Why does Michael say, "The Lord rebuke you" (Jude 1:9)?

Having given the portraiture of these evil men, Jude presents a contrast in the conduct of Michael the archangel. "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." (v. 9.) The sole object of the introduction of this controversy between the archangel and Satan is to show the true character of the conduct of those who speak evil of the dignities. These allow themselves to "speak railingly," whereas the archangel, even when dealing with Satan, the impersonation of all evil, and knowing his enmity against the people of God, did not permit himself to do so, "but with the gravity of one who acts according to God, appealed to the judgment of God Himself."* And in doing so he employs the same language — "the Lord rebuke thee" — as is used by the Lord Himself, when Satan was standing at His right hand to resist Jehovah's gracious interposition on behalf of Jerusalem, as represented by Joshua the high priest. (Zechariah 3:1-2.) Surely every child of God may find here guidance for his own conduct in his conflicts with evil, for who can appeal in vain to the Lord when His interests are at stake? How far more frequently would the efforts of the enemy be foiled if the people of God knew how to look to the Lord in this way to avenge His own cause!

*Michael is mentioned in the book of Daniel (Dan. 10:13; Dan. 12:1) as one who "standeth for the children of thy people;" and in Rev. 12 as fighting with his angels against the dragon and his angels. Of the nature of his reasoning with the devil about the body of Moses we have absolutely no knowledge. Speculations on the subject, and especially on the basis of the mysterious statement in Deut. 34:6, have been endless, but it is one of God's secrets into which it is impossible for man to penetrate.

Well, here then you see how beautiful it is that instead of bringing a railing accusation, Michael simply warned Satan with the solemn words: "Jehovah rebuke thee" — "The Lord rebuke thee." What would railing do? If there are two people railing, a good and a bad man, and the bad man's railing provokes the good man to rail, the good man goes down to the level of the bad. It does not at all diminish the railing of the other. I should think at any time that a bad man could gain a good degree over the good man in the way of railing. Surely he is much more practised, and very likely more unscrupulous and more malicious, and therefore it sounds stronger to the ear of man. But, you see, that would be a total lowering of even an angel, and how much more of a saint, I might say. Here we have the beautiful conduct of the angel as a pattern to the saint, that we be not provoked, nor, when we are reviled, revile again, but act as the Lord Himself acted. He committed Himself to Him that judgeth righteously. Well, that is what Jehovah will do; He will judge righteously, but the time is not yet come for its manifestation.

It is written here: "But 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" (ver. 9). Here, then, is a grand truth, taught in a striking and powerful manner. The apostle Peter, in the 2nd chapter of his Second Epistle, is said to give exactly the same thing as Jude, but he says not one word about it. He makes no allusion to Michael the archangel. He speaks in verse 4 of angels that sinned, whom God did not spare. But Jude presents it as the angels that kept not their first estate. This clearly has nothing to do with Michael. The reference to the archangel is entirely peculiar to Jude; and the object is to exhibit the spirit that becomes one who acts for God, even in dealing with His worst enemy, that there be no meeting evil with evil, nor reviling with reviling, but on the contrary immediate and confessed reference to God.

What makes it all the more surprising is the power vouchsafed to Michael. He is the angel whom God will employ to overthrow the devil from his evil eminence by-and-by (Rev. 12). But here the historical intimation given is entirely in character with the future. You may tell me that Rev. 12. was not revealed to Jude, who wrote this. Be it so, yet the same God that wrought by Jude wrought also by John. It is evident from the two scriptures that the antagonism between Michael and the devil is not a truth foreign to God's word. There we have it in the written word. It is the truth of God. Jude was given to tell us what God moved Jude to write, which has not only great moral value for any time, but gives us the fact, full of interest, that the antagonism between Michael the archangel and the devil is not merely of the future. Here the proof lies before us that it wrought also in the past. Thus we can look back fifteen hundred years, and there behold the evidence of this contention between the devil and the archangel. Do you say that it was about the body of Moses, and what is that to anyone? Can we not readily enter into the importance of that dispute? Can we not understand the bearing of that question, when we hold in mind all the history of Israel in the wilderness, as given in Exodus and Numbers?

Now the men that Jude was denouncing were marked by similar things. They defiled themselves by fleshly sins, and at the same time were characterized by an arrogant refusal of authority. This leads up to the remarkable verse about the contention between Michael the archangel and the devil. What Jude cites is quite unrecorded in the Old Testament. The devil, though now fallen, was once a high dignity in the angelic realm, and until he is finally dispossessed by God his dignity is to be respected. Even so high an angelic dignity as Michael respected it. He did not take it upon himself to rebuke him, but left the Lord to do it.

In passing let us learn from this not to do ourselves what even Michael shrank from doing. How often we may hear people speak of Satan in a very light and mocking way, and we may have done it ourselves. Let us not do it again. Satan is a spirit being, who once held a leading place, if not the leading place, in the angelic hierarchy. Though fallen, he still wields immense power, which we cannot afford to despise. Yet, under the sheltering power of our Lord we need not fear him.

Having given the portraiture of these evil men, Jude presents a contrast in the conduct of Michael the archangel. "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." (v. 9.) The sole object of the introduction of this controversy between the archangel and Satan is to show the true character of the conduct of those who speak evil of the dignities. These allow themselves to "speak railingly," whereas the archangel, even when dealing with Satan, the impersonation of all evil, and knowing his enmity against the people of God, did not permit himself to do so, "but with the gravity of one who acts according to God, appealed to the judgment of God Himself."* And in doing so he employs the same language - "the Lord rebuke thee" - as is used by the Lord Himself, when Satan was standing at His right hand to resist Jehovah's gracious interposition on behalf of Jerusalem, as represented by Joshua the high priest. (Zechariah 3:1-2.) Surely every child of God may find here guidance for his own conduct in his conflicts with evil, for who can appeal in vain to the Lord when His interests are at stake? How far more frequently would the efforts of the enemy be foiled if the people of God knew how to look to the Lord in this way to avenge His own cause!

*Michael is mentioned in the book of Daniel (Dan. 10:13; Dan. 12:1) as one who "standeth for the children of thy people;" and in Rev. 12 as fighting with his angels against the dragon and his angels. Of the nature of his reasoning with the devil about the body of Moses we have absolutely no knowledge. Speculations on the subject, and especially on the basis of the mysterious statement in Deut. 34:6, have been endless, but it is one of God's secrets into which it is impossible for man to penetrate.

As to this last, even Michael the archangel is a sobering example for us. Though himself in a high position, he would not dare to rail against Satan, who is a dignity also. We must show him serious respect, for he is a dignity. Not that he is any authority so far as believers are concerned and they must not obey him. But they must not ridicule or dare to show contempt toward him.

But Satan had evidently raised the question with Michael as to the body of Moses, and there was a. disputation about this. It may be he wanted to find the location of Moses' grave (for God had buried him), in order to make an Idolatrous shrine of wor-ship. But Michael's words, "the Lord rebuke thee", are both faithful and respectful, properly restrained.

Israelites knew Michael to be the highest angel (Dan. 12:1). Apocryphal works and Jewish tradition have four or more Archangels, but Scripture lets us know only of one. But how did Jude get his information? We might also ask how did Paul get his information about the names of the magicians who confronted Moses (2 Tim. 3:8)? It is clear to me that the answer lies in our belief regarding inspiration. God is able to reveal His will and details of history otherwise lost to mankind. God has also revealed that these two spiritual beings will be in conflict again in a coming day (Rev. 12:7-9), but then Michael will express himself and act firmly to expel Satan from heaven down to this earth.

The generally accepted explanation about the scene revealed here is that Satan claimed charge over Moses' body because Moses had sinned and as such he had had power over him (cf. Heb. 2:14). It has also been suggested that he wanted to use the body an object of superstitious veneration and idolatry. Michael's response is precisely the same as we find in Zechariah 3:2 where Satan is found resisting the high priest, Joshua: 'The Lord rebuke thee.'

A. We know from Daniel 12 that to Michael the archangel is confided by God the chief place of guardianship over Israel. He it is who "at the time of the end," when the final collision of the powers rages in and around Jerusalem, shall stand up for the children of Daniel's people. It was no new interest of his. Jude was inspired to recall the thrilling fact of the unseen world, that even so early as Moses' death there was a contention between him and the devil about the dead body. Doubtless the adversary's aim as ever was to deceive and destroy thereby; and it may be by setting up for adoration that relic of him whom when living he stirred them up to disobey, oppose, and revile. Even Michael railed not against Satan but said, Jehovah rebuke thee. Compare Zechariah 3. It is for the vilest to revile those whom God honours in any way. Jude helps to fill in the sketch drawn in Deuteronomy 34:6.

Now we all know from the account given of Moses, both in Exodus and Numbers, how constantly the children of Israel were contending with him, murmuring against him, speaking evil of him — hating Moses, really, and Aaron too. And it was only the power of God interfering every now and then that alarmed them, and cut them down, and compelled them at any rate to pay outward respect. But directly he was dead, the same devil that stirred them up against Moses when he was alive — oh, what would he not have given for that dead body! The dead body would have been made a relic. You know very well that this is a favourite idea of men — the dead body would have been an object of worship. The devil would, therefore, have gained doubly. First, by setting them at war with him while alive, and still more when he was dead by making them idolaters of Moses. So that we can easily understand why it was that the Lord buried the body Himself. But it appears that before he was buried, there was this contention between Michael the archangel and the devil about Moses' dead body; so perfectly in keeping with the mysterious manner in which Jehovah buried him where none should know, and where even if Satan was allowed to know, God interfered that Michael should guard that grave, that Michael should hinder all the efforts of the devil to get hold of that dead body. So we have the two facts: what is here told us by Jude, and the fact of Deuteronomy 34, where we have the account of the Lord's burying Moses — which He never did for any other man. Show me only a single case of the Lord's burying any one. I do not remember one but that of Moses, and there were special reasons why Jehovah should secretly bury that dead body rather than any other.

He begins now by telling them that while his heart was busy with the subject of "the common salvation," and he was giving "all diligence" to write to them about this, he had to break off from it in order to exhort them to contend earnestly "for the faith once delivered to the saints," now in danger. "Once delivered" implies once for all delivered. There is to be no departure from this, no addition, even, which would alter its character. The faith is now complete; it is not simply that which the Lord spoke upon earth, but that which the Holy Spirit, according to His promise, has added as no less from Him. "I have many things," He said, "to say unto you; but ye cannot bear them now. Howbeit, when He, the Spirit of truth, is come, He shall guide you into all truth: for He shall take of Mine and shall show it unto you." Thus, those who would listen to the Lord's voice in the Gospels must of necessity listen to what He claims to be His voice afterward, as given through the apostles and prophets raised up and qualified by the Spirit, the witness of His full, accomplished work and the glory resultant. Already this was all being called in question. There were "certain men crept in privily, men who of old were marked out beforehand to this condemnation" (Jude evidently refers to the prophecy of Enoch which he cites afterwards), "ungodly persons, turning the grace of God into lasciviousness, and denying their only Master and Lord: "the grace they laid hold of, yet perverted to give liberty to their own lusts which broke out against the authority of the Lord of Him through whom alone grace could come to men. We have seen already in Peter and others this character of the last days declared. It was not mere error, the wandering of men's minds, but a spirit of rebellion, the complete refusal of authority by unsubject hearts. Jude puts them in remembrance, therefore, as those indeed who have once for all known all these things: "that the Lord, having saved a people out of the land of Egypt, afterwards destroyed those that believed not;" and that "angels who kept not their right estate, but left their own habitation, He is keeping in eternal chains under darkness, unto the judgment of the great day." Peter speaks of these as "the angels that sinned." Jude speaks of them as apostates having left their own habitation — left the place to which God had assigned them at the beginning. So also Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities around, which imitated them in the unbounded lasciviousness of a corrupt life, had been made an example of, to put as it were before men's eyes the judgment which it naturally spoke of — a judgment of eternal fire. Thus had God already given needed witness of that which will manifest itself in a more awful manner in the time to come. Spite of it all, those of whom Jude speaks were recklessly following exactly in the same path. By their dreaming, as those that had lost the truth of God, justifying themselves in the imaginations of their own hearts, they defiled the flesh, despised lordship, and railed against dignities. He brings forward a remarkable example in witness against such railing, when even Michael the archangel, contending with the devil about the body of Moses, did not yet dare to bring a railing judgment against him, but said, "The Lord rebuke thee." Moses, as we know, died, and the Lord buried him, and no one knows of his sepulchre to this day. One can easily see, with the tendency to idolatry which was strong in Israel, why the sepulchre of their great deliverer might be hidden from them. Satan, as it would seem, would needs bring to light what God had hidden. Yet, even then Michael had not taken it upon himself to pronounce judgment upon him, but referred it to the Lord. This belongs, no doubt, to other testimonies, such as that of the Book of Job, which assure us that the judgment of Satan himself waits for that time when the great question of good and evil will find its final settlement. Satan in the meanwhile may come up amongst the angelic "sons of God," and put in his accusation on the plea of righteousness against the people of God. He still does this, and the patience of God goes on, using all this for blessing to His people themselves, and allowing things to work out to their necessary result without hastening them, as our impatience would so readily demand. We have seen in Job's case the end of the Lord, and that it was in His wisdom to suffer what would at last show how that He was indeed exceeding pitiful and of tender mercy. God has the sickle put in when the field is ripe, and not before; and when that time of ripeness shall arrive is known to Himself alone. It is far otherwise with those of whom Jude is speaking.