keep going with your eyes lifted

Almost everyone hears this verse the same way: the heroes of Hebrews 11 are in the stands, watching us run. Heiser devoted an episode to arguing that this is not what the words mean.
Two of them carry the weight. The great cloud, nephos, carries theophanic and divine-realm connotations - cloud language in Scripture belongs to God's presence and God's assembly. And a witness, martys, is one who testifies. Heiser is explicit: not a spectator or cheering-section member. He traces the phrase through Psalm 89, which is both a divine council scene - the assembly of the holy ones - and a psalm about the son of David, and where verse 37 speaks of a faithful witness in that council.
So the picture is not a stadium. It is an assembly, and it is testifying, not spectating.
Scripture links:
- Hebrews 12:1 - "since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight... and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us."
- Psalm 89:5-7 - "your faithfulness in the assembly of the holy ones... Who among the heavenly beings is like the LORD?"
You are not being watched for entertainment. You are surrounded by testimony.