They are generally detested (24:9), and in the interests of peace must be banished from society (22:10). Divine judgements are in store for them, and their fate is a warning to the simple (3:34; 19:25, 29; 21:11). The three clauses of the verse with their threefold parallelism (walk, stand, sit: counsel, way, session: wicked, sinners, scorners) emphasise the godly man’s entire avoidance of association with evil and evil-doers in every form and degree. They denote successive steps in a career of evil,