New Testament

New Testament, part of the Bible that is distinctively Christian. It consists of 27 books recording the life and teachings of Jesus Christ and the beginnings of Christianity. The books were written in the popular form of Greek spoken in Palestine since the time of Alexander the Great. They include the 4 Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John), the Acts of the Apostles, the Epistles (early evangelical letters), the Book of Revelation, and various others. The earliest fragments of the New Testament date from the early 2nd century. The present canon, used by all major Christian churches, was not decided on until 367, when other early Christian writings were excluded from the compilation.