Titus 3:1 - Coke's Commentary on the Holy Bible

Bible Comments

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 13:7.

Titus 3:1

1 Put them in mind to be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates, to be ready to every good work,