But here different MSS. Who first collected and arranged these writings? They are mentioned in the same order in Origen's I. Homily on Luke. Many years after John died, however, their arrangement … IV. It's also why Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and the Song of Solomon are grouped together within the Wisdom Literature—because each of these books was written primarily by Solomon. It is in Epiphanius, who supposes that the arrangement was the apostle's own. While no arrangement of these books can be made with absolute confidence, the following dates are sufficiently reliable to serve the purpose of the Bible student. Clement of Alexandria says that ancient tradition supposed those gospels having the genealogies to have been written before the others. (b) Gospels, Pauline Epistles, Catholic Epistles, Acts; in Augustine, the third council of Toledo, Isidore, Innocent I., Eugenius IV., and the Spanish Church generally. Another order prevailed in the Latin Church, viz., the Gospels, the Acts, the Epistles of Paul, the Catholic Epistles, and the Apocalypse. Many of the epistles in the New Testament are also grouped by size, with the longer texts written by Paul coming before the shorter epistles of Peter, James, Jude, and others. Books written before the time of Jesus are collected in the Old Testament, while books that were written after Jesus' life and ministry on Earth are collected in the New Testament. Appendix 8: CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER OF THE BOOKS OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. Ten years later the book of James went on line. The established sequence, which is already sanctioned by Irenaeus and Origen, has respect to the supposed dates of the gospels. (b) Matthew, John, Mark, Luke; in the council of Ephesus A.D.431, Cyril of Alexandria, Theodoret, the stichometry of the Clermont MS. (c) Romans, Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Thessalonians, Colossians, Timothy, Titus, Philemon, Hebrews; in Augustine, and several MSS. {HEBREW LETTER ALEF}. Its insertion in copies of the Vulgate was owing to the authority of Gregory the Great, who looked upon it as authentic. (a) In the decree of Galasius, according to its three recensions, the Revelation follows Paul's epistles, preceding those of John and the other Catholic ones. (c) Peter, John, James, Jude; in the councils of Carthage, A.D.397, 419, Cassiodorus, and a Gallican Sacramentarium. James - 50 A.D. First Thessalonians - 52-53. It appears in the fourth century, and may have been prior to that. He is a former editor for Christianity Today and LifeWay Christian Resources. (c) Gospels, Pauline, Catholic Epistles, Apocalypse, Acts; in the stichometry of the Clermont MS. V. As to the Epistles of Paul, besides the place they now occupy in our Bibles, they sometimes follow the gospels immediately. Galatians - 55. and writers was; the Gospels, the Acts, the Catholic Epistles, the Pauline, and the Apocalypse. The Ultimate List of Animals Mentioned in the Bible, M.A., Christian Studies, Union University, B.A., English Literature, Wheaton College. But the proof of this is precarious. (a) Gospels, Pauline Epistles; the Sinaitic MS., Jerome, Epiphanius, Augustine, the third council of Toledo, Isidore, Innocent I., Eugenius IV., the stichometry of the Clermont MS. (b) The usual order of the Greek Church is, Gospels, Acts, Catholic Epistles, Pauline, &c., as in Cyril of Jerusalem, the Laodicean Council (60), Athanasius, Leontius of Byzantium, the MSS. of the Vulgate in England; or before the Thessalonian epistles preceding them; or at the end of the Epistle to the Hebrews, as in a MS. of the Latin Bible at Lembeth. The Laodicean letter was inserted either before the pastoral epistles, as in several MSS. The second division is a little more complicated because it's based on genres of literature. Sam O'Neal is the co-author of "Bible Stories You May Have Forgotten" and "The Bible Answer Book." The New Testament: 27 books in 5 categories The New Testament books fall into five general categories: the Gospels, the single book of Acts, Paul’s letters to churches, Paul’s letters to church leaders, and a collection of letters sent out (mostly) to large groups of people. arrangement of bible books You can view the Bible from various angles and via various arrangements. Here’s a quick, high-level look at how all these books are arranged in the New Testament. While no arrangement of these books can be made with absolute confidence, the following dates are sufficiently reliable to serve the purpose of the Bible student. (a) Pauline epistles to churches (the last being the second to the Thessalonians), Hebrews, Timothy, Titus, Philemon; in the MSS. Structure of the Bible: The Old Testament Books. VIII. (d) Romans, Corinthians, Galatians, Thessalonians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Timothy, Titus, Philemon, Hebrews; in the so-called decree of Gelasius in the name of Hormisdas, in Labbe's text. Thus we find in relation to the gospels. Therefore, these books are referred to as the "major prophets," while the 12 smaller books are known as the "minor prophets." B. C., and most Greek MS. Therefore, these books are referred to as the "major prophets," while the 12 smaller books are known as the "minor prophets." What was the originally inspired order of the books in the Bible? VI. The originally inspired order of Bible books was set by Ezra the prophet (for the Old Testament) and the Apostle John (for the New Testament). vary in regard to the position of the Thessalonian epistles. James - 50 A.D. First Thessalonians - 52-53. First Corinthians - 57. This is why Paul's epistles are all grouped together in the New Testament. This appears in Melito, Irenaeus, Clement of Alexandria, Origen, Augustine, Jerome, the Vulgate, the Councils of Carthage, held in A.D.397 and 419; and is now the usual arrangement. ... We have already mentioned that the order of the gospels is the same as presented in modern Bibles. Not only was it the prevalent one in the Greek Church, but also in the Latin as we see from the codex Amiatinus, and the Vulgate MSS. The former method was generally adopted in the Greek Church from the fourth century. (d) John, Peter, Jude, James; in the list given by Innocent I., and the third council of Toledo. (a) Peter, John, Jude, James; in Philastrius of Brescia. {HEBREW LETTER ALEF}, A. But Amphilochius and Ebedjesu the Syrian have the western order, viz., the following --. The first five books of this genre (Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, and Daniel) are much longer than the others. Why does Exodus come before Psalms? Bullinger in his Companion Bible made this bold statement: “ Our English Bibles follow the order as given in the Latin Vulgate. Other genres are grouped by size, such as the Prophets. The genres of Biblical literature in the Old Testament include: The different literary genres of the New Testament are: The final division occurs within the literary genres, which are grouped by chronology, author, and length. All of the Gospels share certain traits, and all of them have unique features as well. The Vulgate and council of Trent follow this arrangement. This one is relatively straightforward. X. Second Thessalonians - 52-53. Similarly, the manuscript order of the New Testament … The works of apostles precede those of evangelists. VII. (a) Gospels, Pauline Epistles, Acts; in the Sinaitic MS., the Peshito,(368) Jerome,(369) and Epiphanius. Despite variations in the arrangement of early lists of the New Testament books, Matthew always comes first. Galatians - 55. Appendix 8: CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER OF THE BOOKS OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. Many of the epistles in the New Testament are also grouped by size, with the longer texts written by Paul coming before the shorter epistles of Peter, James, Jude, and others.