Sinful - Wicked - Is there a Difference?
By Athaleyah

Part 1 

Unless you’ve been visiting family on the other side of the moon for the last month, or are not a member of the Karaite forum groups, you’ll understand what led me to dig into Tanakh in order to better understand these terms.  If you are not on a Karaite forum, then please let me explain J

Some people view things from a subjective perspective, such as morality. An example of this subjectivity would be if I personally did not think that pedophilia were wrong, then that would be my opinion and subjective.   The premise is that if it is not in Tanakh as prohibited, then one may not say it is prohibited or that it is a sin.  Therefore, since the prohibition against pedophilia cannot be found in Tanakh, it is possible that one could say pedophilia is not prohibited, and therefore it is not a sin

Because there are things that are never even addressed in Tanakh that the majority of people would say are ‘immoral,’ and my view is that YHWH is a just Elohim, this line of thought gave me pause (and more!) – and led to this study.

Hebrew words referenced in this study:

Evil -רע  ra‛ (raish ayin)

Wicked (ness) – This is a form of the word for evilרעה   ra‛ah (raish ayin hey)  Ber 6:5

רשׁע Rasha (raw shaw) (raish shin ayin)

רע   Roa – (ro-ah) (raish ayin)  badness, evil

Sin (ner) – חטּא  Khattah  (het mem aleph) Ber 4:7

וחטאים    Khattah’im first seen in Ber. 13:13

Of course, we all know the first occurrence of the word “evil” and that is in the Gan Eden in Beresheit 2.  We’ve only moved 4 chapters forward in Torah to Beresheit 6 before we see that evil was in the thoughts and imagination of man, continually – literally “kol hayom” all day.  Folks, that didn’t take much time back then – how much more so now?

What happened before that massive shift in the thoughts of mankind?  Well, Chapter 4 mentions sin (khatta’ah) in reference to Qayin for the first time.  So now, we only have two chapters from the first mention of sin to continual thoughts of wickedness in all but eight people on the planet- and of those eight only Noach is specifically called righteous.  And this was before Internet and paperback pornography, chat rooms, 24 hour liquor stores, crack cocaine, photo - telephones, DVD movies, television, cinemas, video cameras – all of the things that make sin an easy delivery today. Please don’t take this as a blanket condemnation of technology or things modern, I’m only showing that WITHOUT all these additional venues, man ran rampantly to continual evil thoughts in a short while.  Are we even aware of the negative influences flooding us moment by moment, day after day?

Let’s move through the text to the inhabitants of Sodom – where we find wicked (ra’im) and sinners (khattah’im together, two separate words.  Now, before we read this, please consider a something.  I have heard it said that sin is breaking a Torah commandment and that only.  Did Sodom and Gomorrah have Torah?  Perhaps.  There is not any evidence in the text indicating that they did.  Nevertheless, please read what Beresheit 13:13 says:

“Now the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners against YHWH exceedingly.”

The Hebrew here is ra.im ve.kha.ta.im. There were not even ten righteous people in that city.  We can ascertain from the text that they wanted sexual relations with the male visitors that arrived to assist Lot and survey the town.  I know some people say that is not actually provable by the text.  Okay.  If there is no Torah given to Sodom and Gomorrah , and these men were not trying to violate a known Torah law against male homosexuality – what were they doing to warrant death and sin against YHWH?  Something outside of Torah?  That would mean that violating a written Torah instruction is not the only way to sin.  We definitely have a “makes you want to go Hmm” factor working here. To add to that “hmm” factor, Tanakh states that:

Yezequel  16(49) Behold, this was the iniquity (avon) of thy sister Sodom : pride, fulness of bread, and careless ease was in her and in her daughters; neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. 

Is it possible that these states of mind lead to the recorded sexual issues addressed in the Torah?  Their frame of mind, their ‘subjectivity’ if you will, is related to things that are not addressed as ‘sinful’ in Torah but here are called iniquity, which normally indicates known rebellion.

Now, we see from the text that Paro did not have Torah, for when he was speaking to Moshe about the Hebrew’s Elohim, he said (Shemot 5:2)

And Pharaoh said: 'Who is YHWH, that I should hearken unto His voice to let Israel go? I know not YHWH, and moreover I will not let Israel go.'

But yet a few chapters later we have Paro saying:

And Pharaoh sent, and called for Moses and Aaron, and said unto them: 'I have sinned (khatati) this time; YHWH is righteous, and I and my people are wicked. (harshaim)’  (Shemot 9:27)

Also in verse 34 of Chapter 9 we read:

“And when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunders were ceased, he sinned (lakhato) yet more, and hardened his heart, he and his servants.”

One commentary reads:  “The text is clearly interpreting as sin the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart and his refusal to release Israel .”  I cannot find this as a specific Torah law – hardening ones heart.  I agree with the concept that to harden ones heart against YHWH would be sinful, but is it a Torah commandment?  Perhaps it relates to disobeying a prophet of YHWH, but that isn’t a specific command either (it is mentioned in Devarim 18:19, but there isn’t penalty per se)

Does YHWH punish wicked people who are not under Torah?  When Yisra’el is being instructed about taking the land in Devarim, we are told more than once that it is not our righteousness that gives us the land, but the wickedness of the nations before us cause them to lose the land.  Were the Kena’ani under Torah?  If they were not, how could they be called ‘wicked’ unless wickedness does not always mean breaking a Torah law?  Now we do know that the Kena’ani and the others in the region were idolaters. That definitely is a violation of Torah, but where do we see the Kena’ani ever given Torah within the text?

In Devarim 9:27 we again see that wickedness and sin are not always synonymous either, for Moshe says:

“Remember Thy servants, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; look not unto the stubbornness (keshi) of this people, nor to their wickedness (risho), nor to their sin (khatato)”;

From this I understand that we can be wicked, and we can be sinful.  BDB renders this “wrong, wickedness, guilt” (resha.) Moshe talks about the people’s wickedness AND their sin.

There is no specific commandment about asking for a king over Yisra’el, that I could find in the text.  Yet, when the people call to Shemuel for a king, it is called “wickedness,” ra.at.khem   (1 Shemuel 12:17)  Yes,YHWH was their king and this is a rejection of Him, as He himself says to Shemuel later.  And later, when the people are ashamed after the display of YHWH’s anger, Shemuel mentions something else that he calls sin – “Moreover as for me, far be it from me that I should sin (me.kha.to) against YHWH ceasing to pray for you; but I will instruct you in the good and the right way.” (verse 23)  I do not find anywhere written in the text that a priest must pray for the people of Yisra’el, especially when they have rebelled and been wicked!  Yet Shemuel knew it would be a sin for him not to do so, even after the people rejected YHWH and him as leader of Yisra’el.  To me this continues to show that not every single item that qualifies as sin is enumerated in our texts as a “Thou shalt not…” When one is whole-hearted towards YHWH, there will be a seeking in the heart to be pleasing, to glorify His name and to set a good example – by thoughts and actions, words and deeds in my opinion.  It should pain us if something we do or say brings a negative light on YHWH.  Granted, going in and killing all the inhabitants of a land such as Yisra’el was ordered to do might create negative image, and has, in the minds of many.  Nevertheless, either YHWH is just, or He is not. I believe He is, even when I personally do not understand His form of justice completely. 

I believe Tehillim sums up the mind-set of the wicked in Chapter 10 – let me just read a little of it:

(3) For the wicked (rasha) boasteth of his heart's desire, and the covetous vaunteth himself, though he contemn (spurn, despise, abhor) YHWH. (4) The wicked (rasha), in the pride of his countenance, saith: 'He will not require'; all his thoughts are: 'There is no God.' and further on (7) His mouth is full of cursing, deceit, and oppression; under his tongue is mischief and iniquity (this word is actually “aven” which is another word used for wickedness.)

An interesting tidbit that came to light while doing this study is something found in 1 Shemuel 24:13 that the future king David said to King Shaul:

“As saith the proverb of the ancients: Out of the wicked cometh forth wickedness; but my hand shall not be upon thee.”  David trusted in YHWH to provide the solution to the problem.  Do we trust YHWH to scrape away wickedness from Yisra’el?  Maybe that is what we are to learn from having wickedness exposed to us – to acknowledge that this is His people, and that He sees all things.

There are other evidences in scripture that show that sin, transgression, iniquity, wickedness, evil, etc., are not always one and the same as they are enumerated in the same sentences separately.  I have only listed a few for brevity’s sake.  In the next study, I will examine more of the words in the text relating to this topic.

In summary, I would like to go back to my original discussion about things like morality being subjective.  I agree that it is, and I will tell you why.  Everything is subjective – but the crucial question is this: 

Am I subjecting my will to YHWH’s will, seeking to know His ways – be they written, spoken, or in my heart of hearts?

Or, am I attempting to subject YHWH’s will to mine in order to fulfill my thoughts, my desires, the “pride of my face” as mentioned in Tehillim 10?

May we all seek to know HIS will.