Hebrews 11:2

For therein the elders had witness borne to them.

Therein means "in faith just like that mentioned." "The elders" are the great and worthy patriarchs of the past, particularly of the Hebrew scriptures; and the "witness borne to them" is the witness of the scriptural records concerning them. Significantly, not a soul is mentioned in this chapter whose life was not verified by holy writ. It is what God writes of a man that alone is significant and consequential. Before proceeding with his discussion of those individuals, the writer goes back to the very beginning (Genesis 1:1) and makes the understanding of people regarding the creation also to be purely a matter of faith.