Titus 3:7Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

“That, having been justified by His grace,” again by grace and not by merits, “we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.” This is both an exhortation to humility and a hope for the future. If God saved us when we were in such a desperate state that we had nothing good, and therefore needed to be born again and saved by grace, then still more will He do this in the future. “We became heirs according to the hope of eternal life.” That is, as we hoped, so we shall receive. Or else, you are already heirs of this.

Again, it is by grace, not according to merits. This teaches humility. For we ourselves accomplished nothing. It also gives hope concerning the future. If He saved the utterly lost by grace, still more will He give the future things to those who have been justified. “That,” he says, “we might be heirs of eternal life, according to hope.” Or else, we are already heirs, since we live by hope.

So that, besides all who have approached and are approaching Baptism to receive purification in it, we too might receive justification by His grace, not by works, but through Baptism itself. And after our purification we became heirs, not in a land flowing with milk and honey, but in hope of life unto the ages of ages.

The Master, says the Apostle, showed love for mankind and through the Only-begotten freed us from our former evils. By saving Baptism He granted us remission of sins, recreated and renewed us, counted us worthy of the gift of the Spirit, and showed us the path of righteousness. To those who walk in it He promised the Kingdom of Heaven. And since it is invisible, for “hope that is seen is not hope” (Rom 8:24), the Apostle necessarily adds:

“That, having been justified by His grace, we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.” This means that we, having been justified not by the works of our own righteousness, but solely by His grace and beneficence, might become heirs of eternal life. What does “according to hope” mean? It means, insofar as we hope. Here, as above, he calls justification liberation from condemnation for sin.

“That we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.” A Jew who fulfilled the Law and honored his parents could hope that he would receive an inheritance in the Promised Land and live long upon it. The Christian hopes for something higher and greater. He becomes an heir in the Kingdom of God and will receive eternal life.

How should our justification by the grace of God be understood in connection with the preceding words of the Apostle?

This justification is plainly not free in the literal sense, nor, so to speak, imaginary, in the sense of only declaring us justified and forgiven.

We are only called to justification freely. Freely also, and not for the works of our own righteousness, we are counted worthy of the washing of regeneration and of the renewing grace of the Holy Spirit.

Yet with the cooperation of this grace, we must advance in righteousness by the free efforts of our will and attain holiness.

Only by the path of these efforts can we attain the inheritance of eternal life "according to hope," that is, as we hope.

He speaks a second time about the manifestation of grace and the renewal of men, in order again to stir them up to a worthy life and to hopes for the good things to come in eternal life.

"If we examine this passage more carefully," writes blessed Jerome, "we shall find in it the Most Holy Trinity most plainly. The goodness, that is, grace, and love for mankind of our Savior God, not another, but God the Father, through the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us through Jesus Christ, made us righteous for the inheritance of eternal life."

"Alas," cries Saint John Chrysostom, "we were so deeply sunk in evil that we could no longer be cleansed, but needed regeneration. This was truly a new birth, the receiving of a new being.

Then Christians should be moved to condescension toward unbelievers by the immeasurable love for mankind which God has shown toward Christians themselves.

For when the divine goodness, χρηστότης, and love for mankind were revealed, God saved us not by virtue of our merits, but solely according to His mercy.

Therefore we too, imitating God, must show goodwill toward the pagans even when they do not deserve it at all.

At the same time, to make an even stronger impression on Christian souls, the Apostle commands Titus to remind them that through Baptism, the washing with water, cf. Eph 5:26, they were cleansed from sins and renewed.

"That, having been justified by His grace." "Having been justified" does not mean merely declared righteous. It means having become righteous, holy, and pure, such that not even a trace remains of the moral evils indicated earlier.

Grace accomplishes this. Descending upon us, it turns us away from every evil and inspires us toward every good, giving us the strength to act according to this inspiration.

Acting in this way, we drive out every evil from ourselves, and we plant and root every good. Thus we become wholly pure and blameless.

This is the goal of the divine economy of our salvation. This is the mark toward which all the labors of our earthly activity must be directed.