Coke's Commentary on the Holy Bible · Titus Chapter 3

Titus 3:1.— The Jews were of a very seditious, rebellious spiritabout the time when this epistle was written; and it was with great reluctance that they obeyed any civil governors, but those of their own nation. The Judaizing Christians were too apt to imitate them, and to retain this factious spirit; which they would have infused into the GentileChristians, and have taught them to have had as sovereign a contempt for men of other religions, as they had themselves. In opposition to which, Titus was to teach the Christians to pay the most strict obedience to their civil governors, and to be of a benign spirit to all men; even to men of different nations, sects, and religion: and to enforce this, St. Paul is thought to have urged his own example, Titus 3:3. He had been formerly as furious a persecutor of the Christians, and as bigotted a Jew, as any of the unbelieving Jews or Judaizing Christians could be; but since he had through grace embraced Christianity in its life and power, his charity was enlarged, and he saw the reasonableness, the necessity of loving, and doing good to all men, of whatever faith or profession. Titus was to be perpetually inculcating upon the Christians this temper and behaviour, as infinitely preferable to a regard for Jewish genealogies, traditions, and ceremonies: and he was not only to teach this himself, but was also informed, that such of the Jewish Christians as made factions by propagating their impositions, were heretics; and as such the Christians were to regard them, and to hold no familiar society with them. See 1 Timothy 2:1-4.Romans 13:1; Romans 13:1; Romans 13:7.

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Titus 3:2. To speak evil, &c.— Calumniate no man; not even your Pagan or Jewish neighbour, says good Dr. Barrow, however enormous in their lives, or cruel in their behaviour to you.

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Titus 3:3. For we ourselves also— That St. Paul, like many other authors, frequently speaks of himself in the first person plural, is well known to all who have attended to his phraseology, and to the course of these annotations. Nor is there any reason in the world, why St. Paul should exclude himself from the number of those, who were by nature sinners; on the contrary, he is at all times ready to avow the dark and sinful state he was in, before his conversion by the grace of Christ. We may observe, that the words rendered lusts and pleasures, not only signify grosser vices, but an intense criminal desire after any thing: in which view theymore strongly mark out St. Paul's character before his conversion. He had been guilty of following his own pleasure or inclination, and gratifying his intense desires in persecuting Christians, for which he reckoned himself as the greatest of sinners before his conversion, and the least of all saints after his conversion.

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Titus 3:4. God our Saviour— It is observable, that God the Father is here called our Saviour; to intimate that it was his paternal love to us, which engaged him to appoint his Son to redeem us, and to perform for us all those important offices, by which he accomplishes the salvation of the faithful.

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Titus 3:5. Not by works of righteousness, &c.— "For it was not by any works of righteousness which we ourselves had done; for any acts of obedience, whether to ceremonial or moral precepts, by which we had made ourselves worthy of his favourable regard; but according to his own mercy, that he saved us from condemnation and ruin, by the washing of regeneration, and therenewing of the Holy Spirit; which, by its purifying influence, operates to turn to God all that will yield to be saved by grace, and brings them into the number of his children, and afterwards advances the happy work in all that persevere in cleaving to him, by improving them more and more in the divine life and image."

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Titus 3:8. This is a faithful saying, &c.— "But though believers are put into a state of justification, merely by grace, or through the divine favour, this is a matter of certain truth and great importance; and, concerning these things, I order that you strenuously insist upon it, that they who have believed in God, as he has revealed himself in the gospel of his Son, should be very careful to stand up for good works:"—that is, all those actions which embrace or include our duty towards God, our neighbour, and ourselves. These good and excellent works the Christians were to maintain and stand up for; to defend them, as it were, from whatever might tend to make themselves remiss in the performance of them. Nothing can more exactly suit the connection: the Judaizers made no account of good works; they represented them as of little or no moment, compared with believing, as they said, about Jewish fables, or the endless genealogies, or generations of the Eons; the perpetuity of the Mosaic law, and its being obligatory upon the Gentiles, as well as Jewish Christians. (See Titus 3:9.) Hence the apostle, in contradiction to such vain and unprofitable jargon, enjoins Titus, ch. Titus 2:1, &c. to teach things which became sound doctrine; namely, that all persons should practise good works; (see also Titus 3:14.) And here again he strongly inculcates the same important truths. It deserves great regard, that St. Paul accounted this a matter of the utmost moment; and ordered Titus not to urge good works now and then, or as a thing by the bye; but to be constantly, or with all his might, affirming, that Christians ought to maintain good works. See on ch. Titus 2:14. Good works are here represented as amiable and excellent in themselves, and greatly useful and profitable unto mankind; so they are called καλα εργα, beautiful works. These, therefore, are things which the ministers of Christ are to affirm constantly, or strenuously.

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Titus 3:10. A man that is an heretic, &c.— The word Αιρεσις, from the verb αιρεω, to choose, signifies a form or mode of religious worship, discipline or opinion, which any one chooses, follows, and professes; or, the persons who follow such form or mode. See Acts 5:17; Acts 15:5; Acts 24:5; Acts 26:5; Acts 28:22. This word seems to be used by St. Peter in the sense of electing, espousing, or defending some fundamental error, concerning Christian doctrine, whether of faith or practice. 2 Peter 2:1. "I define heresy, says Dr. Waterland, not merely a mistake of judgment, though in fundamentals, but espousing such erroneous judgment: either teaching or disseminating it, or openly supporting or assisting those who do." Hence αιρετικος, a heretic, is a man who chooses and espouses some fundamental error concerning the Christian doctrine; "Not every one that mistakes in judgment,—though in matters of great importance, in points fundamental;—but he who openly espouses such fundamental errors, I take to be a heretic, says Dr. Waterland, in the true and full scripture notion of the word;"—a definition, very agreeable to thatexcellent saying of St. Austin, Errare possum, haereticus esse nolo, "I may err, but I am not willing to be a heretic." St. Paul orders Timothy, after the first and second admonition, to reject such a person, that is, to declare him unfit to be any longer looked upon as a member of the church, and to treat him as such—to refuse all kind of notice or concern in respect to him; knowing that he who is such, that is, continues such after two admonitions, is now without excuse;—αυτοκατακριτος ;— and, as it were, passessentenceupon himself; either as voluntarily cutting himself off from the church by an open revolt, or, as rendering himself incapable of the privileges and blessings belonging to it, by renouncing its faith: which, in a just construction, is judging or declaring himself unworthy of the blessings tendered. See Waterland's "Importance of the Doctrine of the Trinity," p. 114-120. Dr. Benson observes well, that St. Paul does not say to Timothy, "After the first andsecond admonition, imprison the heretic; seize him with artful, sly, insinuating examinations; or put him to the torture to make him confess; and then, if he will not recant, roast him in a slow and lingering fire, as a heretic convict:" such rules never proceeded from the apostles of our Lord, but from the synagogue of Satan; who themselves answer to the apostolic description of heretics, while many of those whom they condemn as heretics, have the marks of being the faithful followers of Christ, and members of his true church. "Exciting the rage of the populace, or awakening the zeal of the civil magistrate; inflicting bodily pains and penalties, confiscating possessions, or using men's names and persons ill, because of their thinking for themselves, or choosing to worship God according to their own consciences,—has never yet been found the way to enlighten men's understandings, or to make them better Christians, or honester men."

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Titus 3:12.— The apostle proceeds to order Titus to come to him, when the person should arrive, whom he would send to release him; and in the mean time to send Zenas and Apollos to him; but, as full of the grand subject of the epistle, he bids Titus put the Gentile Christians in Crete upon providing what was proper for their journey, as a proof of the influence which true Christianity had upon them; and which was to be shewn, not by idle notions, or empty ceremonies, but by works substantially beneficial and good, Tit 3:12 to the end. There were towns in several countries, of the name of Nicopolis; but this was most probably in Epirus. It was called Nicopolis, or "the city of victory," because it was built in memory of the victory which Augustus obtained over Anthony at Actium. It appears from the last clause of this verse, that St. Paul was now at liberty; and from all circumstances it seems most probable that this epistle was written between his first and second imprisonment.

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Titus 3:13. Bring Zenas, &c.— St. Paul, most likely, knew that Zenas and Apollos were to pass through, or touch upon the island; and therefore he ordered Titus, σπουδαιως προπεμψαι, to conduct them along with all care; or to furnish them with provisions, to help them to proceed comfortably in their journey. See 3 John 1:6. As the word Νομικος is the word made use of, Mat 22:35 and as Zenas is here mentioned with Apollos, it seems more probable that he was a Jewish, than a Roman lawyer.

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Titus 3:14. And let our's also learn, &c.— "Let our brethren learn (as I said Titus 3:8.) to be foremost in the practice of good works upon needful occasions; particularly to assist such Christian brethren as travel about to preach the pure gospel of Christ; that they may not be unfruitful, and act as if they had learned nothing but barren speculations from that religion,which is so well calculated to inspire and animate every sentiment of benevolence and beneficence."

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