Original Word: חָמַם
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: chamam
Pronunciation: khaw-MAM
Phonetic Spelling: (khaw-mam')
KJV: enflame self, get (have) heat, be (wax) hot, (be, wax) warm (self, at)
NASB: hot, warm, keep warm, warms, mated, became warm, become heated
Word Origin: [a primitive root]

1. to be hot (literally or figuratively)

enflame self, get have heat, be wax hot, be, wax warm self, at

A primitive root; to be hot (literally or figuratively) -- enflame self, get (have) heat, be (wax) hot, (be, wax) warm (self, at).

Word Origin
a prim. root
Definition
to be or become warm
NASB Translation
became warm (1), become heated (1), grew hot (1), heat (1), hot (6), inflame (1), keep warm (3), mated (2), warm (4), warmed (1), warms (3).

[חָמַם] verb be or become warm (Late Hebrew id., Pi`el, make warm, Aramaic , חֲמַם be warm; Arabic become hot, of water; also heat, kindle fire in) —

Qal Perfect חַם Psalm 39:4; Exodus 16:21; וְחַם consecutive 1 Kings 1:2; Ecclesiastes 4:11; חַמּוֺתִ֫י Isaiah 44:16; Imperfect יָחֹם Isaiah 44:16; וַיָּ֫חָם 2 Kings 4:34; Isaiah 44:15; also יִחַם 1 Kings 1:1; יֵחַם Deuteronomy 19:6; יֵחָ֑ם Ecclesiastes 4:11; 3feminine singular תֵּחַם Ezekiel 24:11; יֵחַמּוּ Hosea 7:7; וַיֶּחֱמוּ Genesis 30:39; וַיֵּחַמְנָה Genesis 30:38 (last seven forms could be also from יחם q. v.; but no decisive evidence that this v is used in Qal; they are placed under חמם by Thes Ew^{§ 193 a} Ol^{§ 243 b}; see also Kö^{i. 365, 417 ff.}, who on account of יחם Pi`el Infinitive Genesis 30:41; Genesis 31:10, derives last two, needlessly, from יחם); Infinitive לַחְמָם Isaiah 47:14, compare Job 30:4 (where, however, ׳ל is from לֶחֶם Mich Di unless (Luzz Che) we read לְחַמֵּם Pi`el Infinitive in both); חֹם 1 Samuel 11:9; Haggai 1:6; Nehemiah 7:3; suffix חֻמּוֺ Job 6:17; חֻמָּם Jeremiah 51:39; —

1 literally, be or grow warm Exodus 16:21 (P; subject שֶׁמֶשׁ), compare 1 Samuel 11:9; Nehemiah 7:3 and Job 6:17 (suffix of impersonal subject); from fire Isaiah 44:15,16 (twice in verse); Isaiah 47:14 (compare above); natural heat 1 Kings 1:1,2(by personal contact), so 2 Kings 4:34; Ecclesiastes 4:11 (twice in verse), from clothing Haggai 1:6; of Jerusalem under figure of pot or caldron Ezekiel 24:11.

2 figurative, subject לִבִּי Psalm 39:4 ("" בַהֲגִיגִי תִבְעַראֵֿשׁ), compare Deuteronomy 19:6; of conspirators Hosea 7:7; Chaldeans Jeremiah 51:39.

3 of heat in conception (animals) Genesis 30:38,39 (compare יחם).

Niph`al Participle נֵחָמִים באלים Isaiah 57:5 (Kö^{i. 371}), inflame oneself with, of idolatry.

Pi`el Imperfect3feminine singular תְּחַמֵּם Job 39:14 keep eggs warm (of ostrich).

Hithpa`el Imperfect יִתְחַמָּם warm oneself Job 31:20 מִגֵּז כְּבָשִׂים by means of fleece of sheep.

Summary of Usage

The verb חָמַם appears thirteen times and always revolves around the idea of becoming warm or hot. Contexts range from literal bodily warmth to metaphorical descriptions of inner passion, idolatrous zeal, or divine judgement.

Physical Warmth and Care

• Exodus 16:21 pictures the manna “melting” when “the sun grew hot,” an ordinary meteorological observation that underscores timely obedience to God’s provision.
• 1 Kings 1:2 records the attendants’ search for Abishag “that the king may keep warm,” reminding readers that the strongest monarch still shares common human frailty.
• Ecclesiastes 4:11 praises partnership: “If two lie down together, they will keep warm; but how can one keep warm alone?” The verse couches warmth as a gift of fellowship and mutual support, a principle echoed in Christian community life.

Life Restored Through Heat

In 2 Kings 4:34 Elisha stretches himself upon the Shunammite’s dead son, “and the boy’s body grew warm.” The warming precedes and signals the coming resurrection. Physical heat becomes a token of renewed life, foreshadowing the greater resurrection power revealed in Jesus Christ (John 11:43-44).

Domestic and Communal Fellowship

Job highlights everyday acts of charity: “If his heart did not bless me for warming him with the fleece of my sheep” (Job 31:20). Simple warmth for the poor illustrates righteousness.

Job 39:14 depicts the ostrich leaving her eggs “to warm in the dust,” reflecting God’s varied designs in nature.

Isaiah 44:15-16 ridicules the folly of a man who burns half a tree for fuel—“Indeed, he warms himself and says, ‘Ah! I am warm’”—while fashioning the rest into an idol. Legitimate household warmth is contrasted with illegitimate worship.

Metaphorical Heat: Inner Emotion

Psalm 39:3: “My heart grew hot within me; as I mused, the fire burned.” The word captures spiritual agitation that finally erupts in prayer.

Hosea 7:7 likens Israel to an oven: “All of them are hot like an oven; they consume their rulers.” Stormy political rebellion is pictured as overheating passion divorced from divine dependence.

Idolatrous Passion and False Comforts

Isaiah 57:5 rebukes those who “burn with lust among the oaks,” exposing how carnal heat fuels apostasy. The same root that speaks of hearth-fire now brands illicit religious zeal, illustrating the misdirection of God-given capacities.

Divine Judgement Portrayed as Consuming Heat

Isaiah 47:14 warns Babylon: “It is not a coal for warming, nor a fire to sit before.” The coming judgement will not comfort but consume. God alone decides whether fire warms or destroys, a sobering complement to earlier tender uses of the verb.

Prophetic and Pastoral Applications

1. Compassion: Supplying warmth—food, clothing, shelter—remains a practical outworking of faith (James 2:15-16).
2. Vigilance: Spiritual fervor must align with truth lest it degenerate into idolatrous heat (Romans 10:2).
3. Hope: The warming of the Shunammite boy prefigures resurrection, encouraging believers to trust God’s life-giving power amid apparent death.

Christological and Ministry Implications

Christ’s ministry embodies righteous warmth: He feeds the hungry, restores life, and kindles true spiritual fire (Luke 12:49). The Church is called to radiate that same wholesome heat—warming the cold, restraining destructive passions, and announcing judgment that drives people to the only safe hearth, the mercy of God in Jesus Christ.

הַנֵּֽחָמִים֙ הנחמים וְחַ֖ם וְחַ֣ם וְחַ֥ם וַיָּ֔חָם וַיָּ֖חָם וחם ויחם חַם־ חַמּוֹתִ֖י חם־ חמותי יִתְחַמָּֽם׃ יֵחַ֙מּוּ֙ יָחֹם֙ יחם יחמו יתחמם׃ לַחְמָ֔ם לחמם תְּחַמֵּֽם׃ תחמם׃ cham chammoTi ḥam- ḥam·mō·w·ṯî ḥammōwṯî han·nê·ḥā·mîm hannechaMim hannêḥāmîm lachMam laḥ·mām laḥmām tə·ḥam·mêm techamMem təḥammêm vaiYachom veCham way·yā·ḥām wayyāḥām wə·ḥam wəḥam yā·ḥōm yaChom yāḥōm yê·ḥam·mū yeChammu yêḥammū yiṯ·ḥam·mām yitchamMam yiṯḥammāmInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts