TR: ʻêdûwth → μαρτύριον (Testimony / Covenant Document)

The Chain

Hebrew OT                  LXX (Greek OT)               Greek NT
─────────────────          ──────────────────────        ─────────────────
עֵדוּת (ʻêdûwth)      →    μαρτύριον (martyrion)    →   μαρτύριον (martyrion)
H5715, 57x in OT           LXX co-occ: 53x              20x in NT
"testimony, witness"        PMI score: 25.93             "testimony, evidence"

OT Usage (Hebrew)

Strong's	Word	Occurrences	Primary Meaning
H5715	עֵדוּת (ʻêdûwth)	57	Testimony as covenant document/artifact; the tables of law, the ark, the tabernacle
H5713	עֵדָה (ʻêdâh)	26	Alternate feminine form; same semantic range; heavier Psalms usage
H5707	עֵד (ʻêd)	69	The witness (person); legal and divine witness-bearer

Key OT passages: - Exo 25:16 — "thou shalt put into the ark the testimony which I shall give thee" — the covenant document as physical artifact - Exo 31:18 — "two tables of testimony written with the finger of God" — the tablet-testimony as divine writing - Ps 19:7 — "the testimony of the LORD [is] sure, making wise the simple" — testimony as the body of divine law

→ H5715-eduwth.md — canonical word study

LXX Bridge

Hebrew	Greek Translation	LXX Count	Notes
H5715 ʻêdûwth	μαρτύριον (G3142)	53x	Primary equivalent — covers both the cultic artifact and the law
H5713 ʻêdâh	μαρτύριον (G3142)	24x	Same Greek word for the alternate Hebrew form
H5707 ʻêd	μάρτυς (G3144)	38x	Witness-person takes the related but distinct Greek noun

The key LXX compound phrases preserved into NT: - σκηνὴ τοῦ μαρτυρίου ("tabernacle of the testimony") — translates מִשְׁכַּן הָעֵדֻת (Num 9:15 etc.) - κιβωτὸς τοῦ μαρτυρίου ("ark of the testimony") — translates אֲרוֹן הָעֵדוּת (Exo 25:22 etc.)

Semantic continuity in translation: μαρτύριον captures ʻêdûwth precisely — it denotes the testimony as thing or evidence (not the person, not the act), which matches the Hebrew cultic use where the documents and the chest housing them are "the testimony." The LXX makes no semantic shift; the word pair is structurally stable.

NT Usage (Greek)

Strong's	Word	Occurrences	Primary Meaning
G3142	μαρτύριον (martyrion)	20	Testimony as evidence/proof; the testimony of Christ; formal witness

Key NT passages: - Mat 8:4 / Mar 1:44 / Luk 5:14 — "offer the gift... for a testimony unto them" (εἰς μαρτύριον αὐτοῖς) — Jesus's healing sends lepers to the priests "for a testimony"; the OT cultic-legal function echoes - Acts 4:33 — "with great power gave the apostles witness (μαρτύριον) of the resurrection" — the apostolic testimony as the new formal witness - 1Co 1:6 — "the testimony (μαρτύριον) of Christ was confirmed in you" — the gospel as covenant testimony to the churches - Rev 15:5 — "the tabernacle of the testimony (σκηνὴ τοῦ μαρτυρίου) in heaven" — direct reuse of the LXX Exodus/Numbers phrase for the heavenly sanctuary

[→ G3142 study: TODO(need G3142 study)]

Direct OT→NT Connections

NT Verse	Echoes OT	Shared Phrase	Significance
Rev 15:5	Num 9:15; Exo 38:21	σκηνὴ τοῦ μαρτυρίου	The heavenly sanctuary in Revelation is identified using the exact LXX title for the wilderness tabernacle
Mat 8:4	Lev 14	εἰς μαρτύριον αὐτοῖς	Jesus invokes the Mosaic testimony/certification process for healed lepers
Heb 3:5	Num 12:7	μαρτύριον	Moses was faithful "for a testimony of things to be spoken" — the Mosaic testimony anticipated the new

Continuity and Shifts

What stays the same: - μαρτύριον throughout LXX and NT retains the sense of formal, institutionalized witness — a fixed, public, authoritative testimony rather than casual speech - The cultic frame (tabernacle, ark) is explicitly recalled in Revelation, linking the heavenly sanctuary directly to the Mosaic prototype

What shifts: - In the OT, ʻêdûwth is almost exclusively tied to the physical sanctuary artifacts (ark, tables, tabernacle); in the NT, μαρτύριον generalizes to the testimony of Christ and apostolic proclamation while retaining the formal/covenant character - The OT testimony is a static written document (the law on stone); the NT testimony is a dynamic proclamation (resurrection witness), though both function as authoritative divine covenant communication

---

Generated from: gather_trace_data.py H5715, search_strongs.py Last updated: 2026-04-02