Titus 1:12 - Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible

One of themselves, even a prophet of their own; Epimenides, a Greek poet, thus spake of the people of this country, whom he calls a prophet, because he was a poet, and wrote something about such divine oracles as they had. Said, The Cretians are alway liars: the Cretians were famous for lying and falsehood, so as it became a proverb. He called them evil beasts, either for their cruelty or treachery. Slow bellies; a lazy, idle people, that had much more inclination to eat and drink than they had to work in any honest labour. From all this the apostle would infer, that Titus had the more need be watchful in his place, and faithful in the discharge of his office, being amongst such a people.