Paul a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ for the faith of God's elect and for their knowledge of the Truth that goes with a religious life,

[For a bishop must be above reproach ??he is a steward of God's house ??he must not be presumptuous or hot-tempered or a drunkard or violent or addicted to pilfering;

For there are plenty of insubordinate creatures who impose on people with their empty arguments, particularly those who have come over from Judaism;

they must be silenced, for they are undermining whole families by teaching objectionable doctrine for the base end of making money.

For the pure all things are pure, but nothing is pure for the polluted and unbelieving; their very mind and conscience are polluted.

They profess to know God, but they deny him by their deeds; they are detestable, disobedient, and useless for good work of any kind.

For the grace of God has appeared to save all men,

who gave himself up for us to redeem us from all iniquity and secure himself a clean people with a zest for good works.

Remind them to be submissive to their rulers and authorities; they must obey, they must be ready for any good work,

For we ourselves were once senseless, disobedient, astray, enslaved to all manner of passions and pleasures; we spent our days in malice and envy, we were hateful, and we hated one another.

and he saved us, not for anything we had done but from his own pity for us, by the water that means regeneration and renewal under the holy Spirit

It is a sure saying. I want you to insist on this, that those who have faith in God must profess honest occupations. Such counsels are right and good for men.

But avoid foolish controversy, and let genealogies and dissensions and strife over the Law alone, for these are fruitless and futile.

Whenever I send Artemas or Tychicus to you, do your best to come to me at Nicopolis, for I have decided to winter there.

Give a hearty send-off to Zenas the jurist and Apollos; see that they want for nothing.