Greek word · G381
ἀνάπτω
anaptō
to kindle
To light, kindle, set on fire. Figuratively, to stir up (anger, conflict).
Appears 2 times in 2 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·
What it means
From G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament (1922), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).
In depth
- Range of meaning
To light, kindle, set on fire. Figuratively, to stir up (anger, conflict).
- Against the English
'Kindled' (KJV, BSB, ESV, NASB, WEB, YLT) is exact. NLT's 'burning' describes the result rather than the act of catching fire.
- Used elsewhere in the period
Rare in the New Testament: here and James 3:5 ('how great a forest a small fire kindles'). In the Septuagint it is used of kindling fire, including fire as divine anger (e.g., Ps 77:21 LXX, 'fire was kindled against Jacob' [ἀνήφθη], translating Hebrew 'was kindled').
Where it appears
Luke · 1
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Luke 12:49 ἀνήφθη. it be kindled!
I have come to ignite a fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled!
Here: Aorist passive: 'were kindled / had caught fire.' With εἰ in a wish, the past-tense form marks the wish as not yet fulfilled. The passive leaves the kindler unnamed, perhaps quietly pointing to God. In verse 50 the kindling is tied to the 'baptism' Jesus must first undergo.
James · 1
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James 3:5 ἀνάπτει· it kindles;
In the same way, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it boasts of great things. Consider how small a spark sets a great forest ablaze.
Here: "Sets ablaze": the small fire is the one doing the kindling, and the huge forest is what it sets alight.
Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.