ra.ah denotes adverse harm, whether a calamity that comes upon people, a hostile plot, or wrongdoing.

The term most often names an adverse outcome brought or coming upon a person, household, or place. It also occurs for harm intended or done against someone and for wrongful conduct or an evil condition, while some clauses portray the resulting distress borne by those affected.

1. Calamity brought upon people or places · dominant

   In 1 Kings 21:29, two singular absolute forms occur where the announced disaster is not brought in Ahab's days but is brought upon his house in his son's days. Similarly, 2 Chronicles 34:24 speaks of distress brought upon a place and its inhabitants, and 1 Chronicles 21:15 places the term in the account of ruin directed toward Jerusalem.

   1 Kings 21:292 Chronicles 34:241 Chronicles 21:15Deuteronomy 31:171 Kings 14:102 Chronicles 7:22
2. Harm sought, planned, or inflicted against another · common

   The singular absolute form identifies the danger Saul is plotting against David in 1 Samuel 23:9 and the harm Jonathan says his father may intend in 1 Samuel 20:13. In Esther 9:2, the construct form marks those who sought the Jews' harm; 1 Kings 2:44 likewise speaks of harm Shimei did to David and harm returning on Shimei's own head.

   1 Samuel 23:91 Samuel 20:13Esther 9:21 Kings 2:441 Samuel 25:261 Kings 1:52
3. Wrongdoing or an evil condition · common

   In 1 Samuel 12:19 and 1 Samuel 12:20, the singular absolute form is tied to the people's act of asking for a king; the APB renders the clause with "this evil." Genesis 6:5 uses a construct form in the statement that human wickedness is great and the heart's intentions are continually evil, while Hosea 10:15 uses two construct forms in the phrase rendered "because of the evil of your evil."

   1 Samuel 12:191 Samuel 12:20Genesis 6:5Hosea 10:151 Samuel 25:21Amos 5:13
4. Distress experienced or borne · occasional

   The term can name the burden experienced by those affected: 1 Chronicles 7:23 says distress came upon a house, and Ecclesiastes 8:6 describes a person's distress as resting heavily upon him. In 2 Chronicles 20:9, it occurs in the plea that God will hear and save when calamity comes and the people cry out in their distress.

   1 Chronicles 7:23Ecclesiastes 8:62 Chronicles 20:91 Samuel 10:19Ecclesiastes 7:15Esther 8:3

In the Anselm Project Bible: Across these verses, the APB variously renders the surrounding clauses with "distress," "harm," "evil," "wickedness," "calamity," and "disaster." These variations confirm the verse-level contexts rather than fixing a separate English equivalent in every occurrence.