29. About What Beings Jesus Needed Testimony.
The words, “He needed not that any should testify
of man,” may fitly be used to show that the Son of God is able of
Himself to see the truth about each man and is in no need of such
testimony as any other could supply. The words, however,
“He had no need that any should testify of man,” are not
equivalent to “He had no need of testimony about any
being.” If we take the word “man” to include
every being who is according to the image of God, or every reasonable
creature, then He will have no need that any should testify to Him of
any reasonable being whatever, since He Himself, by the power given Him
by the Father, knows them all. But if the term “man”
be restricted to mortal animated reasonable beings, then it might be
said, on the one hand, that He had need of testimony respecting the
beings above man, and while His knowledge was adequate with regard to
man it did not extend to those other beings. On the other hand,
however, it might be said that He who humbled Himself had no need that
any should testify to Him concerning man, but that He had such need in
respect of beings higher than men.