false witnesses

μάρτυς, μάρτυρος, ὁ dat. pl. μάρτυσιν (Pind., Hdt.+; ins, pap, LXX; TestAbr A 13 p. 92, 22 [Stone p. 32]; TestLevi 19:3; Philo, Joseph.; apolog. exc. Ar.)

① one who testifies in legal matters, witness (Just., A I, 23, 3; Ath. 3, 2) Ac 7:58; Mt 18:16; 2 Cor 13:1; 1 Ti 5:19 (the last 3 after Dt 19:15; cp. Jos., Vi. 256 and Hipponax [VI B.C.] 47 D.³ ἐλθὼν σὺν τριοῖσι μάρτυσιν); Hb 10:28 (Dt 17:6.—ἐπὶ μάρτυσι also Appian, Bell. Civ. 3, 14 §49). τί ἔτι χρείαν ἔχομεν μαρτύρων; what further need have we of witnesses? (Pla., Rep. 1, 340a τί δεῖται μάρτυρος; αὐτὸς γὰρ ὁ Θρασύμαχος ὁμολογεῖ) Mt 26:65; Mk 14:63. μάρτυρες ψευδεῖς false witnesses (Demosth. 29, 28) Ac 6:13 (Mel., P. 79, 572). There is a suggestion of bureaucratic protocol relating to the account of the prudent and blameless men whom the Roman church sent to Corinth and who μάρτυρες ἔσονται μεταξὺ ὑμῶν κ. ἡμῶν 1 Cl 63:3.

② one who affirms or attests, testifier, witness transf. sense of mng. 1, of anyone who can or should testify to anything.

ⓐ of God (or the exalted Christ) as witness (deities as witnesses oft. Pind. et al.; Philo; Jos., Bell. 1, 595, Ant. 1, 209; TestLevi 19:3; SibOr, Fgm. 1, 4; Just., A II, 12, 4 θεὸν … μάρτυρα ἔχοντες. Orig., C. Cels. 1, 46, 26 θεὸς [sc. ἐστιν] μ. τοῦ ἡμετέρου συνειδότος); as a formula God is my witness (that I am telling the truth) Ro 1:9; Phil 1:8; shortened θεὸς μ. 1 Th 2:5; cp. vs. 10 (here also Jos., Ant. 15, 130 μ. ὑμᾶς ποιούμενος). μ. μοι ἐν ᾧ δέδεμαι IPhld 7:2. μάρτυρα τὸν θεὸν ἐπικαλεῖσθαι call upon God as witness 2 Cor 1:23 (cp. 1 Km 12:5f; 20:23; Polyb. 11, 6, 4 τ. θεοὺς ἐπικαλέσεσθε μάρτυρας; Heliod. 1, 25, 1; Galen VI 775 Kühn; likewise of calling upon deities, Hippol., Ref. 9, 15, 6: τοὺς ἑπτὰ μάρτυρας μαρτύρομαι).

ⓑ of humans (cp. Pind. O. 4, 5): witnessing by eye and ear (X., Ages. 4, 5; Pla., Ep. 1 p. 309a; Aelian, VH 10, 6; Jos., Ant. 18, 299; Tat. 31, 1; 36, 1) 1 Th 2:10; 1 Ti 6:12; 2 Ti 2:2.—Also of those witnesses whose faith is tried and true τοσοῦτον νέφος μαρτύρων Hb 12:1.—Of witnesses of events which they know about, without having experienced them personally (acc. to Strabo 7, 3, 7 p. 300 Hesiod is μάρτυς with regard to the Scythians): the teachers of the law bear witness to the murder of the prophets by their ancestors, by erecting tombs for the prophets Lk 11:48 (μαρτυρεῖτε v.l.).

ⓒ of witnesses who bear a divine message (Epict. 3, 26, 28 God uses the wise men as his μάρτυρες) Rv 11:3 (though the mng. approaches martyr [s. 3 below] here; cp. vs. 7. S. DHaugg, D. zwei Zeugen-Apk 11:1–13, ’36; JConsidine, CBQ 8, ’46. 377–92). In this sense, above all, of Jesus’ disciples as the witnesses of his life, death, and resurrection: ἔσεσθέ μου μάρτυρες you will be my witnesses Ac 1:8; cp. 13:31 (Ps.-Demetr. 222 μάρτυς σου γίνεται). W. obj. gen. of the thing witnessed: witness for/of (Jos., C. Ap. 1, 4 τῶν ὑπʼ ἐμοῦ λεγομένων μ., Ant. 4, 40; ἀληθείας μ. of Polycarp Iren. 3, 3, 4 [Harv. II 13, 4]; παραδόσεως of the Ephesian congregation 3, 3, 4 [Harv. II 15, 6]; Orig., C. Cels. 1, 47, 24) Lk 24:48; Ac 1:22; 3:15; 5:32; 10:39; 26:16. μ. τῶν τοῦ Χριστοῦ παθημάτων a witness of the sufferings of Christ 1 Pt 5:1. ἔσῃ μ. αὐτῷ πρὸς πάντας ἀνθρώπους you will be a witness for him to all people Ac 22:15 (Epict. 3, 24, 113 μ. πρὸς τοὺς ἄλλους).—10:41. Danker, Benefactor 442–47.

③ one who witnesses at cost of life, martyr, in the usage of the persecuted church τὸ αἷμα Στεφάνου τοῦ μάρτυρός σου Ac 22:20. Of Antipas ὁ μ. μου ὁ πιστός μου Rv 2:13 (cp. Pind., P. 1, 88 μάρτυρες πιστοί=dependable witnesses; on the textual problems of Rv 2:13 s. RBorger, TRu 52, ’87, 45–47). Onesimus μ. Χριστοῦ γεγένηται Phlm subscr. v.l. Gener. μάρτυρες Ἰησοῦ Rv 17:6; cp. MPol 2:2; 14:2; 15:2; 16:2 v.l.; 17:3; 19:1. Of Zacharias μ. εἰμι τοῦ θεοῦ GJs 25:3 (s. de Strycker ad loc.). Since Rv also calls Jesus (as well as Antipas) ὁ μάρτυς ὁ πιστός 1:5; 3:14, these pass. are prob. to be classed here (cp. Ps 88:38), but with awareness of strong focus in all the NT passages in this classification on the fact of witness. The death of Jesus was early regarded as the first martyrdom.—For an analysis of the question how μάρτυς=‘witness’ came to mean ‘martyr’, s. FKattenbusch, ZNW 4, 1903, 111ff; KHoll, variously, then Gesamm. Aufsätze II 1928, 103ff; ASchlatter, BFChTh 19, 3, 1915; PCorssen, NJklA 35, 1915, 481ff, 37, 1916, 424ff, ZNW 15, 1914, 221ff w. several continuations until 18, 1917, 249ff, Sokrates 6, 1918, 106ff; Rtzst., Hist. Mon. 1916, 85; 257, NGG 1916, 417ff, Her 52, 1917, 442ff; FDornseiff, ARW 22, 1923/24, 133ff; HDelehaye, Analecta Bollandiana 39, 1921, 20ff, Sanctus 1927 (²’33), 74ff (75, 1 lit.). ELohmeyer, D. Idee des Martyriums im Judent. u. Urchristent.: ZST 5, 1927/28, 232–49; GFitzer, D. Begriff des μ. im Judent. u. Urchristent., diss. Bresl. 1929; HLietzmann, Martys: Pauly-W. XIV 2, 1930, 2044–52; OMichel, Prophet u. Märt. ’32; RCasey, Μάρτυς: Beginn. I 5, ’33, 30–37; EStauffer, Märtyrertheologie u. Täuferbewegg.: ZKG 52, ’33, 545–98; DRiddle, The Martyr Motif in Mk: JR 4, 1924, 174–91, Hb, 1 Cl and the Persecution of Domitian: JBL 43, 1924, 329–48, From Apocalypse to Martyrology: ATR 9, 1927, 260–80, The Martyrs: A Study in Social Control ’31, Die Verfolgungslogien im formgesch. u. soziol. Bed.: ZNW 33, ’34, 271–89; HvCampenhausen, D. Idee des Martyriums in d. alten Kirche² ’64; EPeterson, Zeuge d. Wahrh. ’37; EBurnier, Le notion de témoignage dans le NT ’37; HSurkau, Martyrien in jüd. u. frühchristl. Zt. ’38; HFischel, Martyr and Prophet (in Jewish lit.), JQR 37, ’46/47, 265–80; 363–86; EGünther, Μάρτυς, D. Gesch. eines Wortes ’41, Zeuge u. Märtyrer, ZNW 47, ’56, 145–61. ELohse, Märtyrer u. Gottesknecht ’55; HvanVliet, No Single Testimony (Dt 19:15) ’58; NBrox, Zeuge u. Märtyrer ’61.—B. 1436; ATrites, Μάρτυς and Martyrdom in the Apocalypse, A Semantic Study: NovT 15, ’73, 72–80, The NT Concept of Witness ’77; GDragas, Martyrdom and Orthodoxy in the NT Era: Greek Orthodox Theological Review 30, ’85, 287–96; PVassiliadis, The Translation of μαρτυρία Ιησοῦ in Rv: BT 36, ’85, 129–34; M-ERosenblatt, Paul the Accused ’95, 1–21; Kl. Pauly III 1059f; BHHW II 1156f.—DELG. M-M. EDNT. TW. Spicq. Sv.

ψευδομάρτυς, ῠρος, ὁ,

A false witness, pl. in Gorg.Pal.23, Pl.Grg. 472b, Critias 61: sg., IG5(2).357.4 (Stymphalus, iii B.C.): ψευδομάρτυρες τοῦ θεοῦ false witnesses about God, 1 Ep.Cor.15.15; as Adj., τὰν δίκαν τὰν ψευδομάρτυρα the action for false witness, IGl.c. l. 8; ψ. τιμαί honours attesting no real merit, Plu.2.821f.