Note to Gamlkan Jóndr 1VII
[6] brjót*: The ms. reading is ‘brjotr’ (nom. sg.). The subject of the sentence is the kenning siklingr ranns sólar ‘lord of the hall of the sun’ [SKY/HEAVEN > = God (= Christ)]; since the st. is addressed to S. John, it is to be expected that he be mentioned in the second part of the st. as well as in the first. All eds since Bugge therefore emend the nom. form brjótr to the dat. sg. brjót* (1874, 933 n. 3) assuming a m. dat. sg. a-stem noun without dat. ending -i (ANG §358.3). The man-kenning brjót seima ‘breaker of gold wires’ [GENEROUS MAN] then designates the Apostle John and forms part of the indirect object in the construction unni mætra lífs seima brjót ok móður sinni ‘granted a more worthy life to the breaker of gold wires [GENEROUS MAN = John] and to his mother’.