Titus 1:13 (ASV)

Passage

This testimony is true. For which cause reprove them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith,

Nearby Context

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 1:12 One of themselves, a prophet of their own, said, Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, idle gluttons.

Titus 1:13 This testimony is true. For which cause reprove them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith,

Titus 1:14 not giving heed to Jewish fables, and commandments of men who turn away from the truth.

Titus 1:15 To the pure all things are pure: but to them that are defiled and unbelieving nothing is pure; but both their mind and their conscience are defiled.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "faith", "testimony", "true", "cause", "reprove", "sharply", and "sound". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "faith" and "testimony", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 12's "One of themselves a prophet of their..." into verse 14's "not giving heed to Jewish fables and...", so "faith" and "testimony" belong inside that flow. In Titus context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "faith" and "testimony" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.