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Bible Encyclopedias
Witness
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
or
The Mosaic Law insisted on the absolute necessity of witnesses in all cases which came before a judge, especially in criminal cases. Not only in criminal cases, but in all cases, it was necessary to have at least two witnesses to make good an accusation against a person (Deuteronomy 17:6; Deuteronomy 19:15; compare Numbers 35:30; Matthew 18:16; John 8:17; 2 Corinthians 13:1; 1 Timothy 5:19 ). According to the Talmud (
On the other hand, anyone who, being present at the adjuration (Leviticus 5:1 the Revised Version (British and American)), refused to come forward as a witness when he had testimony to bear, was considered to have sinned ( Proverbs 29:24 ). Among those not qualified to be witnesses were the near relations of the accuser or the accused, friends and enemies, gamesters, usurers, tax-gatherers, heathen, slaves, women and those not of age (
No oath was required from witnesses. The meaning of Leviticus 5:1 was not that witnesses had to take an oath, as some think; it describes the solemn adjuration of the judge to all those with knowledge of the case to come forward as witnesses (see OATH ). When a criminal was to be put to death, the witnesses against him were to take the foremost share in bringing about his death (Deuteronomy 17:7; compare Acts 7:58 ), in order to prove their own belief in their testimony. In the case of a person condemned to be stoned, all the witnesses had to lay their hands on the head of the condemned (Leviticus 24:14 ). "False witnessing" was prohibited in the Decalogue (Exodus 20:16 ); against it the lex talionis was enforced, i.e. it was done to the witness as he meant to do to the accused ( Deuteronomy 19:16-21 ). The Sadducees held that only when the falsely accused had been executed, the false witnesses should be put to death; the Pharisees, that false witnesses were liable to be executed the moment the death sentence had been passed on the falsely accused (
In Acts 22:20; Revelation 2:13; Revelation 17:6 the word
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Orr, James, M.A., D.D. General Editor. Entry for 'Witness'. International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. https://www.studylight.org/encyclopedias/eng/isb/w/witness.html. 1915.
