Two words, “martyr” and “witness,” are translated from the same Greek word, martys. The earliest meaning for the word is probably “witness.” In the Bible, a witness is one who tells about what he or she has seen. This could happen in a trial or in the making of a legal agreement (Deut 17:4-7; Isa 8:2; Jer 32:10-11; Mark 14:63). At least two witnesses were needed to find someone guilty of a crime (Num 35:30; Deut 19:15) or to accuse someone of turning away from faithful living (Matt 26:60; 2 Cor 13:1; Heb 10:28). Those who gave false testimony (“bore false witness”), could receive severe punishment (Exod 20:16;
Deut 19:16-21; Prov 12:17; Acts 6:13). The Bible also speaks of God being a witness to the good or bad actions of persons and nations (1 Sam 12:5; Jer 29:21-23; Mic 1:2; Rom 1:9).

In the time of the Maccabees, the Jewish people were persecuted by the Seleucid rulers who tried to get the people to abandon their Jewish faith and way of life. Those people who remained faithful to God and did not adopt Greek customs or worship pagan idols were often persecuted. They faced torture and even death. Examples of this can be found in a number of books, including 1, 2, and 4 Maccabees (found in the Deuterocanonicals/Apocrypha in some Bibles. Some scholars have suggested that the examples of persecution in Daniel reflect the situation of the Jewish people in the time of the Seleucid king Antiochus IV Epiphanes (ruled 175–164 B.C.), even though the stories are set much earlier in the time of the Babylonian exile (587–538 B.C.).

In the New Testament, the word martys usually refers to those who were eye-witnesses to the ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus (Luke 24:48; Acts 1:21-22). True witnesses are also described as those who tell the truth about God (John 8:18; Rev 1:2, 5; 11:3). A number of New Testament letters warn that the true disciples of Christ must be ready to suffer all sorts of mistreatment (Phil 1:29,30; 1 Thes 2:14,15; 1 Pet 3:14). ). In Acts, the author identifies those followers of Jesus who were prepared to suffer and die for the sake of Jesus (Acts 5:41; 9:16). It has been suggested that the meaning of martyr as one who suffers torture or death rather than deny the name of the Lord Jesus begins with the Christian witness known as Stephen (Acts 6:8—8:2; 22:20). He was stoned to death because of his belief that Jesus was God’s Son. Acts 12:1-4 describes how Herod Agrippa I caused terrible suffering for members of the early church and ordered soldiers to cut off the head of James, the brother of John and disciple of Jesus. Some translations describe a man named Antipas as a martyr (see Rev 2:13) because he was put to death for being a faithful witness.

While some of Jesus’ early followers were persecuted and likely put to death, the Christian church did not suffer widespread persecution until the second century A.D. As  Christianity grew and spread throughout the Roman Empire, it began to attract both positive and negative attention from local citizens and from the leaders in Rome. Christianity was misunderstood and feared by some, and Christians were blamed for economic problems in areas where support to local temples honoring pagan gods began to decline. Some Roman emperors and regional leaders made worship of the emperor a rule for all citizens. When Christians refused, they were sometimes tortured or sent to their deaths fighting wild animals in public arenas like the Coliseum in Rome. The stories of many brave martyrs are preserved in writings from this time.