Titus 3:3 is Paul’s honest description of what life looked like before a person knew Christ: confused, rebellious, controlled by desires, and quick to resent and hurt others. Paul writes it so that believers remember where they came from, which keeps them humble and gives them grounds to show gentleness to everyone. The apostle wrote this letter to Titus, a trusted co-worker he had left on the island of Crete to help organize the young churches there.
For we were also once foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving various lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another.
Titus 3:3 (WEB)
What Titus 3:3 Means
The verse moves through a list of traits, starting with “foolish” and “disobedient.” Paul is describing a mind that does not see clearly and a will that resists what is good. “Deceived” adds that people in this state are often misled by others or by their own desires, not just making bad choices in the open. The phrase “serving various lusts and pleasures” points to a life where appetites set the direction, and “living in malice and envy” describes the bitterness and jealousy that follow when people compete and resent one another.
The verse does not say that every person is as bad as possible, and it does not describe anyone’s present condition. Paul uses the past tense on purpose: “we were also once.” He is speaking of a before, not a permanent identity. What the verse does promise is nothing directly. Its job is to set the stage for the good news that follows in the next verses, where God’s kindness appears and changes everything.
The Context of Titus 3:3
The letter to Titus is one of the Pastoral Epistles, traditionally attributed to Paul, and it was written to a church leader working in Crete, a place known in the ancient world for its unruly reputation. Paul’s aim in this chapter is to shape how believers behave in ordinary public life: how they treat government authorities, how they speak about others, and how they carry themselves with people who may be hostile.
Just before the verse, Paul asks believers to be obedient, ready for good work, gentle, and humble toward everyone. Verse 3 then reminds them that they once lacked all of this, so their gentleness toward others rests on mercy they themselves received rather than on natural goodness. Just after it, in verses 4 and 5, Paul turns to God’s kindness and mercy as the reason for the change. Read in that setting, verse 3 is not a harsh judgment on outsiders but a humbling mirror for insiders.
Key Phrases in Titus 3:3
Ephesians 2:1-5
1 You were made alive when you were dead in transgressions and sins, 2 in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the children of disobedience; 3 among whom we also all once lived in the lusts of our flesh, doing the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. 4 But God, being rich in mercy, for his great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)…
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Paul makes a parallel point in Ephesians, describing believers as once dead in their trespasses and following the course of the world. Reading it alongside Titus 3:3 shows the same before-and-after shape, with God’s mercy making the difference in both letters.
Colossians 3:5-10
5 Put to death therefore your members which are on the earth: sexual immorality, uncleanness, depraved passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry; 6 for which things’ sake the wrath of God comes on the children of disobedience. 7 You also once walked in those, when you lived in them; 8 but now you also put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and shameful speaking out of your mouth. 9 Don’t lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old man with his doings, 10 and have put on the new man, who is being renewed in knowledge after the image of his Creator…
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In this passage Paul urges believers to put away anger, malice, and slander, since they have taken off the old self. It gives practical direction for living out the change that Titus 3:3 sets up as a contrast.
A Short Prayer From Titus 3:3
Lord, you see the foolishness, stubbornness, and envy that still rise in my heart when I feel slighted or overlooked. Thank you that you did not wait for me to become good before showing me mercy. Help me remember where I came from so that I treat others with the patience you have shown me. Loosen the grip of the desires that try to rule my choices, and make my words and attitudes gentle toward the people you have placed around me. Amen.
