Titus 1

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

This letter comes from Paul, servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ. I'm sent to build up the trust of God's chosen people and to share the knowledge of the truth that leads to lives lived for God.

2 upon hope of life age-during, which God, who doth not lie, did promise before times of ages, (aiōnios g166)

This gives them the hope of eternal life that God (who cannot lie) promised ages ago, (aiōnios g166)

3 (and He manifested in proper times His word, ) in preaching, which I was entrusted with, according to a charge of God our Saviour,

but which at the proper time he revealed through his word in the message which I was entrusted to give, following 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 Saviour!

This letter is sent to Titus, my true son through the trust in God we share in common. May you have grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.

5 For this cause left I thee in Crete, that the things lacking thou mayest arrange, and mayest set down in every city elders, as I did appoint to thee;

The reason I left you in Crete was for you to organize what was still needed and to appoint elders in every town, as I told you.

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

An elder must have a good reputation, the husband of one wife, and have children who believe and who are not accused of being wild or disobedient.

7 for it behoveth the overseer to be blameless, as God's steward, not self-pleased, nor irascible, not given to wine, not a striker, not given to filthy lucre;

As a leader for God, a head elder must have a good reputation and not be arrogant. He should not have a quick temper nor get drunk; he shouldn't be violent or greedy for money.

8 but a lover of strangers, a lover of good men, sober-minded, righteous, kind, self-controlled,

He should be hospitable, someone who loves what's good and does what's right. He should be living a life for God, self-controlled,

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

and must be devoted to the trustworthy message as it's taught. In this way he can encourage others through correct teaching, and be able to convince those who disagree.

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

For there are many rebels around who talk a lot of deceptive nonsense, especially from the circumcision group.

11 whose mouth it behoveth to stop, who whole households do overturn, teaching what things it behoveth not, for filthy lucre's sake.

Their talking must stop, these people who throw whole families into turmoil, teaching things that aren't right for the sake of making money.

12 A certain one of them, a prophet of their own, said — 'Cretans! always liars, evil beasts, lazy bellies!'

As someone of their own people, a prophet, has stated, “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts who are lazy, greedy people.”

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

This is a true statement! Consequently give them a good telling-off so that they can have a healthy trust in God,

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

not paying attention to Jewish myths and human commandments from those who deviate from the truth.

15 all things, indeed, [are] pure to the pure, and to the defiled and unstedfast [is] nothing pure, but of them defiled [are] even the mind and the conscience;

To those who have clean minds everything is clean, but to those who are corrupt and refuse to trust in God, nothing is clean—both their minds and their consciences are corrupt.

16 God they profess to know, and in the works they deny [Him], being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work disapproved.

They claim to know God, but they prove this is false by what they do. They are detestable and disobedient, worthless for doing anything good.