Titus 3:4
“But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared,”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →But then the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward humanity appeared.
What Does Titus 3:4 Mean?
Against the dark backdrop of verse 3, Paul sets a radiant but. Into that bondage and hostility, the kindness and love of God our Saviour appeared. Just as he spoke of grace appearing earlier, Paul now speaks of God's kindness and love toward humanity breaking into the world. The turning point of every Christian life is this divine appearing.
The contrast could not be sharper. Where we were hateful, God was loving; where we were lost, His kindness came to find us. The whole movement of salvation begins not with our improvement but with God's gracious initiative. For the reader, this is the hinge of hope. However dark the before, God's love appears, and everything changes. The word translated love here speaks of God's tender affection for people, a kindness that reaches down to those who could never reach up to Him.
In the Original Language
philanthropia (φιλανθρωπία), "love toward man" — God's tender affection for humanity; our word philanthropy.