While at Seminary, a local pastor was invited to preach in chapel. He told the story of how his adult son abandoned Jesus and now lives in squalor. To be honest, I don’t know what the sermon was about because I couldn’t help but contemplate whether or not this man should be allowed to pastor a church. If his own child does not believe in Jesus, should he be allowed to lead a church? Thankfully, the Bible answers this question in Titus 1:6.
Titus 1:6 states that a man’s children must believe in Jesus for him to be qualified for the office of elder or pastor. The term πιστός in the active sense in conjunction with a deeper understanding of the blamelessness of an elder suggest that an elder must have believing children.
The qualifications for those who would serve as elders/pastors are many and strict. 1 Timothy 3:1–7 and Titus 1:5–9 are two of the most comprehensive passages in Scripture that list the qualifications for the office of elder/pastor. Although these passages have significant overlap, a number of qualifications are omitted from each and a number are added. Significant among these is the addition of τέκνα ἔχων πιστά in Titus 1:6. Τέκνα ἔχων πιστά could be translated as either “one who has believing children” (see ESV) or “one who has faithful children” (see NET). The question that must be asked, then, is: to be qualified as an elder, must a man’s children have faith in Jesus or must they simply be faithful and obedient?
The Structure of Titus 1:6
To understand the meaning of τέκνα ἔχων πιστά, the structure of the clause within Titus 1:6 must first be understood. First, the participle ἔχων, wedged between τέκνα and πιστά, is not modifying τέκνα, rendering the clause, “children who have faith” or “children who have faithfulness” since it does not agree with τέκνα in case, number, or gender. Rather, ἔχων functions as a predicate adjective to the verb ἐστίν used earlier in the conditional clause that started verse 5. The conditional clause assumes a predicate nominative/adjective will follow ἐστίν, the verb “to be,” as can be seen with ἀνέγκλητος (“blameless,” “above reproach”) and ἀνήρ (“a husband”). Since ἔχων is unable to modify anything else and is in the nominative case, its only possible function is as a predicate adjective, rendering the verse “if any man is blameless, a husband . . . , one who has πιστός children . . . .”
Second, the adjective πιστά clearly modifies the noun τέκνα because it agrees in case, number, and gender. It is not acting as a substantival adjective, but as an attributive adjective, rendering the phrase either “one who has believing children” or “one who has faithful children.” Thus, the grammatical structure of τέκνα ἔχων πιστά does not play a role in the understanding of an elder’s children. The grammatical structure will allow the children of an elder to be either believing or faithful.
The Meaning of Τέκνον (“Children”) in Titus 1:6
If one could prove that τέκνον refers to little children there would be a strong argument for understanding τέκνα ἔχων πιστά as referring to children who are faithful, or obedient, and not necessarily to believers because they would be considered too young to make an intentional decision to follow Christ. Unfortunately, τέκνον is the common term for children without distinction in age, which means the immediate context of Titus 1:6 needs to be consulted.
The prepositional phrase immediately following τέκνα ἔχων πιστά sheds light on the age range of τέκνον: μὴ ἐν κατηγορίᾳ ἀσωτίας ἢ ἀνυπότακτα (“not open to the charge of debauchery or insubordination,” ESV). The term ἀσωτία, commonly translated “dissipation” or “debauchery” (ESV, NASB, BDAG, s.v. “ἀσωτία”) certainly could not be applied to a small child. Philip Towner states,
ἀσωτία “covers a range of dissolute activity from sexual promiscuity to drunkenness, with excessiveness in the use of money and food lying between.”
Philip H. Towner, The Letters to Timothy and Titus. NICNT (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2006), 683
This sort of activity is most certainly characteristic of adult children and not young children. As John MacArthur writes, tongue in cheek, “there aren’t too many dissipated, debauched young children” (Pastoral Ministry, 72).
The Meaning of Πιστός (“Faith,” “Faithfulness”) in Titus 1:6
The debate over whether a man’s children must have faith in Jesus or be faithful to their parents in order to be qualified as an elder largely rests on one’s understanding of the adjective πιστός in Titus 1:6. Πιστός can be understood either passively or actively. Πιστός as passive can be understood as “faithful,” “obedient,” “trustworthy,” “submissive,” or “dependable.” It describes someone who is worthy of trust or belief. The King James Version and the more recent Holman Christian Standard Bible both translate πιστός as passive, “having faithful children” (KJV, HCSB). The active meaning of πιστός, on the other hand, can be understood as “believing” or “trusting,” conveying the idea of having belief or trust in someone or something. Many modern English Bible translations, such as the ESV, NASB, and NIV, translate πιστός as active, “his children are believers” (ESV).
Meaning of Πιστός Based on New Testament and Pastoral Epistle Use
Following a survey by Norris Grubbs (“The Truth about Elders and Their Children,” 7), who examined all 67 occurrences of πιστός in the New Testament, 54 were found to be passive and 12 were found to be active. However, a study of πιστόςin the Pastoral Epistles will reveal a different statistic. Of the 16 uses in the Pastoral Epistles, excluding Titus 1:6, six of the uses were active, nine were passive, and one was ambiguous (2 Tim 2:2). However, of the nine passive uses, six are modifying objects other than people,[1] leaving only three uses of πιστός in the passive used in relation to people. The overwhelming use of πιστός, then, in the Pastoral Epistles is active, two-to-one. Although Grubbs (“The Truth about Elders and Their Children,” 9) is correct in his conclusion that “context is the ultimate determinate of meaning,” the results of the above word study show that it is likely that Paul had the active sense in mind when writing to Titus.
Meaning of Πιστός Based on Literary Context
Context, however, must be the ultimate deciding factor as to the meaning of πιστός in Titus 1:6. A number of strong contextual arguments are used to support both the passive and active meaning of πιστός. However, the context leans toward an active understanding of πιστός. First, however, will be an assessment of the support for the passive meaning, followed by an assessment and support for the active meaning.
Support for the Passive Meaning of Πιστός
The prepositional phrase in verse six, μὴ ἐν κατηγορίᾳ ἀσωτίας ἢ ἀνυπότακτα, which immediately follows τέκνα ἔχων πιστά could have significant bearing on the understanding of πιστός. It makes no sense to have the prepositional phrase modify ἔχων or πιστά and therefore it must modify τέκνα, “children . . . not open to the charge of debauchery or insubordination.” Scholars such as George Knight III (Pastoral Epistles, 289) and Norris Grubbs (12) view the prepositional phrase as explanatory, shedding light on what it means to be τέκνα πιστά. This certainly has its merits and is grammatically legitimate. Taken this way, πιστός would certainly mean “faithful.” However, another way of understanding the subsequent prepositional phrase is as a second requirement for an elder’s children, thus taking the adjective and prepositional phrase as two separate modifiers to τέκνα, “children who are faithful and not open to the charge of debauchery or insubordination.” Thus, the subsequent prepositional phrase does not conclusively determine the meaning of πιστός.
A second contextual argument for πιστός being taken in the passive is that the church in Crete was too young for fathers to have believing children. Although it is quite likely the church in Crete was young when Paul wrote to Titus, the Scriptures, nonetheless, give examples when entire households come to faith (Acts 16:25–34). This proves it is well within the Holy Spirit’s power to convict parents and children of the need for salvation through Jesus at or around the same time.
The final argument for πιστός being understood in the passive sense is the similarity between Titus 1:6–9 and 1 Timothy 3:1–7. Due to the many parallels between the two passages, it is argued that one may use 1 Timothy 3:4–5 to interpret Titus 1:6. This understanding would lead to the conclusion that πιστός in Titus 1:6 must be passive since 1 Timothy 3:4–5 does not mention children as being believers. Although this argument has merit, it breaks down when one acknowledges that the passages are not completely the same and that both Titus and 1 Timothy have unique characteristics that do not appear in the other. This acknowledgment, then, allows for the additional requirement in Titus 1:6 that children be believers.
Support for the Active Meaning of Πιστός
Whenever πιστός modifies a person in the Pastoral Epistles, it always refers to a believer and describes that believer regardless of whether it is active or passive (1 Tim 1:12; 3:11; 4:3, 10, 12; 5:16; 6:2 [x2]; 2 Tim 2:2; Titus 1:6). Thus, regardless of whether πιστός is active or passive, an elder’s children must have faith in Jesus; they must be believing children. The active translation, however, makes this understanding more explicit.
A second reason for πιστός to be taken in the active is the ambiguity of the passive. If πιστός in Titus 1:6 is taken in the passive, it is not clear regarding who or what children are to be faithful or obedient to. One is left wondering whether the child is to be faithful to God, the family, or his own responsibilities. The active sense of the word clarifies the ambiguity, showing the content of the child’s faithfulness to be toward God, presupposing faith in Jesus.
Finally, an elder would hardly be considered blameless (ἀνέγκλητος) if his children were not believers. Having non-believing children would throw into doubt the elder’s ability to lead people to faith in Jesus and to lead a congregation in the ways of Jesus. Walking uprightly in the faith is first determinate on salvation. Although ultimate salvation is dependent on the Lord, Fathers are to bring their children up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord (Eph 6:4). A failure to do so would reflect poorly on the elder and, in turn, on Christ’s church.
Due to context surrounding Titus 1:6, it can be concluded that πιστός most likely has an active meaning and should be translated as “believing.” To be qualified as an elder a man who has children must have children who believe in Jesus Christ.
Application to Ministry
The requirement that an elder/pastor have believing children greatly affects the candidacy of many men. Simply put, according to Titus 1:6, a man who has children and desires to be or remain an elder must have children who believe in Jesus for the forgiveness of sins and who walk in a manner worthy of the gospel. A man who is unable to raise and lead his family to walk in the ways of the Lord is unqualified to lead a congregation in the ways of the Lord. He should not be considered for the position of elder until his children repent and put their faith in Jesus. Further, an elder whose children have strayed from or renounced the faith should be removed from office on the basis of not meeting the qualifications of Titus 1:6. Finally, if an elder has children of a young age who, upon maturing, do not repent and put their faith in Jesus, he should be removed from office until such time as his children become believers.
[1]In all instances of πιστός modifying something other than a person, it is modifying the word λόγος (1 Tim 1:15; 3:1; 4:9; 2 Tim 2:11; Titus 1:9; 3:8).