Jude 1:21 (ASV)

Passage

keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.

Nearby Context

Jude 1:19 These are they who make separations, sensual, having not the Spirit.

Jude 1:20 But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit,

Jude 1:21 keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.

Jude 1:22 And on some have mercy, who are in doubt;

Jude 1:23 and some save, snatching them out of the fire; and on some have mercy with fear; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "mercy", "keep", "yourselves", "love", "looking", "lord", "jesus", and "christ". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "mercy" and "keep", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 20's "But ye beloved building up yourselves on..." into verse 22's "And on some have mercy who are...", so "mercy" and "keep" belong inside that flow. In Jude context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "mercy" and "keep" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.