Romans 1:29 (ESV) They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips,…” THIS is an example why I am doing my own translation. The ESV is one of the main English translations, but this verse is unacceptable to me, because in the above list, it has both “malice” and “maliciousness.”. I am still working on this verse, but one thing I know, is that I will not have two forms of the same word.     This applies also to the versions that have “malice” and “ill-will” as their renderings, since those two are essentially the same.

κακία                                       κακοήθεια

GNV                maliciousness                       taking all things in the euill part

Rheims            wickedness  malignity

KJV                  maliciousness                       malignity

ASV                 maliciousness                       malignity

YLT                   malice                                      evil dispositions

JBP                  malice                                      spite

NASB              evil                                            malice

RSV                 malice                                      malignity

Recov             malice                                      malignity

ESV                  malice                                      maliciousness

NIV                  depravity      malice

Amp                malice                                      ill will and cruel ways

NLT                  hate                                         malicious behavior

NCV                hatred                                     thinking the worst about each other

EMTV             malice                                      maliciousness

GNB                vice                                           malice

ISV                   depravity      viciousness

LEB                  malice                                      malevolence

NAB                malice                                      spite

NET                 malice                                      hostility

CSB                  wickedness  malice

CEV                 mean                                       hard to get along with

ERV                 hatred                                     thinking the worst things about each other

GW                  mean                                       viciousness

TLB                  hate                                         bitterness

Mnc                malice                                     meanness

NRSV              malice                                      craftiness

CBW                malice                                      ill-will

JNT                  vice                                           ill-will

Aristotle defined κακοήθεια as seeing the worst in everything.  Or as the LSJ lexicon puts it, “thinking evil, prone to put the worst construction on everythhing.” Paul says: “in everything give thanks, rejoice evermore, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.”  Paul says of the lost, “their mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.” 

It is hard to decide how to render this Greek word. In the BDAG lexicon it is defined thus: “a basic defect in character that leads one to be hurtful to others, meanspiritedness, malice, malignity, craftiness…”