Romans 1:9

It's interesting which Greek words have become part of the English language and how they've changed in the process. Paul isn't calling God a martyr, but the word he uses for witness is the same one that became our English word martyr. If I were a witness in a legal case, I would probably not be willing to die for the sake of giving my witness. I know just enough about the inconsistencies of the human memory to concede that my witness might not be accurate if I were seriously threatened. Yet I also know that God does not experience those inconsistencies, that He never lies, and that He sees all, so His witness is always reliable. If He testifies that Paul is thinking of and praying for the Roman Christians, then he certainly was. And since God's witness is always truthful and reliable, I would never ask Him to be my witness unless I knew I was saying something true and reliable.