1 Thess 5:22 in the NET version reads: ‘Stay away from every form of evil.’

The AV reads: ‘Abstain from all appearance of evil’.

I have heard members of a previous generation of evangelical Christians, brought up on the AV, take it to mean: ‘Don’t do things that are really evil, or even things that appear to be evil.’  They thought thereby that they could prevent the gospel from being brought into disrepute.

This superficial reading is reflected by Jon Courson, in his Application Commentary:

‘If you want to be used by the Lord, you must deal with the issue of appearances. You might be innocent, but if anything you’re doing even appears evil, it can compromise your usefulness.’

This reading is also reflected in some of the older commentaries.  Albert Barnes, for instance:

‘[Abstain] 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. . . . But there are also many things about which there may be some reasonable doubt. . . . 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 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, . . . 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.’

For Charles Simeon, this text is concerned with maintaining the good reputation of God’s people:

‘The world is ever ready to spy out causes of complaint against the people of God and, when they behold a flaw, to blame religion itself for what they see amiss in the professors of it. Can we need any greater argument for circumspection?’

Now, Paul does have some teaching about abstaining from certain things which, though not evil in themselves, might seem to be evil to ‘weaker brethren’, but that it not what he is talking about here.  And, in any case, some of our older brothers and sisters went even further in misapplying this text when they would, for example, allow the viewing of films (movies) at home on the TV, but not in the cinema, because the latter would be apparent to non-Christians, and constitute a ‘bad witness’.

But, as Morris comments, it is unlikely that Paul would have been concerned only with the outward semblance of evil, but rather with its reality.

The sense would then be: ‘Having tested all things, hold on to what is good and reject all that is evil’.

Or, more narrowly: ‘Having tested all purported prophecies, how on to what is good and reject all that is evil.’

In context, this text may be understood in the more narrow sense of avoiding or rejecting false prophecies (or false prophets).  Green writes:

‘Christians should keep away from any kind of inspired revelation that the community deems to originate from a source other than the Holy Spirit. The church should not treat true prophecies lightly, nor should they adhere to revelations that are patently false.’

Paul expands in his second letter:

2 Thessalonians 2:1–3 (NET) — 1 Now regarding the arrival of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to be with him, we ask you, brothers and sisters,2 not to be easily shaken from your composure or disturbed by any kind of spirit or message or letter allegedly from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord is already here. 3 Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not arrive until the rebellion comes and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction.