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The Wicked Will Not Depart from Evil

Proverbs 13:19 Updated American Standard Version (UASV)
¹⁹A desire fulfilled is sweet to the soul,
but to turn away from evil is an abomination to fools.

A desire fulfilled is sweet to the soul: In the case of the righteous one, desires (תַּאֲוָה taavah) is a good thing, something positive that the righteous one wishes for, wants, is looking forward to being fulfilled, which he has not received yet. He wishes for, wants, and longs for something based on the good life that he has been living. The present and the future of the righteous one is filled with happiness and joy because he knows he has been on the path of righteousness, taking in the knowledge of God. He knows that, in the end, his hope will be fulfilled, and his desires will be granted (10:24), even if this life has some difficult times along the way. Fulfilled (הָיָה hayah) here is not the same as the Hebrew word in 13:12. However, it has the same meaning, that is, the desired thing comes to pass or arrives or is realized. Sweet (עָרַב arab) here has the sense to be pleasing, to be pleasant, to be acceptable, enjoyable, favorable, or welcome. Sweet to the soul means that persons whose desire is fulfilled, this is pleasant or enjoyable to the person.

but to turn away from evil is an abomination to fools: Turn away from evil is also used in describing Job in Job 1:1, saying “that man [Job] was blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil.” The point here is that the foolish hate to turn away from evil, which in their eyes is an outrage; even to consider abandoning evil and doing so is a disgrace. In other words, wicked fools love their evil ways. Fools (כְּסִיל kesil) hate knowledge as they lack good judgment. Their character is stupidity and rudeness, that is, one who completely lacks understanding, who is rebellious in his ways. – Proverbs 1:22.

When a healthy desire has been reached, accomplished, or fulfilled or a wish has been achieved, attained, or realized, that soul (person) has become filled with satisfaction, for this is the most pleasant or enjoyable experience. Therefore, the opposite is true for the foolish one, who has the trait of acting stupidly or rashly in seeking his fleshly desires because he is devoid of wisdom or understanding and his desires are unhealthy; thus, for him, it is an abomination to depart from his evil ways. The evil fool can only achieve his fleshly, worldly ambitions, desires, goals, and hopes through bad methods, and if he were to abandon evil, he would be denied the sick, twisted pleasure of his fulfilling his warped unhealthy desires. So, we can see the wisdom of our cultivating healthy, proper desires.