רֹעַ (ro.a)
ro.a
evil
H:N-MQuick Reference
- Language
- Biblical Hebrew
- Testament
- Old Testament
- Occurrences
- 19 verses
- Root
- —
- Part of speech
- H:N-M
Word Overview
The Hebrew noun roa generally denotes something bad or of poor quality. In its most basic sense, it describes a defect or lack of goodness, such as the wilfulness found in unruly livestock. This concrete usage grounds the word’s broader ethical meaning, where it refers to moral evil or wickedness that harms others.
Despite its common association with sin, roa also carries an emotional weight, occasionally translating to sadness or distress. This nuance appears in texts like Psalm 34:18, where God is near to those with a broken spirit. The word thus bridges the gap between external wrongdoing and internal suffering, showing how moral failure often leads to personal grief.
Translators typically render roa as "evil," but this English term can feel abstract. The Hebrew concept is more tangible, pointing to something that is fundamentally flawed or harmful. In Jeremiah, for instance, the word highlights the destructive nature of sin that breaks covenants and ruins communities. Understanding roa helps readers see evil not just as a moral category, but as a reality that damages both character and relationships.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The Hebrew word roa points to something fundamentally broken or harmful. It covers moral failure, but also personal distress. In Jeremiah, it describes actions that destroy community and break trust with God. This shows how our choices ripple outward, hurting others and ourselves.
Yet the word also carries emotional weight. Psalm 34:18 (referenced in overview) links this heaviness to a broken spirit. God draws near in those moments of deep sadness. Evil is not just an abstract category; it is a reality that damages character and relationships. Understanding this helps us see the full cost of sin and the depth of God’s compassion.
We are invited to turn from what harms us and others. The path forward involves honesty about our flaws and reliance on divine grace. This word reminds us that restoration is possible when we seek it with a sincere heart.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 19 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- [the] wickedness of9×
- from/ badness4×
- and/ from/ [the] wickedness of2×
- to <the>/ badness1×
- sadness of1×
- by/ sadness of1×
- and/ according to/ [the] wickedness of1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- רֹ֥עַ6×
- רֹ֣עַ3×
- רֹ֣עַֽ1×
- מֵ/רֹֽעַ\׃\ \פ1×
- מֵ/רֹֽעַ\׃\ \ס1×
- מֵ/רֹֽעַ\׃1×
- מֵ/רֹ֑עַ1×
- לָ/רֹֽעַ\׃1×
- וּ/מֵ/רֹ֣עַ1×
- וּ/מֵ/רֹ֖עַ1×
- וּ/כְ/רֹ֪עַ1×
- בְ/רֹ֥עַ1×
Key Verses
-
Jeremiah 4:4
Circumcise yourselves to Yahweh, and take away the foreskins of your heart, you men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem; lest my wrath go out like fire, and burn so that no one can quench it, because of the evil of your doings.
This verse uses roa to describe internal corruption ('evil of your doings') that provokes God's wrath, linking external actions to the condition of the heart.
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Genesis 41:19
and behold, seven other cattle came up after them, poor and very ugly and thin, such as I never saw in all the land of Egypt for ugliness.
Here roa describes physical ugliness and thinness in cattle, showing the word's concrete sense of poor quality or defect before its ethical usage.
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Jeremiah 23:2
Therefore Yahweh, the God of Israel, says against the shepherds who feed my people: “You have scattered my flock, driven them away, and have not visited them. Behold, I will visit on you the evil of your doings,” says Yahweh.
God promises to visit the 'evil of your doings' on shepherds who scattered His flock, highlighting the consequence of leadership failure and neglect.
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Isaiah 1:16
Wash yourselves. Make yourself clean. Put away the evil of your doings from before my eyes. Cease to do evil.
The command to 'put away the evil of your doings' connects ritual cleansing with moral action, showing that true worship requires ethical integrity.