To heat (oneself)
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Θερμαίνω (thermaínō) means to warm or keep oneself warm. In the Gospel passion narratives it describes Peter sitting or standing with servants and officers near a fire while Jesus is being examined (Mark 14:54, 67; John 18:18).
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Full entry for θερμαίνω (G2328) · Open the biblical lexicon
Θερμαίνω (thermaínō) means to warm or keep oneself warm. In the Gospel passion narratives it describes Peter sitting or standing with servants and officers near a fire while Jesus is being examined (Mark 14:54, 67; John 18:18).
The BSB source-word alignment has 6 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include warming himself (2), stay warm (1), to keep warm (1), warmed himself (1), warming himself [there] (1).
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Mark 14:54. Its strongest book concentrations include John (3), Mark (2), James (1).
Θερμαίνω (thermaínō) means to warm or keep oneself warm. In the Gospel passion narratives it describes Peter sitting or standing with servants and officers near a fire while Jesus is being examined (Mark 14:54, 67; John 18:18). John identifies the fire as a charcoal fire and places Peter among those connected to the arresting authorities. The bodily need is ordinary, but the setting becomes the place where questions about Peter's allegiance expose his fear.
James 2:16 uses the verb in a different way. Telling a poorly clothed person to stay warm without providing what the body needs is useless speech. There, warmth represents a concrete need that must be met through active mercy. The word itself does not make comfort sinful, nor does it imply that Peter's physical warming caused his denial.
Faithful teaching attends to embodied need and moral setting together. People need warmth, food, shelter, and safety. Churches must provide practical care rather than slogans. They should also help disciples recognize how fear, social belonging, and proximity to hostile power can shape speech. Comfort is a gift, but it must not become the price for hiding association with Jesus or abandoning vulnerable people.
The verb describes Peter warming himself during Jesus' examination and James' demand that words of peace become tangible care for bodily need.
Peter followed Him at a distance, right into the courtyard of the high priest. And he sat with the officers and warmed himself by the fire.
Peter's distant following and place among the officers establish the setting for his denial.
And saw him warming himself there. She looked at Peter and said, “You also were with Jesus the Nazarene.”
The ordinary act locates Peter when his association with Jesus is challenged.
Because it was cold, the servants and officers were standing around a charcoal fire they had made to keep warm. And Peter was also standing with them, warming himself.
John gives the physical reason for the fire while emphasizing Peter's place among those present during Jesus' hearing.
If one of you tells him, “Go in peace; stay warm and well fed,” but does not provide for his physical needs, what good is that?
Verbal blessing without material help fails to embody the faith James commends.
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders ItA compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
Greek word. to heat (oneself)
Textus Receptus witness, full corpus Greek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
6 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
I warm
Read verseI warm
Read verseI warm
Read verseI warm
Read verseI warm
Read verseI warm
Read verseFull New Testament corpus: 260 chapters, 7,957 verses, 140,628 tokens. Data source: honza/textus-receptus (data only), with authority check against byztxt/greektext-textus-receptus.
How this verb appears across 4 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
Aspect reflects grammatical form — not authorial emphasis. Participles and infinitives are verbal adjectives and nouns respectively.
Clause data: MACULA Greek (Clear Bible, CC BY 4.0) · SBLGNT (Logos/SBL, CC BY 4.0)
θερμαίνω is built from this root:
Peter warms himself because the night is cold. John does not condemn the need, yet the charcoal fire becomes the setting where fear governs Peter's speech. James turns the same ordinary need into a test of living faith: telling a poorly clothed person to stay warm without providing help is useless. Together the passages keep discipleship embodied. Churches must care about shelter, clothing, food, and safety, not only spiritual slogans.
They must also prepare believers for situations where comfort, belonging, or social acceptance competes with truthful identification with Jesus. The answer is not contempt for bodily needs, but a community whose practical mercy and courageous witness reinforce one another.
John.18.18
The verb names warming and can be active or reflexive in sense. The moral significance lies in the person's situation and response, not in warmth itself.
Torah and wisdom command tangible care for the poor and exposed. The passion narrative adds the human frailty of a disciple seeking warmth while facing pressure to confess Jesus.
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Berean Standard Bible (BSB) source-word alignment - CC0 Public Domain