Kakourgos (G2557) combines kakos (bad/evil) and ergon (work/deed) to describe a criminal, evildoer, or malefactor. In the crucifixion narrative of Luke 23, this term designates the two men crucified alongside Jesus — translated 'criminals' or 'malefactors.'
The kakourgoi on either side of Jesus at Golgotha frame one of Scripture's most compressed conversion accounts. Both criminals initially mock Jesus (Matt 27:44), yet Luke records one who repents — 'We are receiving the due reward of our deeds, but this man has done nothing wrong' (Lk 23:41). The repentant criminal receives the most immediate promise of salvation in all of Scripture: 'Today you will be with me in paradise' (Lk 23:43). The word kakourgos — 'evil-worker' — becomes the impossible recipient of grace. The cross is most clearly the cross when positioned between sinners. Paul would later echo: 'Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost' (1 Tim 1:15).