RSV ~ Titus 3 Notes

Tit 3:1 | ISB Notes

submissive to rulers: Titus must remind his flock that public life is to be as shaped by the gospel as is private life. A Christian’s allegiance to civil government is part of this, as is working for justice and the betterment of society. The saints, Paul is saying, must also be exemplary citizens (Rom 13:1-7; 1 Pet 2:13-17; CCC 2238-42).

Tit 3:2 | ISB Notes

be gentle: Or “meek”. Paul asks believers to bear injuries and restrain anger even when provoked, so that Christian charity will shine out in even the most hostile environments. Jesus exemplified this virtue in his own life (Mt 11:29; 2 Cor 10:1).

Tit 3:3 | ISB Notes

once foolish: A snapshot of the moral and spiritual depravity that plagues the human race. More detailed reflections on this condition are found in Rom 1:18-32 and Eph 4:17-19.

Tit 3:5 | ISB Notes

he saved us: Salvation springs entirely from the mercy and grace of God. It is not an achievement on our part or a payment rendered for services. Apart from grace, even our most heroic efforts to please God fall short of his glory and his plan for our lives (Rom 3:23). Both the faith to believe in Christ and grace to live the gospel are undeserved gifts (Eph 2:8; Phil 1:29). Only after God has bestowed these gifts can we begin to please our heavenly Father through a lifetime of service and good works (Tit 2:14; Eph 2:10; Heb 11:6) (CCC 1996-2002).

Tit 3:7 | ISB Notes

justified: Cleansed from sin and made righteous in the sight of God.

See word study: Justified at Rom 2:13.

become heirs: Through the grace of divine adoption, which makes us children of God and thus heirs of all that the Father desires to give us (Rom 8:14-17; Gal 4:3-7).

hope of eternal life: Even now we possess eternal life in the form of grace (Eph 2:5; 1 Jn 5:13), but the full possession of glory in heaven is a future hope rather than a present assurance (Tit 1:2; Rom 8:24-25; Eph 1:13-14, 18; 1 Tim 6:18-19).

• If someone asks whether we have been saved by Baptism, one should not deny it, for the apostle says as much. But if he should ask whether that same washing has already saved us in every respect, one should have to say no, for the apostle says we are saved “in hope” (St. Augustine, Answer to Two Pelagian Letters 3, 3).

Tit 3:9 | ISB Notes

genealogies … quarrels over the law: Disputes of this kind erupted among the Jewish controversialists about whom Titus was warned in 1:10-16.

Tit 3:10-11 | ISB Notes

A pastoral plan for dealing with divisive Christians. Attempts must first be made to correct the offender and warn him of the consequences of his actions. Should he persist in his stubborn ways, Titus is to exclude him from the community’s life and liturgy (Mt 18:15-18). Concrete examples of this corrective discipline are found in 1 Cor 5:1-5 and 1 Tim 1:19-20 (CCC 1463).

Tit 3:10 | ISB Notes

a man who is factious: The Greek expression would later become a technical term for a “heretic” whose teachings were contrary to the truth and condemned by the Church.

Tit 3:12 | ISB Notes

Artemas or Tychicus: One of these two men was to be Titus’ replacement, freeing him to rejoin Paul for the winter. The former is otherwise unknown in the NT, but the latter is mentioned several times in Paul’s letters (Eph 6:21; Col 4:7; 2 Tim 4:12).

Nicopolis: Probably the city in Roman Epirus, on the western coast of Greece. Titus must have traveled north into Dalmatia following this rendezvous with Paul (2 Tim 4:10). See note on Tit 1:4.

Tit 3:13 | ISB Notes

Zenas the lawyer and Apollos: Possibly the bearers of this letter. The former is otherwise unknown in the NT, but the latter was a renowned convert from Alexandria, Egypt (Acts 18:24-26), who later ministered in Corinth (Acts 19:1; 1 Cor 1:12; 3:4-6).

Tit 3:15 | ISB Notes

Grace be with you all: Paul is addressing the entire community, not just Titus. The intent is to show the Cretans that Titus is Paul’s official representative on the island. No one who reads the letter will doubt that he is commissioned by the apostle to teach, organize, and discipline with full authority (2:15). Paul employs a similar strategy on Timothy’s behalf in 1 Tim 6:21 and 2 Tim 4:22.