Is there any difference between the word testament and covenant?

Answer 1

A testament is a statement of "fact". In the case of the bible it usually means what God has done or been in someone's life (like testimony). Covenant is a promise or agreement made between two people or God and Man. In the Old Testament (the bible before Jesus) the last covenant was a promise to Abraham that God would protect his "people" and would know who they were if the men were circumcised. In the case of the New Testament the new covenant is that Jesus Christ died for our sins so that, circumcised or not, we are all accepted as God's people.

Another Answer:

NO. This is a most confusing use of terms that has led many to discount the Word of God in the 'Old Covenant.'

Few realize that the entire Bible is centered around God's ever increasingly revealing covenants which are long-term agreements between two(2) parties or more which formalizes a binding relationship between the parties. Essentially, it is their respective obligations and commitments to each other.

All the covenants between God and Israel are part of the collective work called the Old Testament but in effect, these writings all pointed to the conclusive work of Jesus Christ who established the New Covenant - and it is not fully in place for all as yet and will only happen during the Millennial Rule when God's Law will be written upon the new, fleshy hearts of all mankind.

The terms Old Testament and New Testament are found in a few places in some Bible translations, but the word translated "testament" is actually the word for "covenant." Those scriptures simply talk about the old and new covenants-not about books of the Bible.

If it were possible for us to go back in time to ask the apostles John, Peter or Paul about the "Old Testament" or the "New Testament," they would have no idea what we are asking them. The actual terms 'Old Testament and New Testament' were first coined by men long after the books of the Bible were written. The first time the term New Testament is found in the writings of the early theologian Tertullian (ca. A.D. 155-220), a century or more after the deaths of the apostles. And this simple 'classification' of a group of writings has led many to discount much of the teachings of God's Law and prophecies for mankind.