Note: I am double-posting this from my own question on B-Greek for whomever would like to follow along or participate there.

mGNT 1 John 1:1-3

1 ὃ ἦν ἀπ’ ἀρχῆς ὃ ἀκηκόαμεν ὃ ἑωράκαμεν τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς ἡμῶν ὃ ἐθεασάμεθα καὶ αἱ χεῖρες ἡμῶν ἐψηλάφησαν περὶ τοῦ λόγου τῆς ζωῆς 2 καὶ ἡ ζωὴ ἐφανερώθη καὶ ἑωράκαμεν καὶ μαρτυροῦμεν καὶ ἀπαγγέλλομεν ὑμῖν τὴν ζωὴν τὴν αἰώνιον ἥτις ἦν πρὸς τὸν πατέρα καὶ ἐφανερώθη ἡμῖν 3 ὃ ἑωράκαμεν καὶ ἀκηκόαμεν ἀπαγγέλλομεν καὶ ὑμῖν ἵνα καὶ ὑμεῖς κοινωνίαν ἔχητε μεθ’ ἡμῶν καὶ ἡ κοινωνία δὲ ἡ ἡμετέρα μετὰ τοῦ πατρὸς καὶ μετὰ τοῦ υἱοῦ αὐτοῦ Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ

All of the translations seem to have "word of life" in John 1:1, etc., ala:

NIV That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life.

Now, in addition to my objection to the rendering of LOGOS as "Word" I am wondering if the last phrase should read "message", as in "the living message" or "living communication" or "living expression"? This seems to make much more sense to me. Is that a less natural reading or as natural?

I notice that later he seems to use "message we have heard from him":

1Jo 1:5 MGNT - 5 καὶ ἔστιν αὕτη ἡ ἀγγελία ἣν ἀκηκόαμεν ἀπ’ αὐτοῦ καὶ ἀναγγέλλομεν ὑμῖν ὅτι ὁ θεὸς φῶς ἐστιν καὶ σκοτία ἐν αὐτῷ οὐκ ἔστιν οὐδεμία

In verse 1 he says John says he is relating what he learned from his time associating with Christ. "What we have seen and heard, looked upon, handled...".

Relevant:

Jhn 1:18 KJV - 18 No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.

mGNT John 1:18 θεὸν οὐδεὶς ἑώρακεν πώποτε μονογενὴς θεὸς ὁ ὢν εἰς τὸν κόλπον τοῦ πατρὸς ἐκεῖνος ἐξηγήσατο

The word ἐξηγήσατο/"declared" is used in the LXX to refer to a man "describing" a dream:

Brenton Judges 7:13 And Gedeon came, and behold a man relating to his neighbour a dream, and he said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream, and behold, a cake of barley bread rolling into the camp of Madiam, and it came as far as a tent, and smote it, and it fell, and it turned it up, and the tent fell.

IE: He used words, probably hand motions to "paint a picture with words" regarding something that the other had never seen.

No one has seen God but, in his life and words Jesus described the one true God.

Other references to the messiah expressing the Father (IE: God):

Jhn 12:41; Jhn 14:9; Jhn 17:6,26; Gen 16:13; Gen 18:33; Gen 32:28-30; Gen 48:15,16; Exo 3:4-6; Exo 23:21; Exo 33:18-23; Exo 34:5-7; Num 12:8; Jos 5:13-15; Jos 6:1,2; Jdg 6:12-26; Jdg 13:20-23; Isa 6:1-3; Eze 1:26-28; Hos 12:3-5; Mat 11:27; Luk 10:22; 1Jo 5:20

What is "τοῦ λόγου τῆς ζωῆς"? The "Word of life"? Or, "the living message"?

Update:

Also relevant:

[Phl 2:14-16 KJV] (14) Do all things without murmurings and disputings: (15) That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world; (16) Holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain.

Possibly related:

[Act 13:46, 48 KJV] (46) Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, and said, It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles. ... (48) And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed.