"And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, and they all drank of it. And he said to them, "This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many." (Mark 23-24).
Jesus gives thanks over the cup. This is where we get the ancient name for the Supper, "Eucharist." He renders thanksgiving or ευχαριστία to His Father so that the sins of the world can be wiped out. You stop and think about what it means to Him to give thanks that night over that cup. Then when they all share it, He speaks His word that declares to them exactly what they're drinking, "This is my blood of the covenant." The KJV renders covenant more accurately with "testament." It also read with many manuscripts "the new testament," so then this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many. New joined to the term testament would chime in their mind right away with the promise from Jeremiah 31:31. There, God promises a new testament that Yahweh will make with His people and how they would know Him in the forgiveness of their iniquities, and He would remember their sins no more.
But further, a testament as in our usage of last will and testament, the writer of Hebrews comments on this (Hebrews 9:16-17). That's how it works; what is mine is mine while I live; when I die, my testament assigns it to you, and it becomes yours. When Jesus at the Supper promises His new testament blood to his disciples, it is fully in view of what His death is preparing to effect.
Saint Paul comments about the covenant in Galatians 3:15, and how much more if it's the last will and testament of the Son of God? So with an unchangeable decree, Christ declares that the content of the cup He reaches His own is the very testament blood that wipes out the sins of the world!
Pr. Will Weedon
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