The Canonical Column, Book 65: Jude

We now continue our journey through the Canonical Column with the sixty-fifth book of the biblical canon–Jude. For those encountering this series for the first time and wondering what the Canonical Column is, I highly recommend first reviewing my introduction to the Canonical Column (or this summary of the mystery if you prefer a shorter overview). Without this foundational understanding, it will be difficult to fully grasp or contextualize the information presented in this analysis.¹

Suffice it to say that the Canonical Column refers to a divinely designed structural framework and prophetic network embedded within the Bible which bears witness to the final form of the biblical canon—testifying to its 39–27 book division, identifying all 66 books within it, and even delineating the exact order in which they would appear. In this sense, it may be likened to an internal measuring line that God deliberately placed within his Word, allowing us to determine objectively which canon of Scripture is the correct one.

As established in previous installments, every book of the Bible is confirmed by two witnessing chapters within the Canonical Column—one drawn from the Law (Genesis 12–50 or Leviticus) and the other from the Prophets (Isaiah).² In the case of Jude, its two witnesses are Leviticus 26 and Isaiah 65. Both of these chapters function within their respective branches of the Canonical Column as figurative types of the book of Jude. To this end, each has been divinely embedded with textual allusions to specific passages within Jude and intentionally sequenced as the twenty-sixth chapter in its branch of the framework and the sixty-fifth chapter of its branch-pair, reflecting Jude’s ordinal position as both the twenty-sixth book of the New Testament and the sixty-fifth book of the Bible. As we will see, it is by the mouth of these two witnesses that the divine inspiration, canonicity, and ordained placement of the book of Jude are firmly established.

Table of Contents anchor

The Epistle of Jude

The Epistle of Jude is among the briefest yet most urgent writings of the New Testament. Attributed to Jude, the brother of James (and therefore likely a half-brother of Jesus), this short letter serves as a powerful exhortation to the faithful to “earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints” (Jude 3). Though concise—comprising only twenty-five verses—its content is remarkably dense, drawing upon Old Testament examples, Jewish apocryphal traditions, and vivid prophetic imagery to warn against the infiltration of false teachers within the Church.

Jude’s central concern is the corruption of divine grace into license and the denial of Christ’s sovereign authority (v. 4). He compares these deceivers to the apostates of Israel’s wilderness generation, the angels who rebelled to follow Satan, and the immoral inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah—each representing rebellion against divine order and a consequent judgment. Throughout the letter, Jude’s tone alternates between fierce denunciation and pastoral concern, culminating in one of the most sublime doxologies in Scripture: “Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling… be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever” (vv. 24–25).

Stylistically, the epistle is closely related to 2 Peter, with notable verbal parallels suggesting either literary dependence or a shared apostolic tradition. Yet Jude’s emphasis is more polemical and urgent; where Peter warned that false teachers would come, Jude writes as though they have already arrived. The epistle thus functions as a timeless call to vigilance, purity, and perseverance in the face of spiritual corruption.

Thematically, Jude bridges the prophetic and the apocalyptic—looking backward to historical judgments while simultaneously anticipating the eschatological day of the Lord. Its invocation of extra-canonical texts such as The Assumption of Moses (v. 9) and 1 Enoch (vv. 14–15) has long intrigued scholars, reflecting Jude’s engagement with Jewish interpretive traditions familiar to his original audience. Despite its brevity, the letter’s depth and intensity have secured its enduring place within the New Testament canon as a voice of holy indignation and unwavering faithfulness amid apostasy.

Authorship & Dating

The Epistle of Jude identifies its author simply as “Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James” (Jude 1). The early Church almost universally understood this Jude to be the same Judas (or Judah) mentioned among the brethren of the Lord in the Gospels (Matt. 13:55; Mark 6:3), making him the half-brother of Jesus and the brother of James the Just, leader of the Jerusalem church. By calling himself a servant rather than a brother of Jesus, Jude displays characteristic humility—acknowledging Christ’s divine lordship rather than appealing to family connection for authority. This self-identification also implies that, like his brother James, Jude had come to faith only after the Resurrection (cf. John 7:5; Acts 1:14).

The traditional view holds that this Jude wrote the epistle sometime between A.D. 65 and 80, likely from Palestine or Syria, addressing a community of Jewish-Christian believers facing infiltration by libertine teachers who distorted the doctrine of grace. The internal parallels with 2 Peter 2 are striking—so much so that one must have been aware of the other. Traditional interpreters generally assume that Peter wrote first, with Jude later condensing and intensifying Peter’s warnings in response to their fulfillment: where Peter warned that false teachers would come, Jude declares they have crept in unawares (v. 4). This chronology situates the letter near the close of the apostolic era, when the Church was already battling moral and doctrinal corruption within its ranks.

Modern-critical scholarship, however, often reverses this relationship, suggesting that Jude was the earlier source and that the author of 2 Peter adapted portions of his material. This view is based primarily on literary considerations—the more polished Greek of 2 Peter and the apparent dependence of its imagery on Jude’s shorter, more forceful phrasing. Some critics, uncomfortable with the epistle’s references to extra-biblical writings such as 1 Enoch (vv. 14–15) and The Assumption of Moses (v. 9), have also questioned its apostolic origin, proposing a pseudonymous composition by a later Christian writer seeking to invoke Jude’s authority. Yet such skepticism is not supported by the early evidence: the letter was recognized by the early Church Fathers, cited by Clement of Alexandria, Tertullian, and Origen, and included in nearly all early canonical lists by the late second and early third centuries.

While the epistle’s briefness and distinctive allusions have sometimes fueled debate, its internal coherence, moral fervor, and distinctly Jewish-Christian tone strongly favor authenticity. Jude writes in vigorous Koine Greek yet with thoroughly Semitic rhythm and imagery—traits consistent with a Palestinian Jew well-versed in both Scripture and Hellenistic culture. The immediacy of his warning, the personal authority of his voice, and the early attestation of his letter all point to its genuineness as the work of Jude, the brother of James, written in the final decades of the first century. Yet even if this were not the case, it would make no difference—for as we are about to see, the Canonical Column itself establishes the Epistle of Jude as both divinely inspired and canonical, identifying it unmistakably as the twenty-sixth book of the New Testament and the sixty-fifth book of the Bible, thereby rendering questions of who wrote it and when completely irrelevant.

Witnessing chapters of Jude in the Canonical Column

Having introduced the epistle’s background and authorship, we now turn to its two appointed witnesses within the Canonical Column. As previously stated, the two witnessing chapters of Jude within the Canonical Column are Leviticus 26 and Isaiah 65. Both of these chapters function within their respective branches of the canonical framework as figurative types of the book of Jude. As such, both of these chapters have been deliberately composed and structured by the spirit of prophecy to reflect the content of the epistle of Jude. Within each, one can discern divinely embedded allusions to the scenes, imagery, and language of the epistle of Jude—through which they together affirm its divine authorship, canonicity, and its ordained position as both the twenty-sixth book of the New Testament (within An Holy Priesthood) and the sixty-fifth book of the divinely sanctioned biblical canon overall (within Second Isaiah).³

Context of Leviticus 26

Leviticus 26 serves as the concluding exhortation of the book, bringing together all the laws and ordinances that precede it into a single covenantal summary. The chapter opens by reaffirming Israel’s foundational duties—exclusive loyalty to God, reverence for his sanctuary, and observance of the Sabbath—before laying out the two possible outcomes of their response to the covenant: blessing for obedience and judgment for disobedience.

The first section (vv. 3–13) describes the blessings of covenant faithfulness: fruitful harvests, peace within the land, victory over enemies, and the supreme privilege of God dwelling among His people. The tone is one of harmony and restoration, recalling the fellowship once enjoyed in Eden. The second section (vv. 14–39) reverses that picture, outlining a series of escalating judgments—disease, famine, invasion, and ultimately exile—should Israel persist in rebellion. These punishments intensify step by step, revealing the moral seriousness of covenant violation.

Even so, the chapter closes with a promise of hope. If the people confess their sins and humble themselves, God will remember His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and will not utterly forsake them. In this way, Leviticus 26 brings the theology of holiness full circle: the same God who judges sin also restores the repentant. As the book’s final word, it underscores that true holiness is rooted not in ritual observance alone but in steadfast relationship with the covenant-keeping God.

In the framework of the Canonical Column, Leviticus 26 functions as a figurative type of the Epistle of Jude (the twenty-sixth book of the New Testament), whose warnings echo the same covenant logic. Just as Leviticus 26 concludes with the specter of divine judgment upon those who profane God’s holiness, Jude issues his final apostolic warning against those who corrupt the grace of God and deny the Lord who bought them.

Leviticus 26 -> Jude

As the twenty-sixth chapter of An Holy Priesthood (which functions within the Canonical Column as a figurative type of the New Testament canon), as well as the sixty-fifth chapter of the Law pair of branches (The Circumcision and An Holy Priesthood), Leviticus 26 has been deliberately designed by God to serve as a figurative type of the epistle of Jude—ordained before the foundation of the world to become the twenty-sixth book of the New Testament and the sixty-fifth book of the Bible. Accordingly, this chapter has been divinely embedded with allusions and echoes of various kinds to specific scenes and passages that God, in his perfect foreknowledge, knew would be found within the epistle of Jude. The comparative table below documents a selection of the most notable of these allusions, with explanations provided in the accompanying footnotes.

Leviticus 26	Jude
I am the LORD your God, which brought you forth out of the land of Egypt, that ye should not be their bondmen; and I have broken the bands of your yoke, and made you go upright.4 (Leviticus 26:13; cf. 26:45)	I will therefore put you in remembrance, though ye once knew this, how that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that believed not. (Jude 5)
And your strength shall be spent in vain: for your land shall not yield her increase, neither shall the trees of the land yield their fruits.5 (Leviticus 26:20)	These are spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear: clouds they are without water, carried about of winds; trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots; (Jude 12)
And if ye walk contrary unto me, and will not hearken unto me; I will bring seven times more plagues upon you according to your sins.6 (Leviticus 26:21; cf. 23, 27, 40)	“These are murmurers, complainers, walking after their own lusts; and their mouth speaketh great swelling words, having men’s persons in admiration because of advantage.” (Jude 16; cf. 18)

Context of Isaiah 65

Isaiah 65 presents God’s response to the prophet’s plea in the previous chapter, contrasting his readiness to be found by those who did not seek him with Israel’s persistent rebellion. The chapter unfolds as a sweeping divine monologue that recounts Israel’s idolatry, self-righteousness, and defiance, yet simultaneously affirms God’s faithfulness to preserve a remnant for himself. Though judgment is decreed upon those who have forsaken his covenant, a faithful seed will be spared to inherit the blessings of the land.

The Lord declares that his servants will eat, drink, and rejoice while the unfaithful will hunger and weep—a vivid picture of the moral reversal awaiting the righteous and the wicked. From this contrast emerges the promise of renewal: God will create “new heavens and a new earth,” a restored world characterized by joy, longevity, and peace. The imagery of transformation and harmony conveys the complete restoration of creation under divine blessing.

As one of Isaiah’s closing visions, this chapter brings the book’s themes of judgment and redemption to their climactic resolution. It affirms that while rebellion brings ruin, repentance and faithfulness lead to restoration. Isaiah 65 thus stands as a testament to God’s enduring mercy and justice, setting the stage for the final vision of eternal fellowship between God and his redeemed people in the chapter that follows.

Within the framework of the Canonical Column, Isaiah 65 serves alongside Leviticus 26 as the second witnessing chapter to the Epistle of Jude. The thematic overlap between the chapter and its corresponding biblical book is obvious and undeniable–both contrast false religion with true faithfulness, warn against hypocrisy that defiles holiness, and close with the assurance that divine mercy will outlast human rebellion–thereby making Isaiah 65’s correspondence with Jude self-evident.

Isaiah 65 -> Jude

As the twenty-sixth chapter of Second Isaiah (which functions within the Canonical Column as a figurative type of the New Testament canon), and the sixty-fifth chapter of the Prophets pair of branches (First Isaiah and Second Isaiah), Isaiah 65 has been deliberately designed by God to serve as a figurative type of the epistle of Jude—ordained before the foundation of the world to become both the twenty-sixth book of the New Testament and the sixty-fifth book of the Bible. Accordingly, this chapter has been divinely embedded with allusions and echoes of various kinds to specific scenes and passages that God, in his perfect foreknowledge, knew would be found within the epistle of Jude. The comparative table below documents a selection of the most notable of these allusions, with explanations provided in the accompanying footnotes.

Isaiah 65	Jude
I have spread out my hands all the day unto a rebellious people, which walketh in a way that was not good, after their own thoughts.7 (Isaiah 65:2)	But, beloved, remember ye the words which were spoken before of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ; How that they told you there should be mockers in the last time, who should walk after their own ungodly lusts. (Jude 17-18)
Which remaineth among the graves, and lodge in the monuments, . . . .8 (Isaiah 65:4a)	These are spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear: clouds they are without water, carried about of winds; trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the root; (Jude 12)
. . . . which eat swine’s flesh, and broth of abominable things is in their vessels;9 (Isaiah 65:4b)	Likewise also these filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities. (Jude 8)
Which say, Stand by thyself, come not near to me; for I am holier than thou. These are a smoke in my nose, a fire that burneth all the day.10 (Isaiah 65:5)	These be they who separate themselves, sensual, having not the Spirit. (Jude 19)
Behold, it is written before me: I will not keep silence, but will recompense, even recompense into their bosom.11 (Isaiah 65:6)	And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints, To execute judgment upon all, . . . . (Jude 14-15a)
Your iniquities, and the iniquities of your fathers together, saith the LORD, which have burned incense upon the mountains, and blasphemed me upon the hills: therefore will I measure their former work into their bosom.12 (Isaiah 65:7)	. . . . and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him. (Jude 15b)
But be ye glad and rejoice for ever in that which I create: for, behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy. And I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in my people: and the voice of weeping shall be no more heard in her, nor the voice of crying.13 (Isaiah 65:18-19)	Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, (Jude 24)

Group Chat

The table below documents an instance of triadic structural and theological alignment between the book of Jude and its two witnessing chapters in the Canonical Column. Here we can very clearly see all three parallel branches of the framework engaged in a unified three-way prophetic dialogue–a phenomenon I refer to as “Group Chat.”

Leviticus 26	Isaiah 65	Jude
And if ye will not be reformed by me by these things, but will walk contrary unto me; Then will I also walk contrary unto you, and will punish you yet seven times for your sins. (Leviticus 26:23-24)	I have spread out my hands all the day unto a rebellious people, which walketh in a way that was not good, after their own thoughts. (Isaiah 65:2)	These are murmurers, complainers, walking after their own lusts; and their mouth speaketh great swelling words, having men’s persons in admiration because of advantage. (Jude 16)

In Leviticus 26:23–24, the LORD warns that if His people “will walk contrary unto me,” He will “walk contrary unto [them],” defining rebellion as a perverted walk—life lived in opposition to divine order. Isaiah 65:2 echoes the very same thought, portraying a people who “walk in a way that was not good, after their own thoughts.” Both of these statements are alluding to the same target passage within their corresponding biblical book: “These are murmurers, complainers, walking after their own lusts” (Jude 16). All three passages describe the identical backslidden condition using nearly identical language, framing willful and habitual disobedience as self-willed walking apart from God. Within the framework of the Canonical Column, the shared phraseology—“walk contrary,” “walk in a way not good,” “walk after their own lusts”—demonstrates deliberate triune structural alignment across all three pairs of branches within the Canonical Column (the Law, the Prophets, and the Word).

As explained in previous installments of this series, triadic alignments such as this are common within the Canonical Column, and are one of the strongest forms of evidence which prove its existence–testifying to the extraordinary complexity and mind-boggling symmetry of the framework.

Conclusion: The canonicity & placement of Jude is established by its two witnessing chapters in the Canonical Column: Leviticus 26 & Isaiah 65.

The canonicity of the epistle of Jude is affirmed by its two witnessing chapters within the Canonical Column: Leviticus 26 and Isaiah 65. These chapters were not placed arbitrarily, but have been meticulously embedded with deliberate textual allusions to their corresponding biblical book, and arranged within their respective branches of the framework in order to bear witness of that book and its ordained position within the canon. As previously stated, each witnessing chapter reflects a different aspect of Jude’s canonical placement—Leviticus 26 signifying its role as the twenty-sixth book of the New Testament, and Isaiah 65 signifying its position as the sixty-fifth book of the Bible overall. Both chapters have been divinely embedded with direct allusions to specific passages and content that God, in his perfect foreknowledge, knew would be contained within the epistle of Jude, which was ordained before the foundation of the world to serve as both the twenty-sixth book of the New Testament and the sixty-fifth book of the biblical canon. Accordingly, by the testimony of these two witnesses within the Canonical Column, the divine inspiration, canonicity, and ordinal placement of the epistle of Jude are established—being witnessed by both the Law and the Prophets.

1. Alternatively, if that article is too long, you can read a summarized version here. ↩︎
2. Every book of the Bible has two chapters which correspond to it within the Canonical Column–one in Genesis 12-50 or Leviticus (the Law), and one in Isaiah (the Prophets). Genesis 12-50 (known in the Canonical Column as “The Circumcision”) and Isaiah 1-39 (known in the Canonical Column as “First Isaiah”) are both figurative types of the Old Testament canon–each containing 39 chapters which have been divinely designed to prefigure the 39 books of the Old Testament canon. Similarly, Leviticus (known in the Canonical Column as “An Holy Priesthood”) and Isaiah 40-66 (known in the Canonical Column as “Second Isaiah”) function as figurative types of the New Testament canon–each containing 27 chapters which have been divinely designed to prefigure the 27 books of the New Testament canon. The individual chapters within these four scaffolding branches of the Canonical Column are known as witnessing chapters, so called because they have been divinely embedded with textual allusions of various kinds to the content of the specific biblical book which occupies the same numerical position within the canonical sequence. Thus the witnessing chapters function as divinely designed figurative types of whatever biblical book they numerically correspond to within their specific branch of the framework–testifying to their divine inspiration, canonicity, and ordinal placement within the completed biblical canon. ↩︎
3. The Canonical Column testifies that the Protestant biblical canon is the divinely sanctioned form of the Christian Bible that is stamped with the Lamb’s seal of messianic approval. ↩︎
4. In Leviticus 26:13, the LORD identifies Himself as the Redeemer who “brought [Israel] forth out of the land of Egypt” and “broke the bands of [their] yoke,” establishing the Exodus as the foundation of Israel’s covenant relationship. Within the framework of the Canonical Column, this functions as an obvious allusion to Jude 5, where the apostle reminds believers that “the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that believed not.” Both passages use the Exodus to reveal the same covenant logic: divine deliverance brings responsibility, and unbelief following redemption invites judgment. ↩︎
5. In Leviticus 26:20, the LORD warns that disobedience will render Israel’s labor fruitless—“your land shall not yield her increase, neither shall the trees of the land yield their fruits.” Within the Canonical Column, this clearly corresponds to Jude 12, where apostates are likened to “trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead.” Both texts use the imagery of barrenness to symbolize spiritual sterility that results from rebellion against God. As the land of Israel becomes unproductive under disobedience, so the false teachers of Jude bear no spiritual fruit—each manifesting the same divine withdrawal from the unfaithful. ↩︎
6. Throughout Leviticus 26, the LORD repeatedly warns, “If ye walk contrary unto me… I will bring seven times more plagues upon you according to your sins.” This phrase, repeated throughout the chapter, defines covenant rebellion as “walking contrary” to God. Within the Canonical Column, this serves as an obvious allusion to Jude 16, where the apostates are described as “walking after their own lusts.” Both depict the same behavioral trajectory—self-willed defiance against divine authority—and affirm that the Lord responds in kind: those who walk contrary to Him will find Him walking contrary to them. ↩︎
7. In Isaiah 65:2, the LORD laments that He has “spread out [His] hands all the day unto a rebellious people, which walketh in a way that was not good, after their own thoughts.” Within the framework of the Canonical Column, this functions as an unmistakable allusion to Jude 17–18, where believers are reminded that the apostles foretold of mockers “who should walk after their own ungodly lusts.” Both passages employ the same moral vocabulary—“walk” and “after their own”—to describe humanity’s self-directed defiance of divine authority. The pattern is identical: in Isaiah, Israel walks after its own thoughts; in Jude, the apostates walk after their own lusts. The topical alignment here is self-evident and undeniable, and very obviously deliberate–reinforcing the identification of Isaiah 65 as a figurative type of the book of Jude within the Canonical Column. ↩︎
8. In Isaiah 65:4a, the prophet depicts the apostate Israelites as those who “remain among the graves, and lodge in the monuments,” a phrase evoking communion with the dead and participation in practices defiled by death. Within the framework of the Canonical Column, this functions as an evident allusion to Jude 12, where the false brethren are likened to “trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots.” ↩︎
9. In Isaiah 65:4b, the LORD condemns those “which eat swine’s flesh, and broth of abominable things is in their vessels,” exposing a people who defile themselves through practices explicitly forbidden by the Law. Within the framework of the Canonical Column, this clearly alludes to Jude 8, where the apostates are described as “filthy dreamers [who] defile the flesh.” Both passages define rebellion through the pollution of the body—whether by consuming the unclean or indulging unrestrained desires. In each case, the flesh becomes the instrument of profanation, signifying contempt for divine holiness. The correspondence is exact in moral logic: Isaiah’s idolaters corrupt themselves through abominable acts, while Jude’s dreamers corrupt themselves through lawless impulses—the same defilement, manifested under two covenants. ↩︎
10. In Isaiah 65:5 the apostates say, “Stand by thyself, come not near to me; for I am holier than thou,” claiming a false superiority that separates them from the rest of God’s people. Within the framework of the Canonical Column, this serves as an obvious allusion to Jude 19, where the apostates are described as “they who separate themselves, sensual, having not the Spirit.” Both portray the same attitude of spiritual elitism disguised as holiness—those who boast of superior piety while cut off from the true Spirit of God. In both contexts, self-made sanctity becomes the surest mark of apostasy. ↩︎
11. In Isaiah 65:6, the LORD declares, “Behold, it is written before me: I will not keep silence, but will recompense, even recompense into their bosom,” announcing the end of divine forbearance and the beginning of judgment. Within the framework of the Canonical Column, this functions as an unmistakable allusion to Jude 14–15a, where the prophecy of Enoch proclaims, “Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints, to execute judgment upon all.” Both passages mark the transition from patience to retribution—God breaking His silence to repay the ungodly according to their works. The repetition of the prophetic summons “Behold” in each emphasizes the certainty of divine judgment, linking Isaiah’s written decree with Jude’s apocalyptic fulfillment. ↩︎
12. In Isaiah 65:7, the LORD declares that He will “measure their former work into their bosom,” judging the accumulated sins of those who “have burned incense upon the mountains, and blasphemed [Him] upon the hills.” Within the framework of the Canonical Column, this serves as a clear allusion to Jude 15b, which speaks of the Lord coming “to convince all that are ungodly… of all their ungodly deeds… and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him.” Both passages emphasize the precision and completeness of divine judgment—every blasphemous assertion and every profane word being brought into remembrance and requited in full measure. ↩︎
13. In Isaiah 65:18–19, the prophet records the Lord’s promise of everlasting joy in the renewed creation: “Behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy… the voice of weeping shall be no more heard in her.” Within the framework of the Canonical Column, this serves as a direct allusion to Jude 24, where the apostle closes with a vision of final redemption—God presenting His people “faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy.” ↩︎

© 2025, Zerubbabel. All rights reserved.