This Greek word peitho and its opposite are contrasted for which path the wicked will choose. My set of Bible translations use either obey or believe (with the implication of acting on that belief) in this verse. What's absolutely important yet implied rather than addressed directly here is that we don't have a choice of whether to obey or not, only WHO or what we will obey. There are two opposing forces and everything we do falls into one category or the other. There is no neutral territory. Trying to obey neither would be like trying to be neither alive nor dead. There may be places where you're on the point of crossing from one to the other, but you can never choose to be outside of both.
Either you're alive or you're not. End of discussion.
Either you're obeying God or you're not. End of discussion.
For another analogy, it's like asking whether someone is a fan of a particular team. Either they are or they aren't. Those who aren't may be strongly opposed to the team, or they may not care at all, or they may simply prefer a different team, but wherever they fall on the spectrum, their answer is no, they are in the group called "not a fan of that team". We can choose to follow God. Those who choose not to may be actively working against Him, they may be apathetic, or they may be working for themselves, but wherever they fall on the spectrum, they are choosing to not obey God.
With the rewards given for seeking God's values compared with those for people who choose the other group, I'd prefer the former.
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