good
Agathos describes commendable actions and conduct, favorable character, and beneficial things or gifts in the Bible.
The term most often qualifies actions, works, conduct, and speech as commendable in contrast with evil or harmful alternatives. It also describes persons and qualities favorably, and it can designate beneficial gifts, things, possessions, or anticipated realities.
Senses in use
-
Commendable action, work, conduct, or speech · dominant
Neuter accusative forms occur in action-oriented clauses: in 1 Peter 3:11 the APB renders the command to turn from evil and “do good,” while 1 Thessalonians 5:15 calls for pursuing what is good toward others. The term also qualifies works and speech: 2 Timothy 3:17 speaks of being equipped for every good work, and Ephesians 4:29 contrasts a rotten word with speech “good for building up.”
-
Favorable character or moral quality · common
The adjective describes people and personal qualities in evaluative settings. In 1 Peter 2:18 the APB contrasts masters who are “good and gentle” with the crooked; Acts 11:24 calls a man “good,” and 1 Peter 3:16 applies the term to conscience and behavior amid slander.
-
Beneficial things, gifts, possessions, or realities · occasional
Neuter forms can identify things received, stored, or expected rather than actions performed. In James 1:17 the APB renders “Every good gift,” Luke 12:18 and Luke 12:19 speak of stored goods, and Hebrews 10:1 refers to “the good things that are to come.”
In the Anselm Project Bible: Across these verses, the APB commonly presents the term with “good,” including good works, good conscience, good gifts, and good things; it also uses “goods” for stored possessions in Luke 12:18 and Luke 12:19. Because the APB is a whole-verse translation, those English expressions identify the verse-level presentation rather than a fixed translation in every occurrence.