Verse-by-Verse Commentary
The Book of Titus
Chapter 3: The Washing of Regeneration
Titus 3 closes the letter by turning grace into good citizenship and good works, and by tracing salvation to its source in God's mercy. Believers are to 'be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates, to be ready to every good work,' and 'to speak evil of no man... but gentle, shewing all meekness unto all men.' Why such gentleness? Because 'we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived,' until grace found us. Then Paul gives one of the great salvation summaries of Scripture: 'But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; that being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.' He urges that those who believe 'be careful to maintain good works,' to avoid foolish controversies, and to reject the divisive, closing with warm final greetings. This chapter shows us salvation by mercy and the new life of good works that follows.
About This Commentary
This is a verse-by-verse study of Titus chapter 3, the final chapter of the epistle. For each section you will find the KJV text, the Greek words that sharpen the meaning, plain explanation, and a Gospel Focus. Here Paul calls believers to good citizenship and gentleness, traces salvation to God's mercy through the washing of regeneration and the renewing of the Holy Ghost, and urges a life devoted to good works. Every Scripture quotation is from the King James Version.
Setting the Stage
Ready to Every Good Work
Subject to rulers, gentle toward all men.
Not by Works
He saved us according to His mercy.
Washing of Regeneration
The washing and the renewing of the Holy Ghost.
Maintain Good Works
Heirs of eternal life, careful to do good.
The Washing of Regeneration (Titus 3:1-7)
Because we too were once lost, we deal gently with all, remembering that God saved us not by our works but by His mercy, through the washing of regeneration and the renewing of the Holy Ghost.
According to His Mercy He Saved Us
"Put them in mind to be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates, to be ready to every good work, To speak evil of no man, to be no brawlers, but gentle, shewing all meekness unto all men. For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another. But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life."
Word Study
"regeneration," Greek palingenesia (παλιγγενεσία). The word joins palin, "again," with genesis, "birth" or "beginning"; it means a new birth, a rebirth, a being made new again. "He saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost." This is the new birth of which Jesus spoke: "Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God" (John 3:5). Paul names both elements here in the same order: "the washing of regeneration," the water, and "renewing of the Holy Ghost," the Spirit. The Apostolic church understood these plainly. "The washing of regeneration" points to baptism, the water in which, calling on the name of the Lord Jesus, sins are washed away (Acts 22:16; Acts 2:38); and "renewing of the Holy Ghost" is the inward work of God's Spirit, poured out to fill and renew the believer, as on the Day of Pentecost. Together they make the new birth: born of water and of the Spirit. And Paul stresses that this is entirely God's doing and gift: "not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us." We do not regenerate ourselves; God gives the new birth, applying it in the washing and the renewing, and He "shed" the Spirit "on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour." So palingenesia is the mighty grace at the heart of Apostolic salvation: God, in His mercy, makes the sinner new, born again of water and Spirit, and thereby an heir of eternal life.
Explanation
Paul recalls what we were — "foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts" — to magnify what God did. "But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour... appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us." The means is stated with Apostolic clarity: "by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost" — the new birth of water and Spirit. Justified "by his grace," we are "made heirs according to the hope of eternal life." Salvation is God's mercy from first to last: not earned by our doing, but poured out in new birth and renewing by the Spirit.
Gospel Focus
Paul turns to how believers live in the world. They are to "be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates," being good and peaceable citizens, "ready to every good work," and toward all people, "to speak evil of no man, to be no brawlers, but gentle, shewing all meekness unto all men." Christians are to be marked by gentleness, not harshness, even toward those outside. And Paul gives a deeply humbling reason for such gentleness: "for we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another." We have no room to look down on anyone, for that is exactly what we ourselves once were. What changed us was not our own goodness but God's. "But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared", grace broke in. And Paul states with crystal clarity that salvation is God's gift, not our achievement: "not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us." No one is saved by good deeds; salvation flows from God's mercy. Then Paul shows how that mercy reaches us: "by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost." This is the new birth Jesus described, being "born of water and of the Spirit" (John 3:5). "The washing of regeneration" is the water of baptism, in which sins are washed away in the name of the Lord Jesus (Acts 22:16); "renewing of the Holy Ghost" is the inward filling and renewal by God's Spirit, "which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour", the very outpouring promised at Pentecost (Acts 2:38-39). Notice, too, the Oneness of it: "God our Saviour" saved us, and He did it "through Jesus Christ our Saviour"; the one God is our Saviour, and Jesus is that Saviour. The goal of this saving work: "that being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life." Freely accounted righteous by grace, we become heirs of eternal life. So the gospel humbles and saves: we were as lost as anyone, but God in mercy gave us the new birth of water and Spirit, justified us by grace, and made us heirs, all through Jesus Christ our Saviour. Such mercy leaves no room for pride, only for gentleness toward others and a life of good works.
Careful to Maintain Good Works (Titus 3:8-15)
Those saved by grace are to devote themselves to good works, avoid empty controversies, reject the divisive, and care for one another to the end.
These Things Are Good and Profitable Unto Men
"This is a faithful saying, and these things I will that thou affirm constantly, that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable unto men. But avoid foolish questions, and genealogies, and contentions, and strivings about the law; for they are unprofitable and vain. A man that is an heretick after the first and second admonition reject; Knowing that he that is such is subverted, and sinneth, being condemned of himself. When I shall send Artemas unto thee, or Tychicus, be diligent to come unto me to Nicopolis: for I have determined there to winter. Bring Zenas the lawyer and Apollos on their journey diligently, that nothing be wanting unto them. And let ours also learn to maintain good works for necessary uses, that they be not unfruitful. All that are with me salute thee. Greet them that love us in the faith. Grace be with you all. Amen."
Word Study
"an heretick," Greek hairetikos (αἱρετικός). The word comes from haireomai, "to choose," and originally meant one who chooses, one who follows his own opinion; it came to mean a factious, divisive person, one who forms a party or sect around his own chosen views. "A man that is an heretick after the first and second admonition reject." Our modern word "heretic" usually means someone who holds false doctrine, and that is often involved; but the root idea Paul presses is division. The hairetikos is one who, insisting on his own opinions, splits the church into factions and stirs up "contentions, and strivings" that Paul has just called "unprofitable and vain." Such a person is not to be indulged endlessly. Paul commands a patient but limited process: "after the first and second admonition reject." He is to be warned, once and then again; but if he persists in his divisiveness, the church is to have done with him, to reject him, that is, refuse to let him keep tearing the body apart. Paul explains why: "he that is such is subverted, and sinneth, being condemned of himself." The persistently divisive person has turned himself inside out and stands self-condemned; his own stubbornness convicts him. So hairetikos warns against the party spirit that fractures the church over personal opinions and vain disputes. The church is to pursue peace and sound doctrine, to admonish the divisive with patience, but, when they will not be corrected, to protect the unity of the body by putting them away.
Explanation
Paul wants a faith that works: "they which have believed in God be careful to maintain good works" — these are "good and profitable unto men." But he warns Titus to sidestep what is not profitable: "avoid foolish questions, and genealogies, and contentions... for they are unprofitable and vain." As for a divisive person, "a man that is an heretick after the first and second admonition reject" — patient warning first, then a parting of ways. The letter closes with travel plans, a charge that believers "learn to maintain good works for necessary uses, that they be not unfruitful," and grace to all. Sound doctrine, once more, is meant to bear the fruit of good works.
Gospel Focus
Having laid out the glorious grace of salvation, Paul immediately draws the practical conclusion, and it is striking: he wants Titus to insist on good works. "This is a faithful saying, and these things I will that thou affirm constantly, that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works." Note the order carefully. Good works do not earn salvation, Paul has just said we are saved "not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy", yet those who are saved by grace are to be diligent, even careful, to devote themselves to good works. Grace is the root; good works are the fruit. And such works "are good and profitable unto men"; they bless others. Over against this profitable life, Paul warns against a profitless one: "avoid foolish questions, and genealogies, and contentions, and strivings about the law; for they are unprofitable and vain." Endless religious argument and speculation produce nothing; the church's energy is for good works and sound truth, not for quarrels. And when someone persists in stirring up division, Paul gives clear direction: "a man that is an heretick after the first and second admonition reject." The divisive person is to be warned patiently, twice, but if he will not stop fracturing the church, he is to be put away, for "he that is such is subverted, and sinneth, being condemned of himself." His own persistence condemns him. Paul closes the letter with warm, practical concern for the family of God. He plans to send Artemas or Tychicus so Titus can come to him at Nicopolis; he asks that Zenas the lawyer and Apollos be helped generously on their journey, "that nothing be wanting unto them"; and he repeats his theme one last time: "let ours also learn to maintain good works for necessary uses, that they be not unfruitful." A saved people should be a fruitful, generous, useful people. The final words are a blessing to all: "Grace be with you all. Amen." So the letter that began with sound doctrine and grace ends where it must, in a people transformed by that grace, devoted to good works, guarding the unity of the church, and caring practically for one another, all resting on the grace of God that saved them.
Chapter 3 in Review
Titus 3 turns grace into good citizenship, good works, and church unity. Believers are to "be subject to principalities and powers... ready to every good work," and "gentle, shewing all meekness unto all men," remembering that "we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived." Then the heart of the chapter: "after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; that being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life." Paul urges believers to "maintain good works," to avoid vain controversies, to reject the persistently divisive, and closes with warm greetings and grace.
For the Apostolic reader this chapter is a jewel of the doctrine of salvation. It states plainly that we are saved "not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy," entirely by God's grace. And it names how that salvation is applied: "the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost", the new birth of water and Spirit that Jesus taught in John 3:5, understood by the Apostolic church as baptism in the name of the Lord Jesus and the infilling of the Holy Ghost, poured out abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour. It confesses the Oneness of God our Saviour, who saves us through Jesus Christ our Saviour. And it holds grace and good works in their right order: we are saved by mercy, not works, yet the saved are to be "careful to maintain good works," for grace produces a fruitful life. So we humbly remember what we were, rejoice in the mercy that made us new by water and Spirit, walk gently and productively in the world, guard the unity of the church, and rest as heirs of eternal life, saved not by our righteousness but by His.
- Be good citizens, "ready to every good work," and "gentle... unto all men" (3:1-2).
- We too "were sometimes foolish," so we deal gently with others (3:3).
- "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us" (3:5).
- Salvation is "by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost", born of water and Spirit (3:5).
- God "shed on us abundantly" the Spirit "through Jesus Christ our Saviour" (3:6).
- The saved are to "be careful to maintain good works" (3:8).
Questions for Reflection
- Do you remember what you were, so that you deal gently with those still lost?
- Do you rest your salvation on God's mercy, "not by works of righteousness which we have done"?
- Have you experienced the new birth, "the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost"?
- As one saved by grace, are you "careful to maintain good works"?
References & Sources
Scripture is quoted from the King James Version (KJV). Supporting passages are listed so every claim can be verified in its own setting. Subjection to rulers; gentleness; what we once were: Titus 3:1-3; Romans 13:1-7; 1 Peter 2:13-17; Ephesians 2:1-3. Saved by mercy, not works; the new birth of water and Spirit: Titus 3:4-6; John 3:5; Acts 2:38; Acts 22:16; Ephesians 2:8-9. Justified by grace, heirs of eternal life: Titus 3:7; Romans 3:24; Romans 8:17. Maintaining good works; avoiding division and the divisive: Titus 3:8-15; Ephesians 2:10; Romans 16:17; Matthew 18:15-17. If anything here does not look right, a verse, a reference, or a wording, please tell us at info@FruitBearers.net. Thank you for helping us keep Bible Learning error free.
- Good citizenship and gentleness; what we once were: Titus 3:1-3; Romans 13:1-7; Ephesians 2:1-3.
- Saved by mercy, not works; the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Spirit: Titus 3:4-6; John 3:5; Acts 2:38.
- Justified by grace, heirs of eternal life: Titus 3:7; Romans 3:24; Romans 8:17.
- Maintain good works; reject the divisive: Titus 3:8-15; Ephesians 2:10; Romans 16:17.