Evil
Reading a lexicon entry
What this page is: Each lexicon entry shows the original Hebrew or Greek word behind the English translation: its meaning, its range of use, and where it appears in Scripture.
Strong's number: The Strong's code (H- or G-) is the standard reference number for this word. It connects this entry to chapter and passage language tabs.
Where it appears: The witness passages show where this word is used in context. Click any to open the study page for that passage.
This lexicon entry is part of our ongoing editorial review. If you notice missing content, unclear wording, or a possible correction, please send us a note through theConnect page. Screenshots are helpful.
Κακία can refer broadly to badness or evil, but in Paul's ethical lists it often has the more focused sense of malice, ill will, or a settled readiness to harm. First Corinthians 14:20 contrasts mature thinking with being infant-like in evil, calling believers to innocence toward what destroys while growing in discernment.
Reader summary
Full entry for κακία (G2549) · Open the biblical lexicon
Κακία can refer broadly to badness or evil, but in Paul's ethical lists it often has the more focused sense of malice, ill will, or a settled readiness to harm. First Corinthians 14:20 contrasts mature thinking with being infant-like in evil, calling believers to innocence toward what destroys while growing in discernment.
The BSB source-word alignment has 11 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include malice (3), evil (2), [and] depravity (1), of evil (1), of malice (1).
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Matthew 6:34. Its strongest book concentrations include 1 Corinthians (2), 1 Peter (2), Acts (1), Colossians (1).
Κακία can refer broadly to badness or evil, but in Paul's ethical lists it often has the more focused sense of malice, ill will, or a settled readiness to harm. First Corinthians 14:20 contrasts mature thinking with being infant-like in evil, calling believers to innocence toward what destroys while growing in discernment. Colossians 3:8 and Ephesians 4:31 place malice among angry speech, slander, bitterness, and rage that must be put away in the new life.
The noun therefore reaches beneath isolated outbursts to the hostile disposition that feeds them. It does not label every disagreement as malicious, and it should not become a weapon for guessing another person's motives. Paul directs hearers first toward repentance, renewed speech, kindness, forgiveness, and the character of Christ.
Paul uses κακία for evil and especially malicious ill will expressed through destructive attitudes and speech. The new life in Christ requires believers to put it away rather than cultivate or excuse it.
Brothers, stop thinking like children. In regard to evil be infants, but in your thinking be mature.
Paul calls for mature thought alongside childlike innocence regarding evil, not childish judgment or naive participation in wrongdoing.
But now you must put aside all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips.
Malice belongs to the old pattern that must be stripped off with anger, slander, and abusive speech as believers put on the new self.
Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, outcry and slander, along with every form of malice.
The command to remove malice prepares for kindness, compassion, and forgiveness patterned after God's forgiveness in Christ.
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders ItA compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
Greek word. Moral depravity and wickedness rooted in character, distinct from πονηρία's active malicious intent
Textus Receptus witness, full corpusGreek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
11 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
evil, wickedness, malice
Read verseevil, wickedness, malice
Read verseevil, wickedness, malice
Read verseevil, wickedness, malice
Read verseevil, wickedness, malice
Read verseevil, wickedness, malice
Read verseevil, wickedness, malice
Read verseevil, wickedness, malice
Read verseevil, wickedness, malice
Read verseevil, wickedness, malice
Read verseevil, wickedness, malice
Read verseFull New Testament corpus: 260 chapters, 7,957 verses, 140,628 tokens. Data source: honza/textus-receptus (data only), with authority check against byztxt/greektext-textus-receptus.
How this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.
This word appears as a noun across 4 case and number patterns. The form changes show how the word functions in a sentence; they do not change the basic lexical meaning by themselves.
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
Showing 5 selected witnesses from 11 lexical occurrence verses.
κακία is built from this root:
Compound and idiomatic phrases that include this word. Follow a link to study the phrase and how its parts work together.
Malice is dangerous because it can hide beneath respectable words while desiring another person's diminishment. Paul locates κακία near anger, bitterness, slander, and filthy speech, showing how inward ill will becomes communal damage. His answer is not emotional suppression or a demand that harmed people call evil good. Colossians and Ephesians place the command within union with Christ, the putting off of the old self, renewal in truth, and the practice of kindness and forgiveness.
First Corinthians adds mature discernment: believers are not to become sophisticated practitioners of evil. Churches should therefore examine patterns of contempt, retaliation, rumor, and pleasure in another's failure. Teachers must also avoid weaponizing the word by claiming access to hidden motives. The gospel summons each believer to repent of known malice, speak truthfully, pursue justice without hatred, and forgive as God has forgiven in Christ.
1Cor.14.20
Κακία is related to the κακός word family and can range from badness or wickedness to malice. Ethical list contexts narrow the sense through neighboring terms such as anger, slander, and abusive speech. Translation should follow the local cluster rather than force one English gloss everywhere.
Wisdom and the Psalms expose hearts and mouths bent on another's harm, while Joseph refuses revenge without denying his brothers' evil intent. In the new covenant community, Christ's forgiveness and self-giving love provide both the ground and pattern for putting malice away.