• Greetings and Grace

  • 1 Paul, a slave of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, for the faith of God’s elect and the full knowledge of the truth which is according to godliness,
  • 2 in the hope of eternal life, which the God who cannot lie promised from all eternity,
  • 3 but at the proper time manifested His word in preaching, with which I was entrusted according to the commandment of God our Savior,
  • 4 To Titus, my genuine child according to our common faith: Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.

  • Qualifications of Elders

  • 5 For this reason I left you in Crete, that you would set in order what remains and appoint elders in every city as I directed you,
  • 6 namely, if any man is beyond reproach, the husband of one wife, having faithful children, who are not accused of dissipation, or rebellious.
  • 7 For the overseer must be beyond reproach as God’s steward, not self-willed, not quick-tempered, not addicted to wine, not pugnacious, not fond of dishonest gain,
  • 8 but hospitable, loving what is good, sensible, righteous, holy, self-controlled,
  • 9 holding fast the faithful word which is in accordance with the teaching, so that he will be able both to exhort in sound doctrine and to reprove those who contradict.
  • 10 For there are many rebellious men, empty talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision,
  • 11 who must be silenced because they are upsetting whole families, teaching things they should not teach for the sake of dishonest gain.
  • 12 One of themselves, a prophet of their own, said, “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.”
  • 13 This testimony is true. For this reason reprove them severely so that they may be sound in the faith,
  • 14 not paying attention to Jewish myths and commandments of men who turn away from the truth.
  • 15 To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure, but both their mind and their conscience are defiled.
  • 16 They profess to know God, but by their works they deny Him, being detestable and disobedient and unfit for any good work.