inclusive vs. exclusive pronoun (Titus 3:15)

Many languages distinguish between inclusive and exclusive first-person plural pronouns (“we”). (Click or tap here to see more details)

The inclusive “we” specifically includes the addressee (“you and I and possibly others”), while the exclusive “we” specifically excludes the addressee (“he/she/they and I, but not you”). This grammatical distinction is called “clusivity.” While Semitic languages such as Hebrew or most Indo-European languages such as Greek or English do not make that distinction, translators of languages with that distinction have to make a choice every time they encounter “we” or a form thereof (in English: “we,” “our,” or “us”).

For this verse, Velma Pickett and Florence Cowan (in Notes on Translation January 1962, p. 1ff.) recommend the exclusive form (excluding Titus) and SIL SIL International Translation Department (1999) the inclusive form (including Paul and Titus.

Tok Pisin uses the exclusive form.

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