The Pulpit Commentary — Hebrews — Section 362

regnrded under the imo.ge of athletes in the plante.n~, ut p~orsus e. cursu impediatar vel pe.lwstro., contending for e. prize. It is e. m med10 subs1stat aut corruat" Horneius favourite ime.ge with St. Pa.ul, not only, we quoted by Delitzsch.) The application of mo.y suppose, beco.use of its o.pproprfotoness, the whole figure to Christian e.thletes is not but e.lso beca.use of the probe.hie a.pprecia.tion ho.rd to understand. The encumbrances to or it by his ree.clers in consequence or the be_ laid a.si_de by _them, lest they should be genera.I interest ta.ken in the fe.mous go.mes weig~te_d Ill t_he1r _race, me.y include old (cf. I Cor. ix. 24, etc.; I Tim. vi. 12; a_ssoc10.hone, lmgena_g Jewish prejudices, 2 Tim. iv. 7). The icleo. in this first verse ties to the world, habits and custolllB which is that of e. ro.ce (-rplX"'P.'" a.-y,.iva). The whether or not in themselves blameless' word .,,.po1«lµ.e11011 (-rbv .,,.po1«lµ.e1101111µ.w a-y&va) might prove clogs e.nd hindrances. Thei:: is the usual one in the case of a contest the "ea.sily besetting sin" would be e.11 appointed in public ga.mes, though, of course, such e.s ~ght cling to ~hem personally, otherwise o.pplicable, as in eh. vi.18 and xii. 2. whether Ill the heart or m habits of life· "Every weight" (o-y,cov .,,.c£11Ta), which we which, if not got rid of, would be ever lik~ a.re to "lo.y a.side," or rather put off from us an encircling and impeding robe, cripplin.,. (a..,,.&9ea8,u), mea.ns, probably, in the figure, o.la.crity and a.rresting speed. But furthe;, e.ny heo.vy e.ccoutrement, or other incum- as runners, however unencumbered for the bre.nce, which the runner might he.ve a.bout race, require whe.t in modem pluase is him. Some, indeed, to.ke h,cov to denote called "pluck " to keep it up to the end, so "obesity"-e. sense in which the word is with the Christian e.thlete; for there will sometimes used, e.s by Hippocro.tes, Diodorus, e.lwe.ys be danger of his flagg-:ina: as his lElian-e.nd think the allusion is to the course goes on under trials and difficulties, training required of e.thletes for getting e.nd this especie.lly in times of peraecu tion. into condition. But the word a....08lµ.e1101 This further requirement is expressed by 6,' re.ther suggests e.s a.hove. In the word rl1roµ.ov,j,, "with endurance," i.e. through- t,.µ.ap-rlav, the.t follows, the figure is dropped, out to the end. Thus we have presented so a.s to mo.ke evident whe.t is mea.nt, but to us e. grand cooception of Christians still rete.ined e.pparently in the epithet being e.s athletes contending on the arena .~.,,.epla-ra-rov. This word, which is found of this present world for the crown of nc>where else either in biblical or classice.l immortality; and, e.s is expressed at the Greek, he.s to be interpreted from its deriva- beginning of the verse, under the eager tion, the analogy of simile.r words, e.nd the gaze of e. vast multitude of nnseen specta- context. The usue.l e.nd most probe.hie tors, corresponding to those in the crowded view is, deriving it from .,,.,p,ta-raa8a,, to see.ta, rising higher and higher, of an understand " the.t which easily surrounds ee.rthly a.mphithee.tre. These unseen spec- us" (equivalent to -r¾w ,,l,co}l.o,s .,,.,p,iu-raµ.frTJ" te.tors a.re the innumerable saints before ,jµ.iis). Thus Chrysostom: Ed.,,.•plu-ra.-rov us, who have finished their course and are -yo.p ,j t,.µ.ap-rla, .,,.c£11To8•11 ltr'Ta.µ.l1111, fµ.7rpou8•11, now at rest, but who a.re as it were in the lfma8•11, ,ca.l o~-ro,s ,jµ.iis ,ca-ra./3,$,}l.}l.011ua (Chry- e.ir around ne, we.tching ne from above with sostom, ' Hom.' ii. on 2 Cor.). Cf. .,,..pl,c«-ra., sympe.thy. The word "cloud" (vlq,os), duBlrna.11 ( eh. v. 2). It is true the.t other though applico.ble to e.ny great multitude, is verbe.ls, similarly derived from 1u-r11µ.1 or peculie.rly e.ppropriate here, as suggestiog its compounds, are not e.ctive, but intransi- .the idea of au o.eri11l compe.ny. The word tive or passive ; thus .,,..plu-ra.-ros mee.ns "witnesses," too (µ.lipn!pwv), though here "surrounded," not " surrounding ; " dire- most obviously to be understood in the plt1-rcrros means "unguarded,,, i.e. '' not sense of B•a.-ra.l, i.e. witnesses of our contest, surrounded.'' Still, as such verbe.ls derived m11y be intended to convey also, 11s it from other verbs a.re often o.ctive, this me.y certaioly suggests to the mind, its other be so here, and thus have o.n intelligible well-known mee.ning-thfl.t of witnesses to sense in connection with the context. We the foith, or martyrs (ci'. Acts :uii. 13; me.y underste.nd the figure of o. ro.ce to be Rev. ii. 13; xi. 3 ; xvii. 6). So the Fathers still kept in view, with rego.rd to the runner genero.lly understand it here. 'fhe so.ints not only le.ying a.side encumbrances, but before us, e.s they bore witness to God in also stripping himself of his clothes, which life so a.re conceived os witnesses also of would cling round him e.nd impede his our' like witness now, e.w11iting the clay course. (The idea. of close persona.I en- when, "not without us," they sho.11 be circlement thus supposetl to be expressed finally perfected. by ,J.,,.epla-ra.-rov seems better to suit the Ver. 2.-Looking unto the Author and figure, as e.lso the governing verb d...08,µ.•110,, Finisher ot our fe.ith (re.ther, the Leader, or tho.n the.t preferred by Delitzsch ; viz. of Captain, e.s in eh. ii. 10, and Perfecter of sin getting in o~r roo.d e.s we run, as might the fa:ith, o__r of faith-faith's Capt11in and surrounding obstacles in o.n notuo.1 rnoe: Completer), Jesus; who for the joy the.t was "l'eooo.to. ouuentem et implicll'!-t ao eup- set befor~ him endured the croas, despising  356 THE EPISTLE TO THE HERREWS. [CR. XU, 1-29.