Titus 1

1 Paul, a servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of the chosen ones of God, and an acknowledging of truth that [is] according to piety,

From Paul, a servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, on behalf of the faith of God’s chosen people, and their knowledge of that truth which makes for godliness

2 on hope of continuous life, which God, who does not lie, promised before times of ages (aiōnios g166)

– and is based on the hope of eternal life, which God, who never lies, promised before the ages began, (aiōnios g166)

3 (and He revealed His word in [His] own times), in preaching, which I was entrusted with, according to a charge of God our Savior,

and has revealed at his own time in his message, with the preaching of which I was entrusted by the command of God our Savior.

4 to Titus—true child according to a common faith: Grace, [[kindness, ]] peace, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ our Savior!

To Titus, my true child in our shared faith: May God, the Father, and Christ Jesus, our Savior, bless you and give you peace.

5 For this cause I left you in Crete, that you may arrange the things lacking, and may set elders down in every city, as I appointed to you,

My reason for leaving you in Crete was that you might put in order what had been left unfinished, and appoint church elders in the various towns, as I myself directed you.

6 if anyone is blameless, a husband of one wife, having believing children, not under accusation of riotous living or insubordinate—

They are to be of irreproachable character, faithful to their partners, whose children are believers in Christ and have never been open to the charge of being wild or unruly.

7 for it is required of the overseer to be blameless, as God’s steward, not self-pleased, nor prone to anger, not given to wine, not an abuser, not given to shameful gain,

For a supervisor, as God’s steward, ought to be of blameless character – not arrogant or quick-tempered, not given to drunkeness, violence or shady money-making.

8 but a lover of strangers, a lover of [the] good, sober-minded, righteous, holy, self-controlled,

Instead, they should be hospitable, love what is good, self-controlled, upright, people of holy life and disciplined,

9 holding—according to the teaching—to the steadfast word, that he may also be able to exhort in the sound teaching, and to convict the deniers;

holding firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught – so that they may be able to encourage others by sound teaching, as well as to refute those who contradict it.

10 for there are many both insubordinate, vain-talkers, and mind-deceivers—especially those of the circumcision—

For there are many undisciplined persons who lead others astray with their nonsense, especially those of the group advocating the necessity of circumcision.

11 whose mouths must be covered, who overturn whole households, teaching what things it should not, for [the] sake of shameful gain.

They need to be kept quiet as they disrupt whole households by teaching what they ought not to teach, simply to make shameful financial gain.

12 A certain one of them, a prophet of their own, said, “Cretans! Always liars, evil beasts, lazy bellies!”

It was a Cretan – one of their own prophets – who said: ‘Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, and lazy gluttons.’ This statement is true.

13 This testimony is true; for which cause convict them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith,

Therefore rebuke them sharply, so that they may be sound in the faith,

14 not giving heed to Jewish fables and commands of men, turning themselves away from the truth.

and may pay no attention to Jewish legends, or to the directions of those who turn their backs on the truth.

15 All things, indeed, [are] pure to the pure, and nothing [is] pure to the defiled and unsteadfast, but even the mind and the conscience of them [is] defiled.

To those whose minds are pure, all things are ritually pure, but to those whose minds are tainted and unbelieving nothing is pure, as their minds and consciences are alike polluted.

16 They profess to know God, but they deny [Him] by their works, being abominable, and disobedient, and disapproved to every good work.

They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him. They are detestable and disobedient and useless for any good work.