Jude Chapter 1 Vs. 9

Judgment on False Teachers

“Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee.” Jude 1:9

Michael the archangel... Michael (Dan. 10:13, 10:21; 12:1; Rev. 12:1; 12:7). No other angel bears the title of archangel, as recorded, but there are others who are also chief angels, for Michael is only one of them (Dan. 10:13).

disputed about the... This took place after the death of Moses. The devil had the power of death until Christ conquered him on the cross (Col. 2:14-17; Heb. 2:14-15; Rev. 1:18). The devil claimed Moses, but God intervened and took the body, burying it in the land of Moab (Deut. 34:5-6). If he has been resurrected it had to be after the resurrection of Jesus who is the firstfruit of all that have died (1Cor. 15:20-23). Whether Moses came out of the grave with the saints after Christ was resurrected is not stated (Mat. 27:52-53). He was in soul form in Mat. 17:1-8.

body of Moses... Moses died on Mt. Nebo in Moab without having entered the Promised Land and was secretly buried in a place not known to man (Deut. 34:5-6). It would likely be that this confrontation took place as Michael buried Moses to prevent Satan from using Moses’ body for some diabolical purpose not stated.

Perhaps Satan wanted to use it as an idol, and object of worship for Israel. God sent Michael; however, to be certain it was buried. This account was recorded in the pseudepigraphical Assumption of Moses.

Moses is called the servant of the Lord 18 times (Deut. 34:5).

God buried Moses.

No man knoweth of his sepulchre unto this day, God kept the burial place secret so that Israel would not worship Moses. Pagans, on the other hand, made gods of their eminent statesmen, victorious generals, great lawgivers and founders of religion.

durst not bring... A good example for saints today who sometimes rail on Satan and insult him.

Michael is the chief archangel of God who especially watches over Israel (Dan. 10:13, 21; 12:1), and leads the holy angels (Rev. 12:7). Nowhere else in Scripture is the struggle over the body of Moses mentioned. Michael had to fight with Satan to do God’s bidding, as he did on another occasion (in Dan. 10:13).

a railing accusation... Rather than personally cursing such a powerful angel as Satan, Michael deferred to the ultimate, sovereign power of God following the example of the Angel of the Lord (in Zec. 3:2). This is the supreme illustration of how Christians are to deal with Satan and demons. Believers are not to address them, but rather to seek the Lord’s intervening power against them.

Jude evidently refers to a Jewish tradition (preserved, according to ancient authorities), in a work called the Assumption of Moses, according to which Michael the archangel refused to be provoked by Satan, who charges that Moses was a murderer (Exo. 2:11-12), and therefore undeserving a proper burial.

Before Lucifer fell, he was probably in the highest position an angel could hold. Michael, had respect for authority, and did not personally come against the devil (Lucifer).

Again, he fought the devil by the name of the Lord. We can learn from this. We should not come against the devil, or his devil spirits, in our own name. The only way for us to rebuke him is in the name of Jesus.

The archangel Michael was sent to bury Moses’ body, but according to Jewish tradition (the pseudepigraphical book, The Assumption of Moses), the devil argued with the angel about the body, apparently claiming the right to dispose of it. But Michael, though powerful and authoritative, did not dare dispute with Satan, so he left the matter in God’s hands, saying, The Lord rebuke you! The false teachers Jude spoke of had no respect for authority or for angels. The apostates’ slandering of celestial beings (Jude 1:8) stands in arrogant contrast to the chief angelic being, Michael, who would not dare slander Satan, chief of the fallen angels.