Passage

Titus 3.10-11

Book: Titus · ASV / WEB / KJV / YLT

Immediate context (±2 verses)

ASV

8. Faithful is the saying, and concerning these things I desire that thou affirm confidently, to the end that they who have believed God may be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable unto men: 9. but shun foolish questionings, and genealogies, and strifes, and fightings about law; for they are unprofitable and vain.

10. A factious man after a first and second admonition refuse; 11. knowing that such a one is perverted, and sinneth, being self-condemned.

When I shall send Artemas unto thee, or Tychicus, give diligence to come unto me to Nicopolis: for there I have determined to winter. 13. Set forward Zenas the lawyer and Apollos on their journey diligently, that nothing be wanting unto them. (Titus 3:8-13, ASV)

WEB

8. This saying is faithful, and concerning these things I desire that you affirm confidently, so that those who have believed God may be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable to men; 9. but shun foolish questionings, genealogies, strife, and disputes about the law; for they are unprofitable and vain.

10. Avoid a factious man after a first and second warning, 11. knowing that such a one is perverted and sins, being self-condemned.

When I send Artemas to you, or Tychicus, be diligent to come to me to Nicopolis, for I have determined to winter there. 13. Send Zenas, the lawyer, and Apollos on their journey speedily, that nothing may be lacking for them. (Titus 3:8-13, WEB)

KJV

8. 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. 9. But avoid foolish questions, and genealogies, and contentions, and strivings about the law; for they are unprofitable and vain.

10. A man that is an heretick after the first and second admonition reject; 11. 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. 13. Bring Zenas the lawyer and Apollos on their journey diligently, that nothing be wanting unto them. (Titus 3:8-13, KJV)

YLT

8. Stedfast [is] the word; and concerning these things I counsel thee to affirm fully, that they may be thoughtful, to be leading in good works, who have believed God; these are the good and profitable things to men, 9. and foolish questions, and genealogies, and contentions, and strivings about law, stand away from, for they are unprofitable and vain.

10. A sectarian man, after a first and second admonition be rejecting, 11. having known that he hath been subverted who [is] such, and doth sin, being self-condemned.

When I shall send Artemas unto thee, or Tychicus, be diligent to come unto me to Nicopolis, for there to winter I have determined. 13. Zenas the lawyer and Apollos bring diligently on their way, that nothing to them may be lacking, (Titus 3:8-13, YLT)

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Setting

Speaker: Paul, who names himself "a servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ" in the opening verse. The phrase doulos theou, servant of God, is unusual for him; he normally writes servant of Christ.
Audience: Titus, a Gentile co-worker whom Paul had declined to have circumcised (Galatians 2:1-3), addressed as "my true child after a common faith."
Location: Written to Titus on Crete, where Paul had left him "that thou shouldest set in order the things that were wanting, and appoint elders in every city." Paul's own location is not stated; he mentions only an intention to winter at Nicopolis (Titus 3:12).
Time period: Traditionally dated to about AD 62 to 66, after a first Roman imprisonment. Pauline authorship of the Pastoral Epistles is disputed in critical scholarship, on vocabulary and church-order grounds; the letter presents itself as Paul's.

Theological reading

Hairetikon anthrōpon is a factious or divisive person, and the noun behind our word heretic here denotes party-making rather than doctrinal error as such. The procedure is limited and patient, a first and a second admonition, and only then refusal. The ground given is that such a person is autokatakritos, self-condemned: the judgment is one he has passed on himself by persisting after correction, which is why the community's action is described as recognition rather than sentence.

Key words

Theologically-loaded Greek or Hebrew words in this verse may have entries in the lexicon. Curated to roughly 100 contested terms across the corpus, not every word; see Lexicon Roadmap.

G1492 - oida, oida, Strong's G1492

Quoted in

Concepts:

Spirit of Divisiveness

Why these four translations

ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the most literal English translations available (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the public domain in the United States, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance.

The four:

ASV (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
WEB (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
KJV (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
YLT (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff.

See Bibles for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.