notes

Main point summary

Christians, live godly lives because Christ saved us from our old sinful lives.

Arc

editing

NT

Titus 3:1-8

esv

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Remind them

Ὑπομίμνῃσκε αὐτοὺς

x to be submissive to rulers and authorities,

ἀρχαῖς ἐξουσίαις ὑποτάσσεσθαι,

y to be obedient,

πειθαρχεῖν,

to be ready for every good work,

πρὸς πᾶν ἔργον ἀγαθὸν ἑτοίμους εἶναι,

z to speak evil of no one,

μηδένα βλασφημεῖν,

a to avoid quarreling,

ἀμάχους εἶναι,

to be gentle,

ἐπιεικεῖς,

and b to show perfect courtesy toward all people.

πᾶσαν ἐνδεικνυμένους πραΰτητα πρὸς πάντας ἀνθρώπους.

series

ideaexplanation

For c we ourselves were once foolish,

῏Ημεν γάρ ποτε καὶ ἡμεῖς ἀνόητοι,

disobedient,

ἀπειθεῖς,

led astray,

πλανώμενοι,

slaves to various passions and pleasures,

δουλεύοντες ἐπιθυμίαις καὶ ἡδοναῖς ποικίλαις,

passing our days in malice and envy,

ἐν κακίᾳ καὶ φθόνῳ διάγοντες,

hated by others

στυγητοί,

and hating one another.

μισοῦντες ἀλλήλους.

But when d the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared,

ὅτε δὲ ἡ χρηστότης καὶ ἡ φιλανθρωπία ἐπεφάνη τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν θεοῦ,

he saved us,

ἔσωσεν ἡμᾶς

temporal

e not because of works done by us in righteousness,

οὐκ ἐξ ἔργων τῶν ἐν δικαιοσύνῃ ἃ ἐποιήσαμεν ἡμεῖς

but f according to his own mercy,

ἀλλὰ κατὰ τὸ αὐτοῦ ἔλεος

negativepositive

ground

by g the washing of regeneration and h renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he i poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior,

διὰ λουτροῦ παλιγγενεσίας καὶ ἀνακαινώσεως πνεύματος ἁγίου, οὗ ἐξέχεεν ἐφʼ ἡμᾶς πλουσίως διὰ Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν,

actionmanner

so that j being justified by his grace we might become k heirs l according to the hope of eternal life.

ἵνα δικαιωθέντες τῇ ἐκείνου χάριτι κληρονόμοι γενηθῶμεν κατʼ ἐλπίδα ζωῆς αἰωνίου.

actionpurpose

situationresponse

The saying is m trustworthy,

Πιστὸς ὁ λόγος•

and I want you to insist on these things,

καὶ περὶ τούτων βούλομαί σε διαβεβαιοῦσθαι,

so that those who have believed in God may be careful n to devote themselves to good works.

ἵνα φροντίζωσιν καλῶν ἔργων προΐστασθαι οἱ πεπιστευκότες θεῷ•

These things are excellent and profitable for people.

ταῦτά ἐστιν καλὰ καὶ ὠφέλιμα τοῖς ἀνθρώποις.

progression

bilateral

The timing of our salvation

The cause of our salvation

The means of our salvation

The purpose (or possibly result) of our salvation

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discourse

Notes

Arcing Notes The bilateral : 3:3–7 is obviously a grounds. It clearly grounds 3:1–2. Why do I say it also grounds 3:8? Two reasons: First, Paul's "imperative" for Titus to insist on "these things" seems to repeat his imperative to "remind them." Thus, "these things" refers to 3:1–2. Second, I see a similar pattern to Titus 2: call to teach, content of teaching, grounds for teaching, repeat call to teach. With a repeat call to teach, the grounds for teaching applies to both. 3:8a–c : Our understanding of "the saying" and "these things" affects how we arc this verse. I understand "the saying" to refer to Titus 3:4–7 and "these things" to refer to Titus 3:1–2 (or possibly 3:1–7 ). (For a breakdown of various commentators understanding of the referent of "the saying" see George W. Knight III, The Pastoral Epistles: A Commentary on the Greek Text, NIGTC (Grand Rapids; Carlisle (England): Eerdmans; The Paternoster Press, 1992), 347–48.) 8b–8d all relate to "these things" (with "good works" being synonymous with "these things" here in my understanding). Thus, I see a progression from 3:8a to 3:8b–d. It's possible 3:8a could be a grounds for 3:8b (as 3:4–7 is a grounds for 3:1–2 ), but I'm not convinced the reason Paul wants Titus to insist on "these things" is because the saying is trustworthy. Grammatically he uses "and" not "therefore" to connect the propositions, and it seems Paul is validating what he has just said before progressing to an imperative. 3:8d : This verse grounds the charge to insist on these things in a parallel manner to 3:9b grounding 3:9a . Note the +/- parallel between "excellent and profitable" and "unprofitable and worthless."