The Pulpit Commentary — Titus — Section 41

(xp77<M"&n,s): used by St. Paul only in the the le.ver of baptism le called "the )aver of New Testament, and by him frequently in regeneration," bemuse it is the ordained the senee of" kindness," whether of God (ae means by or through whioh regeneration ia Rom. ii. 4 ; lri. 22; Eph. ii. 7) or of man obtained. And renewing of the Holy Ghost. (a.a 2 Cor. Ti. 6; Ge.l. v. ~.2: Col. iii. 12). U is doubtful whether the genitive liva1ea,- In Rom. iii. 12, where it has the wider sense v,l,'1'<G1s depends upon 1111\ or upon 11.ovrpou. of "good" or" right," it is the phre.ee of the Bengel, followed by Alford, takes the former, LXX., who use XP'l10"Tlrr77s for the Hebrew " per lavaorum et renove.tionem ; " the :i\o. In like manner, XP'l10'T&s is frequently Vulge.te (laoocrum rt.generationia et renova- ueed in the eense of " kind" (Luke vi. 35 ; tionu SpiritU8 Sancti), the latter, followed Hom. ii. 4; Col. iii. 12; 1 Pet. ii. 3). This by Hut.her, Bishop Ellicott, and others. It is exaotly e.na.Iogons to the. uee of 1ea.1e&s and is difficult to hit upon any oonolusive argu- 1ea1el4, in the limited senee of '' malicious," ment for one side or the other. But it is "mnlice" (see preceding note to ver. 3). age.inst the latter oonstruotion that it gi vee Love toward man (,t,,1t..a.,,llponrla.); only here suob e. very long rambling sentenoe depen- and Aots xxviii. 2 in the New Testament. dent upon 1t..o/n-po11. "The laver of regenera- It occurs repee.tedly in the Books of the tion and of the renewing of the Holy Ghost, Me.ooe.bees, e.nd is common in good claesical whioh he shed on us abimdantly through Greek. God our Saviour (see 1 Tim. i. l ; Jes11B Christ our Saviour." And it is in ii. 3; oh. ii. 10, et.o.). Appeared (eh. ii. 11). favour of the former the.t the " laver of Ver. 5.-Done in for of, A.V.; did our- regeneration " and " the renewing of the •efollll for /iat,e dom, A."V.; through for by, Holy Ghost" seem to desoribe very clearly A.V. By works (/( fna,v); i.e. in conse- the two parts of the sacrament, the outward quence of. God's kindness and love to man visible sign and the inward spiritual gre.ce; did not spring from man's good work e.s the the birth of water and of the Holy Ghost. preceding and producing conditions (comp. So that Bengel's rendering seems on the Ge.l ii. 16, e.nd the notes of Bishops Ellicott whole to be preferred. Renewing (cwa1ea,- and Lightfoot). Done in righteousness ( T;;,v iv v,l,"'•"'s); only. here and Rom. xii. 2, and ~'"'""""0'11); the particular description of the not at all in the LXX. or in classica.l Greel!;. works wrought in e. sphere or element of But the verb liva,caivd"' is found in 2 Cor. iv. righteousness (Alford e.nd Ellicott). Which 16; Col. iii. 10. The ea.me idea is in the we did ourselves; emphasizing that they ,ca.11n11e.-lo-ar, the "new creature" of 2 Cor. v. were our good works, done by us in a state 17 and Gal. vi. I 5, and the 1eaiv&.-77s ("'ijs of of righteousness. All this, e.s the cause Rom. vi 4, e.nd the ICatvln-11, .,,~.o,,.aTOS of of our salvation, the apostle emphatically Rom. vii. 6, and in the contrast between denies. Not, etc., but e.ooording to h.iB mercy the "old me.n" (the 1ra.1t...a,bs ll.v8pa,1ros) and he uved us. The predisposing cause, the "the new man " ( the 1ea.ivbs ll.v8p"'1ros) of rule and measure of our salvation, we.s God's Eph. iv. 22-24. This renewal is the work mercy and grace, originating and completing of the Holy Ghost in the new birth, when tbe.t so.I vation. Through the we.shing of men e.re "bom age.in" of the Spirit (John regeneration (~,a. lt...011.-pov -ra.lt...lt..ry&<O"las). iii 5). Alford is wrong in denying it.a Here we have the mea.na through or by application here to the first gift of the new which God's mercy eaves us. The tDtUhing life. It is evidently parallel with the or rather /at,er of regeneration (lt...o11Tpdv)- -ra.1t..,n•ul<1. The connection of baptism found elsewhere in the New Testament with the effusion of the Holy Spirit is fully ouly in Eph. v. 26, in exactl7 the same set forth in Acts ii (see especially ver. 88; oonnection-is the la,t,er or bath 1n which the comp. Me.tt. iii 16, 17). . washing takes place. The nature or quality Ver. 6.-Poured oot upon u, ~chly !or ,h~ of this bath is described by the words, "of on ua abundantly, A.V. Whioh (011); viz. regeneration" (Tns ,ra.1t,,,nev.O"las); elsewhere the Holy Ghost. It is in the genitive (in- in the New Testament only in Me.tt. xiL 28, stead of the accusative 6, which is another where it seems rather to mean the great n·e.ding), by whe.t the grammarians call restoration of humanity e.t the second attraction. Poured out ( i{•x«v) ; the Be.me advent. The word is used by Cicero of his word 88 ie applied to the Holy Ghost in restoration to political power, by Josephus Acts ii 17, 18, 33, e.nd in the LXX. of Joel of the restoru.tion of the Jews under ii. 28, 29. Riobly (rrlt..0110-!"'s); as 1 Tim. vi. Zerubbabel, and by severe.I Greek authors; 17; Col. iii. 16; 2 Pet. i 11 (compare the and the LXX. of Job xiv. 14 have the use of 1r1t..ovros in Epb. i. 7; ii. 7). Through phrase, ,,,,. ,ra.11.iv -y,n.,,,_a.,,, but in what eenee J'esus Christ. It is our baptism into Obrist is not quite clear. na.11.,nev,o-!4, therefore, which entitles us to receive the Holy Spirit, very fitly describes the ~ew birth in ~oly which we have only iu virtue of our union baptism, when the be!,i~ver 1e_ put mto wit.h him. The Spirit flows from the Hee.d possession of a new spmtue.l life, a new to the members. In Acts Ii Sa, 3-1 Christ D&ture, e.nd a new inheritauce of glory. A.ud is said to have received the promise of the on. m. 1-16.) THE EPISTLE TO TITUS. 45