BIBLE HEBREW WORD STUDY
Rasha (רָשָׁע) — Meaning & Usage in the Bible
Hebrew term רָשָׁע (rasha) denotes a morally wrong or actively bad person, the counterpart of the righteous in biblical thought.
Meaning of the word
The primary gloss of רָשָׁע is morally wrong; concretely, it refers to an actively bad person. The form used in the example verses, רְשָׁעִים (rəshāʿîm), is the plural masculine, 'the wicked,' while the singular form רָשָׁע (rāshāʿ) names an individual. The lexicon entry treats the term as both an adjective describing what is wrong and a noun naming the people who embody that wrongness.
The semantic range is uniformly negative in the supplied passages. In every occurrence cited, רָשָׁע is the opposite of the righteous (צַדִּיק) or of the blessed/innocent one. The word therefore implies not error or misfortune but a settled moral category: a person actively opposed to God's way, whose counsel, path, and seat are places to be avoided (Psalms 1:1).
The singular form רָשָׁע in Ecclesiastes 3:17 and Isaiah 53:9 shows the same active quality. In Isaiah 53:9, the Servant is buried with the wicked (רְשָׁעִים) even though 'he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth,' highlighting that the term labels a class of wrongdoers rather than every victim of circumstance.
Usage in Scripture
The majority of the cited occurrences cluster in Psalms 1, where רָשָׁע functions as the negative foil to the blessed man. Four times in four verses (Psalms 1:1, 1:4, 1:5, 1:6) the psalmist contrasts the way of the wicked with the way of the righteous, declaring that the wicked 'shall not stand in the judgment' and 'shall perish.' The repetition gives the term a forensic, eschatological weight: the wicked face a coming judgment and are likened to chaff driven by the wind.
Outside the Psalter, רָשָׁע appears in Ecclesiastes 3:17 to assert that God judges both the righteous and the wicked, and in Isaiah 53:9 to link the Suffering Servant's burial with the wicked class. In Ecclesiastes the word underscores divine impartiality; in Isaiah it is used ironically, since the truly innocent Servant is counted among the wicked in his death. The supplied sample shows the noun used across wisdom, poetic, and prophetic literature, always as a moral category rather than a neutral label.
The word in detail
- H7563 The form רָשָׁע (rasha) is defined as morally wrong and concretely as an actively bad person. The plural רְשָׁעִים (rəshāʿîm) and singular רָשָׁע (rāshāʿ) appear in the seven sample verses and consistently designate the wicked as a class opposed to God's way.
Example verses
- Psalms 1:1 The psalm opens by identifying the blessed man as one who avoids the counsel, way, and seat of the wicked (רְשָׁעִים), establishing rasha as a pattern of conduct to be shunned.
- Psalms 1:5 The wicked (רְשָׁעִים) shall not stand in the judgment nor in the congregation of the righteous, giving the term a clear eschatological and communal edge.
- Ecclesiastes 3:17 Ecclesiastes uses the singular רָשָׁע (rāshāʿ) to assert that God will judge both the righteous and the wicked, framing rasha within a time of every purpose and work.
- Isaiah 53:9 Here the plural רְשָׁעִים (rəshāʿîm) ironically surrounds the burial of the innocent Suffering Servant, marking rasha as a class of violators and deceivers from which the Servant is set apart.
Common questions
What does רָשָׁע (rasha) mean in Hebrew?
It means morally wrong; concretely, an actively bad person. The plural form רְשָׁעִים used in the sample verses means 'the wicked.'
How is רָשָׁע used in Psalms 1?
In Psalms 1:1, 1:4, 1:5, 1:6 the wicked serve as the opposite of the blessed/righteous: they are like chaff, shall not stand in the judgment, and their way shall perish.
Does רָשָׁע ever refer to someone who is not actually wicked?
In Isaiah 53:9 the Suffering Servant is buried with the wicked (רְשָׁעִים), even though the verse insists he had done no violence and no deceit was in his mouth. The label rasha still names a class of wrongdoers; the Servant is counted among them only in his death.