The new and the old testaments first refer to the two covenants which God made with man as the two conditions for man to have a relationship with Him. The old covenant was ordained in the hand of Moses, dedicated with the blood of bulls and goats, and based upon the law, which could not give life, as its condition, requiring man only to work, not to believe. It was not God’s original intention but was added later and eventually was done away. Thus, it was applied only to the Old Testament age. The new covenant, the better and eternal covenant, was accomplished by Jesus Christ, was established with the blood of Jesus, the Son of God, and is based upon grace, which gives life, as its condition, requiring man only to believe, not to work. It is of God’s original intention and is applied to the New Testament age and eternity.
The New and the Old Testaments also refer to the two sections of the entire Bible. The Old Testament refers to the first section, and it contains thirty-nine books which can be divided into four categories. First, the Law, consisting of five books, from Genesis to Deuteronomy, contains mainly the record of the commandments, statutes, and ordinances given by God. Second, the historical books, consisting of twelve books, from Joshua to Esther, are the record of the history of the children of Israel, from their entering into Canaan to their return from captivity. Third, the books of poetry, consisting of five books, from Job to the Song of Songs, are the poetic expressions of the various spiritual experiences of God’s people. Fourth, the prophetic books, consisting of seventeen books, from Isaiah to Malachi, are the record of the prophets’ reproach, exhortation, warning, and encouragement to the children of Israel, and the prophecies concerning the children of Israel, the Gentiles, the various aspects of Christ, the future millennium, and the new heaven and new earth. The New Testament refers to the second section of the Bible, and it contains twenty-seven books which can be divided into three categories: First, the historical books consist of five books, from Matthew to Acts. The first four, the Gospels, are the record of the life of the Lord Jesus, and the fifth, Acts, is a record of the movement of the apostles on the earth after the Lord’s resurrection and ascension. Second, the Epistles, consisting of twenty-one books from Romans to Jude, are the apostles’ letters to the churches and to individual saints, revealing the divine revelation concerning the church and the proper condition of the believers’ spiritual life and living. Third, the one book of prophecy, the book of Revelation, is not only the conclusion of the New Testament, but also the consummation of the entire Bible, containing prophecies on the church, the children of Israel, the end of the world and Satan, the second coming of Christ, the millennium, and the new heaven and new earth with the New Jerusalem.