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| Volume 28 Number 2 February 2026 |
Page 11 |
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| Volume 28 Number 2 February 2026 |
Page 11 |
T. Pierce Brown
As a preacher and teacher of the Bible, it is my considered judgment that we should make a clear-cut distinction between the exegesis of a particular passage of Scripture and what we think is good advice. Paul did this in 1 Corinthians 7:25–26.
In the first place, we need to make that distinction because our listeners need to know the difference between what the Bible actually says and what we think about any matter. In the second place, our listeners need to know that God is not usually simply giving good advice but tells us how and what to do, and sometimes when and why to do it.
A case in point is a statement of Paul in 1 Thessalonians 5:22 in which we find, “Abstain from all appearance of evil” (KJV). For more than 50 years, I can remember hearing preachers talk about that, saying something like this: “As most of you know, the Bible plainly teaches in 1 Thessalonians 5:22, ‘Shun the very appearance of evil.’” One well-known preacher and educator spent about 15 minutes of a sermon explaining that it very clearly taught, “Stay away from anything that appears to be evil.”
The truth of the matter is that it does not. That is probably good advice, in general, although Jesus may not have always done it, for he ate with publicans and sinners, and that no doubt ‘appeared to be evil’ to some.
One problem is in the different meaning of “appearance” as we use it in English. If we say, “He appeared, drunk,” it means, “When he got there, he was drunk.” If we say, “He appeared drunk,” it means, “When we saw him, he seemed to be drunk.” Those sentences do not mean the same thing. Of course, it is always good to know how to punctuate, but the main problem in the wrong concept of this verse is not a lack of proper punctuation but a failure to study properly the meaning of words.
What the Greek words actually mean is, “When evil is present in any form, abstain from it.” The ASV has the more accurate translation of the text, as does the New King James Version that says, “Abstain from every form of evil.”
It is very difficult to teach students to read carefully if preachers and teachers do not seem to know the difference between “Shun the very appearance of evil,” and “Abstain from every appearance (“form”) of evil.”
[Editor’s Note: This article cites just one example of the misuse of Scripture that some preachers and teachers have been making and still make in the application of God’s Word. Another example of a common improper use of Scripture pertains to Romans 14:23, which reads, “…for whatever is not from faith is sin.” Once more, it’s good advice that our belief and conduct correspond to the system of Faith—the Gospel or New Testament—and yet, Romans 14:23 does not teach such. “Faith” within its context here is equivalent to one’s conscience. Preachers and teachers—those who should be careful students of God’s Word—should always and only cite Scriptures that actually teach what they propound. Forasmuch as we are quick to identify denominational misuse of Scripture, we ought to police ourselves so that we teach accurately God’s Word on any subject. After all, we have a weightier assessment by God because we not only affect our souls but also the souls of others, too (James 3:1). ~ Louis Rushmore, Editor]
