Revelation 1:15-16

1:15 His feet were like polished bronze ¹  refined ²  in a furnace, and his voice was like the roar ³  of many waters. 1:16 He held ⁴  seven stars in his right hand, and a sharp double-edged sword extended out of his mouth. His ⁵  face shone like the sun shining at full strength.

[1:15]  ¹ tn The precise meaning of the term translated “polished bronze” (χαλκολιβάνῳ, calkolibanw), which appears nowhere else in Greek literature outside of the book of Revelation (see 2:18), is uncertain. Without question it is some sort of metal. BDAG 1076 s.v. χαλκολίβανον suggests “fine brass/bronze.” L&N 2.57 takes the word to refer to particularly valuable or fine bronze, but notes that the emphasis here and in Rev 2:18 is more on the lustrous quality of the metal.

[1:15]  ² tn Or “that has been heated in a furnace until it glows.”

[1:15]  ³ tn Grk “sound,” but the idea is closer to the roar of a waterfall or rapids.

[1:16]  ⁴ tn Grk “and having.” In the Greek text this is a continuation of the previous sentence, but because contemporary English style employs much shorter sentences, a new sentence was started here in the translation by supplying the pronoun “he.”

[1:16]  ⁵ tn This is a continuation of the previous sentence in the Greek text, but a new sentence was started here in the translation.