The Bible is a book of books in more ways than one. If you have ever wondered just how many books are in the Bible, you are not alone. What is commonly known as the Protestant Bible, and is the topic of this article, has a total of 66 distinct books, divided into two main sections, the Old Testament and the New Testament.
The entire Bible, this sacred text, came to us according to the process recorded in 2 Peter 1:21 “For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.” (KJV) God, through the Person of His Holy Spirit, made sure that His Word was recorded. This process spanned a total of approximately 1,500 years, and included many different authors, but all were guided by God’s Holy Spirit.
How Many Books Are in the Bible? — Old Testament Books
The Old Testament canon, also known as the Hebrew Bible, which is also the Christian Old Testament, contains 39 books.
How Many Books in the Bible — The Books of Moses
The first five books of the Old Testament are called “the Pentateuch,” which means “five tools.” The author of these books is commonly believed to be Moses, despite the great span of time that these books cover. The occurrences contained in the first book of the Bible — Genesis — contains history long before Moses was born. Most Bible scholars believe that Moses received the information about the events of Genesis from God Himself when he was with God on Mount Sinai.
The other four books are focused primarily on the early history of the Jewish people and contains God’s specific laws for them. It is from these sacred writings that some of the contemporary Jewish traditions arose.
Genesis — The book of beginnings. In this book is the account of creation, the flood of Noah, the beginning of the Hebrew people with Abraham, and many other accounts.
Exodus — This book records of the process by which God raised up Moses to lead His people out of their Egyptian slavery.
Leviticus — The book details the laws of God to the Jewish people, all 613 of them! Today, parts of the Jewish faith trace some of origins of their traditions back to this book.
Numbers — The account of the years of wandering in the wilderness under the leadership of Moses.
Deuteronomy — Or “second law,” is a review of the laws God, the final words of Moses before his death, and before the children of Israel finally entered the Promised Land.
How Many Books Are in the Bible? — Books of History
The books of history that focus on the people and nation of Israel are Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, 1 and 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther. The books of Samuel, Kings, and Chronicles record the history of the kings of Israel and the division of the nation into northern and southern antagonistic kingdoms, the captivity of the northern kingdom, Israel, by the Assyrian Empire in 722 B.C., and the captivity and exile of the southern kingdom, Judah, by the Babylonian Empire in 586 B.C.
Ezra — Ezra the scribe recorded some of the events of the Jews who returned to their own land after being in captivity in Babylon including the re-building of God’s temple in Jerusalem.
Nehemiah — In the book of Nehemiah is the account of the Jews rebuilding the wall about the city of Jerusalem after the Babylonian exile.
Esther — This mysterious and fascinating book is set in the land of Persia, and records the bravery of an orphaned Jewish girl who became a Persian queen that God used to protect and preserve the Jewish people.
Joshua — Joshua became the leader of Israel after the death of Moses and led his people across the Jordan River to claim the Promised Land.
Judges — This book is about Israel after the death of Joshua, when Israel had no king but was ruled over by various judges.
Ruth — The Book of Ruth is a sweet, second-chance romance of a widowed Moabite woman who became the great-grandmother of King David.
1 and 2 Samuel — 1 Samuel begins with the birth of Samuel, who grew up to be the last judge of the nation of Israel. He anointed King Saul as the first king of Israel, and later King David, who succeeded Saul. The Book of 2 Samuel records the adventures and exploits King David.
1 and 2 Kings — These books may have been written by the prophet Jeremiah, but there is no conclusive proof of this. They contain the history of the kings of Israel and Judah and include the exploits of the Godly prophets Elijah and this successor, Elisha.
1 and 2 Chronicles — These two books are believed to be written by Ezra the scribe. They begin with the genealogy of the tribes of Israel and tell of the reign of King David and of his son, Solomon. 2 Chronicles gives an account about the various kings, their character, and accomplishments of the southern tribe of Judah.
How Many Books Are in the Bible? — The Books of Poetry
The books of poetry, also known as “wisdom books,” are Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and the Song of Solomon. These books, written with poetic style, are out of chronological order with the rest of the Bible.
Job – The book of Job may be the oldest book in the Bible, possibly written before the flood of Noah. Its poetic form is the dialogue of the righteous and rich man, Job, whom God, in a celestial “bet” with Satan, took almost everything away from him.
The contents of this book are Job’s complaint to God for all that he suffers, and the words of his friends who were wrongly convinced that the tragedies Job endured was because of his sin against God. The book ends with Jehovah God Himself speaking to Job. God never revealed to Job the reason for his severe calamities, but at the end of the story, God gave Job twice as much as he had before.
Psalms — This is the longest book in the Bible with 150 chapters. It was written mainly by King David, and includes a vast range of emotions, wisdom, and even prophecy. Many of the Psalms are in the form of Hebrew poetry, which repeats similar thoughts and ideas but uses different words. This book was the “songbook” of the Hebrew people.
The books of Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and the Song of Solomon was written by David’s son. Solomon.
The Song of Solomon — This small book is about a young man rejoicing in the love of his bride.
Proverbs — Here are a collection of sayings that impart practical wisdom for everyday life as related from a wise father to his son.
Ecclesiastes — Here a bitter old man realizes the folly and vanity of a life lived without God.
How Many Books Are in the Bible? — The Major Prophets
The books written by the Old Testament prophets, known as the major prophets, are Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, and Daniel. Bible prophecy many times has more than one fulfillment. Many of the events foretold by these prophets had a relatively close future fulfillment, which historians can look back upon. Yet many times, if not always with Bible prophecy, is a deeper, future fulfillment of events that cannot be accurately described since it is still in the future. These books of prophecy, all that the prophets themselves spoke about, was in their future, even while much (but not all) is in the historical past.
Isaiah — This book is said to be a “mini-Bible,” With its 66 books, Bible scholars have found that this book mirrors the completed word of God.
Jeremiah — The prophet Jeremiah wrote his message to the Jews who are in exile in Babylon.
Lamentations – This book was also written by the prophet Jeremiah because of his weeping (i.e., lamenting) over the sins of his people, which resulted in God’s severe punishment of them.
Ezekiel — This major prophet foretold of the destruction of Jerusalem, but also of the restoration of the Jews back to the land of Israel, and the rebuilding of the Jewish temple.
Daniel — The Book of Daniel is rich in history through the detailed visions that God gave to him looks forward to the end of man’s world rule and the reign of Jesus Christ over the entire Earth.
How Many Books Are in the Bible? — The Minor Prophets
The last twelve books of the Old Testament are smaller books written by prophets of God who are known as “the minor prophets.” The difference between the major and minor prophets is not in regard to their message(s), only in the smaller size of their books.
Highlights of these small but powerful books of prophecy are:
Hosea — This prophet had an unfaithful wife, which was a picture of God’s love toward unfaithful Israel.
Joel — This book is a lament over the sins of Israel that resulted in the judgement of God, but also looks forward to a yet future restoration of Jerusalem.
Amos — This prophet foretold the coming judgments of God, not only against Israel, but also against the enemies of Israel.
Obadiah — This single-chapter book is addressed to the people of Edom, who were an enemy of the Nation of Israel.
Jonah – God used a whale to get this reluctant prophet to preach to the wicked city of Nineveh (in modern-day Iraq).
Micah – This prophet foretold about the future judgment of the divided kingdom of Israel, but also looks forward to the millennial reign of Jesus Christ.
Nahum — This book foretold the judgment of the wicked city of Nineveh many decades after they originally repented at the preaching of Jonah.
Habakkuk — This prophet tells of the Chaldeans (an enemy of Israel from modern-day Iraq) while he has a dialogue with God. He ends his book with a song of praise to God.
Zephaniah — This prophetical book both foretells God’s judgement both on Jerusalem and on other nations but also focuses on the coming day of the Lord.
Haggai – The purpose of this book is to urge the Jews to rebuild God’s temple, which had been destroyed when the Kingdom of Judah was taken into Babylonian captivity.
Zechariah — This book shows that God is at work and also contains many prophecies about the coming Messiah.
Malachi — In this last book of the Old Testament, the prophet exhorts God’s people to serve and love Him, reminding them of His past judgments on sin.
The Old Testament also mentions Jesus Christ, but in hidden ways. Check out The Gospel in the Old Testament to see how every book of the Bible mentions the Savior of the world.
How Many Books Are in the Bible? — New Testament Books
The New Testament canon of Scripture, even more so than the Old Testament, is the basis for the Christian faith. All of the Bible is written for our learning and instruction, but not all of the Bible is written specifically to us. (Put in link to dispensation article here.) Most of the New Testament contains the teaching of for followers of Jesus Christ called “Christians.” This designation is a Bible term found in Acts 11:26b “And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch.” (KJV) There are several New Testament writers though most of the New Testament was written by the Apostle Paul.
How Many Books Are in the Bible? — The Gospels
The first three Gospels — Matthew, Mark, and Luke — are called “synoptic gospels’ since they record similar events. The Gospel of John records events of Jesus’ life and ministry that are not found in the other three Gospels.
Matthew — This is the first book of the New Testament and is written to the Jewish people with the focus on Jesus, the King of the Jews
Mark — This Gospel could be considered “the acts of Jesus,” as it portrays Jesus as the “suffering servant.”
Luke — Luke, the physician, wrote his Gospel account with the emphasis of Jesus as “the Son of Man.”
John — The Apostle John presented Jesus Christ as “The Son of God” in this fourth Gospel and presents Him as God Himself.
How Many Books Are in the Bible? — History of the Church
The Acts of the Apostles — This book commonly shortened to the name “Acts,” is a book of history. The church of Jesus Christ, the body of believers, began with God sending His Holy Spirit to live in the hearts of His people, which is recorded in Acts chapter 2. This book was written by Luke, who wrote the same Gospel.
How Many Books Are in the Bible? — The Epistles
The epistles are letters to either individuals or a local assembly of believers. This collection of letters contains the majority of the New Testament and gives doctrine concerning the conduct of church leadership and teaching. The first twelve books were written by the apostle Paul.
The names attributed to each of these books are recorded as either the geographical location where the believers gathered or the individual to whom it is addressed. The letters written by the other early church fathers use their name rather than the name of the recipients.
1 and 2 Corinthians — These letters, written to the assembly of believers at Corinth (a major city in Greece) were to instruct them on matters concerning daily life. The first letter was Paul’s answer to one of their letters, in which they have asked him several pointed questions concerning the proper conduct of Christians. Topics included in these letters include the speaking of tongues, marriage, separation, head coverings, circumcision, slavery, eating food sacrificed to idols, and other church-related topics.
Galatians — This book has a bit of an angry tone to it as the Apostle Paul wrote to the Jewish Christians at Galatia (a city in modern Turkey). The Galatians seemed to both want to follow, and put themselves under, the law of Moses, despite God giving them His great grace and freedom from the bondage of the Old Testament law.
Ephesians — The focus of this fantastic short book written by the Apostle Paul to the church at Ephesus (a city in modern Turkey) is “the heavenlies.”
Philippians — The theme of this short, encouraging book is joy in the Lord.
Colossians — The purpose of this short epistle was to instruct and warn the believers at Colosse (a city in modern Turkey) about teachers who have been spreading false doctrine.
1 and 2 Thessalonians — These two books contain the glorious promise of looking forward to the second coming of Jesus Christ, both for the resurrection and rapture of the church.
1 and 2 Timothy — Both of these books are epistles written by the Apostle Paul to the pastor and his “son in the faith,” Timothy. The book of 2 Timothy may have been Paul’s last letter before his death. These books contain advice on how a local church should operate.
Titus — The message in this book is similar to the content of the letters written to Timothy. This book was a letter written to another pastor, friend, and companion to the Apostle Paul on many of his travels, whose name was Titus.
Philemon — This touching letter is a request by the Apostle Paul to his friend, Philemon, about Philemon’s runaway slave, Onesimus, who found Paul and received Christ as his savior. Paul explains what happened and asks that Philemon would receive Onesimus on this condition: “Not now as a servant, but above a servant, a brother beloved, specially to me, but how much more unto thee, both in the flesh, and in the Lord?” Philemon 1:16 (KJV)
Hebrews — The writer of this book is unknown, but most Bible scholars attribute it to the Apostle Paul. This book was written to Jewish people, hence the title “Hebrews.” It was directed toward those Jews who had accepted Jesus Christ as the Messiah and has a distinctly Jewish flavor.
James — The author is this book is the Apostle James who wrote this to Jewish believers about the time of the events recorded in the Book of Acts.
1 and 2 Peter — In these letters, Peter wrote to Christians, both to encourage them in the face of severe persecution and also to warn them against false teachers and their erroneous teachings.
1, 2 and 3 John — The first of John’s epistles is not addressed directly to a specific individual or a church. It is a very kind, sweet, and intimate letter addressed to “little children.” The second book is addressed to “the elect lady.” This special woman may have been Mary, the mother of Jesus. John wrote this third letter to a beloved church leader, Gaius.
Jude — The next to the last book of the Bible, Jude wrote this powerful, single-chapter book to warn Christians against false teachers and to “contend for the faith.”
How Many Books are in the Bible? — Prophecy
Revelation — The last book of the Bible records the vision that the Apostle John was given by the risen Christ. Of all of the books of the Bible, only the Book of Revelation specifically promises a blessing to those who read it. Addressed to the seven churches in Asia (located in modern-day eastern Turkey), this book of prophecy tells of the chaotic ending of the rule of mankind and gives a glimpse of eternity future.
How Many Books Are in the Bible? — The Roman Catholic Bible
The Roman Catholic Church uses a Bible which is similar to the King James Bible but contains some additional books. These extra books are called “deuterocanonical books.” To learn more about this particular subject, read the article “Why does the Roman Catholic Bible Have More Books?”
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