Titus 3:1

The duty of living in peace from a sense of God's love and through the Spirit's power

1. Put them in mind -Them" must be -the Cretan Christians" generally: St Paul is gathering all up in his mind for his final counsel. The verb for -put in mind," and its substantive, occur twice in St John, once in St Luke, but in St Paul only in the Pastoral Epistles three times; in St Peter's Epistles three times; and once in St Jude's. John 14:26 shews the full construction, accus. of person and of thing, -He shall bring all things to your remembrance." The A.V. in 3 John 1:10, -I will remember his deeds," is surely in the old sense of -remember," which survives in our valedictory request -remember me to all your circle;" R.V. -bring to remembrance," cf. note on the similar compound 2 Timothy 1:6.

to be subject to principalities and powers Rather, more fully as R.V. to be in subjection. Elsewhere in St Paul's Epistles the phrase -principalities and powers" refers to spiritual and angelic powers, good or evil, cf. 1 Corinthians 15:24; Ephesians 3:10; Colossians 1:16. But the word in its old sense (see Bible Word-Book, p. 477) was used of any -chief place," as in 2Ma 4:27 of the office of high priest. And the meaning here is the same as in the two places where it occurs in the Gospels, Luke 12:11, where our Lord prophesies that His disciples shall be brought before -the rulers and the authorities," and Luke 20:20, -so as to deliver him up to the rule and to the authority of the governor." There is not sufficient warrant for the connecting -and" here; render to rulers to authorities. Both words illustrate the idiom -res pro persona." Vulg. -potestates" from whence the Italian podestàa magistrate. The difference between the two words is that the former expresses a governing de facto, whether also de jureor not, the latter a governing de jure, a duly constituted authority. -They who rule" occurs with -the authorities" in the locus classicus, Romans 13:1, where, however, R.V. has retained -power," apparently because from that passagethe phrase -the powers that be" has become an English household word in the sense of -lawful authority." The other household use of -powers" in the phrase -The Great Powers," seems to belong rather to the synonym dynamisas expressing material force. In Matthew 28:18 the change from -power" to -authority" in R.V. enhances the kingly office and prerogative.

to obey magistrates The word only occurs Acts 5:29; Acts 5:32; Acts 27:21, where a dative follows; and so it may be here, if we join it with the preceding; but it seems more Pauline to add the verb absolutely. From note on Titus 2:5 we should expect it to differ from the preceding clause, in being more specific in its reference to the official system of government; render perhaps to obey their rules, -to obey state laws." Fairbairn refers to the earlier history of the island and a -known tendency on the part of the Cretans to insubordination and turmoil," quoting from Polybius vi. 46, -constantly upset by seditions and murders and tribal wars."

to be ready to every good work This takes us on a step still further; first a general submission, then a loyal acceptance and execution of public orders, then the learning and labouring truly to get one's own living and to do one's duty, domestic, social and civil. That -the good work" has such a reference is implied in Romans 13:3. The -ready" is exactly -whatsover ye do, do it heartily unto the Lord," cf. Colossians 3:23. -The true workman never shirks when the overseer is not by; he has not one rule for work done for himself, and another for work done for his master. There is a work that is mean and pitiful; all grudging unwilling toil, all -scamped" work, fair to the eye but second rate in reality, is mean and pitiful; it is like work done by the slave at the whip's end, or like the labour of the convict in gaol; it is forced and unwelcome and as badly done as possible." M. A. Lewis, Faithful Soldiers and Servants, p. 58.