The book we call the Bible actually consists of 66 books and letters written by about 40 people. However, the important thing is that these 66 writings form one book. This is because one being, God, inspired the content of the Bible, and the Bible has one main theme – the salvation of sinful humanity.
The Bible has two main literary divisions: (1) The Old Testament and (2) The New Testament. The word “testament” means covenant. Each testament plays a role in explaining how God has dealt with humanity throughout history.
Old Testament (46 books)
The Pentateuch
The first five books are called the law because from Exodus to Deuteronomy, God’s law to the Israelites is described, given to them through Moses (Deut. 5:1-3). This law is also called the Law of Moses (Josh. 23:6) and the Law of the Lord (2 Chron. 31:3).
Genesis (Gen) – The book of Genesis describes the creation of the world, humans, and how sin entered the world. It also describes the origins of the nation of Israel, through which God later brought Christ (the Savior) into the world.
Exodus (Ex) – The book of Exodus describes Israel’s exodus from slavery in Egypt and how they received God’s law through their leader Moses.
Leviticus (Lev) – The book of Leviticus describes sacrifices and other laws.
Numbers (Num) – The book of Numbers describes Israel’s wandering in the desert for 40 years and the census of Israelite men.
Deuteronomy (Deut) – The book of Deuteronomy is Moses’ final address to the nation of Israel, reiterating the law and urging the nation to obey.
Historical Books
These twelve books cover over 900 years of Israel’s history.
Joshua (Josh) – The book of Joshua tells how Joshua, after Moses’ death, led Israel in conquering and settling the very sinful land of Canaan, as God had promised and commanded the Israelites.
The books of Judges and Ruth show how God ruled over the Israelites through judges.
Judges (Judg)
Ruth (Ruth)
The books of 1-2 Samuel, 1-2 Kings and 1-2 Chronicles describe Israel’s history from the time it became a nation with a king until the nation was divided and eventually subjected to Assyrian and Babylonian exile due to its own sins.
1 Samuel (1 Sam)
2 Samuel (2 Sam)
1 Kings (1 Kings)
2 Kings (2 Kings)
1 Chronicles (1 Chron)
2 Chronicles (2 Chron)
The books of Ezra and Nehemiah describe how the Jews returned from exile and rebuilt the temple in Jerusalem, its walls, and also restored their God-given religion.
Ezra (Ezra)
Nehemiah (Neh)
Tobit (Tob)
Judith (Jud)
The book of Esther tells how the Jews triumphed over their enemies during the reign of King Ahasuerus of Persia and Media.
Esther (Est)
1 Maccabees (1 Mac)
2 Maccabees (2 Mac)
Poetry and Wisdom Books
Job (Job) – The book of Job describes the sufferings of a devout man.
Psalms (Ps) – The Psalms contain prayers and spiritual songs.
The books of Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon contain the wise sayings and experiences of Solomon.
Proverbs (Prov)
Ecclesiastes (Eccl)
Song of Solomon (Song)
Wisdom (Wis)
Sirach (Sir)
Prophetic Books
From around 900 BC to 400 BC, the Jews were warned to repent of their sins, and very important future events were foretold, especially the coming of Christ and the kingdom of God. “Major” and “minor” refer not to the importance of the books, but to their length. Major prophets wrote more than minor prophets.
Isaiah (Isa)
Jeremiah (Jer)
Lamentations (Lam)
Baruch (Bar)
Ezekiel (Ezek)
Daniel (Dan)
Hosea (Hos)
Joel (Joel)
Amos (Amos)
Obadiah (Obad)
Jonah (Jonah)
Micah (Mic)
Nahum (Nah)
Habakkuk (Hab)
Zephaniah (Zeph)
Haggai (Hag)
Zechariah (Zech)
Malachi (Mal)
New Testament (27 books)
The New Testament is the name of the second major part of the Bible. Its 27 books contain the New Covenant established by God through Christ, meant for all people (Matt. 28:18-20). It focuses on the coming of Christ to save sinful humanity and the establishment of His Church. It also reveals God’s will for all humanity.
Gospels
The four Gospels describe the life of Jesus: His birth, teachings, ministry, crucifixion, burial, and resurrection. They also include Christ’s instructions to the apostles for their future work after His ascension into heaven. A key reason these books were written is “that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name” (John 20:31).
Gospel of Matthew (Mt)
Gospel of Mark (Mk)
Gospel of Luke (Lk)
Gospel of John (Jn)
Early Church History. The Acts of the Apostles documents the establishment and spread of the Church, which Jesus promised to build (Matt. 16:18), through the power of God. Acts also shows what Christ’s apostles preached and how people were saved and added to the Church.
Acts of the Apostles (Acts)
Pauline Epistles
Paul wrote these letters to churches and individuals, containing very important teachings. Some believe Paul also wrote the Epistle to the Hebrews, though its authorship is unknown.
Epistle to the Romans (Rom)
First Epistle to the Corinthians (1 Cor)
Second Epistle to the Corinthians (2 Cor)
Epistle to the Galatians (Gal)
Epistle to the Ephesians (Eph)
Epistle to the Philippians (Phil)
Epistle to the Colossians (Col)
First Epistle to the Thessalonians (1 Thess)
Second Epistle to the Thessalonians (2 Thess)
Pastoral Epistles
These letters were written by James, Peter, John, and Jude, containing important teachings. Peter and John were apostles. Bible scholars believe James and Jude were Jesus’ half-brothers.
First Epistle to Timothy (1 Tim)
Second Epistle to Timothy (2 Tim)
Epistle to Titus (Titus)
Epistle to Philemon (Philem)
Epistle to the Hebrews (Heb)
Catholic Epistles
Epistle of James (James)
First Epistle of Peter (1 Pet)
Second Epistle of Peter (2 Pet)
First Epistle of John (1 John)
Second Epistle of John (2 John)
Third Epistle of John (3 John)
Epistle of Jude (Jude)
Apocalyptic Literature
The Apostle John wrote the Book of Revelation, which belongs to the genre of apocalyptic (revelatory) literature. It is full of symbols that require deep understanding and attention to interpret.
Book of Revelation (Rev)