From rāshaʿ (H7561), meaning to be wicked, to act wickedly, to condemn. Reshaʿ is the abstract noun meaning wickedness, moral wrong, guilt. It is the dominant OT term for the condition of the wicked (rāshāʿ), describing the state of being actively hostile to righteousness and covenant order.
In biblical ethics, reshaʿ (wickedness) is not merely behavioral but relational and covenantal. The wicked person (rāshāʿ) is not simply one who does bad things; they are one who has aligned themselves against God's rule and covenant purposes. Psalm 1 sets the foundational contrast: the tsaddîq (righteous) delights in Torah; the rāshāʿ will not stand in the assembly of the righteous. Reshaʿ is characterized by: (1) practical atheism — 'The wicked says in his heart, There is no God' (Ps. 10:4); (2) oppression of the poor (Ps. 10:8-10); (3) rejection of wisdom and correction (Prov. 10:23). Yet the prophets hold out the possibility of reversal: 'Let the wicked (rāshāʿ) forsake their ways... Let them turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on them' (Isa. 55:7). The final judgment of reshaʿ awaits: 'The wicked will not stand in the judgment' (Ps. 1:5).