According to the Bible, those who suffered or/and died for their faith in Jesus Christ would make it to heaven to be with Jesus Christ for ever.

According to the Foxes book of martyrs, the disciples of Jesus Christ were so convinced about who Jesus Christ was and that He is the saviour to the extent that they chose to die because of their testimony of Jesus Christ rather than deny Him. They were given opportunities to deny Jesus Christ but they refused.

They had been with Jesus Christ and were eye witnesses to who He was. They were so convinced that instead of denying Him, they rather die to drive home the truth that Jesus Christ is the son of God who is the saviour of mankind.

In those days, if you were so convinced about something, you could give up your life as a final declaration that what you are saying is true.

That was what the disciples of Jesus Christ did.


1. Peter

According to an early Christian writer call Hegesippus, Caesar Nero wanted to put apostle Peter to death for believing that Jesus Christ is the son of God who died to redeem mankind.


Peter was ready to be killed because he was so convinced about his testimony. Being filled with the Holy Spirit, he was able to see the truth about Jesus Christ because of the revelations God gave him about Christ. He wanted to go join Christ in His kingdom in heaven.


But some people begged Peter to flee. He refused. After enormous pressure from his people, he decided to leave Rome.


When he got to the city gate, he saw Jesus Christ walking towards him. He knelt down and asked "Lord where are you going?".


Jesus Christ answered "I have come to be crucified again"

By this, Peter understood that it was his time to die for Jesus Christ because Jesus Christ had already told him (in John 21:19) that Peter would die to glorify God.

Peter then went back to the city and was captured. When he was crucified, he asked them to crucify him upside down because he didn't consider himself worthy to be crucified in the same position as his Lord.

Peter sealed his testimony of Jesus Christ by dying for Jesus Christ.



Before then, he convinced some people about Jesus Christ by performing miracles in Jesus Christ name.

Finally he allowed himself to be crucified to show that he was speaking the truth of which he paid the supreme price. After his death, so many people were converted to the faith which inspired such bravery in Peter.

All the Apostles except John were killed for their testimonies about Jesus Christ.

Apart from them, others who died for Jesus Christ were:

2. Several of the seventy appointed by Jesus Christ(Luke 10:1).

3. Others who were martyred were Erastus, treasurer of Corinth (Romans 16:23),

Aristarchus the Macedonian(Acts 19:23),

Trophimus the Ephesian(Acts 21:29),

Barsabas who was surnamed Justus(Acts 1:23)

and Ananias, the bishop of Damascus, whom Jesus Christ sent to restore sight back to Saul after Jesus Christ intercepted Saul on his way to persecute Christians (Acts 9:10).


Timothy, the spiritual son of Apostle Paul was martyred in 97 AD when the Ephesians were celebrating a pagan feast called Catagogion. Timothy blocked them as they were doing their pagan procession, and rebuked them.


They descended on him and beat him so badly he died 2 days later.
This happened during the reign of Emperor Domitian. Timothy was the overseer of the Church in Ephesus.

During the reign of Emperor Trajan who ruled from 98-117 AD,Ignatius was sent to Rome to be eaten by lions. Yet on the way to Rome, he was preaching the gospel to everyone.


When he was thrown to the lions, and heard the lions roaring, he said "I am the wheat of Christ: I am going to be ground with the teeth of wild beasts that I may be found pure bread".

He said this with joy and gladness as the lions tore him to pieces.


During the reign of Emperor Adrian who ruled from 117 AD,

about 10,000 Christians were were martyred, with many of them crowned with thorns, crucified, and had spears thrust into their sides in cruel imitation of Jesus' death.


Eustachius a brave Roman commander refused to join in an idolatrous sacrifice to celebrate his victories, because his faith in Jesus Christ was greater than his vanity.

Emperor Adrian was so enraged that he had Eustachius, his wife and children killed.


Two brothers Fausines and Jovita bore their tortures with such patience that a pagan named Calocerius was so struck with admiration that he cried out in a kind of ecstasy "Great is the God of the Christians!".


He suddenly believed in Jesus Christ because he knew that it only needed a strong belief in something before someone can suffer so much and refuse to cry or deny the thing.

For this, he was immediately arrested and put to the same tortures.

Persecution of women

Since the time of Peter the apostle, women were persecuted and killed as much as the men.

But there are specific women being named in the Foxes book of martyrs.

Their persecution happened during the reign of Emperor Marcus Aurelius Antoninus(162-180 AD)

The women were:

1. Blandina.

She looked so weak in body that people thought she would not be able to withstand the tortures. But she stood her ground and refused to deny Jesus Christ. Her tormentors became exhausted.


She was taken into an amphitheatre and suspended on a piece of wood and exposed as food for wild lions.


The lions refused to eat her. She was then taken out and put into prison.

Later, she was taken and subjected to the severest punishments and tortures.


She was torn by lions, scourged, put into a net and tossed by a wild bull, and placed naked into a red hot metal chair.


When she could speak, she exhorted all near her to hold fast to their faith.


When her torturers were unable to make her recant her faith, they killed her with a sword.


2. Felicitatis, a well-known lady of a wealthy Roman family was a devout and pious Christian.


When she refused to deny Christ, her 7 children Felix, Philip, Januarius, Silvanus, Alexander, Vitalis and Martial were all killed.

Still during the reign of Emperor Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, Germanicus, a young man and true Christian was delivered to the wild lions on account of his faith.


He behaved with such astonishing courage that several pagans were converted to the faith that inspired such bravery.


Polycarp was a student of Apostle John and the overseer of the church in Smyrna.

Remember that Apostle John established the 7 churches mentioned in the book of Revelations.


He made Polycarp the overseer of the church in Smyrna.


When Polycarp was captured and was about to be killed, the governor asked him to deny Christ so that he could be released.

He answered "86 years I have served Him, and He never once wrong me. How can I blaspheme my king who has saved me?


He was tied to a stake in the market place because he told them he would stand immovable in the fire.

As they put sticks around him and lit the fire, it circled around his body but didn't burn him.

He was then killed with a sword.

During the reign of Emperor Lucius Septimus Severus (193-211 AD), the following people were martyred:

Victor the bishop of Rome in 201 AD.

Leonidus, the father of Origin, the Greek Christian philosopher known for his interpretations of the old testament.


A woman named Rhais had boiling tar poured on her head and was then burned.


Her mother Marcella was also burned. Her sister Potainiena suffered the same fate, but during her torments, an army officer named Basilides who was ordered to attend her execution was converted to Christianity when he saw how she held onto her faith.

He was later beheaded for refusing to swear an oath on Roman idols.


Irenaeus(130-202 AD) was a Greek Church father and the bishop of Lyons. He was beheaded in 202 AD.

Emperor Marcus Clodius Pupienus Maximus(164-238 AD) ordered all Christians to be hunted down and killed.

Among those killed were:

Pontianus, bishop of Rome who was exiled to Sardinia and killed for preaching against idolatry.


Anteros his successor was also killed after 40 days in office.


The same day, a Roman senator Pammachius and his family and 42 other Christians were beheaded and their heads displayed on the city gates


A Christian minister Calepodius was dragged through the streets of Rome and then thrown into River Tiber with a milestone tied around his neck.


A refined, beautiful young virgin named Martina was beheaded.


Hippolitus a Christian minister was tied to wild horses and dragged along the ground until he died.


Maximus died in 238 AD and was succeeded by Gordian, who was succeeded by Philip.


During their reigns, the church was free from persecution.


However, a violent persecution was instigated by a pagan priest without the Emperor's knowledge.


During this persecution, an elderly Christian, Metrus was beaten with clubs, pricked with needless and stoned to death for refusing to worship idols.


A Christian woman named Quinta was scourged, dragged over Flint stones by her feet and then stoned to death.



A seventy year old woman Appolonia was fastened to a stake to be burned.


After the fire was set, she begged to be set free, which the mob did thinking she was going to recant Christ.


To their amazement, however, she hurled herself back into the flames and died.

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