Titus 1:9 (DBY)

Passage

clinging to the faithful word according to the doctrine taught, that he may be able both to encourage with sound teaching and refute gainsayers.

Nearby Context

Titus 1:7 For the overseer must be free from all charge [against him] as God's steward; not headstrong, not passionate, not disorderly through wine, not a striker, not seeking gain by base means;

Titus 1:8 but hospitable, a lover of goodness, discreet, just, pious, temperate,

Titus 1:9 clinging to the faithful word according to the doctrine taught, that he may be able both to encourage with sound teaching and refute gainsayers.

Titus 1:10 For there are many and disorderly vain speakers and deceivers of people's minds, specially those of [the] circumcision,

Titus 1:11 who must have their mouths stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which ought not [to be taught] for the sake of base gain.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "faith", "clinging", "faithful", "word", "doctrine", "taught", "able", and "both". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "faith" and "clinging", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 8's "but hospitable a lover of goodness discreet..." into verse 10's "For there are many and disorderly vain...", so "faith" and "clinging" 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 "clinging" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.