“And the angels who did not keep their proper domain, but left their own abode, He has reserved in everlasting chains under darkness for the judgment of the great day.”  

And the angels

Jude now turns to the second illustration of apostasy–the fall of evil angels from their primary realm during Noah’s generation.

who did not keep their proper domain,

In Genesis 6, “sons of God” (used only of angels) saw the “daughters of men” and lusted after and sinned with them. This is the reason God destroyed the world by flood. Only Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord because he maintained a separation between humans and angels. “Sons of God” (angels) were present at the laying of the foundation of the earth:

To what were its foundations fastened? Or who laid its cornerstone, When the morning stars sang together, And all the sons of God shouted for joy? Job 38:6-7

God created man “a little lower than angels.” That is, man does not have the capacities of angels. When God gave birth to Jesus as a man, He created Him with capacities lesser than angels. Jesus proved that the angels did not need to fall because, with lesser capacity, He did not fall in His humanity.

These angels had the right to live in a particular domain given by God. They left this domain in heaven by leaving their original structure and entered into sexual sin with human women on earth.

The word “keep” means guard. Angels did not guard the category of being an angel. God does not allow for the co-mingling of angels and humans. Infiltration sexually into the realm of homosapiens breaks a structure of creation. Homosexuality is another breaking of structural creation. Sexual relations between men and animals (bestiality) is yet another example. God keeps an obvious distinction between the categories of creation. It would be a grand mess if categories of creation began to co-mingle.

There are three categories of creation when it comes to beings: (1) angels, (2) human beings, and (3) animals. A half-human and half-animal is not a good thing! The word “domain” means in order of importance, honor, position. The angels did not keep their exalted position in God’s presence. They abandoned their high place and defiled themselves with women. This is a form of sexual perversion. Perversion produced the Genesis flood.

but left their own abode,

The character of angelic sin was of the same ilk as that of the inhabitants of the cities of verse seven. The sin in both cases is fornication. This fornication was going after “strange flesh.” The word “left” carries the ideas of desert, forsake. For earthly women, they forsook their domain of the living. It was a mutiny against God’s order. They were unhappy with God’s plan and order.

And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting… Ro 1:28

The word “abode” conveys the idea of habitation. This is the place where angels lived before Genesis 6.

He has reserved in everlasting chains under darkness

The parallel passage in 2 Peter 2:4 shows the result of co-mingling categories:

For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment… 2 Pe 2:4

The word “under” means under the authority of darkness. God placed these angels in a place of no light. He shut off their capacity to know and come to the truth.

…raging waves of the sea, foaming up their own shame; wandering stars for whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever. Ju 13

for the judgment of the great day

The word “for” means purpose. It is God’s purpose to judge false teaching.

To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn… Is 61:2

The sun shall be turned into darkness, And the moon into blood, Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord. Joel 2:31

And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Mt 25:30

One day Christians will judge angels. We will assist the Savior at the Great White Throne Judgment. Our case will not come up at that judgment because it was settled out of court (Jesus took my hell that I might have His heaven). After the Millennium is over, God will cast the devil and his angels into the lake of fire and brimstone (Re 20:10-12).

PRINCIPLE:

There is nothing that God hates more than perversion.

APPLICATION:

Perversion is of such monumental scope that it demands God’s judgment. It makes no difference whether it occurs in the field of art, literature, morals, education, or government. God hates the policy of calling black white. All forms of relativism wash out God’s categories.