--- title: "How Many Books, Chapters and Verses in the Catholic Bible?" url: https://blessbible.app/guides/catholic-bible-by-the-numbers/ description: "73 books: 46 in the Old Testament and 27 in the New. As Bless numbers them, following the Vulgate: 1,334 chapters and 35,804 verses, book by book." updated: 2026-10-20 --- 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. Updated October 20, 2026 - **73** books - **46** in the Old Testament - **27** in the New - **1,334** chapters - **35,804** verses - **931,955** words 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](https://blessbible.app/guides/deuterocanonical-books/) and the Greek parts of Esther and Daniel, which Protestant Bibles leave out; that is why they count 66 books. *Following the Vulgate* | | 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* Most verses **2,528** [Psalms](https://blessbible.app/bible/psalms/), in 150 chapters. Next: [Sirach](https://blessbible.app/bible/sirach/) (1,591), then [Genesis](https://blessbible.app/bible/genesis/) (1,530). Fewest verses **13** [2 John](https://blessbible.app/bible/2-john/), one of 5 one-chapter books: Obadiah, Philemon, 2 John, 3 John, Jude. Longest chapter **176 verses** [Psalm 118](https://blessbible.app/bible/psalms/118/) (Psalm 119 in the Hebrew numbering). Shortest chapter **2 verses** [Psalm 116](https://blessbible.app/bible/psalms/116/) (Psalm 117 in the Hebrew numbering). Longest verse **94 words** [2 Chronicles 28:15](https://blessbible.app/bible/2-chronicles/28/#v15), in the CPDV. Shortest verse **2 words** [1 Thessalonians 5:16](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-thessalonians/5/#v16): “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](https://blessbible.app/guides/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](https://blessbible.app/translations/cpdv/#numbering). ## Every book In canonical order, as Catholic Bibles arrange them. Bars show each book’s share of the verses, against the Psalms. *Old Testament* | Book | Chapters | Verses | |---|---|---| | [Genesis](https://blessbible.app/bible/genesis/) | 50 | 1,530 | | [Exodus](https://blessbible.app/bible/exodus/) | 40 | 1,211 | | [Leviticus](https://blessbible.app/bible/leviticus/) | 27 | 858 | | [Numbers](https://blessbible.app/bible/numbers/) | 36 | 1,288 | | [Deuteronomy](https://blessbible.app/bible/deuteronomy/) | 34 | 959 | | [Joshua](https://blessbible.app/bible/joshua/) Also called Josue | 24 | 658 | | [Judges](https://blessbible.app/bible/judges/) | 21 | 618 | | [Ruth](https://blessbible.app/bible/ruth/) | 4 | 85 | | [1 Samuel](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-samuel/) Also called 1 Kings | 31 | 811 | | [2 Samuel](https://blessbible.app/bible/2-samuel/) Also called 2 Kings | 24 | 694 | | [1 Kings](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-kings/) Also called 3 Kings | 22 | 817 | | [2 Kings](https://blessbible.app/bible/2-kings/) Also called 4 Kings | 25 | 719 | | [1 Chronicles](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-chronicles/) Also called 1 Paralipomenon | 29 | 940 | | [2 Chronicles](https://blessbible.app/bible/2-chronicles/) Also called 2 Paralipomenon | 36 | 822 | | [Ezra](https://blessbible.app/bible/ezra/) Also called 1 Esdras | 10 | 280 | | [Nehemiah](https://blessbible.app/bible/nehemiah/) Also called 2 Esdras | 13 | 404 | | [Tobit](https://blessbible.app/bible/tobit/) Also called Tobias | 14 | 298 | | [Judith](https://blessbible.app/bible/judith/) | 16 | 345 | | [Esther](https://blessbible.app/bible/esther/) With the Greek parts, 10:4–16:24 | 16 | 275 | | [Job](https://blessbible.app/bible/job/) | 42 | 1,070 | | [Psalms](https://blessbible.app/bible/psalms/) | 150 | 2,528 | | [Proverbs](https://blessbible.app/bible/proverbs/) | 31 | 915 | | [Ecclesiastes](https://blessbible.app/bible/ecclesiastes/) | 12 | 222 | | [Song of Songs](https://blessbible.app/bible/song-of-songs/) Also called Canticles | 8 | 116 | | [Wisdom](https://blessbible.app/bible/wisdom/) | 19 | 439 | | [Sirach](https://blessbible.app/bible/sirach/) Also called Ecclesiasticus | 51 | 1,591 | | [Isaiah](https://blessbible.app/bible/isaiah/) Also called Isaias | 66 | 1,292 | | [Jeremiah](https://blessbible.app/bible/jeremiah/) Also called Jeremias | 52 | 1,363 | | [Lamentations](https://blessbible.app/bible/lamentations/) | 5 | 154 | | [Baruch](https://blessbible.app/bible/baruch/) | 6 | 213 | | [Ezekiel](https://blessbible.app/bible/ezekiel/) Also called Ezechiel | 48 | 1,272 | | [Daniel](https://blessbible.app/bible/daniel/) With the Greek parts, 3:24–90 and chapters 13–14 | 14 | 531 | | [Hosea](https://blessbible.app/bible/hosea/) Also called Osee | 14 | 198 | | [Joel](https://blessbible.app/bible/joel/) | 3 | 73 | | [Amos](https://blessbible.app/bible/amos/) | 9 | 146 | | [Obadiah](https://blessbible.app/bible/obadiah/) Also called Abdias | 1 | 21 | | [Jonah](https://blessbible.app/bible/jonah/) Also called Jonas | 4 | 48 | | [Micah](https://blessbible.app/bible/micah/) Also called Micheas | 7 | 104 | | [Nahum](https://blessbible.app/bible/nahum/) | 3 | 47 | | [Habakkuk](https://blessbible.app/bible/habakkuk/) Also called Habacuc | 3 | 56 | | [Zephaniah](https://blessbible.app/bible/zephaniah/) Also called Sophonias | 3 | 53 | | [Haggai](https://blessbible.app/bible/haggai/) Also called Aggeus | 2 | 38 | | [Zechariah](https://blessbible.app/bible/zechariah/) Also called Zacharias | 14 | 211 | | [Malachi](https://blessbible.app/bible/malachi/) Also called Malachias | 4 | 55 | | [1 Maccabees](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-maccabees/) Also called 1 Machabees | 16 | 929 | | [2 Maccabees](https://blessbible.app/bible/2-maccabees/) Also called 2 Machabees | 15 | 558 | | Old Testament: 46 books | 1,074 | 27,855 | *New Testament* | Book | Chapters | Verses | |---|---|---| | [Matthew](https://blessbible.app/bible/matthew/) | 28 | 1,070 | | [Mark](https://blessbible.app/bible/mark/) | 16 | 677 | | [Luke](https://blessbible.app/bible/luke/) | 24 | 1,151 | | [John](https://blessbible.app/bible/john/) | 21 | 879 | | [Acts](https://blessbible.app/bible/acts/) | 28 | 1,004 | | [Romans](https://blessbible.app/bible/romans/) | 16 | 433 | | [1 Corinthians](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-corinthians/) | 16 | 437 | | [2 Corinthians](https://blessbible.app/bible/2-corinthians/) | 13 | 255 | | [Galatians](https://blessbible.app/bible/galatians/) | 6 | 149 | | [Ephesians](https://blessbible.app/bible/ephesians/) | 6 | 155 | | [Philippians](https://blessbible.app/bible/philippians/) | 4 | 104 | | [Colossians](https://blessbible.app/bible/colossians/) | 4 | 95 | | [1 Thessalonians](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-thessalonians/) | 5 | 88 | | [2 Thessalonians](https://blessbible.app/bible/2-thessalonians/) | 3 | 46 | | [1 Timothy](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-timothy/) | 6 | 113 | | [2 Timothy](https://blessbible.app/bible/2-timothy/) | 4 | 83 | | [Titus](https://blessbible.app/bible/titus/) | 3 | 46 | | [Philemon](https://blessbible.app/bible/philemon/) | 1 | 25 | | [Hebrews](https://blessbible.app/bible/hebrews/) | 13 | 303 | | [James](https://blessbible.app/bible/james/) | 5 | 108 | | [1 Peter](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-peter/) | 5 | 105 | | [2 Peter](https://blessbible.app/bible/2-peter/) | 3 | 61 | | [1 John](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-john/) | 5 | 105 | | [2 John](https://blessbible.app/bible/2-john/) | 1 | 13 | | [3 John](https://blessbible.app/bible/3-john/) | 1 | 14 | | [Jude](https://blessbible.app/bible/jude/) | 1 | 25 | | [Revelation](https://blessbible.app/bible/revelation/) Also called Apocalypse | 22 | 405 | | New Testament: 27 books | 260 | 7,949 | Deuterocanonical book Spotted a mistake? 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