The verse says, "abstain from all appearance of evil." The Greek word apechesthe literally means "abstain," or "to keep away from." But the word signifies form or kind.Comp. The differences in translation center around the meaning of the Greek term eidouV ( eidous ; root form eidoV , eidos ). This meaning was common in the papyri, the Greek writings of the closing centuries, B. C., and the New Testament era. What does this mean? 10:3,1.It never has the sense of semblance.Moreover, it is impossible to abstain from everything that looks like evil. What the KJV translates as “appearance” (eidous) literally means “form,” (which is more grammatically correct and agrees with the context). When the Bible says "abstain from all appearances of evil", what does it mean? Abstain from all appearance of evil. Paul calIs upon the Thessalonian Christians to "abstain from every form of evil." Abstain from every form of evil. Luke 3:22; John 5:37, and see nearly the same phrase in Joseph. Dan Wallace says the King James translation of 1 Thessalonians 5:22 (“abstain from all appearance of evil”) has led to a misunderstanding of the text, causing many to say that if anyone thinks a particular action is wrong (e.g., drinking, smoking, playing cards, etc. I wrote this piece to help you properly understand and apply the verse to your life and to others you might hope to influence. It has a somewhat different significance in 1 Thessalonians 5:22, in the exhortation, "Abstain from every form of evil," i. e., every sort or kind of evil (not "appearance," KJV). In simple words, we are being taught to keep back from things… The real meaning helps us deal with real evil in our eyes, not merely potentially perceived evil in the eyes of others. 1 Thessalonians 5:22: “Abstain from all appearances of evil” (KJV) “Abstain from every form of evil” (ESV) I confess that whenever I encounter this verse, I picture old, withered saints shaking their bony fingers in younger believers’ faces and exhorting them about some questionable behavior. Vincent's Word Studies. The same root word appears also in 1 Thessalonians 4:3, where Paul commands believers to abstain from sexual immorality. The ESV commands us to “abstain from every form of evil,” and the CSB simplifies it further to “stay away from every kind of evil” (1 Thess 5:22, CSB). Appearance (εἴδους )As commonly explained, abstain from everything that even looks like evil. ), then no Christian ought to engage in it. (NLT) Abstain from every form of evil. (NASB) Stay away from every kind of evil. However, in the KJV, the translation most widely used in the English-speaking world until the mid 20th-century, the verse is translated: "abstain from every appearance of evil." Perhaps this is a phrase you’ve heard before. (I Thessalonians 5:22, KJV) "If in doubt about whether something is right or wrong, abstain from the appearance of evil" is a statement that we find in many church covenants, especially fundamentalist churches. “Abstain from the appearance of evil” (1 Thessalonians 5:22, King James Version). Abstain From All Appearances of Evil. 1Thessalonians 5:22, KJV Abstain from all appearance of evil. Ant. But through discussions this week, I've discovered that the meaning of the word translated as "appearance" in this verse means "form or kind", and as we [should] know that "all" can just as easily mean "every", the correct translation of this verse should be, simply: "Abstain from every kind of evil." 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