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Information and Facts about the Physical Bible

Physical Bible Facts and  Bible Trivia

Learn the physical facts about the Bible, Bible trivia, and Bible truths.

Here are fun facts, trivia, and general commentary from this website author about the physical Bible.

 

The consensus is that less than 50% of Americans believe in the Bible.
 

The Bible is an excellent source of information concerning how we should live.

The Bible is the authority of the Christian faith; it was written by divine authority and with divine inspiration.
 

Other popular names for the Bible.
   The Scriptures.    Divine Scripture.
   Word of God.       The Book of Truth.
   The Canon.          The "Good" Book.
   The Gospel(s).     Holy Scripture.
   The Word.            The Living Word.
   Polyglot.               Book of the Law.
 

Does the Bible include any secret codes?
   Several people and organizations claim to have found hidden codes in the Bible.
   Their efforts and the evidence they provided have been debunked and disproved by reputable sources.

The answer is that there are no hidden codes in the Bible.

The Bible is straightforward; however, it does contain many parables.
Parables are meant to bewilder the unbeliever.
However, they are meant to make sense to the believer.
The belief is that if you are filled with the Holy Spirit, you can interpret the parables.
 

The three most important messages of the New Testament and the entire Bible, for that matter, are that
 

1. We were created by a supreme being we call God.
 

2. Jesus, the son of God, sacrificed his earthly life to pay for the sins of the believers.
 

3. The marriage of believers to Jesus occurred at his crucifixion.

The bridegroom is Jesus, who has gone away to prepare a new home for His bride, the believers, to inhabit in the afterlife.

Jesus told his disciples in a parable at the Last Supper that believers are all part of this wedding.
Some time in the unknown future, Jesus will return to gather his bride (believers) to live with him in a new world.

These are the three most important messages that the Bible reveals to us.
 

  • The foundational cores of Christianity are:
    Creation.     God created humans, Earth, and the universe.
    Sin: God's creation is not behaving according to his expectations and is the ultimate cause of death for all humans.
    Faith.     Jesus paid for man's sin by dying on the cross in place of the sinners.
    Afterlife. There is eternal life for those who believe in the above.
     

  • The fundamentals of Christianity are:
    Salvation:     The death of Jesus paid for our sins.
    Repentance: Our lives transform from negative to positive.
    Judgment: What we do on Earth is judged by God.
    Heaven: The path to heaven is a gift obtained by having faith in God.
     

  • The Bible explains why we are here and gives hope for an everlasting afterlife.
    "Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea."
    Revelation 21:

    "I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.
    And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, Look!
    God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them.
    In addition to God himself being with them, they will be his people. He will be their God.
    He will wipe every tear from their eyes.
    There will be no more death, mourning, crying, or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."
     

The entire purpose of Jesus is His "sacrifice" for our sins and His return to "rapture" His believers.
 

  • God's creation is not following the rules.
    We are sinning and must pay for those sins.
    This approach is similar to how a father might hold his child accountable for their mistakes as they grow up.
    However, God gives us an escape plan to pay for our sins by allowing Jesus to take our place.
    Because Jesus took the ultimate punishment in our place, we won't have to bear the consequences of our wrongdoings.
     

  • God also will allow believers to live forever in a new world.
    Jesus will return to earth, gather all his believers, those dead and alive, place their souls in a spiritual body, and settle them in a new home.
    The Bible describes this process as the "Second Coming" and the "Marriage."

    Following his crucifixion and payment for our sins, Jesus rose from the dead and ascended to heaven.
    At that point, Jesus became the husband, and all believers became the bride, according to the Bible.
    Jesus explained this relationship to his disciples.
    He left for heaven to create a new home for us, and when that is complete, he will come back and gather us up to take us to our new home in our new bodies.

​

  • There are well over a hundred translations of the Bible into English.
    This number includes all dialects of English— ancient and modern.
    The complete Bible has been translated into approximately 724 different world languages.
    Over 2,000 different languages have translated individual portions of the Bible.
    The United Bible Society is a global fellowship of 150 Bible groups that translate, publish, and distribute the Bible worldwide.
    Creation of the Bible begins with copies of the original Hebrew and Greek texts, followed by translations.
    Some of the most popular and well-studied Bible versions are the NIV and KJV, which scholars worked hard on to make accurate translations.
    The New King James Version (NKJV) Protestant Bible is perhaps the most popular.
    Sales of the New International Version (NIV) recently surpassed the sales of the King James version.
    However, the NIV did not necessarily surpass the King James in terms of general use.
     

  • The Bible is not a book.
    The Bible is a bound collection of "individual books" translated from ancient manuscripts.
    Facts concerning the physical Bible depend on the translation and version.
    The results vary depending on the websites consulted, the Bible used, and the revision referred to.

​

General Bible Facts and Physical Bible Information.

  • The New and Old Testaments contain 66 books combined.
    39 in the Old Testament.
    27 in the New Testament.
     

  • There are 1189 chapters in the combined two testaments.
    929 in the Old Testament.
    260 in the New Testament.
     

  • A total of 31,102 verses are in the two combined testaments.
    23,145 in the Old Testament.
    7,947 in the New Testament.
     

  • There are 788,280 words combined in the two testaments.
    609,269 in the Old Testament.
    179,011 in the New Testament.
     

  • The Bible has 1.2 million individual letters.
    These are characters or letters of the English alphabet.
     

  • There are 150 songs in the Book of Psalms.
    The Book of Psalms is the only Bible book that does not have chapters. 
    Psalms are a collection of individual poems and songs identified as simply Psalms 1 through 150.
    It does have numbered verses, however.
     

  • There are 14,000 words, more or less, spoken by women.
    Eight women talked to God.
    Approximately 200 women are mentioned in the Bible.
    Not all are identified by name.
     

  • Jesus spoke 31,426 words in the Bible.
    This total does not count duplicate sentences in the Gospels.
     

  • Some Bibles include a third set of books, the Apocrypha.
    There are 14 "approved" books in the Apocrypha.
    The Apocrypha are books not considered "authorized" as part of the Bible.
    They are important enough to be valid scripture and are useful for instruction and teaching.
    The original Latin Vulgate and Greek Septuagint included the Apocrypha.
    Not all churches recognize the Apocrypha as valid scripture.
    The Hebrew Bible and many Protestant Bibles do not include the Apocrypha.
    The Bible includes the Apocrypha bound between the Old and New Testaments.
    The Bible contains a total of 80 books, including the Apocrypha.
     

  • The Apocrypha generally recognizes 14 books.
    Esdras.
    2 Maccabees.
    1 Maccabees.
    Prayer of Manasseh.
    The Idol Bel and the Dragon.
    Susanna.
    The Song of the Three Children.
    Jeremiah.
    Sirach or Ecclesiasticus.
    Wisdom.
    Esther.
    Judith.
    Tobit.
    2 Esdras.
     

  • The original scripture is in three different languages.
    These are Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek.
    The Old Testament is written mostly in Hebrew.
    The     New Testament is written mostly in Greek.
    This distinction is due to the popular spoken language at the time of the writing.
    Aramaic was spoken during the time of Jesus.
    This interval is the time between the Old and New Testaments.
     

  • The most popular King James version was published in 1611.
    Before the King James Version, three other popular Bibles were written and used.
    Great Bible (published in 1539).
    Geneva Bible (1560).
    Bishop's Bible (1568).
     

  • King James Charles Stuart is also King James VI of England and King James I of Scotland.
    He was the son of Mary, Queen of Scots, and the third-generation grandson of Henry VII, King of England.
    King James was a converted Christian.
    James was a writer in his own right and is credited with writing The Book of Common Prayer.
    He decreed that the Bible be read aloud in church.
    The Great Bible was the authorized Bible at the time.
    James ordered a rewriting of the Bible, declaring it to be the only one in use.
    The change was mainly due to the Puritan sect of the church having issues with the earlier translations.
    King James mandated the writing of the New Bible in the prevailing language, ensuring universal accessibility and comprehension.
     

  • The Bible was originally called "The Holy Bible" and not the King James Version.
    That came later.
    The King James Version included 80 books in total.
    There are 39 books in the Old Testament.
    The Apocrypha has 14 books.
    There are 27 books in the New Testament.
     

The short and long of it:

  • The shortest verse in the Bible is John 11:35.
    "Jesus wept."
     

  • The longest verse is Esther 8:9.
    "Then there were the king's scribes."
     

  • The shortest chapter is Psalm 117.
    This chapter has only 30 words in its two verses.
     

  • The longest chapter is Psalm 119.
    It has 176 verses.
     

  • The shortest book is 3 John or 2 John.
    3 John has 14 verses and about 219 words.
    2 John contains 13 verses with 245 words.
    Choose between having fewer verses or fewer words.
     

  • The longest book is Jeremiah.
    It has 25 chapters and about 33,000 words.
    Some say the Psalms are longer because it has more chapters.
    But it has only about 30,000 words.
     

  • The first and last books of the Old Testament are Genesis and Malachi.
     

  • The first and last books of the New Testament are Matthew and Revelation.
     

  • The first verse in the Bible is Genesis 1:1.
    "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth."
     

  • The last verse in the Bible is Revelation 22:21.
    "The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen."
     

  • The original Hebrew text, before being translated, includes the following:
    Psalm 119 has 22 sections with eight lines in each section.
    Each of the eight lines in each section starts with a Hebrew letter in the alphabet.
    The Hebrew alphabet outlines the chapters from A to Z (Alef to Tav), in alphabetical order.
     

  • The longest word in the Bible is in Isaiah 8:1.
    "Mahershalalhashbaz is the longest word in the Bible."
    Mahershalalhashbaz is a Hebrew name or word meaning "swift are the spoils; speedy is the plunder."
    God commanded Isaiah to give his son this name.
     

  • The smallest known Bible is the Nano Bible. 
    The Nano Bible resides on an aluminum disk.
    The disk is 600 nanometers in diameter and requires an electron microscope to read it.
    It was taken to the International Space Station by astronaut Eytan Stibbe.
    The Nano Bible now resides at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem, next to the Dead Sea Scrolls.
    Technion created the Nano Bible.
     

  • The largest modern Bible weighs over 1000 lbs.
    Louis Waynai of Texas completed the creation in 1930.
    The Waynai Bible currently resides at Abilene Christian University in Abilene, Texas.
    It is approximately 43 inches thick and spans about 98 inches when opened.
     

  • One of the most troubling aspects of the Bible is that it has been stolen more than any other book in history.
    However, it is also the most purchased book in history.
    The estimate is that over 100 million copies of the Bible, all translations, are sold worldwide each year.

Photot of an open Bible to the Apocrypha.


The first five books of the Old Testament create the Pentateuch.

  • The Tanakh is the Jewish Holy Scriptures.

  • Torah is one section of the Hebrew Bible.

  • The Torah is about one-fourth of the "Tanakh."

  • It is also called the Pentateuch (five books).

  • The translation of the Pentateuch is a volume of five.

  • Moses has been recognized as the author of these books.

  • We also refer to them as the Books of the Law.

  • This section is the "Torah" or the "Chumash".

  • Included in the Torah's five-book set are:
    Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.

​​

The four sections of the Torah include:

Chumash (the Five Books of Moses),
Neviim (the Prophets),
Treisar (the Minor Prophets), and
Ketuvim (the Writings).
 

  • The Torah is also one section of the Protestant Bible (the Old Testament).

  • It's the first five books of the standard Christian Bible.

  • Christians call this section the Pentateuch.
     

The first four books of the New Testament are the Gospels.

  • Gospels include the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

  • Jews do not recognize the New Testament as valid scripture.

  • The Jewish faith also does not accept Jesus as the Messiah.

  • Messiah has yet to come, according to the Jews.

  • As time moved on, many Jews recognized, of course, that Jesus was the catalyst of the Christian movement.

  • They admit that he was at least a teacher.
     

We have identified and considered forty people as the main authors of the Bible.

  • However, there is controversy over this question between ancient and modern scholars.

  • Other writers besides the forty have been identified as authors or aides in helping.

  • The authors of many books are unknown.

  • Most of the authors of the Old Testament were Hebrew.

  • Many of the authors of the New Testament were Christian Jews.

  • However, Luke was not a Jew; he was a Gentile and a doctor.

  • Credit is given to Luke for writing the Book of Luke and the Book of Acts.
     

The Bible was mostly written in Israel, with some in Egypt, and a few in European cities.

  • There were many unwritten manuscripts at the time.

  • Generations passed down the stories orally, following no set order.
     

The order of the "Books" in the Bible is neither chronological nor authorial.

  • The books are arranged according to their intended use.

  • The five groups of the Old Testament are history, wisdom, poetry, and prophecy.

  • The four groups of the New Testament are the Gospels, History, Epistles, and Prophecy.
     

There are intriguing derivatives of biblical words to explore.
 

  • The Bible comes from the Greek word "biblia", which means "books".

  • Christ is a word from the Greek "khristos," which translates as "the anointed." 

  • Lucifer's name is derived from the Latin phrase "lux ferre," and translates to "light bringing."

  • Amen is a word derived from the Hebrew "āmēn," which means “certainty."
     

The Protestant Bible is acknowledged to be a true and accurate translation.

  • Many consider the Bible to be the literal word of God.

  • Some believe the writers were full of the Holy Spirit when they wrote.

  • Others believe the Bible is a book authored by inspired believers.
    ​​

Photo of an ancient scroll opened up.

The Geneva Bible is recognized as the most heralded Bible of its time.

 

The Geneva Bible was the first Bible that had numbered verses.

  • The Geneva Bible was what the Pilgrims used.

  • They brought it over on the ship Mayflower.

  • The Geneva Bible was the primary Bible used in the 16th century.

  • It was the Bible that Shakespeare and other philosophers used.

  • William Whittingham supervised the writing of the Bible in Geneva.
     

The Geneva Bible is historically very significant.

  • The Bible was published in 1560.

  • It had an affordable cost.

  • It was small enough for anyone to carry.

  • The Geneva Bible was mass-produced.

  • It came with a study guide and illustrations.

  • It was the first Bible to have its verses numbered for quick reference and memorization.
     

The Geneva Bible replaced the Great Bible.

  • The Great Bible was published in 1539.

  • It got its name, the Great Bible, because of its large physical size.

  • The Great Bible was the first "authorized" English Bible by the Church of England.

  • It was also known as "The King's Bible" because King James authorized it.

  • King Henry VI mandated the reading of the Bible during services.

 

The King James Version replaced the Geneva Bible.

  • The authors of these two versions wrote them 50 years apart.

  • In 1560, the Geneva Version was published.

  • The King James Version was published in 1611.

  • America's founders in the 1700s used the King James Bible.

  • Pilgrims in the 1600s used the Geneva Bible.

​

Photo of an open Bible laying on a stand.

There are six most popular and recognized English Bible translations.


The succession of complete English Bibles by popular use is:

  • 1535 - Coverdale Bible.

  • 1539 - Great Bible.

  • 1560 - Geneva Bible.

  • 1568 - Bishop's Bible.

  • 1611 - The King James Bible.

  • 1991 - New Revised Standard Version.
     

Today, church denominations use these popular translations as they see fit.

  • Original King James Version (KJV).

  • 1611. It is now published in the public domain.

 

  • New American Standard (NASB).

  • 1971. The NASB is published by the Lockman Foundation.

 

  • New Revised King James (NKJV).

  • 1982. The NKJV is published by Thomas Nelson.

 

  • New Living Translation (NLT).

  • 1996. The NLTR is published by Tyndale House.

  •  

  • English Standard Version (ESV).

  • 2001. The ESV is published by Crossway.

 

  • New International Version (NIV).

  • 2011. The NIV is published by Biblica.

  • The previous versions were released in 1978 and 1984.

 

  • Christian Standard Bible (CSB).

  • In 2017. The CSB is published by the Lockman Foundation.
     

  • Numbered verses were not in the original manuscripts or the early Bibles.

  • The Tanakh, the Hebrew Old Testament, was the first Hebrew Bible to have phrase divisions.

  • It was written by Nathan, a Jewish rabbi, in 1448.
     

  • The Latin New Testament (Vulgate) was the first Latin Bible to use verses.

  • The book was written by Robert Estienne in 1555.
     

  • The Geneva Bible was the first English version to use numbered verses.

  • The project was supervised by William Whittingham in 1557.​
     

Major Bible misprints.

 

The Sinner's Bible.

  • In 1631, the King James version had a misprinted commandment.
    "Thou shall commit adultery."
    Exodus 20:14.

  • Approximately fifteen copies are on display in various libraries and museums.

  • Their estimated value is around $85,000.
     

The She Bible.

  • In the 1611 King James version, there was a misprint in gender.
    The text read "She went into..." instead of "He went into...".
    Ruth 3:15

  • The King James Standard states, "... and she went into the city.”,

  • and The King James Original states, "... and he went into the city.”

  • The discrepancy comes from the interpretation of the original scripts.
    Some translators believe that Boaz, a male, entered the city.
    Other translators believe that Ruth, a female, entered the city.

  • At St. Mary's Parish Church in Lancashire, England, researchers discovered a copy of the She Bible.
    Its value is over $65,000.

​​

David Norton wrote a book about the history of the King James Bible.

​

Below is the timeline of the most used and notable Bible manuscripts and scriptures.


Bible scripture started with oral tradition.

  • Holy scriptures were stories, songs, and poetry passed down from the time of Adam and Eve in local languages and dialects, from generation to generation, up to around 1450 BC.

  • Ancient manuscripts and scriptures eventually appeared in various forms of languages and dialects.

  • Hebrew was the primary language of writing.

  • The best estimate is that the written scripture began about 1450 BC.

  • Printing of individual Bible books began during the time of Moses.

  • Moses is recognized as the author of the first five Bible books.
     

Manuscripts and scripture in ancient languages.

 

  • ​Septuagint (LXX) Koine Greek.
    3 BC, 72 Jewish translators commanded by Ptolemy II Philadelphus.
     

  • Codex Vaticanus (B) Greek.
    300 AD, Written by unknown scribes.
     

  • Codex Sinaiticus (S) Greek.
    30 AD, Written by an unknown author.
     

  • Vulgate Bible (V) Latin.
    382 AD, St. Jerome of the Catholic Church.
     

  • Hebrew Bible (Tanakh) Hebrew.
    In 400 AD, unknown scribes penned the Torah.
    The Torah consists solely of the books of Moses.
     

  • Codex Alexandrinus Greek.
    In 400 AD, the text was written by an unknown author.
     

  • Ephraemi Rescriptus Greek.
    In 460 AD, an unknown author wrote it.
     

  • Ketef Scrolls (KH) Hebrew.
    600 AD, written     on silver.
    This is the oldest known surviving original text.
     

  • The Masoretic Text (MT) Hebrew.
    700 AD, produced by the Talmudic Academy.
    This was the Hebrew Bible for 600 years (Old Testament).
     

  • King Alfred (KAF) Old English.
    900 AD, Parts of the Pentateuch.
    This was the first known English translation of the Pentateuch.
     

  • Cdx Aleppo (APC) Hebrew.
    The Aleppo Codex was written by the Masoretes in 930 AD.
    The synagogue riots of 1947 set it on fire.
     

  • Cdx Leningrad (LNC) Hebrew.
    1008 AD, mostly Samuel Ben Jacob.
    This manuscript is the oldest complete Hebrew Bible known to exist.

     

Here is a complete table of all known English translations.

 

  • The Wycliffe Bible (WYC).
    1388 AD, John Wycliffe.
    This was the first time the entire Bible was translated into English.
     

  • Tyndale's Bible (TYN)
    1530 AD, William Tyndale.
    The first printed book in English was only partially completed.
     

  • Coverdale's Bible (CVR)
    In 1535 AD, Myles Coverdale printed the first complete Bible in English.
     

  • Matthew's Bible (MAT)
    1537 AD, John Rogers.
    It is considered a     vital translation link in translations.
     

  • The Great Bible (TGB)
    1539 AD, Myles Coverdale.
    It was once the "authorized" church Bible.
     

  • Geneva Bible (GNV)
    1560 AD, William Tyndale.
    It was once the     most popular Bible.
     

  • The Bishop's Bible (BSH)
    1568 AD, Bishops of the Church of England.
     

  • Douay-Rheims (DRV)
    1600 AD, Bishop Challoner.
    He oversaw the translation process for the Catholics in England.
     

  • The King James Bible (KJV)
    King James VI issued the decree in 1611 AD.
    47 biblical scholars were translators.
     

  • Darby's Bible (DBY)
    John Nelson Darby translated the Bible in 1867 AD.
    His translation was for the     unlearned.
     

  • American Standard Version (ASV)
    901 AD, Phillip Schaff, in 1871, as requested by a church conglomerate.
     

  • Revised Standard (RSV)
    1946 AD, created by the National Council of Churches of Christ.
     

  • New American (NASB)
    1971 AD: 51 scholars headed by Father Stephen J. Hartdegen.
     

  • New King James Bible (NKJV)
    1982 AD, T. Nelson Publisher.
    The book has been updated to enhance clarity and readability.
     

  • New Revised Standard (NRSV)
    1989 AD, National Council of the Churches of Christ.
     

  • New Living (NLT)
    1996 AD, created by Tyndale House.
     

  • English Standard Version (ESV)
    2001 AD, Lane T. Dennis of the publishing ministry, Crossway.
     

  • New International Version of the Bible (NIV)
    2011 AD, started in 1965.
    Biblica first printed the book in 1973 and revised it in 1978, 1984, and 2011.
     

  • Christian Standard (CSB)
    2017 AD, published by the Lockman Foundation.
     

The New International Version

 

The NIV is the most popular version in terms of sales, but not necessarily the most widely used.

  • It is considered the most accurate and readable English Bible to date.

  • Over 100 scholars have translated the NIV.

  • The translation was overseen by 15 members of the Committee on Bible Translation.

  • It is translated directly from the Hebrew and Greek texts.

  • Three successive editorial committees translated this version.

  • Biblical scholars, theologians, and English stylists also examined this version.

  • Over 500 million copies of the NIV have been sold worldwide since its first printing in 1965.

  • That's approximately 50 years, equating to an average of 10 million copies sold per year.
     

The King James Version

 

  • The King James version is the most popular Bible used.

  • Forty-seven translators from six different panel groups translated this version.
    Leading biblical scholars in England divided their work among themselves.

  • Three groups reviewed the Old Testament.

  • Two groups held a review of the New Testament.

  • Only one panel reviewed the Apocrypha.

  • King James Bibles have sold an estimated 6 billion copies since their first printing.

  • That's 412 years, equating to an average of 15 million copies sold annually.​​

​

Photo of King James of England.

What a blessing to have the Word of God in two of the most accurate and understandable books.

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