ξύλον (xulon) in Revelation 22:14: Noun Accusative Singular Neuter
ξύλον (xulon) in Revelation 22:14
Textual Witness
The text of Revelation 22:14 in this witness reads ἐπὶ τὸ ξύλον τῆς ζωῆς, so the form is embedded in a promise-shaped clause about blessedness and entry.
How The Form Affects Interpretation
The form supports a promise of access linked to the tree of life, but the surrounding wording does the main interpretive work, so the grammar should be read as supportive rather than controlling.
How To Communicate It
In teaching or translation notes, this form can be explained as the object of ἐπὶ within the phrase about the tree of life, helping readers hear the verse as a promise of entrance and blessed participation.
What Not To Say
- Grammatical form should serve context, not override it.
- The neuter gender of the noun is grammatical, not a theological gender statement.
- Do not overclaim from case, number, or gender alone when the phrase and verse context are decisive.
What Does The Label Mean?
Noun: the word names a concrete thing or object, here a tree or wood imagery term depending on context.
Accusative: the form usually marks a direct object or a prepositional object, and here it sits after ἐπὶ in the clause.
Singular: the form is grammatically singular in this occurrence, so the phrase points to one referent in the scene or image.
Neuter: the noun belongs to the neuter grammatical class, which helps agreement but does not by itself carry a theological gender claim.
What The Form Does In This Verse
ἐπὶ τὸ ξύλον τῆς ζωῆς
The accusative is governed by the preposition ἐπὶ in the phrase, so the form helps locate the noun within the movement of the sentence rather than standing alone.
It functions as the object of the preposition within the expression about access or relation to the tree of life, and the surrounding genitive phrase narrows the meaning.
It is not the main subject of the verse, and the form by itself does not decide whether the image is being used in a literal or symbolic way.
How Much The Form Matters Here
High: The prepositional accusative phrase identifies the tree of life as the access point in the blessing promise.
Accusative noun governed by ἐπὶ in an access phrase. marks the tree of life as the reference point for access or right in the blessing. Attached to ἐπὶ τὸ ξύλον τῆς ζωῆς. Governed by ἐπὶ. The noun must be read with the genitive of life and the preposition rather than as a standalone object.
What does the blessing give access to? The prepositional phrase points to the tree of life as the promised access point.
Direct: The phrase directly affects rendering access to or right to the tree of life.
The form is the object of a preposition, not the main subject of the verse. The genitive of life narrows the phrase and should remain part of the interpretation. The grammar supports the access phrase but does not decide every question about the image's literal or symbolic force.
Accusative always means direct object: Here the accusative is governed by ἐπὶ and functions inside a prepositional phrase. wood gloss controls the tree-of-life phrase: The phrase and Revelation context determine the tree-of-life reference, not a raw gloss in isolation.
How The Interpretation Is Derived
The text of Revelation 22:14 in this witness reads ἐπὶ τὸ ξύλον τῆς ζωῆς, so the form is embedded in a promise-shaped clause about blessedness and entry.
The lemma ξύλον can denote wood, a piece of wood, a staff, a cross, or a tree, and the phrase here is guided by the larger expression τῆς ζωῆς.
The accusative form works with ἐπὶ to place the noun inside the prepositional phrase, and the genitive of life specifies the image without forcing a narrower sense than the context supplies.
In this verse, the form contributes to the picture of blessed people having rightful access associated with the tree of life and then entering the city through its gates.
The same phrase appears in Revelation 2:7 and 22:2, 14, 19, so this form fits a broader biblical pattern of life-giving tree imagery without reducing the image to one later doctrinal label.
For readers, the grammar helps identify the promise as relational and directional: access, attachment, or placement connected to the tree of life rather than a standalone object list.
Do not derive from the case or number alone that the noun must mean cross, staff, or tree, and do not let morphology override the immediate phrase and verse context.