All the remaining books, poetical and prophetical, fit somewhere into the history of those seventeen books. The books that compose it appeared one after another in the space of fifty years, i. The four gospels make up about 46 percent and the book of acts raises this to 60 percent. The 27 books of the new testament barnes bible charts new testament matthew mark luke john acts romans 1 corinthians 2 corinthians galatians hebrews james 1 peter 2 peter 1 john 2 john 3 john jude revelation ephesians philippians colossians 1. The name was assigned to it in the septuagint the greek translation of the hebrew old testament. These first books can be read any time, including the morning.
A rhyme to remember the first six books in the new testament. The new testament books were written by christians in the first century ad. All 66 books of the bible in easy, onesentence summaries. While the old testament is bigger about 77% of the whole bible, the new testament is the part with the stories of jesus life, death, resurrection, and followers. But the list of 27 books we know today as the new testament came together gradually through a series councils and general usage until the 27 books became the standard for most of. The first five books of the new testament are matthew, mark, luke, john and acts. The first part of christian bibles is the greek old testament, which contains, at minimum, the above 24 books of the tanakh but divided into 39 books and ordered differently.
From hebrew bible to christian bible from jesus to. Most christians would likely predict that genesis was the oldest book in the bible given that it details the creation. However, the gospel of matthew was not the first gospel to be written. The first new testament upends many standard facts in the field of new testament and early christian studies, such as the longstanding claim that marcions christian bible contained texts mutilated to conform to his distinctive beliefs. With more than 66 books and 31,000 verses, where is a good place to start reading the bible. If you count the letters of old testament there are three letters in old and nine in testament. Introduction as previously mentioned, the new testament falls into three categories based on their literary makeupthe historical, the epistolary, and the prophetical. While the old testament is bigger about 77% of the whole bible, the new testament is the part with the stories of jesus life, death, resurrection. What are the first five books of the new testament. Obviously the first five books sometimes called the torah or the pentateuch were the first to be accepted as canonical. Mnemonic the first six books in the new testament in bible. The 39 books of the old testament barnes bible charts old testament genesis exodus leviticus numbers deuteronomy joshua judges ruth 1 samuel 2 samuel ecclesiastes song of solomon isaiah jeremiah lamentations ezekiel daniel hosea joel amos 1 kings 2 kings. John the apostle had the distinguished role of collecting all the books extant and completing the canonization of the bible somewhere between 96 to 99 a. This means 60 percent of the new testament is directly historical tracing the roots and historical development of christianity.
Jeremiah kaaya pastor at springs of power church, teacher by professional it is indeed advisable and commendable to always read the bible from the first book genesis in the old testament ot to the last book revelation in the new testament nt. The new testament is the second part of christian bible, believed to have been written in 3rd century bc. What book in the new testament should i read first. In the meantime, many of the books of the christian bible, the new testament, were first. The first four books are often referred to as the gospels. What is the first book of the bible and what is it about.
The final book of the new testament is the book of revelation, also known as the apocalypse of john. The hebrew scriptures were the only bible the early christian church knew, and as the young religion spread out through the greekspeaking world, christians adopted the septuagint. But if many people will have an idea of this gap between the events of the new testament and the book that emerged, few probably appreciate how little we know about the first christian bible. First verses new testament books of the bible, bible quiz. The first word in the book of genesis is bereshith which means in the beginning. First versesnew testament books of the bible, bible quiz. The name refers to the new covenant or promise between god and humanity through the death and resurrection of jesus christ. Despite variations in the arrangement of early lists of the new testament books, matthew always comes first. It is the fourth book of the new testament and was authored by the apostle john. The new testament was written by, or its writing was supervised by, the chosen disciples of jesus christ. The first book of the bible is the book of genesis. The first book of the new testament is matthew, not the book of the law. By and large the whole church had recognized and used the same list of books since the first century after christ.
A list of books with brief descriptions of contents. The first new testament books to be written down are reckoned to be the that comprise pauls letters circa 4864 ce, probably beginning. These lists, however, were not necessary for the majority of christians. He was commanded by god to take on this task, for exodus 34. The bible from biblos, greek for book is the basis of two great religions, judaism in the old testament and christianity in the new testament. It begins with a genealogy proving jesus is the promised messiah. For example, reading the books of the new testament in the order in which they are now assembled means starting with the gospel of matthew. The book of daniel was written during this period and included in the. Commentary on the new testament, the original greek of.
The blue letter bible ministry and the blb institute hold to the historical, conservative christian faith, which includes a firm belief in the inerrancy of scripture. The new testament of the christian bible is one of the most influential works of the last two millennia. Read a plot overview of the entire book or a chapter by chapter summary and analysis. I will list the new testament books in approximate chronological order, but alter this when necessary for clarity. The new testament and indepth analyses of jesus, peter, and paul. The first of all the new testament books of the bible. Rejected books, widely used in the first two centuries, but not considered inspired or part of the new testament canon. Even though the old testament books come first in our bibles, the better name for this section of 39 books is old testament rather than first testament. The inclusion of some of these books in ancient bibles and the fact that were read in early churches does not mean they were considered inspired.
The gospels tell the stories of jesus christ, from his birth to his teachings and to his ultimate death and resurrection. Is matthew called the first chapter of the new testament. The simplest way to understand every book of the bible. There are a total of 27 books in the new testament. Why is matthew the first book in the new testament answers. In the beginning was the word, and the word was with god, and the word was god. Here are the books of the new testament in the canonical order of the bible, with links to the pages where you can find translations, the original greek, commentary, and information on these books of the new testament. Soon after, jerome and augustine circulated this same list. The new testament is the second part of the christian biblical canon, the first being the old.
It is generally accepted that pauls undisputed epistles romans, 1 corinthians, 2 corinthians, philemon, galatians, philippians and 1 thessalonians were written by about 60 ce. The first four books of the new testament are matthew, mark. They detail the old law, the old way of gaining forgiveness, and the old way of receiving grace from god. Then 3 squared equals 9, so there are 39 books in the old testament. History of the bible who wrote the bible why its reliable. Introduction the previous survey of the first seventeen books law and history, genesis through nehemiah, covered the whole history of the old testament. There are twentyseven books in the traditional new testament, but the earliest christian communities were far more vibrant than that small number might lead you. Matthew, mark, luke and john, acts and romans follow on. The old testament also known as the jewish tanakh is the first 39 books in most christian bibles. Then take 3 x 9 27, the number of books in the new testament. The old testament is the first section of the bible, covering the creation. All of the gospels share certain traits, and all of them have unique features as well.
A bible for the twenty first century combining traditional and newly discovered texts. Should the old testament instead be called the first. The name stands for the original promise with god to the. The bible is the holy scripture of the christian religion, purporting to tell the history of the earth from its earliest creation to the spread of christianity in the first century a. Here are the books of the new testament in the canonical order of the bible. The old testament abbreviated ot is the first part of the christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the twentyfour books of the hebrew bible or tanakh, a collection of ancient religious hebrew writings by the israelites believed by most christians and. The new testament is a collection of 27 books, usually placed after the old testament in most christian bibles. The second part is the greek new testament, containing 27 books. A bible for the twenty first century combining traditional and newly discovered texts taussig, hal on. The oldest book in the bible is, unsurprisingly, found in the old testament. The last half is pretty much all about divvying up the real estate. The book of the law refers to the old testament law of moses. The first edition of the new testament is a groundbreaking book that argues that the new testament is not the product of a centurieslong process of development.
Does any of you have the order of the books i should read within the holy bible. In each case it brings together a group of documents to tell the story of the founders and early followers of the religion. The epistle of paul to the romans the new testament. When was the old testament assembled into the book it is today. Perhaps this is why one famous scholar called matthew the most important book ever written. The first human author to write down the biblical record was moses. The next section to be covered, the poetical, is a much smaller section consisting of five books job, psalms, proverbs.