Titus Chapter 1 Breakdown

1 Paul, a bondservant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect and the acknowledgment of the truth which accords with godliness, in hope of eternal life which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began, but has in due time manifested His word through preaching, which was committed to me according to the commandment of God our Savior; To Titus, a true son in our common faith: Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ our Savior.

Paul sends his greeting and introduces himself, which is custom in letter writing. He then states who the letter is written to, Titus.

5 For this reason I left you in Crete, that you should set in order the things that are lacking, and appoint elders in every city as I commanded you—  if a man is blameless, the husband of one wife, having faithful children not accused of dissipation or insubordination.

Paul had recently left Titus in Crete because of his being a true son of YHWH. He had a job to do while there. He gave him specific guidelines for appointing elders in each city.

7 For a bishop must be blameless, as a steward of God, not self-willed, not quick-tempered, not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money, but hospitable, a lover of what is good, sober-minded, just, holy, self-controlled, holding fast the faithful word as he has been taught, that he may be able, by sound doctrine, both to exhort and convict those who contradict.

Paul explains what characteristics a bishop must exemplify. One things that stands out here is that Paul says the man must be faithful to the word he has been taught, that is, sound doctrine.

1 Timothy 1:8-11

But we know that the law is good if one uses it lawfully, knowing this: that the law is not made for a righteous person, but for the lawless and insubordinate, for the ungodly and for sinners, for the unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers, for fornicators, for sodomites, for kidnappers, for liars, for perjurers, and if there is any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine, according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God which was committed to my trust.

2 Timothy 4:3-4

For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.

Titus 2:1-5

But as for you, speak the things which are proper for sound doctrine: that the older men be sober, reverent, temperate, sound in faith, in love, in patience; the older women likewise, that they be reverent in behavior, not slanderers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things— that they admonish the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, homemakers, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be blasphemed.

Sound doctrine, a phrase in which Paul used in each of these passages all seem to point to a specific understanding of how a person should live their life. But, what stands out to me the most is the intended message found in 1 Timothy. Paul says the law is good, so long as it is used properly. Then he goes on to say something that has been quoted out of context to me many times. The law is not made for the righteous person, but for the lawless and insubordinate. I find this very fascinating because it contradicts what many believers make claim to today. They will call themselves sinners. Go ask someone who claims they are a Christian and I bet they will say they are a sinner. But then they will follow it up with a statement of Jesus kept the law, so I don’t have to. But, if they are a sinner, then according to 1 Timothy, the law is made particularly for Christians. The Law of YHWH is the sound doctrine Paul speaks of and all believers should be held accountable to it.

10 For there are many insubordinate, both idle talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision, whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole households, teaching things which they ought not, for the sake of dishonest gain.

Now we have Paul saying outright, there are certain members of the Jews, that is the sect called the circumcision, who do not keep the Law of YHWH. Instead they teach traditions of men in order to make money. They scratch the itchy ears on men. This is not Paul saying the Jews are wrong for keeping the Law of God, no. This is Paul saying these particular Jews are wrong for not teaching the Law of YWHW.

12 One of them, a prophet of their own, said, “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.”

One of the Jews Paul is referring to made the horrendous statement above.

13 This testimony is true. Therefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith, not giving heed to Jewish fables and commandments of men who turn from the truth.

Now we can see specifically Paul commands Titus to rebuke the men doing these things. He distinguishes between the Jewish traditions of men and the Truth in which we find in Torah. Paul taught truth, which was what he knew better than any man. That is the Torah. To say the Law of YHWH is not the truth is to say the Psalmist is a liar.

Psalm 119:142

Your righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, And Your law is truth.

You can see now the circumcision sect of the Jews were not teaching the keeping of God’s Law, but rather they were teaching the traditions of men.

15 To the pure all things are pure, but to those who are defiled and unbelieving nothing is pure; but even their mind and conscience are defiled.

To those who know the truth and follow it, they are pure. To those who do not keep the truth, everything including their own minds are defiled, polluted, and unclean.

16 They profess to know God, but in works they deny Him, being abominable, disobedient, and disqualified for every good work.

These Jews claim to know YHWH, but based on what they do, they deny Him. They are disobedient to His Law making them abominable and disqualify every good deed they do commit.