The Bible consists of books which have been produced over a period of many years.
In most cases, the Protestant Bibles have 66 books.
These are broken down into two principal parts:
- Old Testament
- New Testament
There are 39 books in the Old Testament and 27 in the New Testament.
How many books are there in the Bible?
According to the Protestant tradition, the Bible is filled with:
- From the Old Testament there are 39 books.In the Old Testament there are 39 books.
- New Testament Books of the Bible: (27 books)
- 66 books in total
Other Christian traditions, such as Catholic and Orthodox traditions have further books or sections.
Which are the Books of the Old Testament?
The Old Testament is the story of creation, the people of Israel, the law, history, poetry and the prophets.
In the Protestant Old Testament there are 39 books:
Law
- Genesis
- Exodus
- Leviticus
- Numbers
- Deuteronomy
The Pentateuch or Torah are also the first five books.
History
- Joshua
- Judges
- Ruth
- 1 Samuel
- 2 Samuel
- 1 Kings
- 2 Kings
- 1 Chronicles
- 2 Chronicles
- Ezra
- Nehemiah
- Esther
These books tell the great events in Israel’s history.
Poetry and Wisdom
- Job
- Psalms
- Proverbs
- Ecclesiastes
- Song of Solomon
The books contain poetry, prayers, life and faith wisdom, reflections.
Major Prophets
- Isaiah
- Jeremiah
- Lamentations
- Ezekiel
- Daniel
Their name Major Prophets is given to them since the majority of them are longer.
Minor Prophets
- Hosea
- Joel
- Amos
- Obadiah
- Jonah
- Micah
- Nahum
- Habakkuk
- Zephaniah
- Haggai
- Zechariah
- Malachi
The books of the Minor Prophets are shorter because they make less of a statement, but not because they are of less importance.
Now, what are the books of the NT?
The New Testament is about the life and teachings of Jesus Christ, the early Christian church and Christian teaching.
These 27 books are sorted into a number of groups.
The Gospels
- Matthew
- Mark
- Luke
- John
The four Gospels are an account of Jesus’ life, ministry, death and resurrection.
History
- Acts
The book of Acts tells the story of Jesus’ resurrection and the early church.
Paul’s Letters
- Romans
- 1 Corinthians
- 2 Corinthians
- Galatians
- Ephesians
- Philippians
- Colossians
- 1 Thessalonians
- 2 Thessalonians
- 1 Timothy
- 2 Timothy
- Titus
- Philemon
Traditionally these books have been attributed to the Apostle Paul as letters.
General Letters
- Hebrews
- James
- 1 Peter
- 2 Peter
- 1 John
- 2 John
- 3 John
- Jude
These letters include instructions, encouragement and counsel to Christian communities.
Prophecy
- Revelation
Revelation is the final book of the Bible, the messages of which include judgment, hope and the future; along with vision and symbolism.
Which book is the first book in the Bible?
The first book of the Bible is called Genesis.
Genesis tells about:
- Creation
- Adam and Eve
- Noah
- Abraham
- Isaac
- Jacob
- Joseph
It deals with many of the significant themes to be elaborated throughout the Bible.
What book of the Bible is the final one?
The last book of the Bible is Revelation.
It’s also sometimes called the Book of Revelation or the Apocalypse.
It is full of symbolic visions of conflict, judgment, hope and the ultimate triumph of God.
What were the first 5 books of the Bible?
The first five books are:
- Genesis
- Exodus
- Leviticus
- Numbers
- Deuteronomy
These two combined make up the Pentateuch, which is also known as the Book of the Law.
In Jewish culture, these books are considered to be a component of the Torah.
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Is the book of books, the Bible, in order?
Not exactly.
In most cases, the Bible does not follow a chronological order.
For instance, there are books of history, books of poetry, books of prophecy and books of letters.
Due to this, the order of the books does not necessarily follow the order of the events.
The question is why do some Bibles have more books?
There are a number of different Christian traditions, each with different biblical canons.
Catholic Bibles include the books of the Bible that are referred to as “Deuterocanonical.”
There may be other texts in addition to these used in the Orthodox tradition.
So, the number of books depends on the Christian tradition and bible version.
Helps to remember Bible books.
One way is to memorize them in sets.
For example:
- 5 books of Law
- 12 books of History
- 5 books of RE
- 5 Major Prophets
- 12 Minor Prophets
- 4 Gospels
- 1 book of Old Testament History (Oral History)
- 21 Letters
- 1 book of Prophecy
It’s easier to recall smaller numbers of books.
The Bible is divided into two parts: the Old Testament and the New Testament; it contains many books.
In most Protestant bibles there are 66 books – 39 in the Old Testament and 27 in the New Testament.
These books include history, law, poetry, wisdom, prophecy, Gospels and letters.
When one has an understanding of the structure of the books, studying and navigating through a book becomes easier.
FAQs
The Bible has how many books?
Protestant Bibles have 66 Books.
In the Old Testament, how many books are there?
In the Protestant bible, there are 39 books in the Old Testament.
The NT has how many books?
There are 27 books in the New Testament.
Which book of the Bible is first?
The first book of the Bible is called Genesis.
Which book is the last in the Bible?
Revelation is the newest book in the Bible.
What is the reason there are more books in the Catholic bible?
Extra books and parts of books in Catholic Bibles are called the Deuterocanonical books.