John Calvin Commentary Titus 1:11

"whose mouths must be stopped; men who overthrow whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre`s sake." — Titus 1:11 (ASV)

Whose mouth must be stopped. A good pastor should therefore be vigilant, so that he does not silently permit wicked and dangerous doctrines to make gradual progress, or allow wicked men an opportunity to spread them. But one might ask, “How is it possible for a bishop to compel obstinate and self-willed men to be silent? For such people, even when defeated in argument, still do not remain silent. It often happens that the more clearly they are refuted and defeated, the more insolent they become; for not only is their malice strengthened and inflamed, but they also give themselves over to stubborn defiance.”

I answer that when they have been struck down by the sword of God’s word and overwhelmed by the force of truth, the Church can command them to be silent. If they persist, they can at least be banished from the community of believers, so that they will have no opportunity to do harm.

Yet by “shutting the mouth,” Paul simply means “to refute their empty talk,” even if they do not stop making noise. For whoever is convicted by the word of God, however much he may chatter, truly has nothing to say.

Who overturn whole houses. If the faith of one individual were in danger of being overturned (for we are speaking of the perdition of a single soul redeemed by the blood of Christ), the pastor should immediately prepare himself for the conflict. How much less tolerable is it, then, to see whole households overturned?

Teaching things which they ought not. The way these households were overturned is described in these words. From this we can infer how dangerous it is to make even the smallest departure from sound doctrine. For he does not say that the doctrines by which they overturned the faith of many were openly wicked; rather, we can understand this description to include every kind of corruption that occurs when there is a turning away from the goal of edification.

Indeed, amidst such great weakness of the flesh, we are exceedingly prone to fall. Consequently, Satan, through his ministers, easily and quickly destroys what godly teachers have built up with great and prolonged effort.

He next points out the source of the evil: a desire for dishonest gain; by this he reminds us how destructive a plague avarice is in teachers. For as soon as they devote themselves to pursuing gain, they must strive to obtain the favor and approval of people. This pursuit is quickly followed by the corruption of pure doctrine.