Guide · The canon · 2 min read
The Catholic Bible by the numbers
The Catholic Bible has 73 books: 46 in the Old Testament and 27 in the New. As Bless numbers them, following the Vulgate, they hold 1,334 chapters and 35,804 verses.
- 73books
- 46in the Old Testament
- 27in the New
- 1,334chapters
- 35,804verses
- 931,955words in the CPDV
The totals
These are the counts as Bless numbers them, following the Vulgate: the chapter and verse divisions of the Douay-Rheims, the Bible translated from it. The Old Testament’s 46 books include the 7 deuterocanonical books and the Greek parts of Esther and Daniel, which Protestant Bibles leave out; that is why they count 66 books.
| Books | Chapters | Verses | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Old Testament | 46 | 1,074 | 27,855 |
| of which deuterocanonical | 7 | 137 | 4,373 |
| New Testament | 27 | 260 | 7,949 |
| Whole Bible | 73 | 1,334 | 35,804 |
Read at an even 200 words a minute, the whole CPDV would take about 78 hours (931,955 words). Counted from the text this site prints.
Longest and shortest
Fewest verses
132 John, one of 5 one-chapter books: Obadiah, Philemon, 2 John, 3 John, Jude.
Longest chapter
176 versesPsalm 118 (Psalm 119 in the Hebrew numbering).
Shortest chapter
2 versesPsalm 116 (Psalm 117 in the Hebrew numbering).
Longest verse
94 words2 Chronicles 28:15, in the CPDV.
Shortest verse
2 words1 Thessalonians 5:16: “Rejoice always.”
Why other Bibles count differently
The books are the same; the divisions aren’t. A few places where another Bible’s numbers won’t match these:
- The Psalms. Most psalms carry a number one lower than in Bibles that follow the Hebrew, and the psalm titles are numbered as verses. See Psalm numbering.
- Malachi and Joel. Malachi has 4 chapters here, as in the King James Version and the RSV, but 3 in the NABRE and the Hebrew Bible, which end it at 3:24. Joel has 3 here and 4 in the NABRE.
- Esther and Daniel. Esther runs to 16 chapters and Daniel to 14 because their Greek parts are counted in. In the Vulgate, Esther’s Greek parts are gathered at the end of the book.
- Baruch. Its sixth chapter, the Letter of Jeremiah, is printed as a separate book in some Bibles.
- Small splits. Translations sometimes divide a verse in two or join two, so a book can gain or lose a verse: 3 John has 14 verses here and 15 in the RSV.
- The CPDV itself. In 12 chapters the CPDV numbers its verses a little differently from the Douay-Rheims, and this site prints those chapters with the CPDV’s own numbers. Which chapters.
Every book
In canonical order, as Catholic Bibles arrange them. Bars show each book’s share of the verses, against the Psalms.
| Book | Chapters | Verses |
|---|---|---|
| Genesis | 50 | 1,530 |
| Exodus | 40 | 1,211 |
| Leviticus | 27 | 858 |
| Numbers | 36 | 1,288 |
| Deuteronomy | 34 | 959 |
| JoshuaAlso called Josue | 24 | 658 |
| Judges | 21 | 618 |
| Ruth | 4 | 85 |
| 1 SamuelAlso called 1 Kings | 31 | 811 |
| 2 SamuelAlso called 2 Kings | 24 | 694 |
| 1 KingsAlso called 3 Kings | 22 | 817 |
| 2 KingsAlso called 4 Kings | 25 | 719 |
| 1 ChroniclesAlso called 1 Paralipomenon | 29 | 940 |
| 2 ChroniclesAlso called 2 Paralipomenon | 36 | 822 |
| EzraAlso called 1 Esdras | 10 | 280 |
| NehemiahAlso called 2 Esdras | 13 | 404 |
| TobitAlso called Tobias | 14 | 298 |
| Judith | 16 | 345 |
| EstherWith the Greek parts, 10:4–16:24 | 16 | 275 |
| Job | 42 | 1,070 |
| Psalms | 150 | 2,528 |
| Proverbs | 31 | 915 |
| Ecclesiastes | 12 | 222 |
| Song of SongsAlso called Canticles | 8 | 116 |
| Wisdom | 19 | 439 |
| SirachAlso called Ecclesiasticus | 51 | 1,591 |
| IsaiahAlso called Isaias | 66 | 1,292 |
| JeremiahAlso called Jeremias | 52 | 1,363 |
| Lamentations | 5 | 154 |
| Baruch | 6 | 213 |
| EzekielAlso called Ezechiel | 48 | 1,272 |
| DanielWith the Greek parts, 3:24–90 and chapters 13–14 | 14 | 531 |
| HoseaAlso called Osee | 14 | 198 |
| Joel | 3 | 73 |
| Amos | 9 | 146 |
| ObadiahAlso called Abdias | 1 | 21 |
| JonahAlso called Jonas | 4 | 48 |
| MicahAlso called Micheas | 7 | 104 |
| Nahum | 3 | 47 |
| HabakkukAlso called Habacuc | 3 | 56 |
| ZephaniahAlso called Sophonias | 3 | 53 |
| HaggaiAlso called Aggeus | 2 | 38 |
| ZechariahAlso called Zacharias | 14 | 211 |
| MalachiAlso called Malachias | 4 | 55 |
| 1 MaccabeesAlso called 1 Machabees | 16 | 929 |
| 2 MaccabeesAlso called 2 Machabees | 15 | 558 |
| Old Testament: 46 books | 1,074 | 27,855 |
| Book | Chapters | Verses |
|---|---|---|
| Matthew | 28 | 1,070 |
| Mark | 16 | 677 |
| Luke | 24 | 1,151 |
| John | 21 | 879 |
| Acts | 28 | 1,004 |
| Romans | 16 | 433 |
| 1 Corinthians | 16 | 437 |
| 2 Corinthians | 13 | 255 |
| Galatians | 6 | 149 |
| Ephesians | 6 | 155 |
| Philippians | 4 | 104 |
| Colossians | 4 | 95 |
| 1 Thessalonians | 5 | 88 |
| 2 Thessalonians | 3 | 46 |
| 1 Timothy | 6 | 113 |
| 2 Timothy | 4 | 83 |
| Titus | 3 | 46 |
| Philemon | 1 | 25 |
| Hebrews | 13 | 303 |
| James | 5 | 108 |
| 1 Peter | 5 | 105 |
| 2 Peter | 3 | 61 |
| 1 John | 5 | 105 |
| 2 John | 1 | 13 |
| 3 John | 1 | 14 |
| Jude | 1 | 25 |
| RevelationAlso called Apocalypse | 22 | 405 |
| New Testament: 27 books | 260 | 7,949 |
Deuterocanonical book
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