Good and Bad
Most Bible readers understand that ‘good and evil’ as opposites, but the Hebrew rarely uses evil when using good. Evil is moral or ethical perversity. Bad (in the Bible) is neither moral nor immoral, ethical nor unethical. When translations have good and evil, the Hebrew reads good and bad. A child would understand this.
Good in the Bible shows something beneficial. It can refer to appearance, utility, working or behaving right, tasting good, being on the side of the good guys and Yehovah, or justice. Bad shows something harmful, destructive, disgusting, poisonous, being on the side of violent folks and against Yehovah, or injustice.
Yehovah early introduced a tree:
Genesis 2:9 And Yehovah Elohim made spring up from the soil every tree pleasant to appearance and good for food, and a tree of the lives in the midst of the garden, and a tree of the knowledge of good and bad.
Genesis 2:17 “And from the tree of the knowledge of good and bad—thou shalt not eat from him, because in the day of thine eating from him, death—thou shalt die!”
Readers thinking that bad means evil misunderstand the following text:
Isaiah 45:7, King James Version: “I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things.”
The literal text (starting with the last part of verse 6) states, “I am Yehovah, and there isn’t more, Former of light and Creator of darkness, Maker of peace and Creator of bad—I am Yehovah Doer of all these.”
Consider the following literally translated text to understand “Creator of bad”:
Amos 3:6 If he will blast a shofar [ram’s horn] in a city, and a people will not be terrified? If bad will be in a city, and Yehovah did not do?
Bad refers to the city’s capture or destruction. Yehovah takes responsibility if an entire city is snared and destroyed.
Children naturally understand good and bad in the same way the Biblical uses them. So must every fearer of God.
Look at the following texts with bad placed where it should be:
Genesis 13:13 But the men of Sodom were bad and sinners before Yehovah exceedingly.
Genesis 19:19 Behold now, thy servant hath found grace in thy sight, and thou hast magnified thy mercy, which thou hast showed unto me in saving my life; and I cannot escape to the mountain, lest some bad take me, and I die.
Genesis 26:29 That thou wilt do us no bad, as we have not touched thee, and as we have done unto thee nothing but good, and have sent thee away in peace: thou art now the blessed of Yehovah.
Genesis 31:29 “It is in the power of my hand to do you bad, but the God of your father spake unto me yesternight, saying, ‘Take thou heed that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad!’”
Genesis 39:9 “There is none greater in this house than I; neither hath he kept back any thing from me but thee, because thou art his wife: how then can I do this big bad, and sin against God?”
Genesis 48:16 “The Angel Who redeemed me from all bad bless the lads.”
Children see experiences in life as good or bad, the same way the Bible is written. Bad is used more than 623 times in the ‘Old Testament’ alone.
Jeremiah 2:3 “Israel is holiness to Yehovah, and the firstfruits of His increase. All who devour him shall offend. Bad shall come upon them,” saith Yehovah.
If Hebrew seems almost childish when rendered literally, your observation matches mine. Yehovah designed Hebrew for children.
The Bible uses ‘good’ and ‘bad’ to describe folks.
Psalms 10:15 Break thou the arm of the wicked and the bad man. Seek out his wickedness till Thou find none!
This text shows that a wicked (culpable) person is also a bad person (though bad and wicked are not the same).
Proverbs 2:20 …that thou mayest walk in the way of good ones and keep the paths of the righteous.
Way is singular, referring to good ones. Paths is plural, referring to the righteous. Good and righteous are not the same. Do good! Do righteousness! Be listed among the good. Be a true friend to the Good Shepherd and to His People, Israel.
Do not do bad to Israel by ignoring the spiritually lost state of the Jews. Prepare to constructively and wisely give the Truth to them, should Yehovah supply opportunity! If you are given opportunity to physically help Jews during a time of their persecution, will you protect yourself and your family by ignoring this, or will you risk your own life and the lives of your family members to help?