Strong’s Greek 1608 (ἐκπορνεύω) intensifies the ordinary idea of πορνεύω by prefacing it with ἐκ, picturing a departure or breakthrough into unrestrained sexual behavior. The verb therefore denotes not merely participation in immorality but a wholesale surrender to it—an abandonment of God-ordained boundaries.

Canonical Context in Jude

Jude 1:7 stands as the sole New Testament use:

“In like manner, Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities around them, who indulged in sexual immorality and pursued strange flesh, are on display as an example, undergoing the punishment of eternal fire.” (Berean Standard Bible)

Jude places ἐκπορνεύσασαι in a triad of examples (unbelieving Israel, rebel angels, Sodom’s cities) to warn false teachers and wavering believers. The verb underscores that the sin of Sodom was not an isolated lapse but a corporate, habitual lifestyle violating nature and covenant alike.

Old Testament and Intertestamental Echoes

Genesis 19 supplies the historical narrative behind Jude’s warning. Additional backdrop appears in:
• Isaiah 3:9 – the public display of sin in Sodom.
• Ezekiel 16:49-50 – arrogance, abundance, and “abominations” joined to sexual excess.

Jewish Second Temple literature (for example, 1 Enoch 10:7-9) also used Sodom to illustrate final judgment, preparing the conceptual soil into which Jude sowed ἐκπορνεύσασαι.

Thematic Connections in Scripture

1. Divine Judgment on Sexual License – 2 Peter 2:6-10 parallels Jude, stressing that God “condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction.”
2. Covenant Faithfulness versus Spiritual Harlotry – Hosea 1-3, Jeremiah 3:6-10, and Revelation 17:1-5 depict idolatry as prostitution, showing that physical immorality often mirrors spiritual unfaithfulness.
3. Call to Purity – 1 Corinthians 6:18 commands believers to “Flee from sexual immorality,” providing the positive antithesis to ἐκπορνεύω.

Historical Reception in the Church

Early Christian writers employed Jude 1:7 to defend biblical sexual ethics. Tertullian (On Modesty, 5) cited Sodom to warn against moral laxity; Origen (Commentary on Matthew, 14.23) linked Jude’s vocabulary to Christ’s teaching on inward purity. Reformers likewise treated the passage as a perpetual caution against societal descent into sexual chaos.

Theological Significance

1. Holiness of God – The verb exposes how persistent immorality provokes God’s just wrath.
2. Eschatological Example – Jude holds Sodom’s fate before the church as a living object lesson until the final judgment.
3. Corporate Responsibility – Entire “cities” are addressed, reminding congregations that communal standards matter, not merely private conduct.

Practical Ministry Applications

• Preaching: Jude 1:7 provides sermonic grounding for warning against cultural normalization of sexual sin.
• Counseling: The intensity in ἐκπορνεύω strengthens pastoral appeals for radical repentance rather than incremental reform.
• Discipleship: Small-group studies can trace the biblical theology of purity from Genesis to Jude, fostering accountability.
• Apologetics: The term confronts claims that Scripture is indifferent to sexual ethics, showing a coherent witness from Old to New Testament.

Warnings and Exhortations

A lifestyle of ἐκπορνεύω invites temporal ruin and eternal loss. Yet Jude’s epistle immediately follows with hope: “keep yourselves in the love of God, as you await the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Jude 1:21). The same gospel that pronounces judgment also offers cleansing and empowerment for holy living.

Conclusion

Strong’s 1608 stands as a stark verbal monument in the New Testament, reminding the church that unchecked sexual rebellion has historically provoked divine judgment, yet simultaneously urging believers to contend for the faith by embodying covenant fidelity and purity.