רָשַׁע
râshaʻ · H7561 · Hebrew · 34 occurrences
Meanings
-
to be guilty
State in which humans are or are considered to be in a state of guilt before God or humans, as a result of (allegedly) having acted in a way that is contrary to the law
ExamplesJob 9:29 “I am guilty, Why then should I struggle in vain?
Job 10:7 ‘According to Your knowledge I am indeed not guilty, Yet there is no one to save me from Your hand.
Job 10:15 ‘If I am wicked, woe to me! But if I am righteous, I dare not lift up my head. I am full of shame, and conscious of my misery.
-
to declare guilty, to condemn as guilty
Causative action by which humans or deities declare (other) humans guilty before God or humanity, as a result of (allegedly) having acted in a way that is contrary to the law
ExamplesDeuteronomy 25:1 “If there is a dispute between people and they go to court, and the judges decide their case, and they declare the righteous innocent and pronounce the wicked guilty,
Proverbs 12:2 A good person will obtain favor from the LORD, But He will condemn a person who devises evil.
Proverbs 17:15 One who justifies the wicked and one who condemns the righteous, Both of them alike are an abomination to the LORD.
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to act wickedly
Action by which humans or deities act in a way that is contrary to (God's) law, resulting in a state of guilt
Examples2 Samuel 22:22 “For I have kept the ways of the LORD, And have not acted wickedly against my God.
1 Kings 8:47 if they take it to heart in the land where they have been taken captive, and repent and implore Your favor in the land of those who have taken them captive, saying, ‘We have sinned and done wrong, we have acted wickedly’;
2 Chronicles 6:37 if they take it to heart in the land where they are taken captive, and repent and plead to You in the land of their captivity, saying, ‘We have sinned, we have done wrong and have acted wickedly’;
How it’s used In 8 roles
Every occurrence, grouped by the words it is grammatically related to.
the word studied the word it goes with
Who or what does itSubject
33 occurrences in 15 groups
- Not stated: we 5
- Not stated: you (one person) 5
- Not stated: I 4
- Not stated: he, she or it 4
- Not stated: they 3
- Other words · 10 groups that occur once or twice (12) 12
What it acts on, or what is saidObject
14 occurrences in 10 groups
- נִיme 4
- Other words · 9 groups that occur once or twice (11) 11
With prepositionsPrepositional phrases
6 occurrences in 5 groups
- מִןfrom+ אֱלֹהִיםGod, gods 2
- בin/on/with+ כֹּלall, every, whole 1
- בin/on/with+ שָׁפַטto judge, to govern 1
- לto/for+ נָתַןto give, to put, to set 1
- לto/for+ עָשָׂהto do, to make 1
With adverbsAdverbs
7 occurrences in 3 groups
- לֹאnot 5
- אַלnot, do not 2
- רָבָהto increase 1
Whose, or of whatGenitive or possessive
1 occurrences in 1 groups
- בְּרִיתcovenant, treaty 1
What it doesIt is the subject
1 occurrences in 1 groups
- שָׁלַםto repay, to make restitution, to complete 1
What is done to itIt is the object
1 occurrences in 1 groups
- חָנֵףto defile, to pollute, to be defiled 1
After prepositionsPrepositional phrases
1 occurrences in 1 groups
- לto/for 1
When two words share a role, as in “Paul and Barnabas said”, the verse appears under each, so a section’s counts can add up to more than the number of occurrences.
MACULA Greek Linguistic Datasets, available at https://github.com/Clear-Bible/macula-greek/, licensed CC BY 4.0; MACULA Hebrew Linguistic Datasets © 2022-2024 by Biblica, Inc., CC BY 4.0. Westminster Leningrad Codex (tanach.us). OpenScriptures Hebrew Bible morphology (hb.openscriptures.org), CC BY 4.0.
Near synonyms 2 words
- חָטָא châṭâʼ · H2398 · to withdraw, to draw back, to fail
- These are genuine same-language near-synonyms describing moral/ethical transgression.
- אָשַׁם ʼâsham · H816 · to incur guilt, to realize one's guilt
- Both belong to the field of guilt and wrongdoing; רָשַׁע (râshaʻ, H7561) leans toward wicked action or condemnation, and אָשַׁם (ʼâsham, H816) toward guilt or offense.
Contrasting words 1 word
- צַדִּיק tsaddîyq · H6662 · righteous, just, right
- The direct lexical opposite of רָשַׁע, denoting the righteous person or one who is just and lawful, frequently contrasted with the wicked throughout wisdom and legal texts.
In the other Testament 1 word
- ἀσεβέω asebéō · G764 · to live in an ungodly manner, godlessness
- Greek ἀσεβέω specifically denotes impious or ungodly action (active wickedness against divine standards), while Hebrew רָשַׁע encompasses a broader range of wrongdoing including legal condemnation, troublemaking, and general moral wickedness not necessarily framed in cultic or piety terms.
Semantic domains 2 entries
- Guilty002003003014
- Deuteronomy 25:1 has judges "pronounce the wicked guilty," and 1 Kings 8:32 speaks of God "condemning the wicked by bringing his way on his own head," both attesting the judicial condemnation this word can denote.
- Sin002003003018
- 2 Samuel 22:22 has David affirm he has "not acted wickedly against my God," attesting the sinful conduct this word denotes.
Word family 5 words
Words formed from the same root. They share a form, not always a meaning.
Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon H7561. rasha [רָשַׁע] verb denominative be wicked, act wickedly; — Qal Perfect1singular…
[רָשַׁע] verb denominative be wicked, act wickedly; —
Qal Perfect1singular רָשַׁעָתִּי 2Sa 22:22 +, רָשָׁ֑עְנוּ 1Ki 8:47 +; Imperfect2masculine singular תִּדְשַׁע Ecc 7:17; Ecc 7:1singular אֶרְשָׁ֑ע Job 9:29; Job 10:7; —
1 be wicked, act wickedly, 1Ki 8:47 2Ch 6:37; Dan 9:15; Ecc 7:17; +מֵאֱלֹהָי 2Sa 22:22 (in departing) from my God = Psa 18:22.
2 be guilty, Job 9:29; Job 10:7, Job 10:15.
Hiph`il Perfect3masculine singular הִרְשִׁיעַ2Ch 20:35; 2Ch 20:3 masculine plural הִרְשִׁיעוּ Deu 25:1; Dan 12:10; Dan 12:1plural הִרְשַׁעְבוּ Dan 9:5, etc.: Imperfect3masculine singular יַרְשִׁיעַ Pro 12:2 +; יַרְשִׁעַ Job 34:29; Job 34:3masculine plural יַרְשִׁיעֻן Exo 22:8, etc.; Infinitive construct הַרְשִׁיעַ 1Ki 8:32; 2Ch 22:3; Perfect מַרְשִׁיעַ Pt 2Ch 17:15; plural construct מַרְשִׁיעֵי Dan 11:32; —
1 condemn as guilty, in civil relations, with accusative Exo 22:8 (E) Deu 25:1; Psa 94:21; Job 34:17; Pro 17:15.
2 condemn as guilty, in ethical and religious relations, with accusative 1Ki 8:32; Job 9:20; Job 10:2; Job 15:6; Job 32:3; Job 40:8; Psa 37:33; Pro 12:2; Isa 50:9; Isa 54:17, absolute Job 34:29.
3 act wickedly (late), in ethics and religion: Job 34:12 (denied of ׳י), Neh 9:33; Dan 12:10; 2Ch 22:3; || חטא Psa 106:6; Dan 9:5; לעשׂות הרשׁיע2Ch 20:35; בְרִית מַרְשִׁיעֵי Dan 11:32; — יַרְשִׁיעַ 1Sa 14:47 read ᵐ5 יַוָּשֵׁעַ Capp We Dr Bu HPS.
Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), public domain
Topical studies with this word 2 entries
Meanings adapted from the UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament, © United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0 and the UBS Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew (from the Semantic Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew), © United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0; MACULA Greek Linguistic Datasets, available at https://github.com/Clear-Bible/macula-greek/, licensed CC BY 4.0; MACULA Hebrew Linguistic Datasets © 2022-2024 by Biblica, Inc., CC BY 4.0. Westminster Leningrad Codex (tanach.us). OpenScriptures Hebrew Bible morphology (hb.openscriptures.org), CC BY 4.0.
Sources
eRhema lexical overview, based on the UBS Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew and the UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament (© United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Macula Hebrew and Greek (Clear Bible, CC BY 4.0); released under CC BY-SA 4.0
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