Titus 3:10 tells a church leader to step back from someone who keeps stirring up division, but only after giving that person a clear, honest chance to change course. The verse describes a patient but firm process: warn the person once, warn again, and if the divisive behavior continues, stop treating that person as a normal part of the community’s life. The apostle Paul wrote this to Titus, a trusted co-worker he had left on the island of Crete to organize churches and appoint elders. Paul’s instructions in this letter are practical, pastoral, and aimed at protecting the health of the local congregations.
Avoid a factious man after a first and second warning…
Titus 3:10 (WEB)
What Titus 3:10 Means
The word “factious” describes someone who creates factions, meaning groups that split off from the wider body and set themselves against it. Paul is not describing a person who merely disagrees on an opinion or asks a hard question. He has in mind someone whose main pattern is to pull others into arguments and rivalries, often over matters that are, as the verses just before this one say, “foolish questionings” and “disputes.” The concern is the damage such a person does to unity and to the peace of believers.
The instruction “after a first and second warning” shows that Paul expects patience. The church is to speak to the person directly, more than once, giving a real opportunity to repent and return to the shared life of the community. Only after those warnings have been ignored does Paul tell Titus to “avoid” that person. The word means to keep away from, to refuse to lend that person a platform or to let their divisiveness set the agenda.
What the verse does not promise is that this approach will always work quickly, or that it covers every disagreement a believer might have with another. It addresses a persistent pattern of stirring up division, not an honest difference of conviction handled with humility. It also leaves room for God to be the one who judges hearts, and it assumes that the church can recognize the difference between the two.
The Context of Titus 3:10
The letter to Titus is one of the Pastoral Epistles, a group of letters traditionally attributed to Paul and written to younger leaders who were guiding churches. Titus was a Gentile believer who had worked alongside Paul, and Paul had left him on Crete to put in order what was lacking and to appoint elders in each town. Crete had a reputation in the ancient world for unruly people, and Paul’s letter speaks often about sound teaching, good conduct, and the need for leaders to hold firm to the trustworthy word.
Verse 10 sits within a short passage about how believers should live and how they should guard the church from distraction. Just before it, Paul urges Titus to avoid foolish speculation and endless arguments about genealogies and the law, because such things produce strife rather than faith. Just after it, verse 11 explains that the divisive person is “perverted” and “self-condemned,” which helps explain why the warnings are meant to be firm rather than endless. Read this way, verse 10 is not a general license to cut people off. It is one part of a larger concern that the church remain focused on good works and sound doctrine, rather than being pulled apart by useless quarrels.
Key Phrases in Titus 3:10
Romans 16:17
Now I beg you, brothers, look out for those who are causing the divisions and occasions of stumbling, contrary to the doctrine which you learned, and turn away from them.
(WEB)
Paul gives a similar warning to the church in Rome, urging believers to watch out for those who create divisions and cause stumbling blocks contrary to the teaching they have learned. The two passages show the same concern for keeping the church united around sound doctrine and faithful practice.
Ephesians 4:3
Being eager to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
(WEB)
This verse calls believers to make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. It helps explain the heart behind Titus 3:10: the goal is not conflict for its own sake but a church that reflects the peace it has been given.
A Short Prayer From Titus 3:10
Lord, you desire your church to be united in truth and in love, and you know how easily we are drawn into arguments that divide rather than build up. Give your people wisdom to speak clearly and patiently when someone is causing harm, and give us courage to act when honest efforts to restore peace have failed. Guard our own hearts from pride and the pull to form camps. Where division has taken root among us, bring repentance, healing, and a renewed love for one another. Keep us focused on the good works you have called us to, for your glory and for the good of others. Amen.
