Thieleman J. Van Braght
Thieleman J. Van Braght (1625-1664) was an Anabaptist who is best known for writing a history of the Christian witness throughout the centuries entitled “The Bloody Theater or Martyrs Mirror of the Defenseless Christians who baptized only upon confession of faith, and who suffered and died for the testimony of Jesus, their Saviour, from the time of Christ to the year A.D. 1660” (1660).
Thieleman J. Van Braght, Martyrs Mirror
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44. Luke the Evangelist
Of The Second Persecution Of The Christians, Under Domitian, Which Commenced A.D. 93; In Which, Among Others, There Were Apprehended, Banished, Or Slain, The Following Persons.” Luke the Evangelist Hung from an Olive Tree in Greece, A.D. 93 Luke, The Holy Evangelist, Hanged On A Green Olive Tree, In Greece, A.D. 93 Luke, the third among the holy evangelists, was, according to the testimony of the ancients, a Syrian of Antioch, and by occupation a physician. Bybclsch Nozmbceck, about Luke, from Euseb. and Hicron. Col. 4:14. It was the will of the Lord to use him as a physician of souls; to which end he has left to mankind two excellent books on spiritual medicine; namely, his holy Gospel and the Acts of the holy…
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43. Seventy Disciples of Christ
Some Of The Seventy Disciples Of Christ, And Several Followers Of The Apostles, Slain, Towards The Close Of The Persecution By Nero, About A.D. 70 Prochorus, one of the first seven deacons at Jerusalem, a nephew of the pious martyr Stephen, and companion of the apostle John, but afterwards bishop of the church at Bithynia, in Macedonia, suffered and died at Antioch. Nicanor, also one of the first seven deacons at Jerusalem, was likewise executed for the truth's sake. Likewise Parmenas, also one of the seven deacons. Olympus was imprisoned at Rome with Paul, for the Gospel's sake. Carpus, a servant of Paul, and afterwards bishop of the church at Troas, was put to death in that place, for the faith. Trophimus, Paul's companion, was…
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42. The Apostle Matthias
Matthias stoned, beheaded, decapitated, A.D. 70 Matthias, The Holy Apostle Of Christ, Tied On A Cross Upon A Rock, Stoned, And Then Beheaded, A. D. 70 Matthias, according to the opinion of some, was of the royal house of David; and from his youth was well instructed in the law of God. at Bethlehem. He was one of the seventy disciples of Christ; but shortly after the Lord's ascension, Judas Iscariot, having faithlessly departed from his apostleship, and taken his own life, the remaining eleven apostles, and one hundred and twenty men, through prayer to God, and by the lot, unanimously elected him in place of the aforementioned faithless Judas, an apostle and ambassador of Jesus Christ, to preach the Gospel, according to the command…
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41. The Apostle Simon
Simon the Zealot Crucified in Syria, A.D. 70 Simon Zelotes And His Brother Judas Thaddeus, Both Slain For The Truth Of Christ; The One Crucified, And The Other Beaten To Death With Sticks, About A.D. 70 Simon the Canaanite, surnamed Zelotes, that is, Zealot, the son of Alpheus, the brother of James, Joses, and Juda, and a relative of Christ, was constituted by Christ one of His twelve apostles, to preach the Gospel, first among the Jews, and afterwards among the heathen; to which end he, together with the others who were in like ministry with him, received the Holy Ghost on the day of Pentecost. Matt. 10:4; Acts 1:13; Matt. 13:55; Mark 6:3. He traveled in Egypt, Cyrene, Africa, Mauritania, throughout Lybia, and in…
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40. Matthew, the Evangelist
Matthew, The Holy Evangelist, Nailed To The Ground, And Beheaded At Nad-Davar, Under King Hytacus, About A.D. 70 Matthew, also called Levi, the son of Alpheus, was a publican in Capernaum. The publicans were detested by the Jews, because the latter did not consider themselves justly bound to pay toll or tribute to any foreign prince. Matt. 9:9; Mark 3:18; Luke 5:29. As touching the condition of publicans at that time, it was such that they generally exacted more from the people than was just; on which account they were shunned by the pious, so that open sinners, who were separated from the church, were compared to publicans. Matt. 9:11; 18:17. When Matthew, or Levi, was still unconverted, and made his living in this unjust…
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39. The Apostle Thomas
Thomas, tortured by the natives in Calamina, thrown into an oven, and stuck through with spears, A.D. 70 Thomas, The Holy Apostle Of Christ, Tormented With Red-Hot Plates, Cast Into A Furnace, And His Side Pierced With Spears By The Savages, At Calamina, About A. D. 70 Thomas, surnamed Didymus, that is, twin, was a native of Galilee, and his occupation, as it appears, that of a fisherman. John 11:16. Concerning his parents and the time of his conversion, we find no account in the Evangelists, who mention only his call to the apostleship. Matt. 10:3. His love and ardent affection for Christ appears from the fact that he exhorted his brethren, to go up to Jerusalem, that they might die with Christ. John 11:16.…