Article • The False Oneness Doctrine
The Great God We Are Waiting For
Titus 2:13, the blessed hope, and why Jesus is our great God and Saviour.
Titus 2:13 (KJV)
Who is “the great God and our Saviour” we are waiting for in Titus 2:13? Jesus Christ Himself. In Paul’s Greek a single article binds “great God” and “Saviour” together as one person, and the One who “appears” in glory is always the Son. Since God says there is no Saviour beside Him (Isaiah 43:11), and Jesus is our Saviour, Jesus is our great God — and that is why the hope is blessed.
“Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ.”— Titus 2:13
One Person Is Appearing, Not Two
Friends, I want to linger on Titus 2:13 a little longer, because this one verse says something glorious that too many people read right past. Paul says we are “looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ.” Notice carefully who is appearing: not two persons, but one — the great God, who is our Saviour, Jesus Christ. In Paul’s original Greek, one definite article binds “great God” and “Saviour” together as titles of the same person (grammarians call this the Granville Sharp construction, and 2 Peter 1:1 uses the same wording: “God and our Saviour Jesus Christ”). The verse isn’t saying we’re waiting for God and also for Jesus. It’s saying Jesus IS the great God we’re waiting for.
The Context Confirms It
The context settles it beyond question. The very next verse continues, “Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us” (Titus 2:14) — one “who,” one Redeemer, one person. And all through Paul’s letters, the “appearing” (the epiphaneia) is always Christ’s appearing — “the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Timothy 6:14), “his appearing and his kingdom” (2 Timothy 4:1), “all them also that love his appearing” (2 Timothy 4:8). Scripture never speaks of the invisible Father appearing — “No man hath seen God at any time” (John 1:18); He “dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see” (1 Timothy 6:16). The One who appears visibly in glory is the Son. So when Titus 2:13 calls the One who is appearing “the great God,” the Holy Spirit is telling us exactly who Jesus is.
Exactly What the Old Testament Demands
And here is the beautiful thing: this is precisely what the Old Testament demands. God said through Isaiah, “I, even I, am the LORD; and beside me there is no saviour” (Isaiah 43:11); “a just God and a Saviour; there is none beside me” (Isaiah 45:21). If there is no Saviour besides God, and Jesus Christ is our Saviour — and He is, praise His name — then Jesus Christ is God. Thomas saw it and cried out, “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28), and Jesus received the worship. Paul calls Him the One “who is over all, God blessed for ever” (Romans 9:5). So when I look for the blessed hope, I’m not looking for a great teacher or even the greatest of God’s creatures. I’m looking for my great God and Saviour Himself, coming in His own glory (Luke 9:26; Titus 2:13). That is why the hope is blessed — because of WHO is coming. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.
Common Questions
Is Titus 2:13 speaking of one person or two?
One. In the Greek a single definite article joins “the great God” and “our Saviour Jesus Christ” as titles of the same person (the Granville Sharp construction), and the next verse continues with one “who gave himself for us” (Titus 2:14). Jesus is the great God appearing.
Doesn’t “the appearing” refer to the Father?
No. Throughout Paul’s letters the appearing (Greek epiphaneia) is always Christ’s — “the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Timothy 6:14). The Father is invisible: “No man hath seen God at any time” (John 1:18). The One who appears in glory is the Son.
How does this fit with Old Testament monotheism?
It fulfills it. God declared, “beside me there is no saviour” (Isaiah 43:11) and “a just God and a Saviour; there is none beside me” (Isaiah 45:21). If there is no Saviour but God, and Jesus is our Saviour, then Jesus is God — which is why Thomas called Him “My Lord and my God” (John 20:28).
If Jesus is the great God, does that make Him the Father?
No. This verse identifies Jesus as fully God, our great God and Saviour; it does not merge Him with the Father. Throughout Scripture the Son is God yet personally distinct from the Father — one God, revealed as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.