“Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core.”
Woe to them! They have taken the way of Cain; they have rushed for profit into Balaam's error; they have been destroyed in Korah's rebellion — Jude catalogs three OT figures epitomizing different forms of apostasy: Cain (whose jealous offering was rejected, typifying those excluded from God's acceptance), Balaam (who prostituted prophecy for financial gain, typifying mercenary false teachers), and Korah (who challenged Moses' authority and was destroyed with his followers, typifying rebellion against legitimate authority). The progression—from personal rejection, through mercenary corruption, to institutional rebellion—traces the anatomy of apostasy and suggests that the false teachers embody all these failures. The 'woe' (ouai) pronounces eschatological judgment on those who follow these patterns.
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