📖 Biblical Definition
Wickedness is active, willful, settled commitment to evil — the disposition (not just the act) of the unrepentant heart. Psalm 1 establishes the diagnostic contrast: the way of the righteous and the way of the wicked. "For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish" (Psalm 1:6). The LORD hates wickedness: "Thou lovest righteousness, and hatest wickedness" (Psalm 45:7; quoted of Christ in Hebrews 1:9). The wicked shall not stand in the judgment (Psalm 1:5). Christ commands the saint to pray for deliverance from "the wicked one" (Matthew 6:13, KJV). The category exists; God names it; men either repent or are judged by it.
📜 Webster 1828 Definition
WICK'EDNESS, n.
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1. The quality of being wicked; departure from the rules of the divine law; evil disposition or practices; immorality; crime; sin; sinfulness; corrupt manners. 2. A wicked thing or act; crime; sin; iniquity.
📖 Key Scripture
Psalm 1:6 — "For the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish."
Psalm 45:7 — "Thou lovest righteousness, and hatest wickedness."
Proverbs 10:2 — "Treasures of wickedness profit nothing: but righteousness delivereth from death."
Ephesians 6:12 — "We wrestle... against spiritual wickedness in high places."
⚠️ Modern Corruption
Modern relativism rejects the category of wickedness; Scripture preserves it as a fixed line.
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Psalm 1 divides humanity into two categories: the righteous and the wicked. Modern relativism rejects this binary as judgmental and oversimplified. The Bible holds it from Genesis to Revelation. The wicked are not a race or a class; they are people walking in the counsel of the ungodly, sitting in the seat of the scornful, doing what God has called wicked. The category is moral, not demographic.
Ephesians 6:12 lifts the category higher: there is also spiritual wickedness in high places — demonic principalities behind much of the visible darkness. Modern naturalism dismisses this as superstition. Paul, the most learned theologian of his generation, did not. Pray for deliverance from the wicked one (Matt 6:13); arm yourself with the whole armor (Eph 6); stand. Wickedness is real on both planes; the Lord defeats it on both.
🔗 Greek & Hebrew Roots
Hebrew resha (H7562); Greek poneria (G4189).
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H7562 — resha — wickedness, wrong
H7563 — rasha — wicked person, the wicked
G4189 — poneria — wickedness, malice
Usage
"Modern relativism rejects the category; Psalm 1 divides humanity into two and the Bible never blurs the line."
"There is also spiritual wickedness in high places; Paul was no superstition-monger."
"Pray for deliverance from the wicked one; arm; stand."