1 Thessalonians 5:22

Amplified Bible

Abstain from every form of evil [withdraw and keep away from it].

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Stay away from every kind of evil.

King James Version (1611)
Abstaine from all appearance of euill.

King James Version
Abstain from all appearance of evil.

English Standard Version
Abstain from every form of evil.

New American Standard Bible
abstain from every form of evil.

New Century Version
and stay away from everything that is evil.

Legacy Standard Bible
abstain from every form of evil.

Berean Standard Bible
Abstain from every form of evil.

Contemporary English Version
and don't have anything to do with evil.

Complete Jewish Bible
but keep away from every form of evil.

Darby Translation
hold aloof from every form of wickedness.

Easy-to-Read Version
and stay away from everything that is evil.

Geneva Bible (1587)
Absteine from all appearance of euill.

George Lamsa Translation
Abstain from every sort of evil.

Good News Translation
and avoid every kind of evil.

Lexham English Bible
Abstain from every form of evil.

Literal Translation
Keep back from every form of evil.

American Standard Version
abstain from every form of evil.

Bible in Basic English
Keep from every form of evil.

Hebrew Names Version
Abstain from every form of evil.

International Standard Version
but keep away from every kind of evil.1 Thessalonians 4:12;">[xr]

Etheridge Translation
22 And from every evil thing [fn] flee.

Murdock Translation
and fly from every thing evil.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
Abstayne from all appearaunce of euyll.

English Revised Version
abstain from every form of evil.

World English Bible
Abstain from every form of evil.

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
Abstain from all appearance of evil.

Weymouth's New Testament
Hold yourselves aloof from every form of evil.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Absteyne you fro al yuel spice.

Update Bible Version
abstain from every form of evil.

Webster's Bible Translation
Abstain from all appearance of evil.

New English Translation
Stay away from every form of evil.

New King James Version
Abstain from every form of evil.

New Living Translation
Stay away from every kind of evil.

New Life Bible
Keep away from everything that even looks like sin.

New Revised Standard
abstain from every form of evil.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
From every form of wickedness, abstain.

Douay-Rheims Bible
From all appearance of evil refrain yourselves.

Revised Standard Version
abstain from every form of evil.

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
Abstayne from all suspicious thinges.

Young's Literal Translation
from all appearance of evil abstain ye;

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Abstayne fro all suspicious thinges.

Mace New Testament (1729)
if it has the least appearance of evil, reject it.

Simplified Cowboy Version
If it's wrong, pop your dallies and ride off.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
abstain from every form of evil.

Contextual Overview

¹⁶Rejoice always and delight in your faith; ¹⁷be unceasing and persistent in prayer; ¹⁸in every situation [no matter what the circumstances] be thankful and continually give thanks to God; for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus. ¹⁹Do not quench [subdue, or be unresponsive to the working and guidance of] the [Holy] Spirit. ²⁰Do not scorn or reject gifts of prophecy or prophecies [spoken revelations—words of instruction or exhortation or warning]. ²¹But test all things carefully [so you can recognize what is good]. Hold firmly to that which is good. ²²Abstain from every form of evil [withdraw and keep away from it].

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

1 Thessalonians 4:12, Exodus 23:7, Isaiah 33:15, Matthew 17:26, Matthew 17:27, Romans 12:17, 1 Corinthians 8:13, 1 Corinthians 10:31-33, 2 Corinthians 6:3, 2 Corinthians 8:20, 2 Corinthians 8:21, Philippians 4:8, Jude 1:23

Reciprocal: Genesis 20:12 - And yet Genesis 27:12 - a deceiver Genesis 39:10 - or to be Leviticus 8:23 - Moses took Leviticus 11:4 - unclean unto you Leviticus 15:24 - General Numbers 6:3 - General Deuteronomy 22:8 - then thou shalt Ruth 3:4 - uncover his feet Ruth 3:14 - Let it not Ezra 4:12 - rebellious Esther 9:15 - but on the prey Proverbs 4:15 - General Proverbs 8:13 - The fear Proverbs 14:16 - feareth Jeremiah 37:12 - went Amos 5:15 - Hate Matthew 10:16 - harmless John 12:6 - the bag Romans 14:16 - General 1 Corinthians 10:29 - why Galatians 2:12 - he withdrew 1 Timothy 3:7 - lest 1 Timothy 5:2 - with

Cross-References

Genesis 5:5
So Adam lived nine hundred and thirty years in all, and he died.

Genesis 5:6
When Seth was a hundred and five years old, he became the father of Enosh.

Genesis 5:24
And [in reverent fear and obedience] Enoch walked with God; and he was not [found among men], because God took him [away to be home with Him].

Genesis 6:9
These are the records of the generations (family history) of Noah. Noah was a righteous man [one who was just and had right standing with God], blameless in his [evil] generation; Noah walked (lived) [in habitual fellowship] with God.

Genesis 17:1
When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, "I am God Almighty; Walk [habitually] before Me [with integrity, knowing that you are always in My presence], and be blameless and complete [in obedience to Me].

Genesis 24:40
"He said to me, 'The LORD, before whom I walk [habitually and obediently], will send His angel with you to make your journey successful, and you will take a wife for my son from my relatives and from my father's house;

Genesis 48:15
Then Jacob (Israel) blessed Joseph, and said, "The God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked [in faithful obedience], The God who has been my Shepherd [leading and caring for me] all my life to this day,

Exodus 16:4
Then the LORD said to Moses, "Behold, I will cause bread to rain from heaven for you; the people shall go out and gather a day's portion every day, so that I may test them [to determine] whether or not they will walk [obediently] in My instruction (law).

Leviticus 26:12
'I will walk among you and be your God, and you shall be My people.

Deuteronomy 5:33
"You shall walk [that is, live each and every day] in all the ways which the LORD your God has commanded you, so that you may live and so that it may be well with you, and that you may live long in the land which you will possess.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Abstain from all appearance of evil. Of doctrinal evil. Not only open error and heresy are to be avoided, but what has any show of it, or looks like it, or carries in it a suspicion of it, or may be an occasion thereof, or lead unto it; wherefore all new words and phrases of this kind should be shunned, and the form of sound words held fast; and so of all practical evil, not only from sin itself, and all sorts of sin, lesser or greater, as the w Jews have a saying,

"take care of a light as of a heavy commandment,''

that is, take care of committing a lesser, as a greater sin, and from the first motions of sin; but from every occasion of it, and what leads unto it, and has the appearance of it, or may be suspected of others to be sin, and so give offence, and be a matter of scandal. The Jews have a saying very agreeable to this x,

"remove thyself afar off (or abstain) from filthiness, and from everything, הדומה לו, "that is like unto it".''

w Pirke Abot, c. 2. sect. 1. x Apud Drusium in loc.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Abstain from all appearance of evil - Not only from evil itself, but from that which seems to be wrong. There are many things which are known to be wrong. They are positively forbidden by the laws of heaven, and the world concurs in the sentiment that they are wicked. But there are also many things about which there may be some reasonable doubt. It is not quite easy to determine in the case what is right or wrong. The subject has not been fully examined, or the question of its morality may be so difficult to settle, that the mind may be nearly or quite balanced in regard to it. There are many things which, in themselves, may not appear to us to be positively wrong, but which are so considered by large and respectable portions of the community; and for us to do them would be regarded as inconsistent and improper. There are many things, also, in respect to which there is great variety of sentiment among mankind - where one portion would regard them as proper, and another as improper.

There are things, also, where, whatever may be our motive, we may be certain that our conduct will be regarded as improper. A great variety of subjects, such as those pertaining to dress, amusements, the opera, the ball-room, games of chance and hazard, and various practices in the transaction of business, come under this general class; which, though on the supposition that they cannot be proved to be in themselves positively wrong or forbidden, have much the “appearance” of evil, and will be so interpreted by others. The safe and proper rule is to lean always to the side of virtue. In these instances it may be certain that there will be no sin committed by abstaining; there may be by indulgence. No command of God, or of propriety, will be violated if we decline complying with these customs; but on the other hand we may wound the cause of religion by yielding to what possibly is a mere temptation. No one ever does injury or wrong by abstaining from the pleasures of the ball-room, the theater, or a glass of wine; who can indulge in them without, in the view of large and respectable portions of the community, doing that which has the “appearance” at least of “evil?”

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 22. Abstain from all appearance of evil. — Sin not, and avoid even the appearance of it. Do not drive your morality so near the bounds of evil as to lead even weak persons to believe that ye actually touch, taste, or handle it. Let not the form of it, ειδος, appear with or among you, much less the substance. Ye are called to holiness; be ye holy, for God is holy.