That which was from the beginning, that which we have heard, that which we have seen with our eyes, that which we saw, and our hands touched, concerning the Word of life
The "word of life" probably refers to the message about Jesus Christ, namely, the gospel. [Note: Westcott, pp. 6-7; C. H. Dodd, The Johanine Epistles, pp. 3-6; and J. L. Houlden, A Commentary on the Johanine Epistles, pp. 50- 52.] John referred to Jesus as "the Word" in his Gospel, and he described Jesus claiming to be "the life" (John 14:6). The phrase "word of life" seems more likely to describe the message about the Person who is and who personifies life (cf. 1 John 1:2; Philippians 2:16; Acts 5:20). John probably spoke of Christ as "what" rather that "He" because John wanted to emphasize here the content of the message about Christ rather than the person of Christ.