bwf

טןב


good

agreeable, good-hearted, well-behaved: lovely, kind, pleasant;
to be happy, glad; beautiful, valuable;
to be fair; goodness;

wealth; to experience a benefit;
a good thing;

Tob.
 

As an abstract, absolute goodness is beyond us—both as fact, and in understanding. Indeed, within many contexts we struggle with the concept of mere decency; for the imagination of our hearts is continually evil, as it's written. That admonition is less accusatory, however, when it's understood that the opposite of “good” is not “evil.”

I'll not waste many words in defense of evil: it's nasty business, but the bottom of bad is wickedness, not evil; for within the continuum of iniquity that was discovered in the angelic and fell, through mankind, to the demonic, evil is every single gradient of error that can be found, or might be judged to belong, anywhere between the polar extremes we think of as "right" and as "wrong."

With our thumbs constantly on the scale with bias for predispositions, however innocent our intent might be, we weigh many factors, ignoring others; and we conclude that a "good" person is one who, when ensnared in a dispute that might end in quarrelsome violence, first defines f and then evaluates w what is being said—very carefully b! That he is circumspect signals that he can be trusted f to give fair w hearing b and to resolve f disputes w with empathy and careful concern b. We might go so far as to empower such a one to be a civic judge who would do just that—resolve disputes, that is—because we've learned that a “good” individual practices reticence f in his judgments, deferring to the consensus w of those in the community b who are considered to be reliable f, honest w, and scrupulously compassionate b.

The expression "I'm good," must give us pause, however. Its implication is that some individuals who think of themselves as “good” people show their "good" sides only because they’re complete f, comfortable w, and satisfied b, which is to say that they are "good" primarily because their baskets f have ample w  stores b . . .

Gematria
 17   zy;
Numerology 17   
zy  >   8   j
. . . whereas a person who's just plain "good"
(as those not-so-good see it) is an individual who is respectful y to a fault z, is eager to meet y expectations z, and (importantly) is willing to contribute y to the causes and goals z to which all "good" people ascribe j.

Targum: "Good" people keep tight reign f on the secrets w of their souls b; but, scoundrels that they so frequently turn out to be, they are quick to form ill-fated alliances with others who may not be so good as they, and whose unsavory wills have been compromised f. Such pretenders judiciously feign admirable w  attitudes for the benefit of public consumption b. About such hangers-on, the question metastasizes, causing us to wonder whether "good" friends are actually no more than evil or masqueraders r, cleverly looking to take advantage o. That's another story. In any case, it's "all good"; for to be so alerted r is to be so advised o.

 
Evil
     
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