When discussing their religion with Christians, they will frequently bring up the Bible. This serves as their main source of knowledge about God and has a significant impact on their lives. Thus, during conversations, they would state something like, “Paul states in 2 Thessalonians 3:16…. This wishes the readers “May the Lord of peace Himself give you peace at all times in every way,” alluding to a verse from the Bible. May God bless every one of you.
However, this might not be evident to “beginners” right away. It may sound more like confusing jargon. This is a brief navigation guide to (and through) the Bible in case you fall into this group and are unsure about where to begin.
Let’s deconstruct a Bible reference
- Although the Bible is often referred to as “a book”, it actually is a collection of 66 books written by different people over a period of about 1500 years. Therefore, if people want to refer to a particular Bible verse, they’ll start with the name of the Biblical book, which may be the name of the author, the name of the recipient, or a summary of the book’s content. Sometimes they’ll add a number, like “2 Samuel” or “first Timothy”, if there are multiple parts of a book, or multiple letters written by or to the same person. Most Bible copies contain a list of all Biblical books with corresponding page numbers to help you find them. In digital versions (for example on Biblegateway), just type the name of the book in the navigation bar.
- Biblical books are typically quite lengthy. As a result, they have been separated into chapters denoted by numbers, such as “John 3.”
- Occasionally, someone wishes to make a single reference. The chapters have been broken up into verses to make that easier. These also have a number, which is typically denoted by a “:”. For instance, “John 3:16” refers to verse 16 in the third chapter of John’s gospel. Simply look for this verse; it contains the most significant fact of all time!
The order of Biblical books
The Biblical books are divided into two collections, the so-called “Old Testament” and “New Testament,” to further complicate matters. The primary distinction is that the New Testament was composed after the birth of Jesus Christ, whereas the Old Testament was composed prior to his birth. See What is the Old Testament and the New Testament for further details about these two book collections.
The majority of modern Bible translations have arranged the books within each Testament either chronologically or in accordance with genre. Jewish translations exclude the New Testament entirely and arrange the Old Testament in a different order.
The genres of Biblical books
The several genres are listed below in the general order:
- The Old Testament
- The Pentateuch, sometimes referred to as “the books of Moses,” is the first collection of books in the Bible. They cover the first “chapters” of human history, starting with creation and ending with the establishment of the state of Israel. Numerous directives and laws that God provided to Israel are contained in these writings.
- Twelve historical books, most of which are about Israel, make up this part.
- Poetic books: Psalms, proverbs, and wisdom writings are found in five books of the Old Testament.
- Prophetic writings: There are seventeen prophetic books that contain divine messages, most of them are addressed to the Israelites.
- The New Testament
- The life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ are chronicled in the first four books of the New Testament, or the “gospels.”
- The book of Acts describes how the gospel of Jesus started to spread over the globe and the establishment of the Church following his resurrection.
- Letters: twenty-two letters addressed to people and congregations. Their primary areas of interest include [living as a Christian] and what it means to be a Christian.
- The book of Revelation is a book of prophecies about events that are yet to come.
Getting to know the Bible for yourself
I urge you to [get started reading] now that you have a general understanding of how to browse the Bible! The reason Christians are so passionate about the Bible is well founded. It is the inspired word of God and, according to Romans 1:16, “the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.”
