Neuter of a compound of chalkos and libanos (in the implied mean of whiteness or brilliancy); burnished copper, an alloy of copper (or gold) and silver having a brilliant lustre -- fine brass.
χαλκολίβανον (so Suidas (but see Gaisf. edition under the word)), χαλκολιβανου, τό, more correctly χαλκολιβανος, χαλκολιβανου, ἡ (according to the reading as it ought to be restored ((but see the editions)) in Revelation 1:15ὡςἐνκαμίνῳπεπυρωμενη; cf. Düsterdieck's critical note (see Buttmann, 80 (69) note)), a word of doubtful meaning found only in Revelation 1:15, and , chalcolibanus, Vulg. aurichalcum or orichalcum (so manuscript Arafat. (al. aeric.); Luther Messing (R. V. burnished brass)); according to the testimony of an ancient Greek (Ansonius) in Salmasius (Exercitt. ad Solin., p. 810 a.: ὁλίβανοςἔχειτρίαεἴδηδένδρων, καίὁμένἄρρηνὀνομάζεταιχαλκολιβανος, ἡλιοειδήςκαίπυρρόςἤγουνξανθός), a certain kind of (yellow) frankincense; but both the sense of the passages in Rev and a comparison of Daniel 10:6 and Ezekiel 1:7, which seem to have been in the writer's thought, compel us to understand some metal, like gold if not more precious (cf. Hebrew חַשְׁמָל, a metal composed of gold and silver, Sept ἤλεκτρον, Vulg.electrum, Ezekiel 1:4, 27; Ezekiel 8:2); this interpretation is confirmed by the gloss of Suidas: εἶδοςἠλέκτρουτιμιώτερονχρυσοῦ, ἐστιδέτόἤλεκτρονἀλλοτυπονχρυσίονμεμιγμένονὕελωκαίλιθεία. The word is compounded, no doubt, of χαλκός and λίβανος, not of χαλκός and לָבָן, 'white.' Cf. Winer's RWB, under the word Metalle; Wetzel in the Zeitschr. f. d. luth. Theol. for 1869, p. 92ff; cf. Ewald, Johann. Schriften, ii., p. 117f; (Lee in the 'Speaker's Commentary' at the passage).
Revelation 1:15 - N-DNS GRK:αὐτοῦ ὅμοιοι χαλκολιβάνῳ ὡς ἐν NAS: [were] like burnished bronze, when KJV: like unto fine brass, as INT: of him like fine brass as in
Revelation 2:18 - N-DNS GRK:αὐτοῦ ὅμοιοι χαλκολιβάνῳ NAS: are like burnished bronze, says KJV: feet [are] like fine brass; INT: of him like fine brass
