Good

In English "good" is used in various senses, most of which are represented in the Bible.

(1) In the Old Testament the commonest word is Tobh, occurring very frequently and translated in a great variety of ways. Of the different shades of meaning, which frequently run into each other, the following may be distinguished:

(a) Possessing desirable qualities, beneficial, agreeable, e.g. "good for food" (Ge 2:9); "We will do thee good" (Nu 10:29); Who will show us any good?" (Ps 4:6); "good tidings of good" (Isa 52:7).

(c) Kind, benevolent: "The men were very good unto us" (1Sa 25:15); "Give thanks unto Yahweh; for he is good" (1Ch 16:34); "the good Yahweh" (2Ch 30:18); "God is good to Israel" (Ps 73:1); "Yahweh is good to all" (Ps 145:9), etc.

(g) Pleasure-giving, happy: "glad of heart" (1Ki 8:66; Es 5:9); sometimes in the King James Version and the Revised Version (British and American) translated "merry" (Jud 16:25; 1Sa 25:36; 2Sa 13:28; Pr 15:15, the Revised Version (British and American) "cheerful"), etc.

Changes that may be noted in the Revised Version (British and American) are such as, "good" for "ready" (Isa 41:7); "I have no good beyond thee" for "My goodness extendeth not to thee" (Ps 16:2); "goodly" for "good" (Ps 45:1); "good" for "goodness" (Ps 107:9); "good" for "well" (Zec 8:15).

Tubh means something good, e.g. "the good of the land" (Ge 45:18,20; De 6:11; Job 21:16, the Revised Version (British and American) "prosperity").

"Good" occurs in the rendering of many other Greek words and phrases, as eudokia, "good pleasure" (Eph 1:9); "good will" (Lu 2:14; Php 1:15); sumphero, "to bear together," "not good to marry" (Mt 19:10), the Revised Version (British and American) "expedient"; philagathos, "a lover of good" (Tit 1:8); chrestologia, "good words" (Ro 16:18, the Revised Version (British and American) "smooth speech," etc.).

See Goodness; Chief Good.