Are Cretans Always Liars?

Introduction

At times, I have come across men quoting Titus 1:12-13. They quote what Paul wrote: “One of them, a prophet of their own, said, ‘Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.’ This testimony is true. Therefore, rebuke them sharply that they might be sound in the faith.” The point is then made that it is important that pastors preach against the sins of the people they are ministering to. In the commentaries, another point is made that, as Christians, we should not be afraid to use anything that is true, even if it comes from an unbeliever. These conclusions are fine and biblical, but the problem is that this passage in Titus is not about them. The fuller passage of Titus 1:10-16 is a diatribe of Paul against the heresy of the Judaizers and against Judaizing false teachers in the churches on Crete. When we put these verses back into their broader context, we see that the pronoun “them” refers to the false teachers, not the Cretans. When we consider what it means for Paul to bring this eyewitness testimony, we see that Paul is marshaling forth a quotation of one of these false teachers as an example of a Jewish fable that must be silenced. In other words, Paul did not endorse the fable that Cretans are always liars.

A Diatribe Against Judaizers 

The passage in Titus 1:10-16 is a diatribe against the Judaizer heresy. Paul begins by naming these false prophets on Crete as “especially of the Circumcision” (1:10). Throughout the New Testament, the group referred to as “the Circumcision” are the Judaizers. The Judaizers sought to put the wine of the New Covenant into old wineskins by commanding Gentile men to be circumcised, to follow the Old Testament dietary law, and not to join in table fellowship with the uncircumcised. They grasped at proverbs and stories that agreed with them that the uncircumcised were still unclean. Paul condemned these as “Jewish fables” (1:14). Paul warned that, if you wanted to be sound in the faith, you must not give credence to these “Jewish fables” nor heed these commandments which are coming from men who are turning themselves away from the truth (1:14). The truth was the πιστος λογος, the faithful word (Titus 1:9; 3:3-8a), the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. But for the Judaizers to call unclean what God had made clean was to deny the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ and to deny that the Holy Spirit had purified God’s people when He regenerated them. The Judaizers professed to know God, but in their works they denied Him because they denied the hope of eternal life to uncircumcised, but baptized, believers (1:16). Their teaching was overthrowing the faith of entire households (1:11) by calling unclean what God had made clean (1:15), and for that reason Paul commands that Titus “rebuke them sharply” (1:13). Throughout these seven verses Paul has one theme: the Judaizers, who are false prophets with a false gospel, must be silenced.

In 1:10-11, Paul pulls no punches as he calls the false teachers liars, wild beasts, and thieves. Paul refers to these false teachers as “empty talkers” and “seducers.” His use of “empty talkers” is the word ματαιολογος, which is a clear contrast in Greek with the πιστος λογος, which they were supposed to be clinging to (1:9). But if you add “empty talkers” together with “seducers,” clearly Paul is calling these false prophets out as liars. But then Paul compares them to wild beasts who attack and bite. Since they are not domesticated, they must be muzzled (1:11a) so that they stop attacking the sheep with their mouths. Then, holding nothing back, Paul accuses them of being lazy and earning their money through shameful means because they are greedy for gain (1:11b). Paul goes for the jugular of these false prophets on Crete.

In the following two verses, Paul marshals forth eyewitness testimony of a quotation one of these Judaizers is bandying around. Clement of Alexandria tells us this quotation originates with Epimenides, but Paul is clear that this is a quotation one of these false teachers is teaching. Paul writes: “One of them, a prophet of their own, said.” One of who? The antecedent for the pronoun “them” is listed back in verse 10 as “idle talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision.” As Paul marches out this μαρτυρια, he could not be more clear that this quotation is from the mouth of one of these Judaizing false prophets. The quotation is “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.” Since it is written in dactylic hexameter, it is possible that this quotation originated with Epimenides or was adapted from Callimachus. Paul’s objection to the quotation is that it has become a “Jewish fable” in the mouth of one of these false prophets on Crete. If so, the Judaizer who used it had ripped it out of its context. Paul asserts that his eyewitness testimony is true. And because it is true, Titus is to rebuke the false teachers sharply that they might be sound in the faith.

Out of context, it can appear like Paul is agreeing with the quotation and calling Cretans liars. Especially when the word μαρτυρια is forgotten, and we read the statement as, “This saying is true.” But in context, it is clear that Paul has taken aim at the Judaizing false prophets, not the common Cretan in the pew. Just as the Sanhedrin sought a μαρτυρια against Christ, so now Paul brings forth a μαρτυρια against these Judaizers. It makes no sense that Paul would condemn the false teachers, then quote one of them and say, “Actually, he is right about this. Rebuke the Cretans.” In addition, a quotation has its own logic to it. When you quote someone as saying something, you must surround that quotation with words which either affirm or deny that quotation. Paul makes it clear that this eyewitness testimony is a charge (αιτιαν) against the Judaizers. What is usually translated as “therefore” or “wherefore” is actually “on account of this charge.” “On account of this charge, rebuke them sharply.” In context, it is clear that Paul is not agreeing with the quotation. Instead, he is presenting evidence of how one of these Judaizers is calling the uncircumcised believers unclean. Paul is showing Titus an explicit quotation of what a Jewish fable looks like so that he and the elders he appoints know exactly what teaching needs to be rebuked. Paul is not endorsing the sentiment contained in the quotation. 

Paul ends this section with two verses about what is clean and what is unclean: “To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are defiled and unbelieving nothing is pure.” Later, Paul reminds us that Christ “gave Himself for us” for two reasons: “that He might redeem us from every lawless deed” and that He might “purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works” (2:14). Paul wants to set straight the churches on Crete, and he wants to ensure that no one calls unclean what God has made clean.

What Is Lost with this Interpretation?

This interpretation flips the historical interpretation of this passage on its head, but it does not affect the meaning of the interpretation that much. The commentaries all agree that the heresy on Crete is the Judaizing heresy. The commentaries all agree that Paul is commanding the false teachers to be rebuked for their false teaching. Changing the interpretation does not undercut any important doctrines. The basic arguments that commentaries have made are: first, if a pagan says something true, Christians can quote it; second, Paul was an educated man who knew how to persuade his audience; third, pastors should not shrink back from preaching against the sins of the culture they are ministering to. All of these implications can be derived from other verses in Scripture. But, when this passage is seen as a unified whole, it is clear that these implications are not derived from the exegesis of this passage. 

What is Gained with this Interpretation? 

The advantage of putting these two verses into their proper context helps us to understand the heresy of the Judaizers. Commentary on this passage has been disjointed, but Paul was not disjointed. Seeing the quotation of what the Judaizers believed and taught helps us to understand what it means to call unclean what God has made clean. It helps us avoid repeating the error that the Judaizers made. Seeing how the Judaizers were dividing the church between clean and unclean helps us to understand the importance of baptism in this short epistle as well as what it means to be divisive (3:9-11). Putting these two verses into context helps us to see the Judaizers as the divisive people that they were.

Putting these two verses into their proper context also helps us understand the Epistle to Titus better. First, many wrongly consider the Epistle to Titus to be a pastoral epistle. It is actually an open letter to the churches on Crete, and 1:10-16 is a shot over the bow of the Judaizers. In this respect, it is similar to the Epistle to the Galatians. Secondly, Paul emphasizes in his introduction how he is merely a servant of God, declaring a message that has been given to him by God. This message gives believers the hope of eternal life, a hope which has been promised to believers by God. A hope that is sure and certain because God cannot lie and keeps His promises. The sections in Titus 2:11-14 and 3:3-8 are the encouragement that the believers on Crete need: being baptized by the Holy Spirit is sufficient. It makes clean what had been unclean. And Titus, who is a legitimate child in the faith common to him and Paul, is an ideal choice to bring that message to the churches on Crete because he is also uncircumcised. Finally, the household code in Titus 2:2-10 has one enemy in particular who is keeping his eye on the Cretan churches (2:8). That is why Paul in that section tells the believers on Crete not to be liars (2:2-5), not to be evil beasts (2:6-8), and not to be lazy gluttons (2:9-10). When this quotation is understood correctly, all the sections in this epistle fall into place.

Conclusion

Paul opposed the teaching that the Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons. Although this quotation may have been pulled from the works of Epimenides or adapted from the works of Callimachus, in the Epistle to Titus, the immediate source of the quotation was a false prophet, one of the Judaizers, who promoted this Jewish fable in order to persuade men to become circumcised. Paul opposed this division in the church as a denial of the gospel, and for that reason, he commanded Titus and the elders he would appoint to rebuke these Judaizers sharply so that they might be sound in the faith.

David Moody is the Associate Pastor at Christ the Redeemer Church in Pella, Iowa.

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