1Paul, a servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God's elect, and the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness;
1:1-41Paul, a servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God's elect, and the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness;
From Paul, [1]
2 In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;
3 But hath in due times manifested his word through preaching, which is committed unto me according to the commandment of God our Saviour;
4To Titus, mine own son after the common faith: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ our Saviour.
to Titus.
1:5-95 For this cause left I thee in Crete, that thou shouldest set in order the things that are wanting, and ordain elders in every city, as I had appointed thee:
6 If any be blameless, the husband of one wife, having faithful children not accused of riot or unruly.
A bishop must have one wife [3], well-behaved children,
7 For a bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God; not selfwilled, not soon angry, not given to wine, no striker, not given to filthy lucre;
8 But a lover of hospitality, a lover of good men, sober, just, holy, temperate;
be sober, a lover of good men, and be just and holy. [4]
9 Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers.
1:10-1110For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision:
There are many vain deceivers, especially among the Jews,
11Whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre's sake.
whose mouths must be stopped.
1:12-1312 One of themselves, even a prophet of their own, said, The Cretians are always liars, evil beasts, slow bellies.
The Cretians are always liars, evil beasts, and slow bellies.
13 This witness is true. Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith;
And that's the truth.
So rebuke them soundly, so they stay in the faith.
1:14-1614Not giving heed to Jewish fables, and commandments of men, that turn from the truth.
Don't listen to Jewish fables and commandments. [5]
15 Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled.
To those who are pure, everything is pure, but to those who are defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure. Even their mind and conscience is defiled.
16 They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.
They are abominable, disobedient and reprobate.
Although Titus claims to have been written by Paul, most scholars believe that it, along with the other pastoral epistles (1 and 2 Timothy), was written by someone else long after his death.
1. Bart D. Ehrman, The New Testament: A Historical Introduction to the Early Christian Writings, 3rd ed. (2004), chap.23
God, like George Washington (but unlike the author of Titus who falsely claims to be Paul) cannot tell a lie.
A bishop should have only one wife. I guess it's OK for laymen to have several.
(And unmarried men can't be bishops.)
Like most of the bible, maybe?
