1 Thessalonians 5:22

New Testament

15 See that no one pays back evil for evil to anyone, but always pursue what is good for one another and for all. 16 Always rejoice, 17 constantly pray, 18 in everything give thanks. For this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 19 Do not extinguish the Spirit. 20 Do not treat prophecies with contempt. 21 But examine all things; hold fast to what is good. 22 Stay away from every form of evil.

Pirkei Avot 1:7

Mishnah
Rabbinic

5 Yose ben Yochanan (a man) of Jerusalem used to say: Let thy house be wide open, and let the poor be members of thy household. Engage not in too much conversation with women. They said this with regard to one’s own wife, how much more [does the rule apply] with regard to another man’s wife. From here the Sages said: as long as a man engages in too much conversation with women, he causes evil to himself, he neglects the study of the Torah, and in the end he will inherit gehinnom. 6 Joshua ben Perahiah and Nittai the Arbelite received [the oral tradition] from them. Joshua ben Perahiah used to say: appoint for thyself a teacher, and acquire for thyself a companion and judge all men with the scale weighted in his favor. 7 Nittai the Arbelite used to say: keep a distance from an evil neighbor, do not become attached to the wicked, and do not abandon faith in [divine] retribution.

 Notes and References

"... Distance yourself from evildoers: The rejection of retribution found in the Sermon on the Mount closely relates to the Jewish ethical statements in Pirkei Avot. Some of the Jewish listeners to the Sermon on the Mount would have understood that the Pirkei Avot teaches that maintaining an ethical and moral life requires not seeking retribution against another person, not even a wicked person. The ethical-political advice of the Avot teaches that a person should avoid association and fellowship with the wicked and should also avoid acts of retribution ... The Mishna teaches that one should distance oneself from evildoers. Pirkei Avot 1:7 suggests such a lifestyle. Associating with evildoers creates the propensity to adopt views of the evildoer as well as to mimic the wrongs that person commits. The intent of the Avot is to keep temptation from people who may be inclined toward wrongdoing by providing guidance for those who may fall into the temptation of acting unjustly toward other people ..."

Lang, Roger Ewald Those Who Heard it First: The Political Implications of the Sermon on the Mount to Jesus' Jewish Audience (pp. 28-29) The University of Waikato, 2013

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