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Witness

Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible

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Concordances
Nave Topical Bible
• Witness
Thompson Chain Reference
• Witnessing to the Truth
• Witnesses, False
• Witnesses
•   (only first 3 shown)
The Topic Concordance
• Witness
Treasury of Biblical Knowledge
• Witness
• Moon, or Rainbow, As Witness
Torrey Topical Textbook
• Witness of the Holy Spirit
Dictionaries
American Tract Society
• Witness
• Wit
Bridgeway Bible Dictionary
• Witness
Baker's Evangelical Dictionary
• Witness
Easton's Bible Dictionary
• Witness of the Spirit
• Witness
Fausset Bible Dictionary
• Witnesses
Holman Bible Dictionary
• Witness, Martyr
Hastings' BibleDictionary
• Witness
• Wit
Hastings' NT Dictionary
• Witness (2)
• Witness
• False Witness
•   (only first 3 shown)
King James Dictionary
• Witnessing
• Witnessed
• Witness
•   (only first 3 shown)
Morrish Bible Dictionary
• Witness
• Wit, to, Wot, Wist
• Wit, to
1910 New Catholic Dictionary
• Witness, Faithful
• Faithful Witness
Hawker's Poor Man's Dictionary
• Witness
Smith Bible Dictionary
• Witness
Vines' Expository Dictionary
• Witness
• Wit
• Witness
Webster Dictionary
• Sodden-Witted
• Slow-Witted
• Sharp-Witted
•   (only first 3 shown)
Encyclopedias
1911 Encyclopedia Britannica
• George Augustus Selwyn (Wit)
• Witness
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
• False Swearing, Witness
• Tabernacle of Testimony (Witness)
• Witness
•   (only first 3 shown)
Kitto Biblical Cyclopedia
• Witness
McClintock and Strong's Bible Encyclopedia
• Witness
• Witness of the Spirit
• Witness, False.
•   (only first 3 shown)
The Catholic Encyclopedia
• Witness
The Jewish Encyclopedia
• False Witness
• Witness
Lexicons
• ܚܰܙܳܝܳܐ
• ܣܗܶܕ݂
• ܣܳܗܕ݁ܳܐ
• ἀμάρτυρος
• γνωρίζω
• διαμαρτύρομαι
•   (only first 3 shown)
• אוֹת
• חָכְמָה
• עֵד
•   (only first 3 shown)

WITNESS . This is the rendering of Heb. ‘çd and ‘çdah and of the Gr. martys, martyria , and martyreô , and compounds of this root. The primitive idea of the Heb. root is to repeat, re-assert, and we find the word used in the following connexions: (1) Witness meaning evidence , testimony , sign (of things): a heap of stones ( Genesis 31:44 ), the Song of Moses ( Deuteronomy 31:26 ), Job’s disease ( Job 16:8 ), the stone set up by Joshua at Shechem ( Joshua 24:27 ). So in the NT the dust on the feet of the disciples was to be a witness against the Jews ( Mark 6:11 ). (2) Witness signifying the person who witnesses or can testify or vouch for the parties in debate; e.g . God is witness between Jacob and Laban ( Genesis 31:50 ); so Job says, ‘My witness is in heaven’ ( Job 16:19 , cf. also 1 Samuel 12:5 ff., Jeremiah 29:23; Jeremiah 42:5 ). In the NT God is called on by St. Paul to witness to his truth and the purity of his motives ( Romans 1:9 , 2 Corinthians 1:23 etc.). Akin to this meaning we have (3) Witness in a legal sense . Thus we find witnesses to an act of conveyancing ( Jeremiah 32:10 ), to a betrothal ( Ruth 4:9 ), while in all civil and criminal cases there were witnesses to give evidence, and references to false witnesses are frequent (cf. Proverbs 12:17; Proverbs 19:5-9; Proverbs 21:28; Proverbs 25:18 etc.). See also Justice (II.), 2; Oaths. In the NT the Apostles frequently appear as witnesses ( martyres ) of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus ( Luke 24:48 , Acts 1:8; Acts 2:32; Acts 3:15 etc.). The heroes of the faith are called the ‘cloud of witnesses’ ( Hebrews 12:1 ), and Jesus Himself is ‘the faithful witness ( martyr )’ in Revelation 1:6; Revelation 3:14 (cf. 1 Timothy 6:13 ). Cf. also artt. Ark, § 1; Tabernacle, § 7 ( a ).

W. F. Boyd.