5:6 Then 1 I saw standing in the middle of the throne 2 and of the four living creatures, and in the middle of the elders, a Lamb that appeared to have been killed. 3 He had 4 seven horns and seven eyes, which 5 are the seven 6 spirits of God 7 sent out into all the earth.
15:2 Then 8 I saw something like a sea of glass 9 mixed with fire, and those who had conquered 10 the beast and his image and the number of his name. They were standing 11 by 12 the sea of glass, holding harps given to them by God. 13
1 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.
2 tn Perhaps, “in the middle of the throne area” (see L&N 83.10).
3 tn Or “slaughtered”; traditionally, “slain.” The phrase behind this translation is ὡς ἐσφαγμένον (Jw" ejsfagmenon). The particle ὡς is used in Greek generally for comparison, and in Revelation it is used often to describe the appearance of what the author saw. This phrase does not imply that the Lamb “appeared to have been killed” but in reality was not, because the wider context of the NT shows that in fact the Lamb, i.e., Jesus, was killed. See 13:3 for the only other occurrence of this phrase in the NT.
4 tn Grk “killed, having.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation by supplying the pronoun “he.”
5 sn The relative pronoun which is masculine, referring back to the eyes rather than to the horns.
6 tc There is good ms evidence for the inclusion of “seven” (ἑπτά, Jepta; Ì24 א 2053 2351 ÏK). There is equally good ms support for the omission of the term (A 1006 1611 ÏA pc). It may have been accidentally added due to its repeated presence in the immediately preceding phrases, or it may have been intentionally added to maintain the symmetry of the phrases or more likely to harmonize the phrase with 1:4; 3:1; 4:5. Or it may have been accidentally deleted by way of homoioteleuton (τὰ ἑπτά, ta Jepta). A decision is difficult in this instance. NA27 also does not find the problem easy to solve, placing the word in brackets to indicate doubts as to its authenticity.
7 sn See the note on the phrase the seven spirits of God in Rev 4:5.
8 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.
9 sn See Rev 4:6 where the sea of glass was mentioned previously.
10 tn Or “had been victorious over”; traditionally, “had overcome.”
11 tn Grk “of his name, standing.” A new sentence was started here in the translation by supplying the words “They were.”
12 tn Or “on.” The preposition ἐπί (epi) with the accusative case could mean “on, at, by, near”; given the nature of this scene appearing in a vision, it is difficult to know precisely which the author of Revelation intended. See BDAG 363 s.v. ἐπί 1.c.γ, “At, by, near someone or someth.”
13 tn Grk “harps of God.” The phrase τοῦ θεοῦ (tou qeou) has been translated as a genitive of agency.