Due to his noble actions that had saved many Elves in the Fall of Gondolin, he was re-embodied and dwelt in Valinor. Many years later, in SA 1600, Manwë sent him back to Middle-earth as an emissary of the Valar and granted him powers nearly as strong as those of the Maiar.
Glorfindel is greater than Elrond. But he is not considered greater than Galadriel or Cirdan. First Age Galadriel was greater than Glorfindel, and already in league with Feanor. These two kinsfolk (Galadriel and Feanor), the greatest of the Eldar in Valinor, were unfriends for ever.
Within the story, he is depicted as a powerful Elf-lord who could withstand the Nazgûl, wraith-like servants of Sauron, and holds his own against some of them single-handedly. Glorfindel and a version of the story of the Fall of Gondolin appear in The Silmarillion, posthumously published in 1977.
Why didn't Glorfindel fight in the War of the Ring?
Instead, Legolas (a Sindar Elf who had always lived in Middle-earth) was sent as the Elven representative. Thus, Glorfindel was ultimately excluded because the time of the Elf was over, just like Elrond had said.
Why was Glorfindel so Powerful? Middle-earth Explained
Were the Nazgûl afraid of Glorfindel?
The Nazgul were very afraid of Glorfindel and they fled from him. To signify the safety of the bridge, Glorfindel left a green stone. He chased the Nazgul westward and then southward. Among the Nazgul fleeing from him was the Witch-King.
In the present day, Glorfindel can be found in Rivendell just south of the Last Homely House. He is involved in the campaign against Angmar during the main story and also talks to the player after defeating the balrog Thaurlach.
Understanding the mystery, however, does require at least comprehending what we can. As Johnston summarizes: What we know about Bombadil is that he is a powerful and ancient being, older than Gandalf and older than the elves, and he has no interest in “trinkets” that are used to dominate others.
Defeated by the Host of Valinor in the War of Wrath, Morgoth was banished from Middle-earth into the Timeless Void, though it was prophesied that he would one day return.
Sauron is certainly a far more iconic villain in the general public's eye and one could definitely make the case that Sauron is very much the greatest villain that ever flowed from Tolkien's pen, regardless of his scale of power/evil.
Jackson replaced Glorfindel with Arwen in the movie to give her a bigger role. However, Arwen's lack of combat ability in the books made her absence expected. The Elves were leaving Middle-earth in Tolkien's story, so their focus was on defending their own people and settlements.
Glorfindel is featured in an extended flashback sequence depicting the War of the Last Alliance. During this time, he is the leader of the Bright Company, a group of High Elves who fighting to rid Middle-earth of Sauron's evil long before that war and who continue their duty long after.
Hail at last, Westman! Well met! So did Glorfindel greet Aragorn in Tolkien The Lord of the Rings, book I, chapter 12. Tolkien provided a translation for the second part only, in a letter to Rhona Beare (n° 230 in Humphrey Carpenter's edition).
Who is the strongest elf in the 3rd age, Elrond, Galadriel, or Cirdan? I would say Glorfindel is the most powerful elf of the Third Age. Glorfindel killed a Balrog and was then reincarnated in a brand new body in the third age with even more power and authority.
Elves like Fëanor, Glorfindel and Lúthien held their own against powerful foes. However, the strongest figure was an Elf by the name of Fingolfin -- and it's not even close.
For that matter, the Valar didn't have the authority to remove another Ainur's power. If they had had that authority, they would have stripped Morgoth of his power, rather than going to war with him so many times.
However, near the end, Morgoth had dispersed so much of his own power into the world, that (Tolkien wrote in a private letter) he was actually weaker than Sauron. Sauron made torture a specialty. Morgoth tortured people too, but Sauron was really into it.
In general, it is considered as accepted the theory that Tom is one of the Ainur, angelic beings who shaped the earth. In fact, Robert Foster's The Complete Guide to Middle-earth describes him as "a Maia 'gone native'".
The Ring has no effect on him because the Ring has nothing to offer him; time is already immortal, and neither good nor evil. He has no real concern because his existence will still be around whether or not Sauron gets the Ring back.
She also resisted being offered the ring of power by Frodo following his vision in the mirror of Galadriel, an immense test given the ring's seductive powers. Yet Gandalf's power level exceeds even that of Galadriel, as shown by his rebirth in the Two Towers.
In all of Tolkien's text I've read, there are three people who have killed a Balrog. Ecthellion, Glorfindel and of course Gandalf. All of these fights ended in a draw with all three sacrificing their lives for the deed.
The Elf Ecthelion leads the charge against the Orcs, and fights Gothmog, the greatest Balrog; they wound each other and both fall into the king's fountain in Gondolin; both drown.
The only recorded instances of Balrogs having been slain are Gandalf's slay of Durin's Bane, Echtelion's slay of Gothmog and Glorfindel's slay of an unnamed Balrog.
