Witnesses to God’s Glory

Hebrews 12:1-2

¹Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, ²looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

So much packed into one sentence. This is a picture of the past, present and future, all rolled into one thought. And there are even a couple of phrases that bring questions to mind and challenge what we think we know. The temptation is to move quickly through these two verses because of their familiarity but that’s a mistake. So we’ll take it phrase by phrase in order to soak up as much as possible.

“surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses” – This is probably the most challenging and oft misunderstood part of the whole passage. So, let’s break it down just a little and hope for clarity. The “cloud”  is used literally for any kind of cloud and metaphorically in theophanic contexts for the darkness that veils God’s presence and serves as a vehicle for his appearance on earth. Here νέφος may allude to the use of its cognate νεφέλη for the glory “cloud” that veiled the presence of God and overshadowed his people in the OT; that covered Peter, James, and John on the mount of transfiguration; that took the risen Lord Jesus from the sight of his disciples at his ascension; and that will be the vehicle for his return in glory.

Kleinig, J. W. ©2017. Hebrews. (p. 591). Saint Louis, MO: CPH.

John too mentions this great cloud of witnesses as he is granted a glimpse into the heavenlies.

Revelation 7:9-10

⁹After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, ¹⁰and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”

The use of the word cloud would build us a picture of the millions who have died in the faith before us. Now we come to the word “witnesses” and it demands clarification. I have heard many declare that this means those who have gone ahead of us are witnessing our lives here on earth. They are watching us. Not quite right. What they have witnessed is the power of God in their own lives and the face of Jesus as they await His return to get the rest of us. They are waiting for us to finish our own races, but not actually watching what we do while we’re here. Paradise would not be perfect if it were filled with the realities of our sin as we live here on earth. Those witnesses are currently giving praise to Jesus for His work of salvation and awaiting His Second Coming.

The previous chapter ended with the claim that none of those whom God had attested as people of faith had as yet reached his goal for them, their heavenly inheritance, because God had foreseen that they would not attain it apart from the congregation and all the other people of God. Then here in 12:1 comes an abrupt shift of perspective from the past to the present and from them to us. That shift relocates the people of faith in space and time from the past to here and now. The hearers of the author’s sermon are challenged to imagine three things about the host of faithful people in chapter 11. First, they have these people of faith “surrounding” them on all sides, like a huge crowd in a public place. Second, that crowd is like “a great cloud” that envelops them. Yet, unlike a cloud which hides what it envelops, it does not hide the hearers from plain sight but hides that crowd of witnesses from them. The witnesses are hidden from the congregation and invisible to them, just as Jesus, who is enthroned before them, is invisible to them, seen only by faith. Third, they surround the congregation as “witnesses” who not only testify about God to them in word and deed through the Scriptures, like Abel who still speaks (11:4), but who also, like spectators in a stadium who root for their team, support, appreciate, and urge them on as they wait for them to finish the race. Thus the congregation is called to revise its view of itself from a tiny, persecuted minority to a large team of highly regarded athletes. They have the support of that community as an eschatological gift from God, a good incentive for them to keep running.

Kleinig, J. W. (2017). Hebrews. (pp. 597–598). Saint Louis, MO: CPH.

Hebrews 12:1 encourages us to set aside every weight that might slow us down as we strive to live our lives in faith. That “weight” is sin – anything that trips us up and makes us fall. The emphasis here is not on any particular sin but on the effect of sin in general with its impurity as an impediment to the believers in their  race. That “weight” is the same word that refers to extra body fat. For some of us, there is a deep understanding of how hard it is to run with extra fat on your body! Those sins that weigh us down are just like that extra fat. And we are encouraged to run with perseverance. That is rather a tough word for us today, because I believe we are quick to give up. Perseverance is not something we see much anymore. Those who do persevere are often unique. But as believers, we are called upon to hang in there and keep running!

Finally, that endurance depends on “looking to … Jesus” as someone who, like the cloud of witnesses, is present with them as “the author and finisher of the faith.” We gain the capacity to endure in the race of faith by keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus rather than on fellow athletes as models of endurance.