Who or what does the relative pronoun refer to at 1 John 1:1

[B Tucker]

Here's the Greek:

Ὃ ἦν ἀπ' ἀρχῆς, ὃ ἀκηκόαμεν, ὃ ἑωράκαμεν τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς ἡμῶν, ὃ ἐθεασάμεθα καὶ αἱ χεῖρες ἡμῶν ἐψηλάφησαν, περὶ τοῦ λόγου τῆς ζωῆς ...

Question: Who or what does Ὃ refer to in 1 John 1:1? Professor Herbert W. Bateman, IV gives us three options in his A Workbook for Intermediate Greek: Grammar, Exegesis, and Commentary on 1-3 John. Here it is:

The relative pronoun could refer to "the Word" in the phrase "the Word of life". "This "Word," like the "Word" in John's Gospel ( 1:1) was from the beginning. But as you already know, the relative in the phrase is neuter and not the masculine form you might expect in order to be in agreement with Logos. This view is not impossible (W 336-45), but it remains an awkward grammatical construction (HJS, 21-22).

Another possibility is that the relative pronoun refers to "life," which als occurs in the prepositional phrase of verse 1. However "life" also lacks agreement with the pronoun , and this along with the awkward grammatical construction, may argue against this view.

It is probable that the relative pronoun refers to Jesus and his whole career (perhaps as it is described in the GJohn). All the relative pronouns in vv. 1-3 appear to be a comprehensive reference to the Incarnation of Jesus, whose existence as a man and career the author "witnessed" and thereby bears "testimony" about to his readers (Brown, 154). Thus the object of the author's proclamation is the person, words, and deeds of Jesus (NET). So then, in your own words, what do the relative clauses refer to in vv. 1-3?

So the three options are --

(A) Relative pronoun refers to λόγου

(B) relative pronoun refers to ζωῆς

(C) Relative pronoun refers to "Jesus and his whole career (perhaps as it is described in the GJoh).'

Which option from above do the readers prefer and why, or if none of the above , present option (D).

Hoping for a lively discussion.

[AlphaBravo]

how are you typing in greek???

[AlphaBravo]

Well I'm sure you were hoping for an answer based on the greek grammatical rules, but based on the english translation I would say:

(D) The same thing that the relative pronouns "these" and "this" refer to in I John 1:4,5, namely the "things written unto you" and the "message which we have heard of him and declare unto you". The object is never supplied until verses 4 and 5.

[BookerG]

I would say it probably comes closest to the third choice. You might say it ties together their testimony, all that they have heard and seen, and the object, the reality of what they have heard and seen. We testify. Our testimony is a true reflection of our memories of seeing and hearing. Our seeing and hearing are a witness to a truth-- a message and a Messenger from God. And at the heart of it all is the Word of Life, which everything else revolves around and points to.
Specifically, the neuter "what" is used instead of "who" because their witness and their testimony include more than just the person of Jesus. It includes his ministry, his miracles, his fulfillment of prophecy, his whole life from the beginning. I admit I'm a little puzzled by "What was from the beginning." Whether that points to Christ's preexistence (but John didn't witness that), or the beginning of Christ's life. Or maybe it's just saying our testimony has not changed; what we tell you today is exactly what we originally heard and saw..

[John Reece]

From The Johannine Letters (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1995), by Georg Strecker:

It becomes evident at this point that the relative ὅ that appears four times in verse 1, despite the neuter form and despite the fact that it is paraphrased with the περί- expression in verse 1b, in truth refers to nothing other than the Christ event to which the author testifies. Although the concept of λόγος should be translated in the first instance as "word," so that the genitive can be understood as objective ("word of life"), one still cannot exclude an epexegetical¹ or qualitative² sense. This indicates that the genitive ζωῆς does not necessarily reduce λόγος to an impersonal meaning ("word"), but rather that the Logos can also be considered here as a person; for the life-giving power belongs not only to the proclaiming word but also to Christ as the preexistent and incarnate Logos.³ That the interpretation of λόγος as a person cannot be eliminated is suggested by the parallels to the Johannine prologue .... This conclusion is further suggested by the absolute usage τὸν ἀπ᾿ ἀρχῆς in 1 John 2:13-14. Accordingly, the author's message concerns not only the life and work but also the person of Jesus Christ. If to speak of the person of Jesus Christ means at the same time to speak of the work and mission, the "cause" of Jesus Christ, it is equally true that the "cause" of Jesus Christ cannot be separated from his person. In the message of 1 John both the person and the "cause" of Jesus Christ are united in one.

¹Cf. BDF §167 (an appositive genitive), "the word that is life."
²Cf. BDF §165 (also a descriptive or adjectival genitive), "the word that is characterized by life," the living or life-giving word. See, correspondingly, John 6:35 (bread of life); 8:12 (light of life); Rev. 21:6; 22:1, 17 (water of life).
³Cf. Schnackenburg, Epistles, 57: "The phrase 'concerning the word of life' [περὶ τοῦ λόγου τῆς ζωῆς], which disturbs the balance of the sentence, can be explained as due to the urgent need for qualification. As far as the content goes, both phrases may be making the same point, the one at the beginning and the other at the end of verse 1. The preexistent Logos, and subsequently the incarnate One, incorporates in himself the fullness of the divine life, an idea that is no more clarified here than it is in [the Gospel of John]."

[B Tucker]

From The Johannine Letters (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1995), by Georg Strecker:

It becomes evident at this point that the relative ὅ that appears four times in verse 1, despite the neuter form and despite the fact that it is paraphrased with the περί- expression in verse 1b, in truth refers to nothing other than the Christ event to which the author testifies. Although the concept of λόγος should be translated in the first instance as "word," so that the genitive can be understood as objective ("word of life"), one still cannot exclude an epexegetical¹ or qualitative² sense. This indicates that the genitive ζωῆς does not necessarily reduce λόγος to an impersonal meaning ("word"), but rather that the Logos can also be considered here as a person; for the life-giving power belongs not only to the proclaiming word but also to Christ as the preexistent and incarnate Logos.³ That the interpretation of λόγος as a person cannot be eliminated is suggested by the parallels to the Johannine prologue .... This conclusion is further suggested by the absolute usage τὸν ἀπ᾿ ἀρχῆς in 1 John 2:13-14. Accordingly, the author's message concerns not only the life and work but also the person of Jesus Christ. If to speak of the person of Jesus Christ means at the same time to speak of the work and mission, the "cause" of Jesus Christ, it is equally true that the "cause" of Jesus Christ cannot be separated from his person. In the message of 1 John both the person and the "cause" of Jesus Christ are united in one.

¹Cf. BDF §167 (an appositive genitive), "the word that is life."
²Cf. BDF §165 (also a descriptive or adjectival genitive), "the word that is characterized by life," the living or life-giving word. See, correspondingly, John 6:35 (bread of life); 8:12 (light of life); Rev. 21:6; 22:1, 17 (water of life).
³Cf. Schnackenburg, Epistles, 57: "The phrase 'concerning the word of life' [περὶ τοῦ λόγου τῆς ζωῆς], which disturbs the balance of the sentence, can be explained as due to the urgent need for qualification. As far as the content goes, both phrases may be making the same point, the one at the beginning and the other at the end of verse 1. The preexistent Logos, and subsequently the incarnate One, incorporates in himself the fullness of the divine life, an idea that is no more clarified here than it is in [the Gospel of John]."

This is option (C).