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One of them, a prophet of their own, said, "Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, and idle gluttons."
Verse Takeaways
1
A Prophet of Their Own
Commentators unanimously identify the 'prophet' as Epimenides, a respected Cretan poet from the 6th century BC. By quoting a Cretan to describe Cretan flaws, Paul makes a powerful rhetorical move. This strategy prevents the charge of being merely an outsider criticizing their culture and forces the Cretans to confront a critique from one of their own esteemed figures.
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Titus
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10
18th Century
Presbyterian
One of themselves. This means one of the Cretans. The quotation here shows that Paul was considering not only the Jewish teachers there bu…
A prophet of their own (ιδιος αυτων προφητης). "Their own prophet." Self-styled "prophet" (or poet), and so accepted by the Cretan…
19th Century
Anglican
One of themselves, even a prophet of their own, said.—St. Paul had spoken (Titus 1:10–11) in the severest ter…
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Baptist
Said, The Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, slow bellies.
They were a degraded people; and hence, those who would teach them ha…
These Cretan false teachers were all the more dangerous because of the known nature of the people on whom they preyed. As evidence, Paul quotes a l…
16th Century
Protestant
One of themselves, a prophet of their own. I have no doubt that the person spoken of here is Epimenides, who was a native of Crete. For wh…
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17th Century
Reformed Baptist
One of themselves, even a prophet of their own This was Epimenides, in whose poems stand the words here cited; the a…
False teachers are described. Faithful ministers must oppose them promptly, so that, their folly being exposed, they may not proceed further. They …
13th Century
Catholic
1. Previously, he described what a bishop’s conduct should be; here he shows how he should be equipped with doctrine. He explains:
