Looking to the "Cloud of Witnesses"

In the letter to the Hebrews is a peculiar phrase most Bible readers know quite well. In xii.1 we find, "since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses," after the author went over the lineage of faithful followers of God, and those who were persecuted and tortured. Looking at this phrase in the Greek New Testament, we can see why it is so peculiar.

τοσουτον εχοντες περικειμενον ημιν νεφος μαρτυρων (tosouton echontes perikeimenon heimin nephos marturon)

These witnesses, or martyrs (μαρτυρων) in the early sense, were Jews, Hebrew people, not Christians. These were the predecessors, who did not receive what was promised because that time of completion had not yet come (xi.39-40). The description given of all of those witnesses together is peculiar: "so great a cloud of witnesses." This is not a Biblical metaphor, but a Classical metaphor. This phrase would have been quite familiar to an educated audience in the first century AD. As Vincent's points out, you find this phrase in some classical Greek works. In Herodotus' Histories, Themistocles gave a speech to the Athenians, saying they had "driven from the shores so great a band of enemies" (Hrd. Hist. viii.109). The Greek is the important part:

νεφος τοσουτο ανθρωπων ανωσομενοι (nephos tosouto anthropon anosomenoi)

The same idea is evident: so great a cloud, or band, or group of people. This is a large, vast amount of people. In Homer's Iliad we see some more imagery, then an explanation and expansion of the metaphorical language.

αμα δε νεφος ειπετο πεζων (hama de nephos heipeto pedzon)

This is from book 4; notice what's being described as a "cloud" and how that could apply to the Hebrews passage.

and a cloud of footmen followed with them (αμα δε νεφος ειπετο πεζων). Even as when from some place of outlook a goatherd seeth a cloud (νεφος) coming over the face of the deep before the blast of the West Wind, and to him being afar off it seemeth blacker than pitch as it passeth over the face of the deep, and it bringeth a mighty whirlwind; and he shuddereth at sight of it, and driveth his flock beneath a cave; even in such wise by the side of the Aiantes did the thick battalions of youths, nurtured of Zeus, move into furious war--dark battalions, bristling with shields and spears (Hom. Il. iv.274-282).

The amount of people was so large, the best description the classic authors and orators could give was that of a cloud: encompassing, everywhere the eye could see. And with that cloud comes the wind, powerful, thrusting.

This is not an Old Testament idea. νεφος is not found in the LXX (only in Heb. xii.1) and conveys a different meaning than that of νεφελη (nephele). νεφελη speaks about an actual cloud; whether or not the passage as a whole is metaphorical, the word is used to tell us about an actual cloud (see Ex. xl.38, Lev. xvi.13, Mt. xvii.5). On the other hand, νεφος is metaphorical, used to convey a symbolic message in a passage, as we have seen above. Most importantly, this symbol is of darkness.

The cloud is not merely something above and consuming, but ominous, looming, dark and bringing rain and winds. Let's not think of darkness as just a lack of light, but in the sense of evil or bad versus good. The darkness is the enemy, the wrong side of the battle. Darkness is the wrong that's been done. Compare the language in 2 Clement:

So while we were thus wrapped in darkness and our vision was filled with this thick mist, we recovered our sight, by his will laying aside the cloud wrapped around us (ο περικειμεθα νεφος τη αυτου θελησει, ho perikeimetha nephos te autou thelesei) (2 Cl. i.6).

These words were written within probably a half century after Hebrews. Combined, these two passages are the only "Biblical" references to such a metaphor. So how does this all apply to the Hebrews passage? How should we interpret the popular phrase?

The "great cloud of witnesses" are those who had gone before Christianity and gave witness to their faithfulness to God and the true way. They are called "so great a cloud" because of the way in which they became martyrs or witnesses: tortured, mocked, flogged, chained, stoned, killed (xi.35-38). Their witness had an underlying tone, a foundation, of darkness. Now, they were encompassing and covering the people of God as a cloud, as a vast band of martyrs.

As a side bar, seeing such a classical reference in this letter reinforces in me the likelihood of a Pauline authorship.