Wahyu 1:5

1:5 and from Jesus Christ – the faithful ¹  witness, ²  the firstborn from among the dead, the ruler over the kings of the earth. To the one who loves us and has set us free ³  from our sins at the cost of ⁴  his own blood

Wahyu 2:24

2:24 But to the rest of you in Thyatira, all who do not hold to this teaching ⁵  (who have not learned the so-called “deep secrets ⁶  of Satan”), to you I say: I do not put any additional burden on you.

Wahyu 3:8

3:8 ‘I know your deeds. (Look! I have put ⁷  in front of you an open door that no one can shut.) ⁸  I know ⁹  that you have little strength, ¹⁰  but ¹¹  you have obeyed ¹²  my word and have not denied my name.

Wahyu 22:9

22:9 But ¹³  he said to me, “Do not do this! ¹⁴  I am a fellow servant ¹⁵  with you and with your brothers the prophets, and with those who obey ¹⁶  the words of this book. Worship God!”

[1:5]  ¹ tn Or “Jesus Christ – the faithful one, the witness…” Some take ὁ πιστός (Jo pistos) as a second substantive in relation to ὁ μάρτυς (Jo martus). In the present translation, however, ὁ πιστός was taken as an adjective in attributive position to ὁ μάρτυς. The idea of martyrdom and faithfulness are intimately connected. See BDAG 820 s.v. πιστός 1.a.α: “ὁ μάρτυς μου ὁ πιστός μου Rv 2:13 (μάρτυς 3); in this ‘book of martyrs’ Christ is ὁ μάρτυς ὁ πιστὸς (καὶ ὁ ἀληθινός) 1:5; 3:14; cp. 19:11 (the combination of ἀληθινός and πιστός in the last two passages is like 3 Macc 2:11). Cp. Rv 17:14.”

[1:5]  ² sn The Greek term translated witness can mean both “witness” and “martyr.”

[1:5]  ³ tc The reading “set free” (λύσαντι, lusanti) has better ms support (̹⁸ א A C 1611 2050 2329 2351 Ï^A sy) than its rival, λούσαντι (lousanti, “washed”; found in P 1006 1841 1854 2053 2062 Ï^K lat bo). Internally, it seems that the reading “washed” could have arisen in at least one of three ways: (1) as an error of hearing (both “released” and “washed” are pronounced similarly in Greek); (2) an error of sight (both “released” and “washed” look very similar – a difference of only one letter – which could have resulted in a simple error during the copying of a ms); (3) through scribal inability to appreciate that the Hebrew preposition ב can be used with a noun to indicate the price paid for something. Since the author of Revelation is influenced significantly by a Semitic form of Greek (e.g., 13:10), and since the Hebrew preposition “in” (ב) can indicate the price paid for something, and is often translated with the preposition “in” (ἐν, en) in the LXX, the author may have tried to communicate by the use of ἐν the idea of a price paid for something. That is, John was trying to say that Christ delivered us at the price of his own blood. This whole process, however, may have been lost on a later scribe, who being unfamiliar with Hebrew, found the expression “delivered in his blood” too difficult, and noticing the obvious similarities between λύσαντι and λούσαντι, assumed an error and then proceeded to change the text to “washed in his blood” – a thought more tolerable in his mind. Both readings, of course, are true to scripture; the current question is what the author wrote in this verse.

[1:5]  tn Or “and released us” (L&N 37.127).

[1:5]  ⁴ tn The style here is somewhat Semitic, with the use of the ἐν (en) + the dative to mean “at the price of.” The addition of “own” in the English is stylistic and is an attempt to bring out the personal nature of the statement and the sacrificial aspect of Jesus’ death – a frequent refrain in the Apocalypse.

[2:24]  ⁵ sn That is, the teaching of Jezebel (v. 20).

[2:24]  ⁶ tn Grk “deep things.” For the translation “deep secrets” see L&N 28.76; cf. NAB, NIV, CEV.

[3:8]  ⁷ tn Grk “I have given.”

[3:8]  ⁸ tn Grk “to shut it,” but English would leave the direct object understood in this case.

[3:8]  sn The entire statement is parenthetical, interrupting the construction found in other letters to the churches in 3:1 and 3:15, “I know your deeds, that…” where an enumeration of the deeds follows.

[3:8]  ⁹ tn This translation is based on connecting the ὅτι (Joti) clause with the οἶδα (oida) at the beginning of the verse, giving the content of what is known (see also 3:1, 3:15 for parallels). Because of the intervening clause that is virtually parenthetical (see the note on the word “shut” earlier in this verse), the words “I know that” from the beginning of the verse had to be repeated to make this connection clear for the English reader. However, the ὅτι could be understood as introducing a causal subordinate clause instead and thus translated, “because you have.”

[3:8]  ¹⁰ tn Or “little power.”

[3:8]  ¹¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.

[3:8]  ¹² tn Grk “and having kept.” The participle ἐτήρησας (ethrhsas) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style. For the translation of τηρέω (threw) as “obey” see L&N 36.19. This is the same word that is used in 3:10 (there translated “kept”) where there is a play on words.

[22:9]  ¹³ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present here.

[22:9]  ¹⁴ tn On the elliptical expression ὅρα μή ({ora mh) BDAG 720 s.v. ὁράω B.2 states: “Elliptically…ὅρα μή (sc. ποιήσῃς) watch out! don’t do that! Rv 19:10; 22:9.”

[22:9]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “fellow slave.” Though σύνδουλος (sundoulos) is here translated “fellow servant,” the word does not bear the connotation of a free individual serving another. See the note on the word “servants” in 1:1.

[22:9]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “keep” (an idiom for obedience).