Do the four books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John belong in the Old or New Testament?
"Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." (2 Timothy 2:15)
Site Owner: Dan Billingsly
9008 Lynnhaven Avenue
Lubbock, Texas 79413
Tel. 1.806.797.8268
danbillingsly@att.net
1. We must rightly divide between the books, chapters and verses that make up the Old and New Testaments. The two former old covenant ages of the Old Testament were the Patriarchal age described between Genesis 1 and Exodus 19, and the Mosaical age described between Exdous 20 and the final four books of the Old Testament Mosaical age to Matthew 27, Mark 15, Luke 23 and John 19. The cross of Christ, his death by crucifixion, marked the end of the Old Testament and the Mosaical age based on the law of the ten commandments.
2. The period between the Old and New Testaments was not the 400 years between the books of Malachi and Matthew as denominational translators have declared and so divided the books of our modern Bibles. It was the fifty days between the end of the Old Testament age at the death of Christ and the beginning of the New Testament age and revelation of new covenant doctrine in Acts 2 as described in Matthew 28, Mark 16, Luke 24, John 20, 21 and Acts 1.
3. The New Testament age began in Acts 2 with the revelation of Jesus Christ's new covenant through the preaching of the apostles' doctrine. The establishment of the New Testament church and its apostolic history is depicted and described between Acts 2 - Revelation 22.
There are four easy rules to follow - or four questions to answer - for scripturally interpreting any book, chapter or verse of Scripture in the Bible.
1. To which covenant or convenant age does the book, chapter or verse belong?
2. Who is speaking?
3. To whom are they speaking?
4. What is said?
We should remember that because all of the old covenants of the Patriarchal and Mosaical ages of the Old Testament are now history describing how God dealt with men of earlier ages - only the New Testament of Christ in Acts 2 - Revelation 22 sets forth his teaching that applies to men in this new covenant age.
The problem for most people today in understanding the Bible is their misunderstanding of the Old Testament age and teaching of the law of Moses by Christ in Matthew, Mark, Luke and John before the cross.
Dan Billingsly ~
Because of the present day division of denominationalism and the numerous different sectarian versions of the Scriptures, the Bible may appear to some to be a very difficult book to understand. However, if every Bible student will choose a standard or authorized translation of the Bible - a version that contains the work of the other academic translators on the same version - and then scripturally divide all books, chapters and verses into their various covenants and covenant ages described in the Scriptures, the Bible becomes relatively easy to understand. A basic understanding of the Bible requires the following simple divisions.
Number of Visitors
This site was last updated: December 19, 2007
