Tito 1:12 Commento

In this chapter we have, I. The preface or introduction to the epistle, showing from and to whom it was written, with the apostle's salutation and prayer for Titus, wishing all blessings to him (Tit 1:1-4). II. Entrance into the matter, by signifying the end of Titus's being left at Crete (v. 5). III. And how the same should be pursued in reference both to good and bad ministers (v. 6 to the end).

This chapter contains the inscription of the epistle, the apostle's salutation and preface to it; an account of the qualifications of an eider, or pastor of a church; a description of these teachers; and a charge to Titus to rebuke the Cretians for their errors and immoralities. The inscription and salutation are in Tit 1:1, in which the writer of the epistle is described by his name and office; by the faith and hope he had; and by the ministration of the Gospel, committed to him by the order of Christ: and the person to whom it is written is mentioned by name; and is described by the spiritual relation he stood in to the apostle, and to whom he wishes grace, mercy, and peace: the preface to the epistle is in Tit 1:5 which gives the reason of the apostle's leaving Titus in Crete, which was to set things in order there, and to ordain elders in all the churches; which leads him to point at the necessary qualifications of them for his direction; some of which respect their moral life and conversation, and others their doctrine, and are in Tit 1:6 and on occasion of the latter, and which is a reason why the elders should be sound in the faith, and hold it fast, the apostle takes notice of the false teachers that were in Crete, whom he describes by their noisy, vain, and deceitful talk; by their being pernicious and hurtful to whole families; and by their covetousness and sensuality, which is confirmed by a testimony out of one of the Cretian poets, Tit 1:10 wherefore he charges Titus sharply to rebuke either these false teachers, or those they had corrupted, that they regard sound doctrine, and not Jewish fables, and the commandments of erroneous men, Tit 1:13 and instances in things forbidden in the law of Moses as unclean, which were not now to be attended to by those who were pure in heart, and sound in faith, to whom all things were pure and lawful; and as for others that were impure, whose minds and consciences were defiled, and were unbelieving, nothing was pure to them, Tit 1:15 and who are further described as professors in words of the true knowledge of God, and yet practically were deniers of him; and as abominable in their nature and actions, disobedient to law and Gospel, and unfit for any good work whatever, Tit 1:16.

One of themselves, even a prophet of their own,.... This was Epimenides, in whose poems stand the words here cited; the apostle rightly calls him "one of themselves", since he was a Cretian by birth, of the city of Gnossus; it is reported of him, that being sent by his father to his sheep in the field, he by the way, at noon, turned aside into a cave, and slept fifty seven years (m) and he is very properly called a "prophet" of their own; for in Crete Jupiter had his prophets (n), and he might be one of them: the priests among the Heathens were called prophets; so Baal's priests are called the prophets of Baal, and the prophets of the groves, Kg1 18:19. Besides, Epimenides was thought to be inspired by the gods: he is called by Apuleius (o), a famous fortune teller; and is said by Laertius (p) to be very skilful in divination, and to have foretold many things which came to pass; and by the Grecians were supposed to be very dear to the gods; so Balaam, the soothsayer and diviner, is called a prophet, Pe2 2:16. Add to this, that the passage next cited stands in a poem of this writer, entitled, "Concerning Oracles"; and it is easy to observe, that poets in common were usually called "vates", or prophets; so that the apostle speaks here with great propriety. Now concerning the inhabitants of Crete, Epimenides, a native of the place, and a person of great character and repute among them, said, the Cretians are always liars: living is a sin common to human nature, and appears in men as early, or earlier than any other; and all men are guilty of it, at one time or another; but all are not habitually liars, as it seems these Cretians were: lying was a governing vice among them; they were not only guilty of it in some particular instances, but always; not only for saying that Jupiter's sepulchre was with them, when it was the sepulchre of Minos his son, which they had fraudulently obliterated; and for which (q) Callimachus charges them with lying, and uses these very words of Epimenides; though he assigns a different reason from that now given, which is, that Jupiter died not, but always exists, and therefore his sepulchre could not be with them: but this single instance was not sufficient to fasten such a character upon them; it was a sin they were addicted to: some countries are distinguished by their vices; some for pride; some for levity, vanity, and inconstancy; some for boasting and bragging some for covetousness; some for idleness; some for effeminacy; some for hypocrisy and deceit; and others, as the Cretians, it seems, for lying; this was their national sin (r); and this is said by others, as well as Epimenides. Crete is, by Ovid (s), called "mendax Creta", lying Crete. Hence, with the Grecians, to "cretize", is proverbially used for to lie; this is a sin, than which nothing makes a man more like the devil, or more infamous among men, or more abominable to God. The Ethiopic version, instead of Cretes, or Cretians, reads "hypocrites". Other characters of them, from the same Heathen poet, follow, evil beasts: slow bellies; by evil beasts are meant beasts of prey, savage and mischievous ones; see Gen 37:20 and are so called, to distinguish them from other beasts, as sheep, and the like, which are not so; and perhaps Crete might abound with such evil beasts; for the Cretians are said (t) to excel in hunting; and to these they themselves are compared, by one of their own prophets, for their cruelty, and savage disposition: so cruel persecutors are compared to beasts, Co1 15:30 and the false teachers, the apostle has respect to in citing this passage, were cruel, if not to the bodies, yet to the souls of men, whom they poisoned and destroyed. And the Cretians are called, by the poet, slow bellies partly for their intemperance, their gluttony and drunkenness: which suited with the false teachers, whose god was their belly, and which they served, and not the Lord Jesus; and partly for their sloth and idleness, eating the bread of others without working. (m) Laert. l. 1. Vita Epimenidis. (n) Alex. ab Alex. Genial. Dier, l. 4. c. 17. (o) Florida, sect. 15. (p) Ib. (q) Hymn. l. in Jovem, v. 8. (r) Alex. ab Alex. l. 4. c. 13. (s) De Arte Amandi, l. 1. (t) Alex. ab Alex. ib.

Your Jupiter too, stolen in his infancy, was unworthy of both the home and the nutriment accorded to human beings; and, as he deserved for so bad a child, he had to live in Crete. Afterwards, when full-grown, he dethrones his own father, who, whatever his parental character may have been, was most prosperous in his reign, king as he was of the golden age.

Comic poets deride the Phrygians for their cowardice; Sallust reproaches the Moors for their levity, and the Dalmatians for their cruelty; even the apostle brands the Cretans as "liars." Very likely, too, something must be set down to the score of bodily condition and the state of the health.

Though some one says that the Cretans are liars.

What wonder, too, that others, such as Heracles and Perseus, should be called gods on the ground of their strength? And yet others, as Asclepius, on the ground of their skill? Either their subjects accorded them this honor or else the rulers themselves seized it. Some got the title from fear, others from reverence.… And those who lived later accepted these deifications uncritically.The Cretans always lie; for they, O King, Have built your tomb, and you are not yet dead. While you, Callimachus, believe in the birth of Zeus, you disbelieve in his tomb. While you imagine you are hiding the truth, you actually proclaim, even to those who do not realize it, that Zeus is dead.

But the heretic, though he use scriptural terms, yet, as being equally dangerous and depraved, shall be asked in the words of the Spirit, “Why do you preach my laws and take my covenant in your mouth?” Thus, the devil, though speaking from the Scriptures, is silenced by the Savior. The blessed Paul, though he speaks from profane writers, “The Cretans are always liars,” and ‘We are his offspring,” and “Evil communications corrupt good manners,” yet has a religious meaning, as being holy—is “doctor of the nations, in faith and verity,” as having “the mind of Christ.”

There are several questions here. First, who it was that said this? Secondly, why Paul quoted it? Thirdly, why he brings forward a testimony that is not correct? Let us then offer a seasonable solution of these, having premised some other things. For when Paul was discoursing to the Athenians, in the course of his harangue he quoted these words, "To the Unknown God": and again, "For we also are His offspring, as certain also of your own poets have said." (Acts xvii. 23, Acts xvii. 28.) It was Epimenides who said this, himself a Cretan, and whence he was moved to say it is necessary to mention. It is this. The Cretans have a tomb of Jupiter, with this inscription. "Here lieth Zan, whom they call Jove." On account of this inscription, then, the poet ridiculing the Cretans as liars, as he proceeds, introduces, to increase the ridicule, this passage. For even a tomb, O King, of thee They made, who never diedst, but aye shalt be. If then this testimony is true, observe what a difficulty! For if the poet is true who said that they spoke falsely, in asserting that Jupiter could die, as the Apostle says, it is a fearful thing! Attend, beloved, with much exactness. The poet said that the Cretans were liars for saying that Jupiter was dead. The Apostle confirmed his testimony: so, according to the Apostle, Jupiter is immortal: for he says, "this witness is true"! What shall we say then? Or rather how shall we solve this? The Apostle has not said this, but simply and plainly applied this testimony to their habit of falsehood. Else why has he not added, "For even a tomb, O king, of thee, they made"? So that the Apostle has not said this, but only that one had well said, "The Cretans are always liars." But it is not only from hence that we are confident that Jupiter is not a God. From many other arguments we are able to prove this, and not from the testimony of the Cretans. Besides, he has not said, that in this they were liars. Nay and it is more probable that they were deceived as to this point too. For they believed in other gods, on which account the Apostle calls them liars. And as to the question, why does he cite the testimonies of the Greeks? It is because we put them most to confusion when we bring our testimonies and accusations from their own writers, when we make those their accusers, who are admired among themselves.

You ask me at the close of your letter why it is that sometimes in my writings I quote examples from secular literature and thus defile the purity of the church with the foulness of heathenism.… For who is there who does not know that both in Moses and the prophets there are passages cited from Gentile books and that Solomon proposed questions to the philosophers of Tyre and answered others put to him by them.… The apostle Paul also, in writing to Titus, has used a line of the poet Epimenides: “The Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, slow bellies.” Half of this line was afterward adopted by Callimachus.

"A certain one of them, their own prophet, said: 'Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.' This testimony is true. For this cause, reprove them sharply, so that they may be sound in the faith, not paying attention to Jewish myths and commandments of people who turn away from the truth." As for the text of the discourse and the context of the passage, what he says: "A certain one of them, their own prophet," seems to be referring to those he spoke of earlier, especially those who are of the circumcision, who must be silenced because they are upsetting entire households by teaching things they should not for the sake of shameful gain. And he continues, "A certain one of them, their own prophet." However, since this hexameter verse is not found in any of the prophets who prophesied in Judah, it seems to me that it should be read in two ways: either that what he says, "A certain one of them, their own prophet," is connected with what came before, in order to correct the things that were lacking in Crete, or that it refers specifically to the Cretans. But because there are many things in between, and this seems absurd and perhaps no one will accept it, therefore, with regard to the things that are closer, it must be read differently from what came before, as follows: "For there are many rebellious people, full of meaningless talk and deception, especially those of the circumcision group; they must be silenced, because they are disrupting whole households by teaching things they ought not to teach, and that for the sake of dishonest gain." A certain one of them, their own prophet, said: so that what is said, "their own prophet," does not refer specifically to the Jews, and especially to those of the circumcision, but rather to many who are rebellious, full of meaningless talk and deception, who must be silenced along with those of the circumcision group, who are disrupting whole households by teaching things they should not, and who, since they were in Crete, should be believed to be Cretans. However, this couplet is said to be found in the oracles of the Cretan poet Epimenides; he called him a prophet, jokingly or allusively, meaning that Christians of such kind deserve to have prophets, just as prophets belonged to Baal and to the confusion of the Jews and to other offenses, and the scriptures mention any wicked prophets, genuinely because he wrote about oracles and responses that also foretold the future and predicted things that were to come long before. Finally, the book itself is titled Oracles, and because it seemed to promise something divine, I think the Apostle looked into it to see what the pagan divination promised, and in due time he used the couplet when he wrote to Titus, who was on Crete, in order to convict the false teachers of Crete with their own teacher. However, Paul is found to have done this not only in this place, but also in others. In the Acts of the Apostles, when he preached to the people, and in the Areopagus, which is the court of the Athenians, he argued, he says among other things: For we are his offspring, as some of your own poets have said (Acts 17), which hemistich is read in the Phaenomena Arati; which Cicero translated into Latin; and Germanicus Caesar, and recently Avienus, and many others, whom to enumerate is too long. To the Corinthians also (1 Cor. 15:33), who were themselves polished by Attic eloquence; and because of the proximity of the places, they were seasoned with the taste of Athenians, he took an iambic verse from Menander's comedy: Evil company corrupts good habits. Nor is it surprising if, for the opportunity of the time, he abuses the verses of pagan poets: for even altering some inscription of an altar, he spoke to the Athenians: "For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you. But the inscription on the altar was not as Paul asserted, to an unknown God, but as follows: To the Gods of Asia, Europe, and Africa; to unknown and foreign gods. But because Paul did not need many unknown gods, but only one unknown God, he used a unique expression; so that he would teach that he was their God whom the Athenians had marked with the title of the altar; and, knowing it correctly, they ought to worship him whom they were ignorant of and could not ignore. But Paul did this seldom, and as the circumstances of the place more than suitability demanded it, in the manner of bees, which are accustomed to compose honey from various flowers and to adapt the cells of their favors. Some consider this verse taken from Callimachus the Cyrenian poet, and are not entirely wrong. In his praise of Jupiter against the Cretans, who boasted about showing his tomb, he says, "The Cretans are always liars, who also built his tomb with a sacrilegious mind." But, as we said above, the whole verse was taken by the Apostle from Epimenides the poet, and Callimachus used his exordium in his poem. Or perhaps he turned the common proverb by which the Cretans were called deceitful into a meter without stealing the labor of others. Some believe that the Apostle should be blamed for having imprudently fallen; and when he rebuked false teachers, he proved that verse by saying that the Cretans were called deceitful because they had built the empty tomb of Jupiter. For they say that Epimenides or Callimachus accused the Cretans of being deceitful and dangerous beasts and lazy gluttons, because they do not feel the divine; and (even though) they create Jupiter, who reigns in heaven, buried on their own island; and this that they said is confirmed by the view of the Apostles: thus it follows that Jupiter is not dead, but alive. Therefore, it was unskillful of Paul, the destroyer of idolatry, while fighting against perverse teachers, to assert that the gods which he was attacking did exist. To this we must briefly respond that, in the case where he said "Evil company corrupts good morals," he did not immediately approve Menander's entire comedy or Aratus' book, but rather he used an opportunity provided by a verse. Similarly, in the present case, he did not confirm the entire work of Callimachus or Epimenides, whose one praises Jupiter and the other writes about oracles through one verse; rather, he only rebuked the Cretans as liars, blaming them for the vice of their people, not due to their opinion, which is praised by poets, but due to their innate ease of lying. But those who think that the whole book ought to be followed by the one who has made use of a part of the book, seem to me to admit the Apocryphal Book of Enoch, ((or of the Enochs)), concerning which Judas the Apostle gave testimony in his Epistle, among the sacred Scriptures of the Church; and many other things which the Apostle Paul spoke of in a hidden way. For we can say this by way of argument: that since he said that he worshipped the unknown God among the Athenians, whom they had written on an altar, Paul ought to follow and do those things also which were written on the altar, and those things which the Athenians were doing, since he had come to an agreement with them in part regarding the worship of an unknown God. Far be it from me to draw argument and scholastic elegance into calumny. There is no one so wicked, so much of a criminal, so much of a poisoner, who has not done something good at some time. Therefore, if I approve of one good thing of his, when I see it, and it is necessary for me to support the rest, which were bad, what is that to be blamed? If he is accused by an enemy against us and cries out, will he not speak some truth among the words of conflicts? And this too, is not always blamed by us against whom he speaks. So Callimachus and Epimenides, did not say that Jupiter is a god, and the rest that is contained in their poems, because the Cretans are deceitful; but they only spoke the truth, because they were expressing the inborn vice of the Cretans in terms of lies: because they are deceitful, they did not always speak the truth. For Jupiter would not cease to be a god even if the Cretans spoke the truth; but nevertheless, while they were silent, he who was dead would not have the name of a god. Finally, let us know that the Apostle spoke against the Cretans not by chance, and not incidentally (as they think), but carefully and watchfully, and defending himself in every way against the Cretans: This is a true testimony, he says; not the whole poem from which the testimony is taken, not the whole work: but only this testimony, this verse in which they are called liars. And certainly he who agreed only in one part of the poem, is to be believed to have refuted the rest. However, we have discussed in the Epistle of Paul to the Galatians how either the Cretans are deceitful and foolish, or the Galatians are hard-necked, or each province is represented by its own vice. And since there is nothing else we can add here, we are content with that.

If you were to hear, even from one who was profane, the prayer of the priest couched in words suitable to the mysteries of the gospel, can you possibly say to him, “Your prayer is not true,” though he himself may be not only a false priest but not a priest at all? The apostle Paul said that certain testimony of a Cretan prophet (he knew not which) was true, though he was not reckoned among the prophets of God.… If, therefore, the apostle himself bore witness to the testimony of some obscure prophet of a foreign race because he found it to be true, why do not we, when we find in any one what belongs to Christ and is true even though the man with whom it may be found is deceitful and perverse? Why do we not in such a case make a distinction between the fault which is found in the man and the truth which he has not of his own but of God?

The quote is from Callimachus, who is not a Jewish prophet but a pagan poet. He calls the Cretans liars on account of a tomb of Jove. Paul is not here offering fables but insisting on the inconsistency of the Cretans, for it is true that the one they call Jove is in another place dead and they have built him a tomb.

Having criticized the dangers that arise from Christians of Jewish background, Paul now does the same with Gentile believers. “Of their own” does not refer to the Jews but to a poet or prophet of Gentile background, even one of the Cretans. He wished to criticize the Cretans because they believed they could show the tomb of Jove, even though Jove existed not as a man (as the poet thought) but as a god.

One of them, a prophet of their own, said: "Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons." It is asked for what reason Paul brought forward the testimony of the Greeks, and commended it, especially since it was not rightly said? But what is the testimony? The Cretans built a tomb for Zeus. And so a certain poet says: The Cretans built a tomb for you, O king; but you are by no means dead, for you always live. Part of this prophecy is: The Cretans are always liars, etc. However, the Apostle attested that this saying is true. But if this testimony is true, then Zeus must be immortal. Yet we say that in this alone he said the testimony was true, because he called them liars themselves. — [OECUMENIUS] Epimenides the Cretan, the oracle of the prophet. Callimachus has also made use of the verse spoken by him in the hymn to Zeus. [end of the excerpt by Oecumenius G f. 314r] — Where Paul says: "This testimony," namely that he says they themselves are liars. Indeed, someone might say this is so: but why did he bring forth testimony from the Greeks? And we say that this affected them with the greatest shame that it produced testimony of their own wickedness from their own people. For since those among us do not have faith in them, Paul brought their own accusers to them. This God was also doing when, through the star, He indicated Christ to the Magi, so that they would be occupied with astronomy (Matt. 2), as if admonishing them by their own. Again, the prophet from the oxen drawing the ark (2 Sam. 6:3). Moreover, Saul from the woman having the spirit of Python (Acts 16:16), because he believed her. In these ways God was revealing Himself. Nor is it opposed by the fact that Christ and afterwards the apostles forbade demons to speak: for signs were made which could persuade (Mark 9:38). It was necessary that they persuade men by those whom they believed.

Then, he describes their hearers, for they were Cretans, and to them he refers this work: first, he describes their condition; second, he prescribes a remedy, at wherefore, rebuke them. In regard to the first he does two things: first, he describes their condition from witnesses; second, he confirms it. He says, therefore: such are their teachers; but their hearers are just as easy to seduce according to the testimony of one of their poets, namely, Epimenis, whom Paul calls one of their prophets. Here it should be noted that a prophet is one whose intellect is enlightened by God to know things that transcend common knowledge: if there is a prophet among you, I the Lord make myself known to him in a vision, I speak with him in a dream (Num 12:6); or one who explains prophecies in the same spirit and method as they were delivered; or one who utters prophetic words. Hence something prophetic might be uttered from an inner instinct without understanding it: Caiaphas being high priest that year prophesied (John 11:51). For he had no intention of prophesying when he said that it is expedient for him to die lest he seduce the people. Nevertheless, he was moved to say this by the Spirit. This manner of prophesying also belongs to those who accept someone's words as an omen that might actually be from demons. And he says, a prophet of their own, because such a person is familiar with their condition. Then when he says, Cretans, he gives the testimony. And he describes them with three marks: first, the corruption of reason, when he says, are always liars: you destroy those who speak lies (Ps 5:6). Second, the corruption of their irascibility when he says, evil beasts, i.e., cruel. They are called beasts, as it were, laying waste, because they are cruel: like a roaring lion or a charging bear is a wicked ruler over a poor people (Prov 28:15). He says, evil, because according to the Philosopher in the Politics, when a man acts according to reason, he is the best of animals; but when he stoops to wickedness, he is the worst: for if he falls away because of cruelty, no beast is as cruel. Hence he says that an evil man is ten thousand times worse than an evil beast. Third, from the corruption of their desire when he says, slothful bellies, having sloth present in their bellies; for they were gluttons and such men seek rest: soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; take your ease, eat, drink, be merry (Luke 12:19).

The apostle's statement of his character, his hope, and his function, Tit 1:1-3. His address to Titus, and the end for which he left him in Crete, Tit 1:4, Tit 1:5. The qualifications requisite in those who should be appointed elders and bishops in the Church of God, Tit 1:6-9. Of false teachers, Tit 1:10, Tit 1:11. The character of the Cretans, and how they were to be dealt with, Tit 1:12-14. Of the pure, the impure, and false professors of religion, Tit 1:15, Tit 1:16.

One of themselves, even a prophet of their own - This was Epimenides, who was born at Gnossus, in Crete, and was reckoned by many the seventh wise man of Greece, instead of Periander, to whom that honor was by them denied. Many fabulous things are related of this poet, which are not proper to be noticed here. He died about 538 years before the Christian era. When St. Paul calls him a prophet of their own, he only intimates that he was, by the Cretans, reputed a prophet. And, according to Plutarch, (in Solone), the Cretans paid him divine honors after his death. Diogenes Laertius mentions some of his prophecies: beholding the fort of Munichia, which guarded the port of Athens, he cried out: "O ignorant men! if they but knew what slaughters this fort shall occasion, they would pull it down with their teeth!" This prophecy was fulfilled several years after, when the king, Antipater, put a garrison in this very fort, to keep the Athenians in subjection. See Diog. Laert., lib. i. p. 73. Plato, De Legibus, lib. ii., says that, on the Athenians expressing great fear of the Persians, Epimenides encouraged them by saying "that they should not come before ten years, and that they should return after having suffered great disasters." This prediction was supposed to have been fulfilled in the defeat of the Persians in the battles of Salamis and Marathon. He predicted to the Lacedemonians and Cretans the captivity to which they should one day be reduced by the Arcadians. This took place under Euricrates, king of Crete, and Archidamus, king of Lacedemon; vide Diog. Laert., lib. i. p. 74, edit. Meibom. It was in consequence of these prophecies, whether true or false, that his countrymen esteemed him a prophet; that he was termed ανηρ αθειος, a divine man, by Plato; and that Cicero, De Divin., lib. i., says he was futura praesciens, et vaticinans per furorem: "He knew future events, and prophesied under a divine influence." These things are sufficient to justify the epithet of prophet, given him here by St. Paul. It may also be remarked that vates and poeta, prophet and poet, were synonymous terms among the Romans. The Cretians are always liars - The words quoted here by the apostle are, according to St. Jerome, Socrates, Nicephorus, and others, taken from a work of Epimenides, now no longer extant, entitled Περι χρησμων· Concerning Oracles. The words form a hexameter verse: - Κρητες αει ψευσται, κακα θηρια, γαστερες αργαι. The Cretans are always liars; destructive wild beasts; sluggish gluttons. That the Cretans were reputed to be egregious liars, several of the ancients declare; insomuch that Κρητιζειν, to act like a Cretan, signifies to lie; and χρησθαι Κρητισμῳ, to deceive. The other Greeks reputed them liars, because they said that among them was the sepulchre of Jupiter, who was the highest object of the Greek and Roman worship. By telling this truth, which all others would have to pass for a lie, the Cretans showed that the object of their highest admiration was only a dead man. Evil beasts - Ferocious and destructive in their manners. Slow bellies - Addicted to voluptuousness, idleness, and gluttony; sluggish or hoggish men.

ADDRESS: FOR WHAT END TITUS WAS LEFT IN CRETE. QUALIFICATIONS FOR ELDERS: GAINSAYERS IN CRETE NEEDING REPROOF. (Tit. 1:1-16) servant of God--not found elsewhere in the same connection. In Rom 1:1 it is "servant of Jesus Christ" (Gal 1:10; Phi 1:1; compare Act 16:17; Rev 1:1; Rev 15:3). In Rom 1:1, there follows, "called to be an apostle," which corresponds to the general designation of the office first, "servant of GOD," here, followed by the special description, "apostle of Jesus Christ." The full expression of his apostolic office answers, in both Epistles, to the design, and is a comprehensive index to the contents. The peculiar form here would never have proceeded from a forger. according to the faith--rather, "for," "with a view to subserve the faith"; this is the object of my apostleship (compare Tit 1:4, Tit 1:9; Rom 1:5). the elect--for whose sake we ought to endure all things (Ti2 2:10). This election has its ground, not in anything belonging to those thus distinguished, but in the purpose and will of God from everlasting (Ti2 1:9; Rom 8:30-33; compare Luk 18:7; Eph 1:4; Col 3:12). Act 13:48 shows that all faith on the part of the elect, rests on the divine foreordination: they do not become elect by their faith, but receive faith, and so become believers, because they are elect. and the acknowledging of the truth--"and (for promoting) the full knowledge of the truth," that is, the Christian truth (Eph 1:13). after godliness--that is, which belongs to piety: opposed to the knowledge which has not for its object the truth, but error, doctrinal and practical (Tit 1:11, Tit 1:16; Ti1 6:3); or even which has for its object mere earthly truth, not growth in the divine life. "Godliness," or "piety," is a term peculiar to the Pastoral Epistles: a fact explained by the apostle having in them to combat doctrine tending to "ungodliness" (Ti2 2:16; compare Tit 2:11-12).

One--Epimenides of PhÃ&brvbrstus, or Gnossus, in Crete, about 600. He was sent for to purify Athens from its pollution occasioned by Cylon. He was regarded as a diviner and prophet. The words here are taken probably from his treatise "concerning oracles." Paul also quotes from two other heathen writers, ARATUS (Act 17:28) and MENANDER (Co1 15:33), but he does not honor them so far as even to mention their names. of themselves . . . their own--which enhances his authority as a witness. "To Cretanize" was proverbial for to lie: as "to Corinthianize" was for to be dissolute. alway liars--not merely at times, as every natural man is. Contrast Tit 1:2, "God that cannot lie." They love "fables" (Tit 1:14); even the heathen poets laughed at their lying assertion that they had in their country the sepulchre of Jupiter. evil beasts--rude, savage, cunning, greedy. Crete was a country without wild beasts. Epimenides' sarcasm was that its human inhabitants supplied the place of wild beasts. slow bellies--indolent through pampering their bellies. They themselves are called "bellies," for that is the member for which they live (Rom 16:18; Phi 3:19).