arestos describes what meets another’s approval, whether actions before God or a course judged acceptable by people.

The attested use describes what is approved or acceptable in a stated relationship: actions done before God in 1 John 3:22 and John 8:29, and proposed or observed conduct judged favorably by people in Acts 6:2 and Acts 12:3.

1. Meeting a person's approval · dominant

   In 1 John 3:22 and John 8:29, the accusative plural neuter form occurs with “do,” describing things done before or for the one addressed; the APB renders the clauses “do what is pleasing before him” and “do the things that are pleasing to him.” In Acts 6:2, the nominative singular neuter form characterizes leaving the word of God to serve tables as not acceptable to the twelve, while Acts 12:3 describes an action that was favorably received by the Jews.

   1 John 3:22Acts 12:3Acts 6:2John 8:29

In the Anselm Project Bible: The APB uses “pleasing” in all four verses, including “not pleasing” in Acts 6:2. This repeated English wording confirms the clauses' overall presentation rather than establishing a separate rendering for each form.