Structure of the Hebrew Scriptures

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The Biblical Canon

The English words "Bible" and "bibliography" come from the Greek word "biblion" which means book or scroll. One source indicates that the root origin of the word is found in the name of an ancient city Byblos. That was the site of a famous temple to the Goddess Astarte and the location of a large library of papyrus scrolls.

The Christian Holy Bible (sometimes called the Scriptures, Holy Scriptures or Word of God) is composed of 66 or more books, grouped into two or three sections. These sections are:

1. The Hebrew Scriptures (sometimes referred to as the Old Testament): In the Christian canon, the 39 books are divided into 5 groupings:

	The Law: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy
	History: Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 & 2 Samuel, 1 & 2 Kings, 1 & 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther
	Stories, Poetry and Wisdom: Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon
	Major Prophets: Isiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, Daniel
	Minor Prophets: Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Michah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi

2. The Apocrypha: The word "Apocrypha" means "hidden". Its books are often referred to as intertestamental writings. One source [1] lists 7 books in the Apocrypha: Tobit, Judith, 1 & 2 Maccabees, Wisdom of Solomon, Ecclesiasticus, Baruch. Another source [2] lists 14 books or parts of books: 1 & 2 Esdras; Tobit; Judith; the rest of the chapters of the Book of Esther; The Wisdom of Solomon; Ecclesiasticus; Baruch; A Letter of Jeremiah; The Prayer of Azariah & the Song of the Tree; Daniel & Susanna; Daniel, Bel & the Snake; Prayer of Manasseh, 1 & 2 Maccabees. Not all religious traditions accept the Apocrypha as a valid part of Scripture.
3. The Christian Scriptures, aka the New Testament. This is a series of 27 gospels, epistles (letters), and other books written by members of the early Christian movement.

How Were the Books Chosen?

The Hebrew Scriptures: Following the Roman-Jewish war circa 65 CE, Jews were expelled from Palestine and were scattered throughout the Roman Empire. The focal point of their religion, the temple at Jerusalem, was destroyed. Their religious leaders felt a need to precisely define the Hebrew Scriptures so that they would form a new "anchor" for Judaism. About 20 years after the destruction of the temple in 70 CE, Jewish scholars assembled in Jamnia, a Judean town west of Jerusalem. Their task was to decide which books should form part of the Hebrew Scriptures. The Pentateuch, the first 5 books, formed the core. To this, they added 34 other books. However, they rejected most of the commonly used religious texts which had been written after about 150 BCE. Later, the mainline Christian church made the Jewish Bible part of their own sacred texts. They rearranged the order of the books slightly.

The Apocrypha: This consist of many books that were used for spiritual guidance by the Jews. The collection was included in the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures that was in general use during Jesus' lifetime. But some 60 years after Christ's death, they were rejected by Jewish scholars as scripture. The books of the Apocrypha were incorporated into the Roman Catholic Latin Vulgate translation, but were later rejected or demoted to the status of an appendix in most Protestant translations.