It took over a millenium for the Bible to become one book with one table of contents. Its books were written across fourteen centuries, and the communities that kept them have always kept shelves of different sizes:
With varying traditions and canons one must ask, who decides which books are part of the Bible?
In the beginning was the Torah. This collection of five holy books was read as authoritative scripture by the Persian period. The Prophets came next, achieving canon status by 130 BC. The Writings arrived last, with many of the books in this category on the fringes of canon until after the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD.
Greek-speaking Jews later carried a wider collection: the books of the First Testament were translated into Greek and contained what we call the Deuterocanon. Later still, visionary works like 1 Enoch and Jubilees were written and treasured by Jewish Essenes at Qumran and quoted in the New Testament itself. The early church added books of its own: Paul's letters, the gospels, and many more writings that would be both disputed and read aloud as scripture.
The timeline below shows an approximation of the MEGABIBLE.net canon formation. Tap a subgroup on the left to see its books. The markers on the spine are the witnesses and milestones relevant to the Biblical canon.
Dates are scholarly approximations. Each book's own hub page carries more detailed information.
Fifty-seven books of the First Testament, thirty-four of the Second Testament. These 91 books are not a demand on the reader's beliefs. The texts are here to read and learn about what ancient Jews and Christians kept and recited as sacred.