Old Testament, theHebrew Bible as interpreted among the various branches ofChristianity. InJudaism the Hebrew Bible is not only the primary text of instruction for amoral life but also the historical record of God’s promise, firstarticulated in hiscovenant withAbraham, to consider theJews his chosen people. Christians, on the other hand, view it as theprophecy of the advent ofJesus Christ as theMessiah, the redeemer of humanity, in fulfillment of that promise. Thus, Christian tradition employs the Hebrew Scriptures to legitimize the gospel of Jesus in theNew Testament as the natural extension of the Abrahamiccovenant. The Old Testament, a name coined byMelito of Sardis in the 2nd centuryce, is longer than the Hebrew Bible, in part because Christian editors divided particular works into two sections but also because different Christian groups consider ascanonical some texts not found in the Hebrew Bible. For example, although the Hebrew canon consists of 24 books, the Old Testament ofRoman Catholicscomprises 46 books and that of mostProtestant churches has 39. For further discussion of both Jewish and Christian attitudes toward the Hebrew Scriptures,seeHebrew Bible. For full treatment,seebiblical literature.