HERETIC; HERETICAL

her'-e-tik, her'-e-tik, he-ret'-i-kal (hairetikos): Used in Titus 3:10, must be interpreted according to the sense in which Paul employs the word "heresy" (1 Corinthians 11:19; Galatians 5:20) for "parties" or "factions." According to this, the Scriptural meaning of the word is no more than "a factious man" (American Standard Revised Version), an agitator who creates divisions and makes parties. Weizsacker translates it into German ein Sektierer, "a sectarist." The nature of the offense is described in other words in 2 Thessalonians 2:6,11.

From the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
Edited by James Orr, published in 1939 by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.