Books of the Bible in Order: The Numbered List, Abbreviations and A-Z

By Faith editorial team · Updated October 26, 2026

The 66 books of the Bible in order run from Genesis (book 1) to Malachi (book 39) in the Old Testament, then from Matthew (book 40) to Revelation (book 66) in the New Testament. This page gives you the whole list with numbers, common abbreviations and sections, then shows how the order differs in Catholic and Hebrew Bibles, lists the books A to Z, and gives you number landmarks that make the order easier to remember. For chapter counts and memory tips by division, see the Bible books chart.

The quick list

• Old Testament (39): Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 Samuel, 2 Samuel, 1 Kings, 2 Kings, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi.
• New Testament (27): Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts, 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, Jude, Revelation.

That is the order of a standard Protestant Bible, and the one most English-language Bibles use.

The Old Testament in order: books 1 to 39

The New Testament in order: books 40 to 66

The abbreviations above are common ones, and style guides differ. For example, some write "Phlm" and others "Philem" for Philemon. Use whatever your Bible or study guide uses.

How the books are arranged

The books are grouped by the kind of writing, not by the date they were written. In the Old Testament that means five books of Law, then twelve of history, five of poetry and wisdom, then the prophets: five Major and twelve Minor. In the New Testament it means the four Gospels, then Acts, thirteen letters attributed to Paul, eight general letters and finally Revelation.

"Major" and "Minor" describe length, not importance. Charts also divide a few books differently. For example, Hebrews is sometimes grouped with Paul's letters, while this page files it under General Letters.

Number landmarks that make the order stick

Instead of memorizing 66 names in a row, memorize a few anchors and count from them:

Two quick checks follow from this table. If you want the first book of the New Testament, count 39 books forward: book 40 is Matthew. And if you are looking for a book among Paul's letters, you know it is between 45 (Romans) and 57 (Philemon).

Books of the Bible in other orders

The Catholic order (73 books)

Catholic Bibles contain the same 27 New Testament books in the same order. The Old Testament has 46 books, because it includes seven additional books, and they are placed within the sections, not at the end:

The seven additional books are in bold. The exact arrangement can vary a little between Catholic editions, and Orthodox Bibles use their own lists. For what the seven books contain, see the list of the deuterocanonical books, and for the numbers behind each tradition see how many books are in the Bible.

The Hebrew Bible order (24 books)

The Jewish Bible, the Tanakh, holds the same writings as the Protestant Old Testament, but in three parts and counted as 24 books:

The order within the Writings is not fixed. It varies between manuscripts and printed editions, and the list above is one common arrangement. Many editions end the Hebrew Bible with Chronicles, while Protestant and Catholic Old Testaments end with Malachi.

Books of the Bible in alphabetical order

Looking up a name is faster in A to Z order. Books with a number, such as 1 Kings, are filed under their name, with both the first and second books listed together.

That is 66 books in all: 39 in the Old Testament and 27 in the New.

Is this the order to read them in?

Not necessarily. The printed order is a library arrangement, and it is not the same as the order of events or the order of writing. A few examples:

• Reading from Genesis straight through is a classic plan, but many readers slow down in Leviticus and Numbers.
• Starting with a Gospel such as Mark gives a short, fast-moving introduction. Where to start reading the Bible lays out the options.
• A chronological order moves books around so the story flows by date. Prophets sit beside the kings they addressed, and Job and the Psalms are placed within the period they are tied to. The chronological Bible reading plan does this over 52 weeks.
• Book summaries first. If you want to know what each book is about before you open it, the Bible book summaries give one line per book, in the same order as this list.

A printable version of the list

You can print this page and use the tables as a checklist. If you would like it ready-made, the sheet below sits among the bonuses of {product}: the 66 Books Checklist and Memory Chart lists all 66 books in order by division, each with a short memory hook and a box to tick when you have read it.

The main set is a one-page guide for each of the 66 books (author, setting, structure, a timeline and key verses), the Bible at a Glance eras chart and a chronological reading plan with a weekly tracker. The Wall Charts and the big timeline poster are sold separately and are not part of the main set.