Jewish and Christian Bibles: A Comparative Chart

HEBREW BIBLE Orthodox Christian OT Catholic Christian OT Protestant Christian OT

(a.k.a. TaNaK/Tanakh or Mikra) (based on longer LXX; various editions) (Alexandrian LXX, with 7 deutero-can. bks) (Cath. order, but 7 Apocrypha removed)
Torah / Books of Moses Pentateuch Pentateuch (Law) Law (Pentateuch)
1) Bereshit / Genesis 1) Genesis 1) Genesis 1) Genesis
2) Shemot / Exodus 2) Exodus 2) Exodus 2) Exodus
3) VaYikra / Leviticus 3) Leviticus 3) Leviticus 3) Leviticus
4) BaMidbar / Numbers 4) Numbers 4) Numbers 4) Numbers
5) Devarim / Deuteronomy 5) Deuteronomy 5) Deuteronomy 5) Deuteronomy
Nevi’im / Former Prophets Historical Books Historical Books Historical Books
6) Joshua 6) Joshua 6) Joshua 6) Joshua
7) Judges 7) Judges 7) Judges 7) Judges
8) Samuel (1&2) 8) Ruth 8) Ruth 8) Ruth
9) Kings (1&2) 9) 1 Kingdoms (= 1 Sam) 9) 1 Samuel 9) 1 Samuel
10) 2 Kingdoms (= 2 Sam) 10) 2 Samuel 10) 2 Samuel
11) 3 Kingdoms (= 1 Kings) 11) 1 Kings 11) 1 Kings
Nevi’im / Latter Prophets 12) 4 Kingdoms (= 2 Kings) 12) 2 Kings 12) 2 Kings
10) Isaiah
13) 1 Chronicles 13) 1 Chronicles 13) 1 Chronicles
11) Jeremiah
14) 2 Chronicles 14) 2 Chronicles 14) 2 Chronicles
12) Ezekiel
15) 1 Esdras
13) The Book of the Twelve:
16) 2 Esdras (= Ezra + Nehemiah) 15) Ezra 15) Ezra
Hosea, Joel,
17) Esther (longer version) 16) Nehemiah 16) Nehemiah
Amos, Obadiah,
18) JUDITH 17) TOBIT
Jonah, Micah,
19) TOBIT 18) JUDITH
Nahum, Habakkuk,
19) Esther (longer version) 17) Esther (shorter version)
Zephaniah, Haggai,
20) 1 MACCABEES 20) 1 MACCABEES
Zechariah, Malachi
21) 2 MACCABEES 21) 2 MACCABEES
22) 3 Maccabees
23) 4 Maccabees
Khetuvim / Writings Poetic Books Wisdom Books Wisdom Books
14) Psalms (150) 24) Psalms (151) 22) Job 18) Job
15) Proverbs 25) Odes (w/ Prayer of Manasseh) 23) Psalms (150) 19) Psalms (150)
16) Job 26) Proverbs 24) Proverbs 20) Proverbs
17) Song of Solomon 27) Ecclesiastes 25) Ecclesiastes 21) Ecclesiastes
18) Ruth 28) Song of Solomon 26) Song of Solomon 22) Song of Solomon
19) Lamentations 29) Job 27) WISDOM of Solomon
20) Ecclesiastes 30) WISDOM of Solomon 28) SIRACH, a.k.a. Ecclesiasticus
21) Esther (shorter version) 31) SIRACH, a.k.a. Ecclesiasticus
22) Daniel (12 chapters) 32) Psalms of Solomon
23) Ezra-Nehemiah
24) Chronicles (1&2)
. Prophets Prophets Prophets
33) Hosea 29) Isaiah 23) Isaiah
34) Amos 30) Jeremiah 24) Jeremiah
35) Micah 31) Lamentations 25) Lamentations
36) Joel 32) BARUCH (w/ LETTER of JER.)
37) Obadiah 33) Ezekiel 26) Ezekiel
38) Jonah 34) Daniel (14 chapters) 27) Daniel (12 chapters)
39) Nahum
40) Habakkuk 35) Hosea 28) Hosea
41) Zephaniah 36) Joel 29) Joel
42) Haggai 37) Amos 30) Amos
43) Zechariah 38) Obadiah 31) Obadiah
44) Malachi 39) Jonah 32) Jonah
40) Micah 33) Micah
45) Isaiah 41) Nahum 34) Nahum
46) Jeremiah 42) Habakkuk 35) Habakkuk
47) BARUCH 43) Zephaniah 36) Zephaniah
48) Lamentations 44) Haggai 37) Haggai
49) LETTER of JEREMIAH 45) Zechariah 38) Zechariah
50) Ezekiel 46) Malachi 39) Malachi
51) Daniel (2 extra chapters separate):
52) SUSANNA
53) BEL and the DRAGON

compiled by Fr. Felix Just, S.J. http://catholic-resources.org/Bible/

 Jewish and Christian Bibles: A Comparative Chart

KEY to the Chart (on the other side):

• HB = Hebrew Bible (Jewish); LXX = Septuagint (2nd cent. BC Greek translation of the HB); OT = Old Testament (Christian).
• Books in CAPITALS are found in Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic Bibles, but not in most Jewish or Protestant Bibles.
• Books in Italics are also in the LXX and considered biblical by Orthodox Christians, but NOT by Jews or most Christians.
Although the New Testament contains the same twenty-seven books for almost all Christians, there are some major and important differences
between the Hebrew Bible (HB) used by Jews and different versions of the Old Testament (OT) used by various Christian churches:
• The foundational texts are different:
o Jewish Bibles are based on the HB.
o The OT section in most Christian Bibles is arranged according to the order of books in the “Septuagint” (LXX).
o However, the translations of individual OT books in Christian Bibles are now usually based on the texts of the HB.
• The total number of biblical books is different:
o Jews count 24, Protestants 39, Catholics 46, Orthodox Christians up to 53.
o Certain books of the HB are subdivided in the LXX; e.g., “The Twelve” minor prophets are considered one book in the HB, while the
LXX and Christian Bibles count these as twelve separate books.
o The LXX contains several more books not found in the HB; Orthodox and Catholic Christians regard these additional books as part of
the OT canon (calling them “Deuterocanonical Books”), while Jews and most Protestants do not (considering them the “Apocrypha”).
• The arrangement of the categories of books is different:
o E.g. “Latter Prophets” come before “Writings” in the HB, but all “Prophets” come after “Wisdom” literature in the Christian OT.
o The order of the “Prophets” is also different between the LXX and the Catholic and Protestant OT’s.
• The titles of some of the books are different:
o E.g. “Samuel” of the HB is split up into “1 Kingdoms” and “2 Kingdoms” in the LXX, which are renamed “1 Samuel” and “2 Samuel” in
most Christian Bibles.
• The categorization of some books is different:
o E.g. several books categorized as “Writings” in HB are placed among “Historical Books” or “Prophets” in LXX and Christian OT; the
displacements of Ruth and Esther, Ezra-Nehemiah and Chronicles (1&2), and Lamentations and Daniel are highlighted in the chart.
Ancient Jewish Scriptures:
• Hebrew Bible (HB) - A collection of 24 “books” (or large “scrolls”), traditionally called the Mikra in Hebrew (or Miqra, lit. “writings”), now
often referred to as the “TaNaK” or “Tanakh” (from the Hebrew names of its three main sections: Torah + Nevi’im + Khetuvim). It is closely
related, but not identical, to what Christians call the “Old Testament.” Most of the books in the HB were composed between the 10th and
6th centuries BCE, although they contain some older source materials. Most were originally written in Hebrew, but a few books (or parts of
them) were composed in Aramaic, a closely related ancient language. Throughout history, Jews have used these books as “scriptures,”
although many ancient Jews (esp. Greek-speaking Jews living outside of Palestine) had even larger collections of scriptures (some from
more recent times, some composed in Greek; see the LXX below). The official “canon” of the HB was not determined until around 90 AD,
when the leading Jewish rabbis of the time limited their biblical collection to 24 Hebrew (or partly Aramaic) writings that came from the 6th
century BCE or earlier. The HB is divided into the following three categories (with the second category frequently sub-divided in two):
o Torah – often translated “Law,” but more accurately meaning “Teaching” or “Instruction” in Hebrew. Strictly speaking, “Torah” refers
to the first five books of the HB (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy), considered the “core” of the Bible by all Jews;
they are sometimes also called the “Five Books of Moses” (due to the tradition that Moses himself wrote them). More broadly, the word
“Torah” is sometimes used to refer to the entire “Tanak.” Many Jews also distinguish between the “Written Torah” (the Bible) and the
“Oral Torah” (other instructions given to Moses on Mount Sinai, but not written down until the “rabbinic literature” of 3rd to 7th cent.).
o Nevi’im – meaning “Prophets”; subdivided in Jewish Bibles into the “Former Prophets” (Joshua, Judges, Samuel, Kings - which also
contain stories of early “prophets” like Elijah, Elisha, Samuel, Nathan, etc.), and the “Latter Prophets” (Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and
“The Twelve” Minor Prophets; note that Jews do not include the Book of Daniel among the “Prophets,” but in the following category).
o Ketuvim (or Khetuvim) – meaning “Writings”; this “miscellaneous” group includes the books of Psalms, Job, Proverbs, Song of
Solomon, and Ecclesiastes (called “Wisdom Literature” by Christians), the books of Ruth, Esther, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Chronicles
(considered “Historical Books” in Christian Bibles), and the books of Daniel and Lamentations (placed among the “Prophets” in
Christian Bibles).
• Septuagint (LXX) - A collection of up to 53 books of ancient Jewish Scriptures written in Greek, including translations of all 24 books of the
HB (Daniel, Esther, and Jeremiah are longer in the Greek versions than in the original Hebrew), as well as seven or more additional books
(the "Deuterocanonical Books") that are not found in the HB.
• Deuterocanonical Books / OT Apocrypha - seven (or more) books that are in the LXX but not in the HB (Tobit, Judith, 1 & 2 Maccabees,
Wisdom, Ecclesiasticus, Baruch"), as well as some additions to the books of Esther and Daniel (longer in LXX than in HB). These texts are
considered biblical by Orthodox and Catholic Christians, but not by Jews and most Protestant Christians today.
• Summary: LXX = Ancient Greek translation of HB books + the "Apocrypha" or "Deuterocanonical Books."

compiled by Fr. Felix Just, S.J. http://catholic-resources.org/Bible/