Hold Fast To That Which Is Good

(1 Th 5:12 NKJV) And we urge you, brethren, to recognize those who labor among you, and are over you in the Lord and admonish you,

(1 Th 5:13 NKJV) and to esteem them very highly in love for their work's sake. Be at peace among yourselves.

(1 Th 5:14 NKJV) Now we exhort you, brethren, warn those who are unruly, comfort the fainthearted, uphold the weak, be patient with all.

(1 Th 5:15 NKJV) See that no one renders evil for evil to anyone, but always pursue what is good both for yourselves and for all.

(1 Th 5:16 NKJV) Rejoice always,

(1 Th 5:17 NKJV) pray without ceasing,

(1 Th 5:18 NKJV) in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

(1 Th 5:19 NKJV) Do not quench the Spirit.

(1 Th 5:20 NKJV) Do not despise prophecies.

(1 Th 5:21 NKJV) Test all things; hold fast what is good.

(1 Th 5:22 NKJV) Abstain from every form of evil.

(1 Th 5:23 NKJV) Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

(1 Th 5:24 NKJV) He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it.

(1 Th 5:25 NKJV) Brethren, pray for us.

(1 Th 5:26 NKJV) Greet all the brethren with a holy kiss.

(1 Th 5:27 NKJV) I charge you by the Lord that this epistle be read to all the holy brethren.

(1 Th 5:28 NKJV) The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.

In these 17 verses of Scripture, the Apostle Paul is closing his letter by giving various exhortations to the believers in Thessolonica. These exhortations are actually practical instructions that would be fitting for any believer to obey, including you and I.

The verse that I want to home in on is verse 21 which says:

(1 Th 5:21 NKJV) Test all things; hold fast what is good.

Test – dokimazo, dok-im-ad'-zo; to test (lit. or fig.); by impl. to approve:--allow, discern, examine, X like, (ap-) prove, try.

It is used several places in the New Testament:

(Luke 12:56 NKJV) "Hypocrites! You can discern (dokimazo) the face of the sky and of the earth, but how is it you do not discern this time?

(Rom 12:2 NKJV) And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove (dokimazo) what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

(1 Cor 3:13 NKJV) each one's work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test (dokimazo) each one's work, of what sort it is.

(1 Cor 11:28 NKJV) But let a man examine (dokimazo) himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup.

The opposite of dokimazo is adokimos, ad-ok'-ee-mos and means “unapproved,” i.e. rejected; “worthless” In the Scripture it is used to describe one who is a castaway or reprobate.

(1 Cor 9:27 NIV) No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified (adokimo) for the prize.

So, in 1 Thess 5:21, Paul is telling his readers to, “Test all things,” that is, to examine and prove and approve all things.

Is he saying here for his readers to take on the occupation of “testers”? Food testers? Wine testers? Automobile test dummies? Maybe you could become a “bank examiner” and say that your job fell in line with the Word of God. Perhaps you could work at the Aberdeen “Proving” Grounds.

Is this what Paul is telling his Christian readers to do?

Let’s look at verse 21 in context.

(1 Th 5:20 NKJV) Do not despise prophecies.

(1 Th 5:21 NKJV) Test all things; hold fast what is good.

(1 Th 5:22 NKJV) Abstain from every form of evil.

MacArthur writes in his Study Bible that “…the word “prophecies” in verse 20 can refer to a spoken revelation from God (cf. Acts 11:27,28; 1 Tim. 1:18; 4:14), but most often refers to the written word of Scripture (cf. Matt. 13:14; 2 Pet. 1:19–21; Rev. 1:3; 22:7,10,18,19). These “prophecies” are authoritative messages from God through a well-recognized spokesman for God that, because of their divine origin, are not to be treated lightly. When God’s Word is preached or read, it is to be received with great seriousness.”

While I agree with MacArthur, I would lean more toward the word “prophecies” referring to public proclamations of the written Word of God that must be put into practice and not be despised.

Following this exhortation from Paul he balances this command with another which says, “Test all things.” I still think that he is referring to a public proclamation here and is letting his readers know that everything they hear cannot be trusted so it has to be “tested.”