H7563 — רָשָׁע (rasha)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: H7563
Original: רָשָׁע
Transliteration: râshâʻ (rasha)
Pronunciation: raw-shaw
Part of Speech: Adjective
Root: רָשַׁע (rashaʻ, H7561) — to be wicked, act wickedly
Occurrences: 248 unique verses (265 tokens) across 20 books
First Occurrence: Gen 18:23 — "Wilt thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked?"
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

From H7561; morally wrong; concretely, an (actively) bad person: condemned, guilty, ungodly, wicked (man), that did wrong.

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Verses	%
wicked (all forms)	237	95.6%
ungodly (all forms)	7	2.8%
condemned	1	0.4%
guilty	1	0.4%
that did wrong	1	0.4%
other	1	0.4%

The overwhelming KJV preference is "wicked" (~96%). The word functions almost exclusively as a substantive adjective (i.e., "the wicked" as a class of persons).

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
Proverbs	77	8.4
Habakkuk	3	5.4
Malachi	2	3.6
Psalms	80	3.3
Ecclesiastes	6	2.7
Job	26	2.4
Zephaniah	1	1.9
Ezekiel	20	1.6
Micah	1	1.0
Isaiah	11	0.9
Jeremiah	5	0.4
Exodus	4	0.3
Daniel	1	0.3
Deuteronomy	2	0.2
2 Chronicles	2	0.2
Numbers	2	0.2
Genesis	2	0.1
1 Kings	1	0.1
2 Samuel	1	0.1
1 Samuel	1	0.1

Distribution patterns: Overwhelmingly a Wisdom/poetic term — Proverbs (77) and Psalms (80) account for 63% of all occurrences. Prophetic books (Ezekiel, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Habakkuk, Malachi, Micah, Zephaniah, Daniel) contribute 44 more (18%). The word is virtually absent from historical narrative (only 13 total across Genesis–2 Chronicles). Not found at all in Leviticus, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, Nehemiah, Ezra, Esther, Song of Solomon, Lamentations, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Nahum, Haggai, or Zechariah.

Semantic Categories¶

1. The Wicked as a Moral Class (Contrasted with the Righteous)¶

The dominant usage: rasha functions as the standard antonym of tsaddiyq (H6662, "righteous"). These two words appear together in 81 verses (33% of all rasha occurrences), forming the fundamental moral binary of Wisdom literature.

Gen 18:23 — "Wilt thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked?"
Prov 10:3 — "The LORD will not suffer the soul of the righteous to famish: but he casteth away the substance of the wicked."
Prov 11:5 — "The righteousness of the perfect shall direct his way: but the wicked shall fall by his own wickedness."
Mal 3:18 — "Then shall ye return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked."

2. The Fate of the Wicked (Destruction/Judgment)¶

The wicked are consistently assigned a terminal outcome — being cut off, perishing, consumed, or destroyed.

Psa 37:20 — "But the wicked shall perish, and the enemies of the LORD shall be as the fat of lambs: they shall consume; into smoke shall they consume away."
Psa 37:38 — "But the transgressors shall be destroyed together: the end of the wicked shall be cut off."
Prov 2:22 — "But the wicked shall be cut off from the earth, and the transgressors shall be rooted out of it."
Psa 9:17 — "The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God."

3. The Wicked as Violent Oppressors¶

Rasha describes people who actively harm others — plotting, ambushing, drawing the sword against the poor and needy.

Psa 37:14 — "The wicked have drawn out the sword, and have bent their bow, to cast down the poor and needy."
Psa 37:32 — "The wicked watcheth the righteous, and seeketh to slay him."
Prov 12:6 — "The words of the wicked are to lie in wait for blood."
Psa 10:2 — "The wicked in his pride doth persecute the poor."

4. God's Active Opposition to the Wicked¶

God is presented as personally hostile to the wicked — hating, judging, denying peace, cutting them off.

Psa 11:5 — "The LORD trieth the righteous: but the wicked and him that loveth violence his soul hateth."
Psa 145:20 — "The LORD preserveth all them that love him: but all the wicked will he destroy."
Isa 48:22 — "There is no peace, saith the LORD, unto the wicked."
Psa 147:6 — "The LORD lifteth up the meek: he casteth the wicked down to the ground."

5. The Wicked in Judicial/Legal Contexts¶

A forensic sense: one found guilty at trial, one who deserves condemnation — the adjective functions as a legal verdict.

Exo 23:7 — "the innocent and righteous slay thou not: for I will not justify the wicked."
Deut 25:1 — "they come unto judgment... then they shall justify the righteous, and condemn the wicked."
1 Ki 8:32 — "condemning the wicked, to bring his way upon his head."
Prov 17:15 — "He that justifieth the wicked, and he that condemneth the just, even they both are abomination to the LORD."

6. The Wicked Who May Repent (Ezekiel)¶

Ezekiel uses rasha distinctively in divine appeals for repentance — the wicked person is not beyond hope if they turn.

Eze 18:21 — "But if the wicked will turn from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my statutes, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live."
Eze 33:11 — "I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live."
Eze 33:14-15 — "when I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; if he turn from his sin... he shall surely live."
Eze 33:19 — "But if the wicked turn from his wickedness, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall live thereby."

7. The Temporary Prosperity of the Wicked¶

Wisdom and prophetic texts repeatedly address the puzzle of wicked people flourishing, treating it as an apparent but short-lived anomaly.

Psa 37:35 — "I have seen the wicked in great power, and spreading himself like a green bay tree."
Psa 73:3 — "I was envious at the foolish, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked."
Job 21:7 — "Wherefore do the wicked live, become old, yea, are mighty in power?"
Ecc 8:14 — "there be just men, unto whom it happeneth according to the work of the wicked."

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
צַדִּיק (tsaddiyq)	H6662	81x (33%)	"the righteous and the wicked" — antithetical pairing
יְהוָה (YHWH)	H3068	46x (19%)	"the LORD [does X to] the wicked"
דֶּרֶךְ (derek)	H1870	24x (10%)	"the way of the wicked" — habitual conduct
רַע (ra)	H7451	24x (10%)	"the wicked [does] evil" — reinforcing proximity
מִשְׁפָּט (mishpat)	H4941	18x (7%)	"judgment of the wicked" — judicial outcome
אֶרֶץ (erets)	H776	18x (7%)	"wicked of the earth/land" — territorial scope
שׁוּב (shuwb)	H7725	17x (7%)	"the wicked turn from his way" — repentance formula (Ezekiel)
עָשָׂה (asah)	H6213	17x (7%)	"wicked worketh/doeth" — describing active conduct
יָד (yad)	H3027	16x (6%)	"hand of the wicked" — oppressive power
נֶפֶשׁ (nephesh)	H5315	16x (6%)	"soul of the wicked desireth evil" — inner disposition
מוּת (muwth)	H4191	15x (6%)	"the wicked shall die" — terminal outcome

Word Family / Cognates¶

H7561 רָשַׁע (rashaʻ) — verb: to be wicked, act wickedly, condemn as guilty (35v)
H7562 רֶשַׁע (reshaʻ) — masculine noun: wickedness, guilt, wrong (29v)

Synonyms¶

H1100 בְּלִיַּעַל (beliyyaʻal) — worthlessness, wickedness; "sons of Belial" (26v)
H2611 חָנֵף (chaneph) — profane, godless, hypocrite (13v)
H5759 עֲוִיל (aviyl) — perverse, unjust (2v)
H5767 עַוָּל (avval) — unjust, unrighteous, wicked (5v)
H6184 עָרִיץ (ariyts) — violent, ruthless tyrant (20v)

Antonyms¶

H6662 צַדִּיק (tsaddiyq) — righteous (206v) — the primary antonym, paired in 81 verses
H5355 נָקִי (naqiy) — innocent, clean, free from guilt (43v)
H6041 עָנִי (aniy) — poor, afflicted, humble (77v)
H8535 תָּם (tam) — complete, perfect, upright (13v)

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Translation	Key Difference
רַע (ra)	H7451	"wicked" (13v as ra)	ra = broad: bad, evil, harmful (natural or moral); rasha = specifically a morally guilty person
בְּלִיַּעַל (beliyyaʻal)	H1100	"wicked" (4v as beliyyaʻal)	beliyyaʻal = worthlessness, social dissolution; rasha = active moral wrongdoing
רֶשַׁע (reshaʻ)	H7562	"wickedness"	reshaʻ = the abstract quality/act of wickedness; rasha = the person characterized by it
עַוָּל (avval)	H5767	"wicked"/"unrighteous"	avval = unjust (legal unfairness); rasha = morally wrong (broader moral guilt)

LXX Mapping¶

Greek Equivalent	Strong's	Co-occurrences	PMI Score	Notes
ἀσεβής (asebes)	G765	137	30.00	Primary equivalent — "ungodly, impious"
ἁμαρτωλός (hamartolos)	G268	69	26.26	"sinful, sinner"
δίκαιος (dikaios)	G1342	83	21.07	Appears in same verse as antonym, not as translation
ἄνομος (anomos)	G459	28	16.05	"lawless"
ἄδικος (adikos)	G94	14	10.88	"unjust"

The primary LXX bridge is asebes (G765, "ungodly") with 137 co-occurrences, the highest PMI score. The LXX translators chose a word emphasizing irreverence toward God rather than moral wrongdoing per se — a slight semantic narrowing from the Hebrew, which encompasses both moral evil and legal guilt.