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The Testamentary Character of the New Diatheke in Hebrews 9:15-20

INTRODUCTION In its dogmatic formulations the Reformed tradition has historically affirmed that God’s covenant of grace has a testamental character as well as a covenantal character. This is evident in section 7.4 of the Westminster Confession: “This covenant of grace is frequently set forth in the Scripture by the name of a Testament, in reference to the death of Jesus Christ the testator, and to the everlasting inheritance, with all things belonging to it, therein bequeathed.” Likewise the Reformed theologian Zacharias Ursinus writes in his commentary on the Heidelberg Catechism:  In the Scriptures, the terms Covenant and Testament are used in the same sense, for the purpose of explaining more fully and clearly the idea of this Covenant of God; for both of them refer to and express our reconciliation with God, or the mutual agreement between God and men. Thus for the authors of these confessional standards of the Reformed church, the covenant of grace is a rich doctrine that compreh