves are typical of a strident unbeliever who is constantly dashing against divinely ordained barriers. The result would be a shameful exposure of the froth and spume of unbelief. Think, for example, of the shameful behavior of militant homosexuals within Christian churches and ministries today. As wild waves of the sea, they crash head-on into divine barriers when they promote a lifestyle that is clearly condemned by God's Word.
While we reach out in love and do what we can to rescue people who are being swept under by wild waves (vs22-23), we must stand firm on the standards of the solid rock of God's Word. In spite of the tumultuous crashing of the wild waves all around us, let's not run (or even retreat one inch) from the Rock.
Wandering Stars
"Wandering stars" is the last of the five metaphors Jude uses to picture the heretical leaders. In the ancient world, mariners and desert travelers used the stars for guidance. Navigation by stars is possible because certain stars, such as the North Star, remain fixed in the sky, and can be depended on for guidance. Other stars and the planets do not remain stationary; they "wander" as the earth makes its annual journey around the sun.
How tragic - but how graphically true - is this picture of unbelieving leaders in the Church today. They purport to give spiritual guidance, but in reality they lead seekers astray from the truth. How many TV "prosperity preachers," for example, promise all kinds of spiritual and material fulfillment, but deliver little more than disappointment - and never-ending requests for money.
The lives of unwary believers can actually dead-end in disillusionment (or even apostasy) if they follow "wandering stars." We must constantly set our compass course by the fixed star of God's Word! Although some TV preachers and personalities are genuine believers, it often seems that highly visible "wandering stars" outnumber those who truly seek to be "lights in the world, holding fast the word of life" (Philippians 2:15-16). The Scripture leaves no doubt as to the destiny of these wandering stars. They are marked out for condemnation (v4), and will be consigned to black darkness forever (v13).
The graphic nature of a metaphor can many times shock us into actually seeing what we may have previously overlooked, or what did not penetrate our thoughts. The five metaphors that were selected by the Holy Spirit had the effect of opening the eyes of many of the 1st century Christians, and exposing the heretical infiltrators. The Holy Spirit uses Jude’s five metaphors to help unmask unbelieving leaders within the Church today, and can lay bare their subtle, ensnaring tactics.
- Dave Reid