Wahyu 1:1

The Prologue

1:1 The revelation of Jesus Christ, ¹  which God gave him to show his servants ²  what must happen very soon. ³  He made it clear ⁴  by sending his angel to his servant ⁵  John,

Wahyu 3:5

3:5 The one who conquers ⁶  will be dressed like them ⁷  in white clothing, ⁸  and I will never ⁹  erase ¹⁰  his name from the book of life, but ¹¹  will declare ¹²  his name before my Father and before his angels.

Wahyu 10:1

The Angel with the Little Scroll

10:1 Then ¹³  I saw another powerful angel descending from heaven, wrapped ¹⁴  in a cloud, with a rainbow above his head; his face was like the sun and his legs were like pillars of fire. ¹⁵ 

Wahyu 14:9

14:9 A ¹⁶  third angel ¹⁷  followed the first two, ¹⁸  declaring ¹⁹  in a loud voice: “If anyone worships the beast and his image, and takes the mark on his forehead or his hand,

[1:1]  ¹ tn The phrase ἀποκάλυψις ᾿Ιησοῦ Χριστοῦ (ajpokaluyi" Ihsou Cristou, “the revelation of Jesus Christ”) could be interpreted as either an objective genitive (“the revelation about Jesus Christ”), subjective genitive (“the revelation from Jesus Christ”), or both (M. Zerwick’s “general” genitive [Biblical Greek, §§36-39]; D. B. Wallace’s “plenary” genitive [ExSyn 119-21]). In 1:1 and 22:16 it is clear that Jesus has sent his angel to proclaim the message to John; thus the message is from Christ, and this would be a subjective genitive. On a broader scale, though, the revelation is about Christ, so this would be an objective genitive. One important point to note is that the phrase under consideration is best regarded as the title of the book and therefore refers to the whole of the work in all its aspects. This fact favors considering this as a plenary genitive.

[1:1]  ² tn Grk “slaves.” Although this translation frequently renders δοῦλος (doulos) as “slave,” the connotation is often of one who has sold himself into slavery; in a spiritual sense, the idea is that of becoming a slave of God or of Jesus Christ voluntarily. The voluntary notion is not conspicuous here; hence, the translation “servants.” In any case, the word does not bear the connotation of a free individual serving another. BDAG notes that “‘servant’ for ‘slave’ is largely confined to Biblical transl. and early American times…in normal usage at the present time the two words are carefully distinguished” (BDAG 260 s.v.). The most accurate translation is “bondservant” (sometimes found in the ASV for δοῦλος), in that it often indicates one who sells himself into slavery to another. But as this is archaic, few today understand its force.

[1:1]  ³ tn BDAG 992-93 s.v. τάχος has “quickly, at once, without delay Ac 10:33 D; 12:7; 17:15 D; 22:18; 1 Cl 48:1; 63:4…soon, in a short time…Rv 1:1; 22:6…shortly Ac 25:4.”

[1:1]  ⁴ tn Or “He indicated it clearly” (L&N 33.153).

[1:1]  ⁵ tn See the note on the word “servants” earlier in this verse.

[3:5]  ⁶ tn Or “who overcomes.”

[3:5]  ⁷ tn Grk “thus.”

[3:5]  ⁸ tn Or “white robes.”

[3:5]  ⁹ tn The negation here is with οὐ μή (ou mh), the strongest possible form of negation in Koine Greek.

[3:5]  ¹⁰ tn Or “will never wipe out.”

[3:5]  ¹¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.

[3:5]  ¹² tn Grk “will confess.”

[10:1]  ¹³ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.

[10:1]  ¹⁴ tn Or “clothed.”

[10:1]  ¹⁵ tn Or “like fiery pillars,” translating πυρός (puros) as an attributive genitive.

[14:9]  ¹⁶ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[14:9]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “And another angel, a third.”

[14:9]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “followed them.”

[14:9]  ¹⁹ tn For the translation of λέγω (legw) as “declare,” see BDAG 590 s.v. 2.e.