the Week of Proper 26 / Ordinary 31
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Bible Dictionaries
Wicked
Vine's Expository Dictionary of OT Words
or A. Nouns.
Râshâ‛ (רָשָׁע, Strong's #7563), “wicked; ungodly; guilty.” Râshâ‛ occurs only in Hebrew and late Aramaic. The word occurs about 260 times as a noun or an adjective and especially in the poetic literature of the Old Testament. It is rare in the Pentateuch and in the historical books. Its frequency increases in the prophetical books.
The narrow meaning of râshâ‛ lies in the concept of “wrongdoing” or “being in the wrong.” It is a legal term. The person who has sinned against the law is guilty: “They that forsake the law praise the wicked: but such as keep the law contend with them” (Prov. 28:4). When in Israel’s history justice did not prevail, the “guilty” were acquitted: “… When the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn” (Prov. 29:2; cf. 2 Chron. 6:23).
Râshâ‛ also denotes the category of people who have done wrong, are still living in sin, and are intent on continuing with wrongdoing. This is the more general meaning of the word. The first psalm exhorts the godly not to imitate the deeds and behavior of the ungodly, wicked people. The “wicked” does not seek God (Ps. 10:4); he challenges God (Ps. 10:13). In his way of life the “wicked” loves violence (Ps. 11:5), oppresses the righteous (Ps. 17:9), does not repay his debts (Ps. 37:21), and lays a snare to trap the righteous (Ps. 119:110). Ps. 37 gives a vivid description of the acts of the “wicked” and also of God’s judgment upon them. Facing the terrible force of the “wicked,” the righteous prayed for God’s deliverance and for His judgment upon them. This theme of judgment has already been anticipated in Ps. 1:6: “For the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.” The expectation of the righteous includes God’s judgment on the “wicked” in this life that they might be ashamed (Ps. 31:17), be overcome by sorrows (Ps. 32:10), fall by their devices (Ps. 141:10), and die a premature death (Prov. 10:27), and that their remembrance will be no more (Prov. 10:7). It is expected that at the time of their death there will be great shouting: “When it goeth well with the righteous, the city rejoiceth: when the wicked perish, there is shouting” (Prov. 11:10).
The judgment upon the “wicked” is particularly strong in Proverbs, where the authors contrast the advantages of wisdom and righteousness and the disadvantages of the “wicked” (cf. 2:22: “But the wicked shall be cut off from the earth, and the transgressors shall be rooted out of it”). In Job another theme finds expression: why are the “wicked” not cut off? “Wherefore do the wicked live, become old, yea, are mighty in power?” (21:7). There is no clear answer to this question in the Old Testament. Malachi predicts a new age in which the distinction of the righteous and the “wicked” will be clear and where the righteous will triumph: “Then shall ye return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that seNeth him not” (Mal. 3:18).
The Septuagint has three translations of râshâ‛: asebes (“godless; impious”); hamartolos (“sinner; sinful”), and anomos (“lawless”).
Two other related nouns occur in the Old Testament. Râshâ‛, which is found about 30 times, usually means “wickedness”: “Remember thy servants, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; look not unto the stubborness of this people, nor to their wickedness, nor to their sin” (Deut. 9:27). Rish’ah, which appears about 15 times, refers to “wickedness” or “guilt”: “For my righteousness the Lord hath brought me in to possess this land: but for the wickedness of these nations the Lord doth drive them out from before thee” (Deut. 9:4).
B. Adjective.
Râshâ‛ (רָשָׁע, Strong's #7563), “wicked; guilty.” This word may also be used as an adjective. In some cases a person is so guilty that he deserves death: “… If the wicked man be worthy to be beaten, that the judge shall cause him to lie down, and to be beaten before his face … by a certain number” (Deut. 25:2). The characteristics of a “wicked” person qualify him as a godless, impious man: “How much more, when wicked men have slain a righteous person in his own house upon his bed? shall I not therefore now require his blood of your hand, and take you away from the earth?” (2 Sam. 4:11; cf. Ezek. 3:18-19).
C. Verb.
Râsha‛ (רָשַׁע, Strong's #7561), “to be wicked, act wickedly.” This verb is derived from the noun rasa’. There is a similar root in Ethiopic and Arabic, with the respective meanings “to forget” and “to be loose.” This verb appears in 2 Chron. 6:37: “Yet if they bethink themselves in the land whither they are carried captive, and turn and pray unto thee in the land of their captivity, saying, We have sinned, we have done amiss, and have dealt wickedly.”
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Vines, W. E., M. A. Entry for 'Wicked'. Vine's Expository Dictionary of OT Words. https://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/eng/vot/w/wicked.html. 1940.
