Testament = Covenant = Agreement

It is time we cleared up one minor mystery.

The word "testament" has been smuggled into this discussion a number of times, without making clear just what it means. As a matter of fact, just what it means is by no means easy to say, since it is a poor translation of a Hebrew word. The better English word would be "covenant," an extremely important Biblical word which means the agreement or relationship established between God and man. The "Old Covenant" (what we call the Old Testament) is an account of the agreement between God and his people. The "New Covenant" (what we call the New Testament) is the account of the new relationship established between God and man in the person of Jesus Christ. Since the New Covenant completes rather than wipes out the Old Covenant, both Covenants or Testaments are included within our present Bible.