What does μαρτύριον (martýrion) mean in the Bible?
Martyrion means testimony, witness, or evidence borne to a truth. Paul says Christ gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony given at the proper time.
Greek · G3142
μαρτύριον
Testimony
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μαρτύριον G3142
Pronunciation martýrion
What does μαρτύριον (martýrion) mean in the Bible?
Martyrion means testimony, witness, or evidence borne to a truth. Paul says Christ gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony given at the proper time.
Reader summary
Full entry for μαρτύριον (G3142) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G3142?
The BSB source-word alignment has 20 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include testimony (7), a testimony (6), witnesses (2), serve as witnesses (1), testifies (1).
Where does μαρτύριον (martýrion) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Matthew 8:4. Its strongest book concentrations include Luke (3), Mark (3), Matthew (3), 1 Corinthians (2).
What This Word Actually Means
Martyrion means testimony, witness, or evidence borne to a truth. Paul says Christ gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony given at the proper time. Timothy must not be ashamed of testimony about the Lord or of Paul His prisoner. Jesus says the kingdom gospel will be proclaimed in the whole world as a testimony to all nations. Paul tells Corinth that the testimony about Christ was confirmed among them.
The noun can name the apostolic message, its evidential confirmation, or witness confronting hearers. It is not merely a personal story, and the existence of testimony does not remove the need to assess truth, content, and source.
How the Bible Uses It
Martyrion names witness concerning God's saving action in Christ. The ransom is testified at God's appointed time, Timothy guards public witness without shame, global proclamation confronts nations, and Corinth displays confirmation of Christ's testimony.
- 1Tim.2.6
Who gave Himself as a ransom for all—the testimony that was given at just the right time.
First Timothy 2:6 says Christ gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony at the proper time. The witness concerns His self-giving and grounds prayer and mission toward all kinds of people.
- 2Tim.1.8
So do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, or of me, His prisoner. Instead, join me in suffering for the gospel by the power of God.
Second Timothy 1:8 tells Timothy not to be ashamed of testimony about the Lord or of Paul His prisoner, but to share suffering for the gospel by God's power. Witness carries public cost.
- Matt.24.14
And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
Matthew 24:14 says the kingdom gospel will be proclaimed throughout the inhabited world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. Mission is promised without supplying a human date calculation.
- 1Cor.1.6
Because our testimony about Christ was confirmed in you.
First Corinthians 1:6 says the testimony about Christ was confirmed among the Corinthians as they received grace and spiritual gifts while awaiting His revelation. Confirmation remains Christ-centered, not a celebration of gifts alone.
Source Word Evidence
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders It testimony 7× Acts 4:33, Acts 7:44, 1 Corinthians 1:6, 1 Corinthians 2:1
a testimony 6× Matthew 8:4, Matthew 24:14, Mark 1:44, Mark 6:11
witnesses 2× Matthew 10:18, Mark 13:9
serve as witnesses 1× Luke 21:13
testifies 1× 2 Corinthians 1:12
testify 1× James 5:3
testifying 1× Hebrews 3:5
testimony that was given 1× 1 Timothy 2:6
Show sample aligned rows
Matthew 8:4 μαρτύριον to a testimony Noun - Accusative Neuter Singular Matthew 10:18 μαρτύριον to witnesses Noun - Accusative Neuter Singular Matthew 24:14 μαρτύριον to a testimony Noun - Accusative Neuter Singular Mark 1:44 μαρτύριον to a testimony Noun - Accusative Neuter Singular Mark 6:11 μαρτύριον to a testimony Noun - Accusative Neuter Singular Mark 13:9 μαρτύριον to witnesses Noun - Accusative Neuter Singular Luke 5:14 μαρτύριον to a testimony Noun - Accusative Neuter Singular Luke 9:5 μαρτύριον to a testimony Noun - Accusative Neuter Singular Luke 21:13 μαρτύριον to serve as witnesses Noun - Accusative Neuter Singular Acts 4:33 μαρτύριον to testimony Noun - Accusative Neuter Singular
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned row Matthew 8:4
Aligned rows 20
Books represented 12
Matthew 3 Mark 3 Luke 3 Acts 2 1 Corinthians 2 2 Corinthians 1 2 Thessalonians 1 1 Timothy 1 2 Timothy 1 Hebrews 1 James 1 Revelation 1
Source forms
μαρτύριον 18x martyrion Matthew 8:4, Matthew 10:18, Matthew 24:14, Mark 1:44
μαρτυρίου 2x martyriou Acts 7:44, Revelation 15:5
Parsing patterns
Noun - Accusative Neuter Singular 14x Matthew 8:4, Matthew 10:18, Matthew 24:14, Mark 1:44
Noun - Nominative Neuter Singular 4x 1 Corinthians 1:6, 2 Corinthians 1:12, 2 Thessalonians 1:10, 1 Timothy 2:6
Noun - Genitive Neuter Singular 2x Acts 7:44, Revelation 15:5
Using This Word Well
Be careful not to...
- Do not treat a vivid personal story as self-authenticating or equal to apostolic testimony about Christ.
- Do not use Matthew 24:14 to calculate an end date or quantify mission with false precision.
Avoid claiming...
- Do not treat a vivid personal story as self-authenticating or equal to apostolic testimony about Christ.
- Do not use Matthew 24:14 to calculate an end date or quantify mission with false precision.
Evidence Summary
Greek word. Testimony functioning as public witness or proof, often with legal or covenantal significance in Christian proclamation.
Strong's G3142
Lexical occurrences 20 verses Greek text appearances 20 times 16 shown below Word forms 3 forms 20 references Verse guides 0 guides
Study link Luke 21:12–19 Source Gloss
testimony
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpus Greek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
16 of 20 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
Matthew 8:4 Noun Accusative Singular Neuter
μαρτύριον marturion
witness, evidence, testimony
Read verse Matthew 10:18 Noun Accusative Singular Neuter
μαρτύριον marturion
witness, evidence, testimony
Read verse Matthew 24:14 Noun Accusative Singular Neuter
μαρτύριον marturion
witness, evidence, testimony
Read verse Mark 1:44 Noun Accusative Singular Neuter
μαρτύριον marturion
witness, evidence, testimony
Read verse Mark 6:11 Noun Accusative Singular Neuter
μαρτύριον marturion
witness, evidence, testimony
Read verse Mark 13:9 Noun Accusative Singular Neuter
μαρτύριον marturion
witness, evidence, testimony
Read verse Luke 5:14 Noun Accusative Singular Neuter
μαρτύριον marturion
witness, evidence, testimony
Read verse Luke 9:5 Noun Accusative Singular Neuter
μαρτύριον marturion
witness, evidence, testimony
Read verse Luke 21:13 Noun Accusative Singular Neuter
μαρτύριον. marturion
witness, evidence, testimony
Read verse Acts 4:33 Noun Accusative Singular Neuter
μαρτύριον marturion
witness, evidence, testimony
Read verse Acts 7:44 Noun Genitive Singular Neuter
μαρτυρίου marturiou
witness, evidence, testimony
Read verse 1 Corinthians 1:6 Noun Nominative Singular Neuter
μαρτύριον marturion
witness, evidence, testimony
Read verse 1 Corinthians 2:1 Noun Accusative Singular Neuter
μαρτύριον marturion
witness, evidence, testimony
Read verse 2 Corinthians 1:12 Noun Nominative Singular Neuter
μαρτύριον marturion
witness, evidence, testimony
Read verse 2 Thessalonians 1:10 Noun Nominative Singular Neuter
μαρτύριον marturion
witness, evidence, testimony
Read verse 1 Timothy 2:6 Noun Nominative Singular Neuter
μαρτύριον marturion
witness, evidence, testimony
Read verseFull New Testament corpus: 260 chapters, 7,957 verses, 140,628 tokens. Data source: honza/textus-receptus (data only), with authority check against byztxt/greektext-textus-receptus.
Grammatical Forms
How this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.
This word appears as a noun across 3 case and number patterns. The form changes show how the word functions in a sentence; they do not change the basic lexical meaning by themselves.
Form patterns 3 Aligned forms 20 Case pattern Accusative (14) Number pattern Singular (20)
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
Nominative · Singular · Neuter 1 Cor 1:6 · 2 Cor 1:12 · 2 Thess 1:10 · 1 Tim 2:6 4×
Genitive · Singular · Neuter Acts 7:44 · Rev 15:5 2×
Accusative · Singular · Neuter Matt 8:4 · Matt 10:18 · Matt 24:14 · Mark 1:44 · Mark 6:11 · Mark 13:9 · Luke 5:14 · Luke 9:5 · Luke 21:13 · Acts 4:33 · 1 Cor 2:1 · 2 Tim 1:8 · Heb 3:5 · Jas 5:3 14×
Selected Scripture Witnesses
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
New Testament Witnesses
testimony
Additional Occurrences
Luke 21:5–24 μαρτύριον martýrion
Testimony, witness
Luke 9:1–6 μαρτύριον martýrion
Testimony
Showing 3 selected witnesses from 20 lexical occurrence verses.
Word Origins
μαρτύριον is built from this root:
Why This Word Matters
Frames persecution as opportunity for witness. Luke 21:12–19
Part of These Phrases
Compound and idiomatic phrases that include this word. Follow a link to study the phrase and how its parts work together.
For the Preacher and Teacher
Martyrion is truth placed before hearers. Its central content is not the speaker's personality but Christ, who gave Himself as ransom and is proclaimed as Lord. Timothy must bear that testimony without shame, even when association with an imprisoned apostle is costly. Jesus promises the kingdom message will reach the nations as witness, while Corinth shows testimony confirmed in a community receiving grace and awaiting Christ.
Christian testimony may include personal experience, but experience must serve the public gospel rather than replace it. Churches should test claims, protect accuracy, and train people to speak about Christ clearly. Faithful witness can invite belief, expose rejection, and require suffering, yet its power comes from God and its truth from the apostolic message.
Anchor passage
2Tim.1.8
Doctrinal connections
- Atonement: Christ's self-giving ransom is central content of apostolic testimony.
- Mission: gospel witness addresses all nations and all kinds of people.
- Suffering: public testimony may require sharing hardship without shame.
- Divine timing: God's saving witness unfolds at His appointed time.
- Grace and gifts: Christ's testimony is confirmed within a graced and expectant church.
- Eschatology: worldwide proclamation belongs to Jesus' purpose without authorizing date-setting.
Martyrion is related to martys, "witness," and may mean testimony, evidence, or that which bears witness. It can denote message content or evidential attestation, depending on context.
From Old to New Testament
The Law requires truthful witnesses, covenant signs testify to God's claims, and prophets bear public testimony despite opposition. The New Testament centers decisive witness on Jesus' death, resurrection, and lordship.
Sources
MorphGNT Strong's Dictionary XML — CC0 1.0 Public Domain
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible (morphhb/OSHB) — CC BY 4.0
Open Scriptures Hebrew Lexicon — CC BY 4.0
Berean Standard Bible (BSB) source-word alignment - CC0 Public Domain