The Bible is a Library

The Bible is sixty-six books, not one book as it appears at first glance.  It is a series of books bound together between two covers.  If we know what it means, the word Bible tells us that this book is really a library of smaller books.  The word Bible comes from a Greek word, biblia which is plural and means "little books" or "booklets."  As we discovered in our earlier studies of the Bible, these books recount the story of God's covenant with people whom we claim as our faith ancestors.

Study the library bookcase that has been included on this web page.  Turn also to your own Bible - to the beginning where the books in the Old Testament have been listed.  Locate these various Old Testament books on the Bible Library shelves.  The thirty-nine Old Testament books have been grouped into four subdivisions according to classifications over the centuries by biblical scholars: Law (5), History (12), Poetry (5), and Prophecy (17).  There are twenty-seven books that make up the New Testament.  Although biblical scholars differ on the exact classification of books of both the Old and New Testaments, we have identified in our chart three subdivisions for the books of the New Testament: historical and biographical (5), letters (21), and revelation (1).  The books of both the Old and New Testament are linked electronically to the world wide web - click on any book and your journey will begin!  Enjoy....