May 05, 2017 so why does the catholic bible have 73 books, while the protestant bible has only 66 books. Luther made an attempt to remove the books of hebrews, james, jude and revelation from the canon notably, he perceived them to go against certain protestant doctrines such as sola gratia and sola fide citation needed but his followers did not generally accept luthers personal judgment in this matter. Its often said that luther was so opposed to the book of james that he. They were generally not written in hebrew though we have found a hebrew copy of sirach at. Im starting my journey into orthdoxy, and yesterday i was given an orthodox bible. Why the protestant bible has fewer books than the catholic. These books were given the name deuterocanon because a few hundred years ago we did not have copies of them in hebrew and they were not part of some hebrew bibles. The protestant bible, of which the niv is one version, is seven books shorter than. Why does the protestant bible have 66 books and the catholic. One of the main controversies is justification by works, and the argument that james presents irreconcilable contradictions with pauls writings on the subject of justification. For example, the hebrew bible has one book of samuel, while the protestant bible has i. Why does the protestant bible have 66 books while the. Finding jesus in the book of james banner of truth usa.
Why protestants reject 7 books of the bible the short answer by steve ray on august 19, 2016 gary michuta is an expert on the canon of scripture, especially in regards to the deuterocanonical books, what the protestants call the apocrypha. Luther, according to the holman bible dictionary, disciples study bible and other references, had the greatest difficulty with what james wrote about faith and works in the second chapter of his book. This summary of the book of james provides information about the title, authors, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the book of james. One of the main controversies is justification by works, and the argument that james presents irreconcilable contradictions with pauls. Apr 02, 2014 the great protestant reformer, martin luther, infamously referred to the book of james as an epistle of straw in his preface to the german new testament. A protestant bible is a christian bible whose translation or revision was produced by. Originally, the king james bible as well as catholic bible had the books from old testaments, which are known as the apocrypha or the deutercanonicals. Some versions of the bible, such as the king james version not the new king james version are. The book order is the same in the greek orthodox, roman catholic, and protestant traditions. Because the order of the books is humanmade, it is not necessary to read the bible in this sequence. I have the niv, the open, new king james and king james versions of the bible and all have the book of james in it.
Jan 03, 2011 king james bible is the protestant bible. This is often contrasted with the 73 books of the catholic bible, which. The king james bible is significant because it was the first bible written in the english language, the catholic bible that followed was the doueyrheims version. This is prof that a book from the torah was omitted, for what ever reason, from the king james version of the bible. However, these books are ordered last in the germanlanguage luther bible to this day. What is the difference between protestant and catholic bibles. While protestant and jewish bibles have thirtynine old testament books, the bible used by roman catholic and eastern orthodox christians include the thirtynine books and several additional writings. Jan 31, 20 why do catholic bibles have seven more books than protestant bibles. Some people believe that the catholic church added 7 books, but that couldnt be further from the truth. Sep 14, 2011 the protestant bible does not have these books. Why do catholic bibles have seven more books than protestant bibles.
Protestant bibles included the apocrypha until the mid 1800s, and the king james version was originally published with the apocrypha. The book of mormon has helped millions of people feel closer to god. One remarkable difference between catholic bible and king james bible is the content. Theyre listed in the order they show up in the protestant bible. In general, among christian denominations, the new testament canon is an agreedupon list of 27 books, although book order can vary.
While all christians have the same twentyseven new testament books, they disagree regarding the number of books in the old testament canon. Why does the catholic version of the bible have more books than. Why does the catholic version of the bible have more books. The catholic bible has the apocrypha and the christian bible does not. Even if the technical disparities between catholic and protestant bibles seem minor, they have had major effects.
Why does the catholic bible have 73 books, while protestant bibles only have 66. Difference between catholic bible and king james bible. As time went on, the church compiled these books to form a canon an. Consequently, the king james bible 1611 printed the books between the. Then, i gave him a very nice edition to look at called the jerusalem bible published by koren publishers here in jerusalem. Today, virtually all denominations of christianity consider this book to. John lightfoot 1643 criticized this arrangement because he thought the wretched apocrypha may be seen as a bridge between the. Which 7 books are not in the protestant bible but in the. Mar 14, 2018 why the protestant bible has fewer books than the catholic bible march 14. Why does the catholic bible have 7 more books than the. Why are there 66 books in the king james bible, 72 in the. Some of the key parts from verses 14 to 26 which martin luther disagreed with are the following. Ive written a onesentence overview of every book of the bible. Some protestant bibles, such as the original king james version, include 14 additional books known as the apocrypha, though these are not considered canonical.
If you only looked at direct mentions of christ by name, martin luther is right. Unlocking the book of revelation and applying its lessons today emmaus road, 2006 as well as a prolific writer in the. It only mentions him twice in passing, once in james 1. After jesus resurrection from the dead, there were many writings about him. Why is the book of james not found on the protestant bible. I would say that the main difference is that the catholic bible includes more. The catholic bible has seven books and parts of two others in the old. And do any other denominations acknowledge the extra books. A protestant bible is a christian bible whose translation or revision was produced by protestants. However, these books are ordered last in the germanlanguage luther.
This is a hebrew bible, but i do need to point out that while this bible has the same books that are found in the king james version and all other protestant bible versions, you will note that the design is different, i. How is the hebrew bible different from the christian old. So why does the catholic bible have 73 books, while the protestant bible has only 66 books. Some protestants believe that the catholic church added 7 books to the bible at the council of trent in response to luthers reformation, but that couldnt be further from the truth. There are seven 7 books in the catholic bible that are not in the protestants bible. The books of the apocrypha are also known as the deuterocanonical books. The protestant bible consists of 66 books which are considered to be divinely inspired. Why does the catholic bible have more books than the protestant bible. Aug 19, 2016 why protestants reject 7 books of the bible the short answer by steve ray on august 19, 2016 gary michuta is an expert on the canon of scripture, especially in regards to the deuterocanonical books, what the protestants call the apocrypha. The epistle of james was included among the twentyseven new testament books first listed by athanasius of alexandria in his thirtyninth festal epistle ad 367 and was confirmed as a canonical epistle of the new testament by a series of councils in the fourth century. All 66 books of the bible in easy, onesentence summaries. In fact, the church as a whole doesnt pronounce that the king james version of the bible isnt recognized. Martin luther didnt like that, so he wanted to take those books out, and the. Why do catholic bibles have seven more books than protestant.
But while protestant churches embraced many of luthers ideas and. Sep 07, 2019 the catholic bible has the apocrypha and the christian bible does not. The book of ester is part of the book of ketuvim, hebrew bible. Since may 19, 2002, the revised lectionary, based on the new american bible is the only englishlanguage lectionary that may be used at mass in the dioceses of the united states. Why doesnt the catholic church recognize the king james. It is also in the catholic bible but not in the protestant or king james of englands version of the bible. John is speaking only about the book of revelation, not the entire bible. I am a vineyard church pastor which some would consider protestant but sort of on the charismatic side of it. These 7 books are called the deuterocanon second canon. Now, all of a sudden, youre told that jesus of nazareth is the son of god, the longawaited messiah, the seeking savior whose death on. Such bibles comprise 39 books of the old testament according to the jewish hebrew bible canon, known especially to nonprotestants as the protocanonical books and 27 books of the new testament for a total of 66 books. I just opened my bible and right after hebrews is james. Why does the catholic version of the bible have more books than the protestant version. Why does the protestant bible have 66 books and the catholic bible have 73.
Protestant bibles comprise 39 books of the old testament according to the jewish hebrew bible canon, known especially to nonprotestants as the protocanonical books and the 27 books of the new testament for a total of 66 books. Many of them have demonstrable errors that cannot be reconciled. Apr 25, 2016 the protestant canon contains 7 fewer books than the catholic canon. Is the kjv protestant bible considered a heresy because it does not include all of the religious doctrine from the catholic faith. But how did these books find their way into the catholic bible and why do protestants.
The protestant canon has 66 books 39 in the old testament and 27 in the new testament, while the catholic canon has not 72 but 73 books 46 in the old testament and 27 in the new testament. Is the new american bible the only translation of scriptures we can read from at mass. Tobias, judith, wisdom, ecclesiasticus, baruch, 1 and 2 machabees, verse 4 of chapter 10 to the end of esther, and daniel, verse 24 of chapter 3 to. The catholic bible includes several books that are considered deuterocanonical. Why at some point were they considered part of the bible then a manmade council decided they didnt belong. The british and foreign bible society decided in 1827 to remove these books from further publications and labeled these books apocryphal. Why the protestant bible has fewer books than the catholic bible march 14. Martin luthers hostility to the book of james is wellknown, and ive mentioned it in other contexts, but i wanted to consider today the implications for the lutheran view of justification, at the heart of the reformation and of modern catholicprotestant disputes. Nov 11, 2014 why does the catholic bible have more books than the protestant bible.
Why does the orthodox bible have moredifferent books than. But catholics may find it helpful to use the version of the bible that is used at mass. Which 7 books are not in the protestant bible but in. What is less well known or talked about, is that luther also praised the book of james in the same preface. However, the apocrypha was considered less important, and bible publishers eventually dropped it from most protestant editions. A catholic bible has 46 books in the old testament versus 39 in a protestant bible. The protestant bible and catholic bible are not the same book. Why are the books of the bible placed in a particular.
For example, 2nd maccabees, a book that appears only in the catholic old testament, introduces purgatory and the practice of praying for the dead. Why would the bible, the greatest book ever written, be denied by so many people. James is an intensely practical book, filled with exhortations to christians about the way they should live their lives now that they have been given new life in jesus. Why does the catholic bible have more books than the king. Protestant bibles have only 39 books in the old testament, however, while catholic bibles have 46. Frequently asked questions united states conference. Why does the protestant bible have 66 books and the. Did martin luther really want james taken out of the bible. Although i love the shakespearean english of the kjv bible, every catholic and biblical scholar should have a douayrheims bible. This is a lot to take in, so if you want to start with baby steps, check out this list of the shortest books of the bible. Not only have whole books deuterocanonical been eliminated and words changed from protestant versions, some newer catholic versions have changed the wording. The catholic bible contains 46 old testament books while protestant bibles include 39. It is filled with allusions to and quotations of the teachings of jesus, and it includes more imperatives per word than any other new testament book.
Apr 09, 2014 so why does the catholic bible have 73 books, while the protestant bible has only 66 books. Jun 21, 2012 although i love the shakespearean english of the kjv bible, every catholic and biblical scholar should have a douayrheims bible. Why catholic bibles have more books than protestant bibles. If so, should we as catholics view the kjv as null or void. Luther also wanted to remove the letters of james and revelations, but that was boycotted by other protestant leaders. These books are tobit, judith, wisdom, sirach, baruch, i and ii maccabees, and esther. Why the catholic bible has 7 more books than the protestant bible. However, many protestant versions of the bible today will state, king james version with apocrypha. It was translated to include all the books catholics use, and then some. Why does the orthodox bible have moredifferent books than the protestant bible. My question is more about the deuterocanonical books that are in our bibleim catholic, i didnt say that, but i amand theyre not in the protestant bible.
Imagine you grew up learning the law of moses, doing good works and observing the commands that god had given to his people israel. You might notice that in bookstores, there are sections for catholic bibles and protestant bibles. Consequently, the king james bible 1611 printed the books between the new testament and old testaments. I have the niv, the open, new king james and king james versions of. The extra books in the roman catholic bible are from the apocrypha. The full 73 book bible as opposed to the protestant 66 book version was laid down by the councils of rome and carthage in 382 and 397 ad. The king james bible is the most popularly used book among christians and you wont find these religious scriptures in there. If youve ever perused through the books of the catholic bible vs. The book of james in the new testament is a controversial book, and there are those who believe that it should not have been included in the canon of scripture. Why protestants reject 7 books of the bible the short. I had no idea that the books of the bible were different that the bible i grew up studying in the protestant church. Nov 05, 2018 the protestant canon has 66 books 39 in the old testament and 27 in the new testament, while the catholic canon has not 72 but 73 books 46 in the old testament and 27 in the new testament. In the hebrew bible, which has the same content as the protestant old testament, there are twentyfour books.
Jun 27, 2014 james is an intensely practical book, filled with exhortations to christians about the way they should live their lives now that they have been given new life in jesus. Do protestants and catholics read from the same book. Why does the catholic bible include the maccabees and the. The protestant canon contains 7 fewer books than the catholic canon. Which books have the protestant bible left out that the. The apocryphal books were not considered to be inspired and thus were not recognized by the church as part of the bible. A new book on the history of this question is very illuminating. In the protestant bible, there are sixtysix booksthirtynine in the old testament and twentyseven in the new testament. Why did martin luther take 7 books out of the bible. The protestant bible, of which the niv is one version, is seven books shorter than the bible used by roman catholics. The catholic church regards as part of the bible the books of tobit, judith, wisdom, ecclesiasticus sirach, baruch, 1 and 2 maccabees, as well as some additional stories and verses in the books of daniel and esther. While it is possible for bible scholars, using the most uptodate archaeological knowledge, to defend the historical accuracy of the books of the bible, it is not possible to argue for the historical accuracy of the books of the apocrypha.
Why does the catholic bible include the maccabees and the book of wisdom. Martin luther and the book of james shameless popery. There are seven books in the catholic bible baruch, judith, 1 and 2 maccabees. The additional chapters found in the catholic version contain all the prayers made by esther and her appeals to gods intervention chapters 1016. While from the reformation, protestants confessions have usually excluded the. A catholic bible has nihil obstat and imprimatur while a protestant bible does not. However, later versions of the king james bible do not have. These readings have been selected to reflect the themes of these celebrations. The slavonic, armenian and ethiopian traditions have different new testament book orders. If you want more, ive linked to quick, 3minute guides to every book of the bible, too.
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