10 For there are many who are insubordinate, ^yempty talkers and deceivers, especially those of ^zthe circumcision party.¹ 11 They must be silenced, since ^athey are upsetting whole families by teaching ^bfor shameful gain what they ought not to teach. 12 ^cOne of the Cretans,² a prophet of their own, said, “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.”³ 13 This testimony is true. Therefore ^drebuke them ^esharply, that they ^fmay be sound in the faith, 14 ^gnot devoting themselves to Jewish myths and ^hthe commands of people ⁱwho turn away from the truth. 15 ^jTo the pure, all things are pure, but to the defiled and ^kunbelieving, nothing is pure; but both ^ltheir minds and their consciences are defiled. 16 ^mThey profess to know God, but they ⁿdeny him by their works. They are detestable, disobedient, ^ounfit for any good work.

9 But ^oavoid foolish ^pcontroversies, ^qgenealogies, dissensions, and quarrels about the law, for ^rthey are unprofitable and worthless. 10 As for a person who stirs up division, ^safter warning him once and then twice, ^thave nothing more to do with him, 11 knowing that such a person is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned.