Lexical Summary
chom: Heat, Warmth
Original Word:חֹם
Part of Speech:Noun Masculine
Transliteration:chom
Pronunciation:khome
Phonetic Spelling:(khome)
KJV: heat, to be hot (warm)
NASB:heat, hot
Word Origin:[fromH2552 (חָמַם - hot)]
1. heat
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
heat, to be hot warm
Fromchamam; heat -- heat, to be hot (warm).
see HEBREWchamam
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Originfrom
chamamDefinitionheat
NASB Translationheat (8), hot (1).
Brown-Driver-Briggs
Jeremiah 17:8 ; — absolute
Genesis 8:22 3t. +
1 Samuel 21:7 (see below); construct
Genesis 18:1+ 3t.; of heat of (mid-) day
Genesis 18:1 (J),
1 Samuel 11:11;
2 Samuel 4:5; in promise of regular seasons
Genesis 8:22 (opposed to ); compare
Isaiah 18:4 (twice in verse) ( ); but as dangerous to plant-life
Jeremiah 17:8; it melts snow
Job 24:19;
1 Samuel 21:7bread of heat =
hot bread, read perhaps (as
Joshua 9:12).
Topical Lexicon
OverviewThe term translated “heat” or “warmth” occurs fourteen times in the Old Testament, serving as a vivid physical reality and a flexible metaphor. It ranges from the literal blaze of the sun at noon to the moral “heat” of divine judgment. Together these uses underscore the constancy of God’s created order, the rhythms of daily life, and the spiritual lessons drawn from extreme conditions.
The Created Order and Covenant Assurance
Genesis 8:22 sets “heat” side by side with “cold,” “summer,” and “winter” as enduring fixtures until the end of the age: “As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat… shall never cease.” Heat is therefore a covenant marker—a perpetual reminder that the Creator rules the seasons with unwavering faithfulness (cf.Jeremiah 5:24).
Midday Heat in Patriarchal and Military Scenes
1. Daily life.Genesis 18:1 pictures Abraham “sitting at the entrance of his tent in the heat of the day” when the LORD appears. The harsh noon climate provides both the backdrop for divine visitation and the occasion for Abraham’s swift hospitality.
2. Military timing. Saul’s messengers promise the besieged men of Jabesh-gilead, “By the time the sun is hot tomorrow, you will be rescued” (1 Samuel 11:9). The deliverance itself occurs “in the morning watch” before the sun’s full blaze (1 Samuel 11:11). Similarly, assassins strike Ish-bosheth “in the heat of the day, while he was taking his midday rest” (2 Samuel 4:5). Heat thus shapes daily schedules and tactical decisions.
Agricultural and Climatic Imagery
Isaiah 18:4 twice employs the word:
“I will quietly look on from My dwelling—
like shimmering heat in sunshine,
like a cloud of dew in the heat of harvest.”
Here the intense glare just before reaping symbolizes God’s watchful, patient sovereignty over the nations. Nehemiah’s wall-builders do not open Jerusalem’s gates “until the sun is hot” (Nehemiah 7:3), tying agricultural labor to civic vigilance.
Heat as a Test of Endurance
Job 6:17 notes that torrents “vanish when it is hot,” andJob 24:19 compares unrepentant sinners to snow consumed by “heat and drought.”Jeremiah 17:8 contrasts the godly man—“He will not fear when heat comes”—with barren shrubs. Heat exposes what is shallow and confirms what is rooted, making it a fitting symbol for trial.
Heat as Divine Judgment
Jeremiah 51:39 promises Babylon that when they are “inflamed” in revelry, the Lord will bring their feast to an end, a figurative “heat” that leads to death.Haggai 1:6 laments post-exilic indifference: “You put on clothes, but you are not warm,” a reversal in which physical heat is withheld to awaken spiritual zeal.
Pastoral and Ministry Applications
• Faithfulness. Just as earth’s cycles persist, so the believer trusts God’s unwavering promises (Genesis 8:22;Hebrews 13:8).
• Hospitality. Abraham’s response in oppressive heat models eagerness to serve (Genesis 18:1-8;Romans 12:13).
• Spiritual root. Enduring “heat” without withering mirrors the life of one whose “roots” are in God’s word (Jeremiah 17:7-8;Psalm 1).
• Vigilance. Strategic action often comes at daybreak before the sun burns high (1 Samuel 11;2 Samuel 4), reminding leaders to redeem early opportunities (Ephesians 5:16).
• Warning and hope. Heat can signify judgment (Jeremiah 51:39) or refinement (Malachi 3:3). The answer is not escape but deeper trust in the One who governs both sunshine and shadow.
Summary
The recurring motif of “heat” binds together creation, covenant, daily labor, warfare, agriculture, testing, and judgment. Each occurrence invites readers to recognize both the physical intensity of life under the sun and the spiritual realities it reflects—ultimately pointing to the God who shields, refines, and sustains His people in every season.
Forms and Transliterations
בְּ֝חֻמּ֗וֹ בְּחֹ֥ם בְּחֻמָּ֞ם בחם בחמו בחמם וָחֹ֜ם וחם חֹ֔ם חֹ֗ם חֹ֣ם חם כְּחֹ֣ם כְּחֹ֥ם כְּחֹ֣ם כחם לְחֹ֣ם לחם bə·ḥōm bə·ḥum·mām bə·ḥum·mōw beChom bechumMam bechumMo bəḥōm bəḥummām bəḥummōw chom ḥōm kə·ḥōm keChom kəḥōm lə·ḥōm leChom ləḥōm vaChom wā·ḥōm wāḥōm
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