The Bible is made up of a "library" of 66 books, 39 in the Old Testament, 27 in the New Testament. The Old Testament
writings first appeared as separate scrolls in Hebrew; we don't know when they were first gathered into a single
volume. The 39 books of the Old Testament vary in authorship and style and can be divided into 4 major groups.
LAW: Sometimes called the Pentateuch, or "five scrolls." They are the first 5 books of the Bible;
Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers.
History: Tracing the story of God's people from their entry into the Promised Land to the Exile: These
are the next 12 books of the Bible; Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 Samuel, 2 Samuel, 1 Kings, 2 Kings, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles,
Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther.
POETRY AND WISDOM: Full of proverbs, riddles, parables, warnings, and wise sayings. These are the next
5 books of the Bible; Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon.
PROPHECY: God's prophets explained what happened in the past, spoke out against evil in the present,
and told what God would do in the future. These are the next 17 books of the Bible and the end of the Old Testament.
Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi.
The Aprocrypha is a collection of books and addition to the Old Testament books written between 300 B.C. and A. D. 100.
It was not accepted by the Jews as part of the Old Testament Scripture, and most Protestant denominations do not accept it
as part of genuine Scripture. The books are interesting and valuable historical documents that range from historical
narratives to pious fiction.
The 27 books of the New Testament were written in Greek and can also be divided into different types of writing:
HISTORY: The 4 gospels and the book of Acts are considered history. The Gospels; Mattew, Mark, Luke,
and John are not simply historical records; they were written to persuade readers to believe in Jesus and form portraits of
Jesus as Messiah.
LETTERS: These include Paul's letters to churches in various cities, his letters to individual Christians,
and letters written by other apostles. These are the next 21 books; Romans, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, Galatians,
Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 Thessalonians, 2 Thessalonians, 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon, Hebrews, James,
1 Peter, 2 Peter, 1 John, 2 John, 3 John, and Jude.
REVELATION: This book opens with letters to seven churches of Asia Minor; Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Smyrna,
Ephesus, Philadelphia, and Laodicea; but continues with vivid visions about the last days.