Miscellaneous translation notes.

Spot on! They (the translations) should all have the "S" in italics, or better yet, leave it off.

 

The majority of translations add words without notice. Only a few show added words at all. KJV, ASV, NASB, NKJV and now the MLT.

 

Yes, 37818, and I believe the reason why the DE leaning ones do not use italics, is they alter the text so much italics would abound throughout.

 

1 Thessalonians 5:22, ". . . Abstain from all appearance of evil. . . ." This Greek word and its grammar here translated "appearance" only occurs this way twice in the NT. ". . . ειδους . . . ."

Its other occurance is translated "sight."
2 Corinthians 5:7, ". . . (For we walk by faith, not by sight: ) . . ."

Do to the fact that the Christian faith is not "blind" faith, it might better be also translated "appearance" here as well. ". . . (For we walk by faith, and not by appearance: ) . . ."

In Acts of the Apostles 5:1-10, ". . . Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession, . . ." because of appearences kept back some of the money they got for their property they sold and lied about it.

 

Interesting question.

First, when making choices as to how best to translate a source language word, here Greek "eidos." we must decide for every usage in scripture what the intended meaning seems to be.

Here are the usages in the NASB:

Luk 3:22
and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in bodily form G1491 like a dove, and a voice came out of heaven, “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.”

Luk 9:29
And while He was praying, the appearance G1491 of His face became different, and His clothing became white and [fn]gleaming.

Jhn 5:37
“And the Father who sent Me, He has testified of Me. You have neither heard His voice at any time nor seen His form. G1491

2Co 5:7
for we walk by faith, not by sight G1491—

1Th 5:22
abstain from every form G1491 of evil.

In all but the last two usages, appearance works well.

In 2 Corinthians 5:7 neither "appearance" nor "sight" makes clear, or as clear as "not by what we see." A compromise might be "not by external appearance.

1 Thessalonians 5:22 presents the difficulty of the meaning differing from the other four usages. Here the idea is to abstain from every form of evil, and not just the appearance of evil. Therefore "form" best translates the intended meaning in my opinion.

 

Check the grammar. The grammatical form in those other references are not the same as in 1 Thessalonians 5:22 and 2 Corinthians 5:7.

For examle in Luke 3:22, ". . . ειδει . . ." is used. Not ειδους.

 

Hi 37818, changing the grammatical form of word does not alter its meaning, either appearance or form.

In Luke 3:22 both the CSB and YLT use "appearance" which matches my assessment.

In Luke 9:29, "appearance" is the choice of most translations.

In John 5:37, three translations chose "appearance."

Therefore, while the grammatical form differs, the meaning remains the same.

"External appearance"presents the message of 2 Corinthians 5:7, and "form" for 1 Thessalonians 5:22.

 

There exists an argument over 1 Thessalonians 5:22. There is a difference between avoiding "every from" of evil as opposed to "every appearance" of evil. I am of the opinion, "appearance" is the better of translation for 1 Thessalonians 5:22. Most translators think otherwise, and some think my understanding is totally wrong, from what I have read.

 

Thanks, we disagree on 1 Thessalonians 5:22, I am on the side of "every form" of evil.

But the discussion was welcome, it is nice to hear from others who thoughtfully consider the translation choices of the various English translations.