1Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ to further the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness – 2in the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time, 3and which now at his appointed season he has brought to light through the preaching entrusted to me by the command of God our Saviour,
4To Titus, my true son in our common faith:
Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Saviour.
Appointing elders who love what is good
5The reason I left you in Crete was that you might put in order what was left unfinished and appoint1:5 Or ordain elders in every town, as I directed you. 6An elder must be blameless, faithful to his wife, a man whose children believe1:6 Or children are trustworthy and are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient. 7Since an overseer manages God’s household, he must be blameless – not overbearing, not quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest gain. 8Rather, he must be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright, holy and disciplined. 9He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.
Rebuking those who fail to do good
10For there are many rebellious people, full of meaningless talk and deception, especially those of the circumcision group. 11They must be silenced, because they are disrupting whole households by teaching things they ought not to teach – and that for the sake of dishonest gain. 12One of Crete’s own prophets has said it: ‘Cretans are always liars, evil brutes, lazy gluttons.’1:12 From the Cretan philosopher Epimenides 13This saying is true. Therefore rebuke them sharply, so that they will be sound in the faith 14and will pay no attention to Jewish myths or to the merely human commands of those who reject the truth. 15To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are corrupted and do not believe, nothing is pure. In fact, both their minds and consciences are corrupted. 16They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him. They are detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good.
Nkyea
1Nwoma yi firi Onyankopɔn ɔsomfoɔ ne Yesu Kristo somafoɔ Paulo nkyɛn. Wɔyii me na wɔsomaa me sɛ memmɛboa nhyɛ nnipa a Onyankopɔn ayi wɔn no gyidie mu den na menkyerɛkyerɛ wɔn nokwasɛm a ɛde nyamesuro ba, 2a ne nnyinasoɔ yɛ nkwa a ɛnni awieeɛ no. Onyankopɔn a ɔnni atorɔ no hyɛɛ yɛn asetena yi ho bɔ ansa na ɔrefiri ewiase ase; 3na ɛberɛ a ɛsɛ mu no, ɔdaa asɛm no a daa yɛka ho asɛm no adi. Onyankopɔn a ɔyɛ yɛn Agyenkwa na wafrɛ me sɛ menyɛ adwuma a ɔde ahyɛ me nsa yi.
4Meretwerɛ akɔma me ba Tito afa gyidie baako a yɛn nyinaa kura mu no ho:
Adom ne asomdwoeɛ a ɛfiri Agya Onyankopɔn ne Kristo Yesu, yɛn Agyenkwa no nka wo!
Asɛmpakafoɔ Yiedie
5Megyaa wo Kreta sɛdeɛ ɛbɛyɛ a wobɛtoto nneɛma a aka no pɛpɛɛpɛ na wayi mpanimfoɔ atuatua asafo a ɛwɔ kuro biara mu no ano. 6Kae mmara a mehyɛ maa wo no. Ɔpanin yɛ obi a ne ho nni asɛm na ɔwɔ yere baako na ne mma yɛ agyidifoɔ a wɔmmɔ ahohwi bra, na wɔnyɛ asoɔden nso. 7Ɛnsɛ sɛ mfomsoɔ biara ba ɔpanin no ho ɛfiri sɛ, Onyame adwuma hyɛ ne nsa. Ɛnsɛ sɛ ɔyɛ ahomasoɔ, anaa obi a ne bo nkyɛre fu anaa ɔkɔwensani anaa basabasayɛfoɔ anaa sikanibereɛfoɔ. 8Ɛsɛ sɛ ɔyɛ obi a ɔpɛ ahɔhoyɛ na nʼani gye deɛ ɛyɛ ho na nʼadwenem da hɔ na ɔtene na ɔyɛ kronn na ɔwɔ ahohyɛsoɔ. 9Ɛsɛ sɛ ɔsɔ asɛm no mu denden sɛdeɛ wɔkyerɛɛ no no. Sɛ ɛba saa a, ɔbɛtumi ahyɛ afoforɔ den wɔ saa nkyerɛkyerɛ pa no mu, na wada wɔn a wɔtia asɛm no mu no nso mfomsoɔ adi.
10Nnipa pii wɔ hɔ a wɔsɔre tia na wɔnam wɔn nkwaseasɛm so daadaa afoforɔ, ne titire no, wɔn a wɔfiri twetiatwasom no mu. 11Ɛsɛ sɛ wosi wɔn nkyerɛkyerɛ no ano ɛfiri sɛ, wɔnam wɔn nkyerɛkyerɛ bɔne no so ma ntoto ba mmusua mu nam so de pɛ sika. 12Mpo Kreta adiyifoɔ no mu baako kaa sɛ, “Kretafoɔ no yɛ atorofoɔ, mmoa atirimuɔdenfoɔ ne akwadwofoɔ adidifoɔ.” 13Na asɛm a ɔkaeɛ no yɛ nokorɛ. Esiane saa enti, ɛsɛ sɛ moka wɔn anim yie sɛdeɛ ɛbɛyɛ a wɔbɛnya gyidie pa, 14na wɔantena ase amma twetiatwa atorɔsɛm ne nhyɛ a ɛfiri nnipa a wɔapo nokorɛ no. 15Biribiara yɛ kronn ma wɔn a wɔyɛ kronn no, nanso biribiara nyɛ kronn mma wɔn a wɔn ho agu fi na wɔnni gyidie, ɛfiri sɛ, wɔn adwene ne wɔn atiboa ho agu fi. 16Wɔka sɛ wɔnim Onyankopɔn, nanso wɔn nneyɛeɛ nkyerɛ saa. Wɔyɛ nnipa a obiara tan wɔn, na wɔyɛ asoɔdenfoɔ a wɔntumi nyɛ ade pa biara.
