Titus 1:12

Titus 1:12. Themselves, i.e. Cretans. The hexameter verse quoted is from a lost poem by Epimenides, a Cretan sage of the sixth century B.C., who is well called ‘a prophet of their own,' for he is described by classic writers as a philosophic seer and priest, venerated for his predictions, around whose memory popular legends gathered, and to whom almost sacred honours came to be paid. Impossible to infer that Paul ascribed an inspired character to heathen sages. The vices here ascribed to the national character (falsehood, violence, and gluttony) find confirmation from other authors.

Slow bellies, ‘do-nothing gluttons' (Ellicott).