How that they told you there should be mockers in the last time, who should walk after their own ungodly lusts.

JUDE 1:18KJV
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Jude 1:18 (KJV)

What does Jude 1:18 mean?

Jude 1:18 warns that in the last days, there will be people who mock and follow their own ungodly desires instead of living by God’s ways. The verse points out that this was something the believers had already been told to expect.

Jude, the brother of James, is writing to early Christians, reminding them of a warning given by the apostles. The situation is one of concern about false teachers and people who live without regard for what is right. Jude highlights that these “mockers” are not just skeptics, but people who let their own selfish and irreverent cravings guide their actions, which sets them apart from the faithful.

The Greek behind Jude 1:18

  • ἐμπαῖκται (empaiktai, “mockers”): This word means people who make fun of or ridicule others, especially those who hold to faith. It carries a sense of open disrespect, not just private doubt.
  • ἐπιθυμίαις (epithymiais, “lusts”): This word refers to strong desires or cravings, often with a negative sense of uncontrolled or wrongful longing. Here, it highlights that the mockers are led by their own urges rather than by any moral standard.
  • ἀσεβεῖαις (asebeiais, “ungodly”): This word means lacking reverence or respect for God. It points to a lifestyle that is not just morally loose, but openly irreverent.
  • ἐσχάτου (eschatou, “last”): This word means “last” or “final,” referring to the end times or a period of final testing. It shows that Jude is talking about a future period of particular challenge for believers.

Why Jude 1:18 matters

  • Jude 1:18 clears up that the presence of mockers and ungodly behavior is not a surprise or a sign that faith is failing, but something believers were told to expect.
  • The verse emphasizes that the real problem is not just disbelief, but a way of living driven by selfish and irreverent desires, which helps readers understand the deeper issue at stake.
  • Jude 1:18 connects to the wider warning in Jude about false teachers and those who cause division, showing that these behaviors are part of a pattern the early church was already being warned about.

Where else these words appear

“mockers” Greek G1703 · used in 2 verses

  • 2 Peter 3:3 Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts,

“ungodly” Greek G763 · used in 6 verses

  • Romans 1:18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;
  • Romans 11:26 And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:
  • Titus 2:12 Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;

“lusts” Greek G1939 · used in 37 verses

  • Mark 4:19 And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful.
  • Philippians 1:23 For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better:
  • 1 Peter 1:14 As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance:

“last” Greek G2078 · used in 49 verses

  • Matthew 5:26 Verily I say unto thee, Thou shalt by no means come out thence, till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing.
  • Luke 14:10 But when thou art bidden, go and sit down in the lowest room; that when he that bade thee cometh, he may say unto thee, Friend, go up higher: then shalt thou have worship in the presence of them that sit at meat with thee.
  • 1 Corinthians 15:52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.