¹ Paul, servant of God, and apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God's elect and the knowledge of the truth which is according to godliness;

² for the hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised before the times of the ages

³ and has manifested in due times. It is his word through preaching, which is committed unto me according to the commandment of God our Saviour;

⁴ to Titus, true son in the common faith: Grace, mercy, [and] peace, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus, the Christ, our Saviour.

⁵ For this cause I left thee in Crete, that thou should correct that which is lacking and set in place elders in every city, as I had commanded thee:

⁶ He who is blameless, the husband of one wife, having faithful children who can not be accused of dissoluteness, nor insubordinate.

⁷ For the bishop must be blameless, as a steward of God; not arrogant, not quick to anger, not given to wine, not hurtful, not greedy of dishonest gain,

⁸ but a lover of hospitality, a lover of good men, temperate, just, holy, gentle,

⁹ holding fast the doctrine according to the faithful word, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers.

¹⁰ For there are many insubordinate and vain talkers and deceivers [of souls], especially those of the circumcision,

¹¹ whose mouths it is expedient to stop, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for dishonest gain.

¹² One of themselves, [even] a prophet of their own, said, The Cretians [are] always liars, evil beasts, lazy bellies.

¹³ This witness is true. Therefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith;

¹⁴ not giving heed to Jewish fables and commandments of men, that turn from the truth.

¹⁵ For unto the pure all things are pure, but unto those that are defiled and unfaithful, nothing is pure, but even their soul and conscience is defiled.

¹⁶ They profess that they know God, but in works they deny [him], being abominable and rebellious and reprobate unto every good work.: