Read Mark 14 at Bible Gateway.
And He said to them, “This is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many.” Mark 14:24
As far as I know, the only language where the root words tell a parable to define that word, is Hebrew. Greek does not have the same function. But using the Septuagint, the Hebrew Scriptures translated into Greek, we can take the Greek back to the Hebrew, to tell their parables.
What is the new covenant?
New is Strong’s G2537, καινος, that is, kainos, an adjective meaning, “new.” Vine’s says of kainos:
… that which is unaccustomed or unused, not “new” in time, recent, but “new” as to form or quality, of different nature from what is contrasted as old.
The Septuagint translates the Hebrew chadash, Strong’s H2319, with kainos most of the time.
Strong’s H2319 chadash, is an adjective meaning, “new;” from Strong’s H2318 חדש chadash, “to be new, to renew;” that is, the wall separates, but the door in the wall unites the separated parties again.
The verb is “to renew;” the concrete object derived from the verb is “new moon,” that which hangs in the sky at the beginning of each new month. The abstract concept is “newness,” that which is renewed after what is old has waned.
In that He saith ‘new,’ He hath made the first old, and what doth become worn out and waxeth old is nigh disappearing. Heb 8:13
Blue Letter Bible Greek Textus Receptus with KJV translation
Covenant is Strong’s G1242, διαθηκη, that is, diatheke, a noun meaning, “last will and testament.” Vine’s says of diatheke:
… a disposition of property by will or otherwise.
The Septuagint translates the Hebrew beriyth, Strong’s H1285, with diatheke many times, especially here:
Behold, the days are coming, says YHVH, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah— not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, says YHVH. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says YHVH: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. Jer 31:31-34
Where the Hebrew phrase is chadash beriyth exactly.
Strong’s H1285 beriyth, is a noun meaning, “covenant,” from the parable for the fatted ox, the choicest animal reserved for cutting the blood covenant.
So we see that the new covenant which Yeshua made in His blood was not new in time, but the old covenant renewed, with a new form or quality. First, the blood with which it was cut was the perfect blood of the spotless Lamb which God provided for Himself. Thus it only need to be shed once rather than day after day, and year after year. Second, the Law remains as given to Moses on Mount Sinai, but rather than being inscribed on two tablets of stone outside the man, so that obedience is a matter of a coerced will, it is inscribed on the tablets of the heart inside the man, so that obedience is a matter of second nature. The new covenant provided for the new birth (Joh 3:5), the new heart (Eze 11:19-20), and the new nature (2 Cor 5:17)!
Leave a Reply