ÿþ<html> <head> <title>The 24 Books of the Hebrew Scriptures</title> <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=windows-1255"> <SCRIPT language="JavaScript"> window.moveTo(0,0); window.resizeTo(screen.availWidth,screen.availHeight); function hideAds() { if(document.body.scrollTop<165) window.location.href="#top"; } </SCRIPT> </HEAD> <BODY LEFTMARGIN="10" TOPMARGIN="0" BGCOLOR="#FDF5E6" onLoad="hideAds();" onMouseOver="hideAds();" onMouseMove="hideAds();" onKeyUp="hideAds();"> <A NAME="top"><HR></A> <font size="4"> <p align="center"><i><b><font color=RED>Any advertisements appearing above this line are inserted by &quot;tripod&quot;, please IGNORE them</font></b></i></p> <p align="center"><b><font size="5">The 24 Books of the Hebrew Scriptures</font><br><font size="3"><i>by <a href="mailto:mordochai-ben-tziyyon@hotmail.com">Prof. Mordochai ben-Tziyyon</a>, Universitah Ha'ivrit, Y'rushalayim</i></font></b></p> <p><font size="+2"><b>I. <i>Torah</i></b></font></p> <p>The first division of the Hebrew Scriptures is called <font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">ê¼Õ¹è¸Ô</font> <i>Torah</i>. This word is often mistakenly translated as &quot;Law&quot;, but while it is undeniably true that the books of the <i>Torah</i> division do <i>contain</i> all the laws God gave to <i>Yisraél</i>, the word itself is related to <font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">ÔÕ¹è¸Ð¸Ô</font> <i>hora'ah</i>, derived from the verb <font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">Ü°ÔÕ¹è¹ê</font> to teach, and means a &quot;teaching&quot;.</p> <p>The <i>Torah</i> division of the Scriptures consists of the five books traditionally ascribed to <i>Mosheh</i> (&quot;Moses&quot;) and are sometimes referred to as <font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">ײ޴é¼Á¸Ô ×»Þ°éÁµÙ êÕ¹è¸Ô</font> <i>h&#0803;amishah h&#0803;um'shei torah</i> or &quot;the five 'fifths' of the <i>Torah</i>&quot;, and consequently each of the five books can also be called a <font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">×Õ¹Þ¶éÁ</font> <i>h&#0803;omesh</i> or a <font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">×Õ¼Þ¸éÁ</font> <i>h&#0803;umash</i>, a &quot;fifth&quot; this word is often erroneously applied to a volume containing all five &quot;fifths&quot; which can be used for studying or for following the weekly <i>torah</i>-readings at <i>shabbat</i> services. <p>The conventional Hebrew practice is to refer to the <i>Torah</i>'s five books by their opening word or words; e.g., the first book opens with the words <i>b'r&eacute;shit bara elohim</i> &quot;At the start of God's creating...&quot;, so it's generally known as &quot;the book <i>B'r&eacute;shit&quot;</i>, meaning &quot;the book that starts with the word <i>b'r&eacute;shit&quot;</i>. The five books of the <i>Torah</i> division are </p> <table align="center" cellpadding="8" cellspacing="0" border="1" cols="5"> <th>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</th> <th>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Hebrew name&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</th> <th>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;English&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</th> <th>chapters</th> <th>verses</th> <th><i>s'darim</i></th> </tr> <tr> <td>1.</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">Ѽ°èµÐéÁ´Ùê</font> <i>B'r&eacute;shit</i></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">Genesis</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>50</td> <td align="center" valign="middle">1,534</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>43</td> </tr> <tr> <td>2.</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">éÁ°ÞÕ¹ê</font> <i>Sh'mot</i></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">Exodus</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>40</td> <td align="center" valign="middle">1,209</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>29</td> </tr> <tr> <td>3.</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">Õ·Ù¼´ç°è¸Ð</font> <i>Vayikra</i></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">Leviticus</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>27</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0,</font>859</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>23</td> </tr> <tr> <td>4.</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">Ѽ°Þ´Ó°Ñ¼¸è</font> <i>B'midbar</i></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">Numbers</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>36</td> <td align="center" valign="middle">1,288</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>32</td> </tr> <tr> <td>5.</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">Ó¼°Ñ¸è´ÙÝ</font> <i>D'varim</i></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">Deuteronomy</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>34</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0,</font>955</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>27</td> </tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td align="center" valign="middle">187</td> <td align="center" valign="middle">5,845</td> <td align="center" valign="middle">154</td> </tr> </table> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><font size="+2"><b>II. <i>N'viyim</i></b></font></p> <p>The second division of the Hebrew Scriptures is called <font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">à°Ñ´ÙдÙÝ</font> <i>N'viyim</i>, or &quot;Prophets&quot;. There are eight <i>N'viyim</i>... not eight &quot;prophets&quot;, but rather eight &quot;prophetic <b><u>books</u></b>&quot;. They are sub-divided into the four &quot;earlier prophetic books&quot; and the four &quot;later prophetic books&quot;, the terms &quot;earlier&quot; and &quot;later&quot; referring to the positions of the books in the conventional arrangement of the 24 books. The only real significance of this sub-division is that the content of the four &quot;earlier prophetic books&quot; is predominantly historical in nature, while the four &quot;later prophetic books&quot; contain mostly chapters of poetic prophecy utterances. It should be noted that christian &quot;versions&quot; divide <i>Sh'muél</i> and <i>M'lachim</i> into two parts each, and <i>T'reisar</i> into twelve separate &quot;books&quot;. The eight books of the <i>N'viyim</i> division are </p> <table align="center" cellpadding="8" cellspacing="0" border="1" cols="5"> <tr> <td>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</td> <th>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Hebrew name&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</th> <th>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;English&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</th> <th>chapters</th> <th>verses</th> <th><i>s'darim</i></th> </tr> <tr> <td>6.</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">Ù°ÔÕ¹éÁ»â·</font> <i>Y'hoshu'a</i></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">Joshua</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>24</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0,</font>656<font color=WHITE><sup>*</sup></font></td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>14</td> </tr> <tr> <td>7.</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">éÁ¹ä°Ø´ÙÝ</font> <i>Shoftim</i></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">Judges</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>21</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0,</font>618<font color=WHITE><sup>*</sup></font></td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>14</td> </tr> <tr> <td>8.</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">éÁ°ÞռеÜ</font> <i>Sh'muél</i></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">1&nbsp;Samuel (31 chapters, 811 verses)<br>2&nbsp;Samuel (24 chapters, 695 verses)</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>55</td> <td align="center" valign="middle">1,506<font color=WHITE><sup>*</sup></font></td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>34</td> </tr> <tr> <td>9.</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">ްܸ۴ÙÝ</font> <i>M'lachim</i></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">1&nbsp;Kings (22 chapters, 817 verses)<br>2&nbsp;Kings (25 chapters, 719 verses)</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>47</td> <td align="center" valign="middle">1,536<sup>*</sup></td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>35</td> </tr> <tr> <td>10.</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">Ù°éÁ·â°Ù¸ÔÕ¼</font> <i>Y'shayahu</i></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">Isaiah</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>66</td> <td align="center" valign="middle">1,295<font color=WHITE><sup>*</sup></font></td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>26</td> </tr> <tr> <td>11.</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">Ù´è°Þ°Ù¸ÔÕ¼</font> <i>Yirm'yahu</i></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">Jeremiah</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>52</td> <td align="center" valign="middle">1,365<font color=WHITE><sup>*</sup></font></td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>31</td> </tr> <tr> <td>12.</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">ٰ׶ְçµÐÜ</font> <i>Y'h&#0803;ezkél</i></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">Ezekiél</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>48</td> <td align="center" valign="middle">1,273<font color=WHITE><sup>*</sup></font></td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>29</td> </tr> <tr> <td>13.</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">ê¼°èµÙá·è</font> <i>Treisar</i><br><br>(or <font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">éÁ°àµÙÝ â¸é¸è</font> <i>Sh'neim Asar</i>)</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><b>&quot;The Twelve Prophets&quot;:</b><br>Hoshé'a (14 chapters, 197 verses)<br>Yo'él (4 chapters, 73 verses)<br>'Amos (9 chapters, 146 verses)<br>'Ovadyah (1 chapter, 21 verses)<br>Yonah (4 chapters, 48 verses)<br>Michah (7 chapters, 105 verses)<br>Nah&#0803;um (3 chapters, 47 verses)<br>H&#0803;avakkuk (3 chapters, 56 verses)<br>Tz'fanyah (3 chapters, 53 verses)<br>H&#0803;aggai (2 chapters, 38 verses)<br>Z'charyah (14 chapters, 211 verses)<br>Mal'achi (3 chapters, 55 verses)</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>67</td> <td align="center" valign="middle">1,050<font color=WHITE><sup>*</sup></font></td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>21</td> </tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td align="center" valign="middle">380</td> <td align="center" valign="middle">9,299</td> <td align="center" valign="middle">204</td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="6"><sup>*</sup>&nbsp;&nbsp;<i>The Masorah gives a count of 1,534 verses for M'lachim, but there are actually 1,536</i></td> </tr> </table> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><font size="+2"><b>III. <i>K'tuvim</i></b></font></p> <p>The third and final division of the Hebrew Scriptures is called <font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">Û¼°êռѴÙÝ</font> <i>K'tuvim</i>, or &quot;Writings&quot;. The eleven <i>K'tuvim</i> include<ol type=i> <li>the three <i>EMET</i> books <i>T'hillim</i>, <i>Mishlei</i>, and <i>Iyov</i> (the term <i>EMET</i> is an acronym of the letters <font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">Ð</font> <i>alef</i>, <font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">Þ</font> <i>mem</i>, <font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">ê</font> <i>tav</i> which are the initials (in reverse order) of the names <i>T'hillim</i>, <i>Mishlei</i>, and <i>Iyyov</i>);</li> <li>the five <i>m'gillot</i> or &quot;Scrolls&quot; which are read at public prayer services on various festivals i.e. <i>Shir Hashirim</i> (read on <i>Pesah&#0803;</i>), <i>Rut</i> (read on <i>Shavu'ot</i>), <i>Eichah</i> (read on 9th <i>Av</i>), <i>Kohelet</i> (read on <i>Sukkot</i>), and <i>Ester</i> (read on <i>Purim</i>); and</li> <li>the three post-exilic compositions <i>Daniyyél</i>, <i>Ez'ra</i>-<i>N'h&#0803;emyah</i>, and <i>Div'rei Hayamim</i>.</li> </ol> <p>Note that christian &quot;versions&quot; divide <i>Ez'ra</i>-<i>N'h&#0803;emyah</i> and <i>Div'rei Hayamim</i> into two parts each.The eleven books of the <i>K'tuvim</i> division are </p> <table align="center" cellpadding="8" cellspacing="0" border="1" cols="5"> <tr> <td>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</td> <th>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Hebrew name&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</th> <th>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;English&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</th> <th>chapters</th> <th>verses</th> <th><i>s'darim</i></th> </tr> <tr> <td>14.</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">꼰Դܼ´ÙÝ</font> <i>T'hillim</i></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">Psalms</td> <td align="center" valign="middle">150</td> <td align="center" valign="middle">2,527<font color=WHITE><sup>*</sup></font></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">19</td> </tr> <tr> <td>15.</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">Þ´éÁ°ÜµÙ</font> <i>Mishlei</i></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">Proverbs</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>31</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0,</font>915<font color=WHITE><sup>*</sup></font></td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>8</td> </tr> <tr> <td>16.</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">дټչÑ</font> <i>Iyyov</i></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">Job</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>42</td> <td align="center" valign="middle">1,070<font color=WHITE><sup>*</sup></font></td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>8</td> </tr> <tr> <td>17.</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">éÁ´Ùè Ô·é¼Á´Ùè´ÙÝ</font> <i>Shir Hashirim</i></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">Solomon's Song<br>(<i>or &quot;Song of Songs&quot;</i>)</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>00</font>8</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0,</font>117<font color=WHITE><sup>*</sup></font></td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>1</td> </tr> <tr> <td>18.</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">èÕ¼ê</font> <i>Rut</i></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">Ruth</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>00</font>4</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>00,</font>85<font color=WHITE><sup>*</sup></font></td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>1</td> </tr> <tr> <td>19.</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">еÙÛ¸Ô</font> <i>Eichah</i></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">Lamentations</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>00</font>5</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0,</font>154<font color=WHITE><sup>*</sup></font></td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>1</td> </tr> <tr> <td>20.</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">ç¹Ô¶Ü¶ê</font> <i>Kohelet</i></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">Ecclesiastes</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>12</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0,</font>222<font color=WHITE><sup>*</sup></font></td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>4</td> </tr> <tr> <td>21.</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">жá°ê¼µè</font> <i>Estér</i></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">Ester</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>10</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0,</font>167<font color=WHITE><sup>*</sup></font></td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>5</td> </tr> <tr> <td>22.</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">Ó¼¸à´Ù¼µÐÜ</font> <i>Daniyyél</i></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">Daniyyél</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>12</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0,</font>357<font color=WHITE><sup>*</sup></font></td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>7</td> </tr> <tr> <td>23.</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">â¶Ö°è¸Ð Õ¼à°×¶Þ°Ù¸Ô</font> <i>Ez'ra</i>-<i>N'h&#0803;emyah</i></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">Ezra (10 chapters, 280 verses)<br>Nehemyah (13 chapters, 405 verses)</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>23</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0,</font>685<sup>*</sup></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">10</td> </tr> <tr> <td>24.</td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font face="sbl hebrew" size="5">Ó¼´Ñ°èµÙ Ô·Ù¼¸Þ´ÙÝ</font> <i>Divrei Hayamim</i></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">1&nbsp;Chronicle (29 chapters)<br>2&nbsp;Chronicle (36 chapters)<br></td> <td align="center" valign="middle"><font color=WHITE>0</font>65</td> <td align="center" valign="middle">1,656<font color=WHITE><sup>*</sup></font></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">25</td> </tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td align="center" valign="middle">362</td> <td align="center" valign="middle">7,955<font color=WHITE><sup>*</sup></font></td> <td align="center" valign="middle">89</td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="6"><sup>*</sup>&nbsp;&nbsp;<i>The Masorah gives a count of 688 verses for Ezra-N'h&#0803;emyah, but there are actually only 685</i></td> </tr> </table> <p>The total number of chapters in the 24 books is 929, the total number of verses is 23,099 and the total number of <i>s'darim</i> is 447.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><b>References to the <i>T'nach</i> in the christians' pagan Greek books</b></p> <p>The pagan books of the christian Greek "Testament" refer to the <i>T'nach</i> ten times as &quot;the <i>Torah</i> and the <i>N'viyim</i>&quot; <blockquote><i>Mattai</i> ["Matthew"] 5:17, 7:12, 11:13, 22:40;<br><i>Lukos</i> ["Luke"] 16:16;<br><i>Yoh&#0803;anan</i> ["John"] 1:45;<br><i>Ma'asei hashlih&#0803;im</i> ["The Envoys' Deeds"] 13:15, 24:14, 28:23; and<br><i>Iggeret el haromiyim</i> ["Letter to the Romans"] 3:21</blockquote>and once (<i>Lukos</i> 24:44) as &quot;the <i>Torah</i>, the <i>N'viyim</i> and the <i>T'hillim</i>&quot; (because <i>T'hillim</i> is the first of the <i>K'tuvim</i> books). This is clear evidence that those pagan authors were familiar with the arrangement of the books in the Hebrew <i>T'nach</i> (even though they didn't understand what the Hebrew text said!) and couldn't have been using a Greek translation (e.g. the so-called &quot;pseudo-septuaginta&quot; or &quot;LXX&quot;), because not even the very earliest christian translations preserve the Hebrew division of the books into the three sections <i>Torah</i>, <i>N'viyim</i>, <i>K'tuvim</i>.</p> <p>Note: my citation of these verses should in no way be taken as an endorsement of their content, but merely as an indication that they refer explicitly to the <i>T'nach</i>.</p> <p><hr><font size="2"><i>All the material on this page is entirely original.</p></font> <p align="center"><i><b><font color=RED>Any advertisements appearing below this line are inserted by &quot;tripod&quot;, please IGNORE them</font></b></i></p> </font> </body> </html>