What Does 1 Thessalonians 5:15 Mean in the King James?
See that none render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow that which is good, both among yourselves, and to all men.
The analysis reads the King James wording.
King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.
THE KEY
Retaliation treats evil as a debt to return, while this verse makes good the thing worth pursuing.
THE MEANING
When harm reaches the reader, the verse names the retaliation it can trigger and denies it the right to dictate the next response. Good is pursued continually, among those close and across the whole human circle. Nobody is excluded from where that good is directed.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
The lie is that harm creates a debt that can only be collected by returning harm. This verse dissolves that equation: another person’s evil does not make evil the good you owe them.
THE ROOT
ἀποδῷ
apodō
GROWS FROM
δίδωμι
didōmi
To give, grant, or place.
“render” in this verse is apodō. The Greek frames retaliation as giving evil back in exchange for evil, a return transaction. The verse interrupts that exchange and turns the outward movement toward good.
ALSO GROWS
didōmi: To give or grant.
δίδωμι
The compound verb for “render” carries this basic sense of giving into the idea of giving something back.
antapodidōmi: To repay or return in kind.
ἀνταποδίδωμι
This related word makes the repayment pattern explicit: one action is returned in answer to another.
διώκετε
diōkete
GROWS FROM
διώκω
diōkō
To pursue, chase, or press after.
“follow” in this verse is diōkete. The verb means more than passively approving what is good; it pictures good as something actively pursued. Its word family can also describe persecution, revealing the force of the pursuit the verse redirects toward good.
ALSO GROWS
diōgmos: Pursuit or persecution.
διωγμός
This branch shows how forcefully the shared root can describe chasing after someone.
diōktēs: A pursuer or persecutor.
διώκτης
The same root names the one who pursues, emphasizing that “follow” carries the energy of a chase.
THE PATTERN
Evil does not set the shape of the response; the response turns toward active good, even toward the one who caused harm.
If thine enemy be hungry, give him bread to eat; and if he be thirsty, give him water to drink:Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;THE THREAD
Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing.This verse repeats the same Greek verb for giving evil back, then pairs its refusal with blessing. The shared verb makes the interrupted exchange visible: harm is not sent back as harm.
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