Yet in like manner these people also, relying on their dreams, defile the flesh, reject authority, and blaspheme the glorious ones.
English Standard Version (ESV)
These "dreamers" aren't just having bad dreams; they're living by deluded fantasies, mistaking their own imaginations for divine guidance. This delusion directly fuels their impurity and their rejection of any authority, whether divine or human.
Yet in like manner these people also, relying on their dreams, defile the flesh, reject authority, and blaspheme the glorious ones.
English Standard Version (ESV)
Jude is directly addressing the deceptive influence of certain individuals within the church who are twisting grace into license. He's just warned about them by recalling past judgments on rebels, fallen angels, and the sinful cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. Now, he focuses on the character and actions of these troublemakers themselves, likening them to those historical examples of divine judgment.
Jude calls these false teachers 'dreamers.' What does it mean to live by 'dreams' in our faith journey, and why is it so dangerous?
The term 'dreamers' here (enypniazomenoi) doesn't refer to prophetic visions or divine insights. Instead, it points to individuals lost in their own fantasies and baseless speculations.
A Fictional Reality
These 'dreams' are like the illusions of sleep – disconnected from reality and often driven by selfish desires. The teachers Jude is warning against were operating on their own fabricated ideas, not on God's revealed truth. Their doctrines were like 'fictions of their own brain,' as one commentator put it.
The Consequence: Drifting from Truth
When our spiritual lives are built on these personal 'dreams' rather than on God's Word, we inevitably drift away from truth. These speculations become the basis for their actions, leading them to 'defile the flesh' and reject true authority.
Jude says these 'dreamers' despise dominion and blaspheme glorious ones. Who are these authorities they reject, and what does this rebellion look like?
The rejection of authority and blasphemy of glorious ones are not just about earthly rulers. Jude is speaking about a profound disrespect for divine order, both in heaven and on earth.
Heavenly Authorities
The 'dominion' (kyrioteta) and 'glorious ones' (doxas) likely refer to heavenly beings – God Himself, Christ, and angels. By rejecting these supreme authorities, these individuals were essentially declaring their independence from God's rule and His appointed heavenly host.
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Earthly Echoes
This rebellion against heavenly authority naturally spilled over into their rejection of earthly authority. Whether it was civil magistrates or spiritual leaders, anyone in a position of God-ordained authority was seen as an obstacle to their carnal desires and their self-willed 'dreams.'
The Ultimate Offense
Speaking 'evil of dignities' is more than just harsh words; it’s a direct assault on the sacred and the divine. It reveals a heart that is so hardened by its own illusions that it actively seeks to tear down all that is holy and authoritative.
Understand the original words
miainousin · Greek Verb
To stain, pollute, or render ceremonially or morally unclean, often referring to the corruption of one's physical body or the community of faith.
blasphēmousin · Greek Verb
To speak irreverently, mockingly, or slanderously against God, His attributes, His people, or celestial beings; an affront to divine majesty.
The false teachers Jude addresses are behaving like rebels throughout Israel's history, ignoring divine judgment and authority. Their 'dreams' are not divine visions but deluded fantasies leading to moral decay and contempt for spiritual and civil powers, echoing the failures of ancient Israel and the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah.
c. 1400 BC
The Exodus and Wilderness Wanderings
Following their liberation from slavery in Egypt, the Israelites were judged for their disobedience and unbelief during their 40-year journey through the wilderness, with many perishing before entering the Promised Land.
c. 722 BC
Fall of the Northern Kingdom of Israel
The Assyrian Empire conquered the northern kingdom of Israel, leading to the deportation of its inhabitants and the scattering of the Israelite tribes.
586 BC
Destruction of Jerusalem and Babylonian Exile
The Babylonian Empire destroyed Jerusalem and its Temple, exiling the remaining Judeans to Babylon. This served as a severe judgment for persistent rebellion against God's covenant.
c. 1st Century AD— this verse
Rise of Gnostic and Antinomian Sects
Various groups, including early Gnostic sects, emerged, often promoting deviant teachings. Some advocated for radical freedom from moral laws ('antinomianism'), believing spiritual enlightenment freed them from physical or ethical constraints.
c. AD 64
Destruction of Jerusalem
The Roman Empire, in response to a Jewish revolt, brutally suppressed the uprising, leading to the destruction of Jerusalem and its Temple. This catastrophic event underscored divine judgment on disobedience.
This passage directly parallels Jude's description of false teachers, using similar language to describe their contempt for authority and their arrogant speech.
Romans 13:1-2This passage establishes the divine origin of governing authorities, providing a strong contrast to Jude's depiction of those who 'despise dominion' and 'blaspheme the glorious ones'.
1 Samuel 15:23This verse highlights rebellion as akin to the sin of idolatry and stubbornness, underscoring the gravity of despising God-ordained authority that Jude addresses.
Isaiah 56:10This prophetic passage describes spiritual leaders who are blind and ignorant, using imagery that resonates with Jude's portrayal of 'dreamers' who lack true understanding and discernment.
gillJude 1:8: "Likewise also these filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities."
Likewise also these filthy dreamers defile the flesh,.... Which may be literally understood, either of the Jewish doctors, who pretended to be interpreters of dreams, as R. Akiba, R. Lazar, and others (n); or of the false teachers in the apostle's time, and of their filthy dreams, and nocturnal pollutions in them; which sense the Arabic and Ethiopic versions confirm; the former rende…
pulpitJude 1:8: "Likewise also these filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities."
Verse 8. - Having set in the forefront of his warnings these terrible instances of gross sin and overwhelming penalty, the writer proceeds to deal with the real character of the insidious troublers and corrupters of the Churches of his time. He describes them as filthy dreamers; or better, as the Revised Version puts it, men in their dreamings - an expression pointing to the foul and…
These "dreamers" aren't just having bad dreams; they're living by deluded fantasies, mistaking their own imaginations for divine guidance. This delusion directly fuels their impurity and their rejection of any authority, whether divine or human.
Jude is directly addressing the deceptive influence of certain individuals within the church who are twisting grace into license. He's just warned about them by recalling past judgments on rebels, fallen angels, and the sinful cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. Now, he focuses on the character and actions of these troublemakers themselves, likening them to those historical examples of divine judgment.
Jude is directly addressing the deceptive influence of certain individuals within the church who are twisting grace into license. He's just warned about them by recalling past judgments on rebels, fallen angels, and the sinful cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. Now, he focuses on the character and actions of these troublemakers themselves, likening them to those historical examples of divine judgment.
"Yet in like manner these people also, relying on their dreams, defile the flesh, reject authority, and blaspheme the glorious ones." — These "dreamers" aren't just having bad dreams; they're living by deluded fantasies, mistaking their own imaginations for divine guidance. This delusion directly fuels their impurity and their reject…
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Last reviewed October 2026