My God and My Country

My Daily Meditation

Today’s Reading

The Epistle to the Hebrews

Chapter 12:1-2

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ

1 Wherefore, let us also, seeing that we are compassed with so great a cloud of witnesses, cast away everything that presseth down, and the sin that hangeth so fast on: let us run with patience the race that is set before us, (a)
2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him, endured the cross, and despised the shame, and is set at the right hand of the throne of God.

(a) Editor’s thought - The word compassed, meaning surrounded by, references the previous examples of the study in chapter 11, wherein the patriarchs and those that followed were men of great faith and endurance. More importantly, if we consider the Gospel of John, it speaks upon two witnesses, one is Christ and the other of the Father Himself. Both testify of his faithfulness in following the road to the cross which in turn provides salvation for all of us. 
Read John 8:13-20;  12:48-50; 14:9-11.  In particular, read vs 8:13 as to how Christ is without all exception the best witness of the truth, for he was sent by his Father for that purpose and in 8:18 we find that the Godhead is plainly distinguished from the manhood, else there were not two witnesses: for the party accused is not taken for a witness. This is to say, that in law according to man would not accept the testimony of the accused as a witness.  It would be as if a person accused of theft were saying I could  not have done it because I saw myself somewhere else. This is an alibi, but NOT a testimony by someone else who could confirm said alibi as a witness. In the law of man, a witness is an outside party who says they have seen it, the action, or could verify the accused as not being involved.