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1: Wholesome - Restoring and preserving spiritual health.
2: Vigilant - As veteran soldiers, not easily to be
surprised. Patience - A virtue particularly needful for and
becoming them. Serious - Not drolling or diverting on the brink
of eternity.
3: In behaviour - The particulars whereof follow. As
becometh holiness - Literally, observing an holy decorum. Not
slanderers - Or evil - speakers. Not given to much wine - If they
use a little for their often infirmities. Teachers - Age and
experience call them so to be. Let them teach good only.
4: That they instruct the young women - These Timothy was
to instruct himself; Titus, by the elder women. To love their
husbands, their children - With a tender, temperate, holy, wise
affection. O how hard a lesson.
5: Discreet - Particularly in the love of their children.
Chaste - Particularly in the love of their husbands. Keepers at
home - Whenever they are not called out by works of necessity,
piety, and mercy. Good - Well tempered, sweet, soft, obliging.
Obedient to their husbands - Whose will, in all things lawful, is
a rule to the wife. That the word of God be not blasphemed - Or
evil spoken of; particularly by unbelieving husbands, who lay
all the blame on the religion of their wives.
6: To be discreet - A virtue rarely found in youth.
7: Showing thyself a pattern - Titus himself was then
young. In the doctrine which thou teachest in public: as to
matter, uncorruptness; as to the manner of delivering it,
seriousness - Weightiness, solemnity.
8: Wholesome speech - In private conversation.
9: Please them in all things - Wherein it can be done
without sin. Not answering again - Though blamed unjustly. This
honest servants are most apt to do. Not stealing - Not taking or
giving any thing without their master's leave: this fair - spoken
servants are apt to do.
10: Showing all good fidelity - Soft, obliging faithfulness
That they may adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour - More than
St. Paul says of kings. How he raises the lowness of his
subject! So may they, the lowness of their condition.
11: The saving grace of God - So it is in its nature,
tendency, and design. Hath appeared to all men - High and low.
12: Instructing us - All who do not reject it. That,
having renounced ungodliness - Whatever is contrary to the fear
and love of God. And worldly desires - Which are opposite to
sobriety and righteousness. We should live soberly - In all
purity and holiness. Sobriety, in the scripture sense, is
rather the whole temper of a man, than a single virtue in him.
It comprehends all that is opposite to the drowsiness of sin,
the folly of ignorance, the unholiness of disorderly passions.
Sobriety is no less than all the powers of the soul being
consistently and constantly awake, duly governed by heavenly
prudence, and entirely conformable to holy affections. And
righteously - Doing to all as we would they should do to us.
And godly - As those who are consecrated to God both in heart
and life.
13: Looking - With eager desire. For that glorious
appearing - Which we hope for. Of the great God, even our
Saviour Jesus Christ - So that, if there be (according to the
Arian scheme) a great God and a little God, Christ is not the
little God, but the great one.
14: Who gave himself for us - To die in our stead. That he
might redeem us - Miserable bondslaves, as well from the power
and the very being, as from the guilt, of all our sins.
15: Let no man despise thee - That is, let none have any
just cause to despise thee. Yet they surely will. Men who
know not God will despise a true minister of his word.
