The Order of the Books of the Bible

The Old Testament

The Pentateuch (Five Books of Moses)

Genesis • Exodus • Leviticus • Numbers • Deuteronomy

The Historical Books

Joshua • Judges • Ruth

• I Samuel • II Samuel • I Kings • II Kings • I Chronicles • II Chronicles

• Ezra • Nehemiah • Tobit • Judith • Esther • I Maccabees • II Maccabees

The Wisdom Books

Job • Psalms • Proverbs • Ecclesiastes • Song of Songs • Wisdom • Sirach

The Prophetic Books

Isaiah • Jeremiah • Lamentations • Baruch • Ezekiel • Daniel

Hosea • Joel • Amos • Obadiah • Jonah • Micah • Nahum • Habakkuk • Zephaniah • Haggai • Zechariah • Malachi

The New Testament

The Gospels

Matthew • Mark • Luke • John

The Early Church

Acts of the Apostles

Letters to Various Churches

Romans • I Corinthians • II Corinthians • Galatians • Ephesians • Philippians • Colossians • I Thessalonians • II Thessalonians • I Timothy • II Timothy • Titus • Philemon • Hebrews

The Catholic Letters

James • I Peter • II Peter • I John • II John • III John • Jude

Revelation

Why do we need to know the Order of the Books of the Bible?

There are several good reasons to know the Order of the Books of the Bible.

The first and most important reason is to reduce the amount of time you spend looking for various scripture passages, so that you can spend more time actually reading them and getting to know them.

A second reason is that, once you get to know the Bible through reading it, you will want to share it with your friends. Finding a passage that you want to show your friend is made much easier if you know where, approximately, to start looking for it.

Related to this, sometimes you will encounter strangers who want to discuss the Bible with you. If you decide that you would like to do this, the ability to find passages quickly, either in your own Bible or in a Bible that they lend to you, will make you seem more like a knowledgeable person. They will respect what you have to say more easily, if you are not fumbling around, say, in the Pentateuch looking for something that's actually in the Gospels.

Of course, knowing why you're looking in the Bible is also important. Read the Bible frequently, and get to know what it has to say.

Here are some places to start:

Adventure Stories

Stories about Friendship

Stories of the Rosary

Some Parables of Jesus

Conversion Stories in the Early Church

These are just a sampling of Bible stories that will get you started. As you page through the Scriptures to find these stories, you will also encounter other great stories of the Bible that will also help to enrich your faith in God and provide you with many hours of inspiration.

Sometimes the Bible is Confusing

When you have questions about what a particular passage of Scripture means, remember to write them down and bring them to class, or ask your parents and your priest. Parents, priests, and Religion teachers are always more than happy to help you understand your faith!

BACK to St. Pius X Junior High, Saturday Morning Religion Class