Titus 1–3

Chapter 1

Salutation

¹Paul, ^aa bond-servant of God and an ^bapostle of Jesus Christ, ¹for the faith of those ^cchosen of God and ^dthe knowledge of the truth which is ^eaccording to godliness,

²in ^athe hope of eternal life, which God, ^bwho cannot lie, ^cpromised ^1dlong ages ago,

³but ^aat the proper time manifested, even His word, in ^bthe proclamation ^cwith which I was entrusted ^daccording to the commandment of ^eGod our Savior,

⁴To ^aTitus, ^bmy true child ¹in a ^ccommon faith: ^dGrace and peace from God the Father and ^eChrist Jesus our Savior.

Qualifications of Elders

⁵For this reason I left you in ^aCrete, that you would set in order what remains and ^bappoint ^celders in every city as I directed you,

⁶namely, ^aif any man is above reproach, the ^bhusband of one wife, having children who believe, not accused of ^cdissipation or ^drebellion.

⁷For the ^1aoverseer must be above reproach as ^bGod’s steward, not ^cself-willed, not quick-tempered, not ^daddicted to wine, not pugnacious, ^enot fond of sordid gain,

⁸but ^ahospitable, ^bloving what is good, sensible, just, devout, self-controlled,

^9aholding fast the faithful word which is in accordance with the teaching, so that he will be able both to exhort in ^bsound doctrine and to refute those who contradict.

^10aFor there are many ^brebellious men, ^cempty talkers and deceivers, especially ^dthose of the circumcision,

¹¹who must be silenced because they are upsetting ^awhole families, teaching ^bthings they should not teach ^cfor the sake of sordid gain.

¹²One of themselves, a prophet of their own, said, “^aCretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.”

¹³This testimony is true. For this reason ^areprove them ^bseverely so that they may be ^csound in the faith,

¹⁴not paying attention to Jewish ^amyths and ^bcommandments of men who ^cturn away from the truth.

^15aTo the pure, all things are pure; but ^bto those who are defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure, but both their ^cmind and their conscience are defiled.

^16aThey profess to know God, but by their deeds they ^bdeny Him, being ^cdetestable and ^ddisobedient and ^eworthless ^ffor any good deed.

Chapter 2

Duties of the Older and Younger

¹But as for you, speak the things which are fitting for ^asound doctrine.

^2aOlder men are to be ^btemperate, dignified, sensible, ^csound ^din faith, in love, in ¹perseverance.

³Older women likewise are to be reverent in their behavior, ^anot malicious gossips nor ^benslaved to much wine, teaching what is good,

⁴so that they may ¹encourage the young women to love their husbands, to love their children,

⁵to be sensible, pure, ^aworkers at home, kind, being ^bsubject to their own husbands, ^cso that the word of God will not be dishonored.

⁶Likewise urge ^athe young men to be ¹sensible;

⁷in all things show yourself to be ^aan example of good deeds, with ¹purity in doctrine, dignified,

⁸sound in speech which is beyond reproach, so ^athat the opponent will be put to shame, having nothing bad to say about us.

⁹Urge ^abondslaves to be subject to their own masters in everything, to be well-pleasing, not ¹argumentative,

¹⁰not pilfering, but showing all good faith so that they will adorn the doctrine of ^aGod our Savior in every respect.

¹¹For the grace of God has ^aappeared, ^1bbringing salvation to all men,

¹²¹instructing us to deny ungodliness and ^aworldly desires and ^bto live sensibly, righteously and godly ^cin the present age,

¹³looking for the blessed hope and the ^aappearing of the glory of ^1bour great God and Savior, Christ Jesus,

¹⁴who ^agave Himself for us ^bto redeem us from every lawless deed, and to ^cpurify for Himself a ^dpeople for His own possession, ^ezealous for good deeds.

¹⁵These things speak and ^aexhort and reprove with all ¹authority. ^bLet no one disregard you.

Chapter 3

Godly Living

^1aRemind them ^bto be subject to rulers, to authorities, to be obedient, to be ^cready for every good deed,

²to malign no one, ^ato be peaceable, gentle, ^bshowing every consideration for all men.

^3aFor we also once were foolish ourselves, ^bdisobedient, ^cdeceived, ^denslaved to ^evarious lusts and pleasures, spending our life in ^fmalice and envy, hateful, hating one another.

⁴But when the ^akindness of ^bGod our Savior and His love for mankind ^cappeared,

^5aHe saved us, ^bnot on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but ^caccording to His mercy, by the ^dwashing of regeneration and ^erenewing by the Holy Spirit,

^6awhom He poured out upon us ^brichly through Jesus Christ our Savior,

⁷so that being justified by His grace we would be made ^aheirs ¹according to the hope of eternal life.

^8aThis is a trustworthy statement; and concerning these things I ^bwant you to speak confidently, so that those who have ^cbelieved God will be careful to ^dengage in good deeds. These things are good and profitable for men.

⁹But ^aavoid ^bfoolish controversies and ^cgenealogies and strife and ^ddisputes about the Law, for they are ^eunprofitable and worthless.

^10aReject a ^bfactious man ^cafter a first and second warning,

¹¹knowing that such a man is ^aperverted and is sinning, being self-condemned.

Personal Concerns

¹²When I send Artemas or ^aTychicus to you, ^bmake every effort to come to me at Nicopolis, for I have decided to ^cspend the winter there.

¹³Diligently help Zenas the ^alawyer and ^bApollos on their way so that nothing is lacking for them.

^14aOur people must also learn to ^bengage in good ¹deeds to meet ^cpressing needs, so that they will not be ^dunfruitful.

^15aAll who are with me greet you. Greet those who love us ^bin the faith.

^cGrace be with you all.