New Testament vs New Covenant in Hebrews 8-9

Hebrews 8

1 Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens;

2 A minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man.

3 For every high priest is ordained to offer gifts and sacrifices: why it is of necessity that this man have somewhat also to offer.

4 For if he were on earth, he should not be a priest, seeing that there are priests that offer gifts according to the law:

5 Who serve to the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, says he, that you make all things according to the pattern showed to you in the mount.

6 But now has he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises.

7 For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second.

8 For finding fault with them, he says, Behold, the days come, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah:

9 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, says the Lord.

10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:

11 And they shall not teach every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.

12 For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.

13 In that he says, A new covenant, he has made the first old. Now that which decays and waxes old is ready to vanish away.

Hebrews 9

1 Then truly the first covenant had also ordinances of divine service, and a worldly sanctuary.

2 For there was a tabernacle made; the first, wherein was the candlestick, and the table, and the show bread; which is called the sanctuary.

3 And after the second veil, the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of all;

4 Which had the golden censer, and the ark of the covenant overlaid round about with gold, wherein was the golden pot that had manna, and Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant;

5 And over it the cherubim of glory shadowing the mercy seat; of which we cannot now speak particularly.

6 Now when these things were thus ordained, the priests went always into the first tabernacle, accomplishing the service of God.

7 But into the second went the high priest alone once every year, not without blood, which he offered for himself, and for the errors of the people:

8 The Holy Ghost this signifying, that the way into the holiest of all was not yet made manifest, while as the first tabernacle was yet standing:

9 Which was a figure for the time then present, in which were offered both gifts and sacrifices, that could not make him that did the service perfect, as pertaining to the conscience;

10 Which stood only in meats and drinks, and divers washings, and carnal ordinances, imposed on them until the time of reformation.

11 But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building;

12 Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.

13 For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies to the purifying of the flesh:

14 How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

15 And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance.

16 For where a testament is, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator.

17 For a testament is of force after men are dead: otherwise it is of no strength at all while the testator lives.

18 Whereupon neither the first testament was dedicated without blood.

19 For when Moses had spoken every precept to all the people according to the law, he took the blood of calves and of goats, with water, and scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book, and all the people,

20 Saying, This is the blood of the testament which God has enjoined to you.

21 Moreover he sprinkled with blood both the tabernacle, and all the vessels of the ministry.

22 And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.

23 It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these.

24 For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us:

25 Nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest enters into the holy place every year with blood of others;

26 For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world has he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.

27 And as it is appointed to men once to die, but after this the judgment:

28 So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and to them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin to salvation.

In the context of Hebrews 8-9 there is essentially no difference between a "new testament" and a "new covenant," as both terms are translated from the same Greek word, diathekeBSSL 149.1+1. While the choice of wording may vary in different English versions, they refer to the same divine arrangement established by Jesus Christ through His death and priestly ministrySOTC 8.1+1.

The Meaning of the Word

The term diatheke refers to a disposition, arrangement, or institution, encompassing mutual promises based on specific conditionsDSQ69 90.4+1. It is sometimes rendered as "testament" or "will" because a testament only carries force and strength after the death of the person who made it Hebrews 9:16-17ARSH May 26, 1853, page 3.18+1. Because the Greek word is uniform throughout the original text, the distinction between a "covenant" and a "testament" in these chapters is a matter of translation rather than a difference in spiritual realityEVCO 324.4.

The Role of the Mediator

Both terms describe the "better covenant" or "new testament" of which Jesus is the High Priest and Mediator Hebrews 8:6ARSH May 26, 1853, page 3.18+1.

• Ratification by Blood: Just as the first covenant was dedicated with the blood of animals, the new testament was ratified and made of full effect by the shedding of Christ’s own blood Hebrews 9:18-20SOTC 8.1+1.

• Redemption for Transgressors: Jesus acts as the Mediator of the new testament so that through His death, redemption is provided for transgressions that occurred even under the first testament Hebrews 9:15ARSH February 1, 1898, page 76.15+1.

• An Eternal Inheritance: While the first covenant was faulty because its promises were based on human obedience and could not take away sin, the new testament provides a better hope and an eternal inheritance through the blood of the everlasting covenant Hebrews 13:20SOTC 33.4+1.

The Law and the Heart

The defining characteristic of this new arrangement is not the abolition of God's moral requirements, but a change in where they are writtenARSH May 26, 1853, page 3.10+1.

• The Basis of the Covenant: The ten commandments served as the basis for the first covenant and remain the basis for the new Jeremiah 31:33ARSH May 26, 1853, page 3.18+1.

• The Inward Work: Under the first covenant, the law was engraved on tables of stone; however, under the new testament, God puts His laws into the minds and writes them upon the hearts of His people Hebrews 8:104SP 307.2+1.

• Forgiveness of Sins: Along with this internal transformation, the new covenant brings the explicit promise that God will be merciful to unrighteousness and remember sins and iniquities no more Hebrews 8:12HSFD 159.1+1.

The Heavenly Sanctuary

The transition from the old to the new also involves a change in the place of ministrationGC88 412.5+1.

• A Worldly vs. Heavenly Tabernacle: The first covenant had a worldly sanctuary, but the new testament pertains to the true tabernacle in heaven, which the Lord pitched and not man Hebrews 8:1-2S23D 73.1+1.

• The Ark of the Testament: Just as the earthly ark contained the tables of the covenant, the heavenly temple contains the ark of His testament, which holds the perpetual and immutable law of God Revelation 11:19FP1872 8.2+1.

By understanding that these terms are interchangeable, we can see the beauty of Christ's work as He stands in the heavenly sanctuary as our Advocate and Intercessor, ensuring the promises of the new covenant are sure to everyone who believes 1 John 2:1PTUK October 4, 1894, page 627.29+1.