Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary Hebrews 9:16

"For where a testament is, there must of necessity be the death of him that made it." — Hebrews 9:16 (ASV)

The argument is not easy to follow in English because we have no single word that is the precise equivalent of diatheke (GK 1347). This Greek word is the normal word for a “last will and testament,” but it was also used to refer to any “covenant” God makes with people. These are not the result of a process of negotiation in which God talks things over with people and they come to a mutually acceptable arrangement. God lays down the terms. The result is a covenant characterized by the same kind of finality we see in a testament. (One cannot dicker with a testator!) The author therefore moves easily from the idea of covenant to that of testament. It might help us follow him if we render the first clause in v.15 as “he is the mediator of a new covenant, or testament.” This gives two translations for the one Greek word but helps us retain something of the continuity of thought. The death of the testator is necessary for a will or testament to come into effect. The will may be perfectly valid, but it does not operate till death takes place.