משלי, פרק ד׳, פסוק ט״ז

The path of wickedness is not simply a passive state of being, but rather an obsessive and restless urge to do wrong. For those caught up in this way of life, harming others transforms into a deep psychological and existential need, one that ultimately dictates their basic ability to find peace and rest [ביאור שטיינזלץ].

The primary approach among commentators is that corrupt individuals simply cannot fall asleep at night unless they have successfully carried out an evil act [רש״י, רלב״ג, מצודת דוד]. This initial drive involves inflicting physical or financial damage upon others, or even upon themselves [אלשיך, עמנואל הרומי]. If they fail to cause this harm, sleep completely escapes them [מלבי״ם].

This restless behavior goes beyond personal wrongdoing to include dragging others down. While some view the drive to make others fail as a poetic echo of the same destructive urge [מצודת דוד], others point to a severe worsening of the corrupt person's mental state. Even if they have already done something bad and managed to drift off, they still feel as though their rest has been robbed and remains incomplete unless they have actively caused someone else to stumble and sin [מלבי״ם].

This escalating need to corrupt others stems from a deep sense of loneliness. A person who ruins their own life knows that society looks down on them, which causes them constant worry and distress. To quiet their conscience and avoid facing their own shame, they work endlessly to make others fail. Only when they see that many people share in their actions or have joined them in spreading violence and theft can they finally enjoy a peaceful night of sleep [אלשיך].

Alongside this practical understanding, another approach views this restless obsession through the lens of those who hold false and heretical beliefs. Their minds are so flooded with corrupt ideas that they cannot rest before planning how to incite and mislead others. This ideological obsession runs so deep that even while asleep, they continue to dwell on the harmful concepts they absorbed from their own teachers, constantly plotting new ways to spread them to the public [אמרי דעת, מלבי״ם].