'Wicked' in the Bible

The Lord smelled the pleasing aroma [a soothing, satisfying scent] and the Lord said to Himself, “I will never again curse the ground because of man, for the intent (strong inclination, desire) of man’s heart is wicked from his youth; and I will never again destroy every living thing, as I have done.

But the men of Sodom were extremely wicked and sinful against the Lord [unashamed in their open sin before Him].

Abraham approached [the Lord] and said, “Will You really sweep away the righteous (those who do right) with the wicked (those who do evil)?

Far be it from You to do such a thing—to strike the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous and the wicked are treated alike. Far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right [by executing just and righteous judgment]?”

But Er, Judah’s firstborn, was evil in the sight of the Lord, and the Lord killed him [in judgment].

“You shall not give a false report; you shall not join hands with the wicked to be a malicious witness [promoting wrong and violence].

Keep far away from a false charge or action, and do not condemn to death the innocent or the righteous, for I will not justify and acquit the guilty.

‘If a man takes his sister, his father’s daughter or his mother’s daughter, so that he sees her nakedness and she sees his nakedness, it is a disgrace; and they shall be cut off in the sight of the sons of their people. He has uncovered his sister’s nakedness; he bears [responsibility for] his guilt.

And he said to the congregation, “Get away from the tents of these wicked men, and touch nothing of theirs, or you will be swept away in all their sin.”

“If there is discovered among you, within any of your cities, which the Lord your God is giving you, a man or a woman who does evil in the sight of the Lord your God, by transgressing (violating) His covenant,

then you shall bring that man or that woman who has done this evil thing to the gates [of your city] and you shall stone the man or the woman to death.

It shall be that the one who is chosen with the things under the ban shall be [killed and his body] burned with fire, he and all that belongs to him, because he has transgressed the covenant of the Lord, and because he has done a disgraceful and disobedient thing in Israel.’”

Then the man, the master of the house, went out and said to them, “No, my fellow citizens, please do not act so wickedly. Since this man has come to my house [as my guest], do not commit this sacrilege.

So I took my concubine and cut her [corpse] in pieces and sent her [body parts] throughout the land of the inheritance of Israel; for the men of Gibeah have committed a lewd and disgraceful act in Israel.

and we will take ten men out of a hundred throughout the tribes of Israel, and a hundred out of a thousand, and a thousand out of ten thousand to bring provisions for the men, so that when they come to Gibeah of Benjamin, they may punish them for all the despicable acts which they have committed in Israel.”

Do not regard your maidservant as a wicked and worthless woman, for I have spoken until now out of my great concern and [bitter] provocation.”

“He guards the feet of His godly (faithful) ones,But the wicked ones are silenced and perish in darkness;For a man shall not prevail by might.

As the proverb of the ancients says, ‘Out of the wicked comes wickedness’; but my hand shall not be against you.

Now then, know this and consider what you should do, for evil is [already] planned against our master and against all his household; but he is such a worthless and wicked man that one cannot speak [reasonably] to him.”

Please do not let my lord pay attention to this worthless man, Nabal, for as his name is, so is he. Nabal (fool) is his name and foolishness (stupidity) is with him; but I your maidservant did not see my lord’s young men whom you sent.

Then all the wicked and worthless men among those who went with David said, “Because they did not go with us, we will give them none of the spoil that we have recovered, except that each man may take his wife and children away and leave.”

“Your hands were not bound, nor your feet put in fetters;As a man falls before the wicked, so you have fallen.”And all the people wept again over him.

How much more, when wicked men have killed a righteous and just man in his own house on his bed, shall I not require his blood from your hand and remove you from the earth?”

I will appoint a place for My people Israel and will plant them, so that they may live in a place of their own and not be disturbed again. The wicked will not afflict them again, as formerly,

“But the wicked and worthless are all to be thrown away like thorns,Because they cannot be taken with the hand;

then hear from heaven and act and judge Your servants, condemning the wicked by bringing his guilt on his own head, and justifying the righteous by rewarding him in accordance with his righteousness.

Now Elisha said to the king of Israel, “What business do you have with me? Go to the prophets of your [wicked] father [Ahab] and to the prophets of your [pagan] mother [Jezebel].” But the king of Israel said to him, “No, for the Lord has called these three kings together to be handed over to Moab.”

There they burned incense on all the high places, just as the [pagan] nations whom the Lord had deported before them; and they did evil and contemptible things, provoking the Lord [to anger].

Manasseh was twelve years old when he became king, and he reigned for fifty-five years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hephzibah.

then hear from heaven and act and judge Your servants, punishing the wicked by bringing his conduct on his own head, and providing justice to the righteous by giving to him in accordance with his righteousness (innocence).

and My people, who are called by My Name, humble themselves, and pray and seek (crave, require as a necessity) My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear [them] from heaven, and forgive their sin and heal their land.

For the sons of Athaliah, that wicked woman, had broken into the house of God and also had used all the holy and dedicated things of the house of the Lord for the Baals.

For they have taken some of their daughters as wives for themselves and for their sons, so that the holy race has intermingled with the peoples of the lands. Indeed, the officials and chief men have been foremost in this unfaithful act and direct violation [of God’s will].”

“But they, in their kingdom,With Your great goodness which You gave them,With the broad and rich land which You set before them,Did not serve You or turn from their wicked deeds.

Esther said, “An adversary and an enemy is Haman, this evil man.” Then Haman became terrified before the king and queen.

But when it came before the king, he commanded in writing that Haman’s wicked scheme which he had devised against the Jews was to return on his own head, and that he and his sons should [endure what he planned for the Jews and] be hanged on the gallows.

“There [in death] the wicked cease from raging,And there the weary are at rest.

“Those who hate you will be clothed with shame,And the tents of the wicked will be no longer.”

“It is all one; therefore I say,‘He destroys [both] the blameless and the wicked.’

“The earth is given into the hands of the wicked;He covers the faces of its judges [so that they are blind to justice].If it is not He, then who is it [that is responsible for all this injustice]?

‘Does it indeed seem right to You to oppress,To despise and reject the work of Your hands,And to look with favor on the schemes of the wicked?

‘Although You know that I am not guilty or wicked,Yet there is no one who can rescue me from Your hand.

‘If I am wicked, woe to me [for judgment comes]!And if I am righteous, I dare not lift up my head.For I am sated and filled with disgrace and the sight of my misery.

“For He recognizes and knows false and worthless men,And He sees wickedness, will He not consider it?

“But the eyes of the wicked will fail,And they will not escape [the justice of God];And their hope is to breathe their last [and die].”

“The wicked man writhes with pain all his days,And numbered are the years stored up for him, the ruthless one.

“God hands me over to criminalsAnd tosses me [headlong] into the hands of the wicked.

“Indeed, the light of the wicked will be put out,And the flame of his fire will not shine.

“For the wicked is thrown into a net by his own feet (wickedness),And he steps on the webbing [of the lattice-covered pit].

“The strength [of the wicked] is famished and weakened,And disaster is ready at his side [if he stops].

“The roots [of the wicked] are dried up below,And above, his branch is cut off and withers.

“Those in the west are astonished and appalled at his fate,And those in the east are seized with horror.

That the triumphing of the wicked is short,And the joy of the godless is only for a moment?

“This is the wicked man’s portion from God,And the heritage decreed and appointed to him by God.”

“Why do the wicked still live,Become old, and become mighty in power?

“But notice, the prosperity of the wicked is not in their hand (in their power);The counsel of the wicked [and the mystery of God’s dealings with the ungodly] is far from my comprehension.

“How often [then] is it that the lamp of the wicked is put out,And that their disaster falls on them?Does God distribute pain and destruction and sorrow [to them] in His anger?

“You say, ‘God stores away [the punishment of] man’s wickedness for his children.’Let God repay him so that he may know and experience it.

“For you say, ‘Where is the house of the noble man?And where is the tent, the dwelling place of the wicked?’

“Will you keep to the ancient pathThat wicked men walked [in the time of Noah],

“Why does the Almighty not set seasons for judgment?Why do those who know Him not see His days [for punishment of the wicked]?

“They harvest their fodder in a field [that is not their own],And glean the vineyard of the wicked.

“Within the walls [of the wicked] the poor make [olive] oil;They tread [the grapes in] the wine presses, but thirst.

“Yet God draws away the mighty by His power;He rises, but no one has assurance of life.

“May my enemy be as the wicked,And he who rises up against me be as the unrighteous (unjust).

“I will teach you regarding the hand (power) of God;I will not conceal what is with the Almighty [God’s actual treatment of the wicked].

“This [which I am about to explain] is the portion of a wicked man from God,And the inheritance which tyrants and oppressors receive from the Almighty:

“He lies down rich, but never will again;He opens his eyes, and it is gone.

Who goes in company with those who do evilAnd walks with wicked men?

“He strikes them like the wickedIn a public place,

‘Job ought to be tried to the limitBecause he answers like wicked men!

Job uselessly opens his mouthAnd multiplies words without knowledge [drawing the worthless conclusion that the righteous have no more advantage than the wicked].”

“He does not prolong the life of the wicked,But gives the afflicted their justice.

“But you [Job] were full of judgment on the wicked,Judgment and justice take hold of you.

“Their light is withheld from the wicked,And the uplifted arm is broken.

Look at everyone who is proud, and humble him,And [if you are so able] tread down the wicked where they stand.

The wicked [those who live in disobedience to God’s law] are not so,But they are like the chaff [worthless and without substance] which the wind blows away.

Therefore the wicked will not stand [unpunished] in the judgment,Nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.

Oh, let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end, but establish the righteous [those in right standing with You];For the righteous God tries the hearts and minds.

Behold, the [wicked and irreverent] man is pregnant with sin,And he conceives mischief and gives birth to lies.

You have rebuked the nations, You have destroyed the wicked and unrepentant;You have wiped out their name forever and ever.

The Lord has made Himself known;He executes judgment;The wicked are trapped by the work of their own hands. Higgaion (meditation) Selah.

The wicked will turn to Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead),Even all the nations who forget God.

In pride and arrogance the wicked hotly pursue and persecute the afflicted;Let them be caught in the plots which they have devised.

For the wicked boasts and sings the praises of his heart’s desire,And the greedy man curses and spurns [and even despises] the Lord.

The wicked, in the haughtiness of his face, will not seek nor inquire for Him;All his thoughts are, “There is no God [so there is no accountability or punishment].”

Why has the wicked spurned and shown disrespect to God?He has said to himself, “You will not require me to account.”

Break the arm of the wicked and the evildoer,Seek out his wickedness until You find no more.

For look, the wicked are bending the bow;They take aim with their arrow on the stringTo shoot [by stealth] in darkness at the upright in heart.

The Lord tests the righteous and the wicked,And His soul hates the [malevolent] one who loves violence.

Upon the wicked (godless) He will rain coals of fire;Fire and brimstone and a dreadful scorching wind will be the portion of their cup [of doom].

The wicked strut about [in pompous self-importance] on every side,As vileness is exalted and baseness is prized among the sons of men.

From the wicked who despoil and deal violently with me,My deadly enemies who surround me.

Arise, O Lord, confront him, cast him down;Save my soul from the wicked with Your sword,

I hate the company of evildoers,And will not sit with the wicked.

When the wicked came against me to eat up my flesh,My adversaries and my enemies, they stumbled and fell.

Do not drag me away with the wickedAnd with those who do evil,Who speak peace with their neighbors,While malice and mischief are in their hearts.

Let me not be put to shame, O Lord, for I call on You;Let the wicked (godless) be put to shame, let them be silent in Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead).

Many are the sorrows of the wicked,But he who trusts in and relies on the Lord shall be surrounded with compassion and lovingkindness.

Evil will cause the death of the wicked,And those who hate the righteous will be held guilty and will be condemned.