2739. kaumatizó
Lexical Summary
kaumatizó: To scorch, to burn, to be burned with heat

Original Word: καυματίζω
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: kaumatizó
Pronunciation: kow-mah-TID-zo
Phonetic Spelling: (kow-mat-id'-zo)
KJV: scorch
NASB: scorched, scorch
Word Origin: [from G2738 (καῦμα - heat)]

1. to burn

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
scorch.

From kauma; to burn -- scorch.

see GREEK kauma

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
from kauma
Definition
to burn up
NASB Translation
scorch (1), scorched (3).

Thayer's Greek Lexicon
STRONGS NT 2739: καυματίζω

καυματίζω: 1 aorist infinitive καυματίσαι; 1 aorist passive ἐκαυματίσθην; (καῦμα); to burn with heat, to scorch: τινα, with ἐν πυρί added, Revelation 16:8; passive, Matthew 13:6; Mark 4:6; with addition of καῦμα μέγα (see ἀγαπάω under the end for examples and references), to be tortured with intense heat, Revelation 16:9. (Antoninus 7, 64; Epictetus diss. 1, 6, 26; 3, 22, 52; of the heat of fever, Plutarch, mor., p. 100 d. (de cert. et vit. 1), 691 e. (quaest. conviv. 6:2, 6).)

Topical Lexicon
Overview of the Verb’s Imagery

Strong’s Greek 2739 depicts the effect of an intense, drying heat that singes or chars. In Scripture this “scorching” is never a mere meteorological note; it becomes a spiritual signpost—either exposing shallow roots or unrepentant hearts.

Occurrences and Contexts in the New Testament

1. Matthew 13:6
2. Mark 4:6
3. Revelation 16:8
4. Revelation 16:9

In the Gospels, the verb appears in the Parable of the Sower; in Revelation it punctuates the fourth bowl judgment. The shift from agrarian figure to apocalyptic reality forms a literary and theological arc from present testing to final wrath.

Agricultural Imagery in the Parable of the Sower

Matthew 13:6 records, “But when the sun rose, they were scorched, and because they had no root, they withered.” The same picture is repeated in Mark 4:6.
• The “sun” symbolizes tribulation or persecution (Matthew 13:21).
• The withering plant depicts a hearer whose initial enthusiasm lacks depth.
• Scorching heat therefore functions as an agent of discernment, separating genuine disciples from transient listeners.

Pastoral takeaway: hardship is not the enemy of faith but the revealer of its authenticity (compare James 1:2-4).

Eschatological Judgment in Revelation

Revelation 16:8-9: “The fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and it was given power to scorch the people with fire. And the people were scorched by intense heat, and they cursed the name of God… yet they did not repent.”
• What was metaphorical in the parable becomes literal and global.
• The same physical agent—solar heat—now operates as divine retribution.
• The judgment is moral: those scorched “did not repent,” underscoring human culpability even under unmistakable warnings (compare Romans 2:4-5).

Theological Themes: Testing, Judgment, and Repentance

1. Testing refines believers (1 Peter 1:6-7) but exposes the rootless.
2. Judgment vindicates God’s holiness (Revelation 16:5-7).
3. Repentance remains offered; refusing it intensifies accountability (Proverbs 29:1).

Historical Interpretation and Patristic Commentary

• John Chrysostom saw the scorching in the parable as “heat of persecution” permitted by God to sift the church.
• Augustine linked the bowl judgments to Exodus plagues, emphasizing continuity in divine dealings.
• Medieval commentators read Revelation 16 as a future, literal event, contrasting the preserved saints (Revelation 7:16) with the cursed earth-dwellers.

Practical Application for Ministry

• Disciple-making: cultivate depth—prayer, doctrine, fellowship—so believers withstand the “sun.”
• Preaching: warn of coming judgment yet hold out mercy; Revelation 16:9 shows the tragedy of unrepentance, not its inevitability.
• Pastoral care: help sufferers interpret trials as refining, not punitive, when they are in Christ (Hebrews 12:5-11).

Related Biblical Motifs

• Protective shade—Psalm 121:6; Isaiah 49:10—promises covenant relief from scorching for the faithful.
• Fiery trial—1 Peter 4:12—echoes the same purifying logic.
• Eternal security—Revelation 7:16 contrasts the sealed servants who “will never again be scorched by the heat.”

Conclusion

Strong’s 2739 threads a warning through Scripture: the same heat that reveals fruitless faith will one day execute final judgment. Wise readers cultivate deep roots now and call others to repent before temporary testing becomes everlasting fire.

Forms and Transliterations
εκαυματισθη εκαυματίσθη ἐκαυματίσθη εκαυματισθησαν εκαυματίσθησαν ἐκαυματίσθησαν καυματισαι καυματίσαι ekaumatisthe ekaumatisthē ekaumatísthe ekaumatísthē ekaumatisthesan ekaumatisthēsan ekaumatísthesan ekaumatísthēsan kaumatisai kaumatísai
Links
Interlinear GreekInterlinear HebrewStrong's NumbersEnglishman's Greek ConcordanceEnglishman's Hebrew ConcordanceParallel Texts
Englishman's Concordance
Matthew 13:6 V-AIP-3S
GRK: δὲ ἀνατείλαντος ἐκαυματίσθη καὶ διὰ
NAS: had risen, they were scorched; and because
KJV: was up, they were scorched; and
INT: moreover having risen they were scorched and because of

Mark 4:6 V-AIP-3S
GRK: ὁ ἥλιος ἐκαυματίσθη καὶ διὰ
NAS: had risen, it was scorched; and because
KJV: was up, it was scorched; and
INT: the sun it was scorched and because of

Revelation 16:8 V-ANA
GRK: ἐδόθη αὐτῷ καυματίσαι τοὺς ἀνθρώπους
NAS: and it was given to it to scorch men
KJV: unto him to scorch men
INT: it was given to it to scorch the men

Revelation 16:9 V-AIP-3P
GRK: καὶ ἐκαυματίσθησαν οἱ ἄνθρωποι
NAS: Men were scorched with fierce heat;
KJV: And men were scorched with great heat,
INT: And were scorched the men

Strong's Greek 2739
4 Occurrences


ἐκαυματίσθη — 2 Occ.
ἐκαυματίσθησαν — 1 Occ.
καυματίσαι — 1 Occ.

2738
Top of Page
Top of Page