Books of the Bible - How The Bible Came To Be

Religions - Bible Quiz - How The Bible Came To Be (Questions)

How did the Bible become one book? Explore its origins, early writings, copying, and how collections formed over time, then try the quiz below.

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Fascinating Fact:

Different Christian traditions have slightly different canons, with some including additional books often called the Apocrypha or Deuterocanonical books.

In Specialist The Bible, “How the Bible Came to Be” looks at how many separate writings were preserved, copied, shared, and gathered into collections. Over centuries, communities recognised certain texts as especially authoritative for teaching, worship, and guidance. The story includes careful copying by scribes, the spread of early churches, the role of leaders and councils in confirming widely-used books, and later translation work that helped more people read the Scriptures in their own language.

Key Terms

Manuscript: A hand-written copy of a text, made before printing was available.
Canon: The recognised list of books accepted as Scripture by a religious tradition.
Translation: Putting a text into another language while keeping the meaning as accurate as possible.

Frequently Asked Questions (Click to see answers)

How was the Bible put together?

The Bible was put together as collections of writings were copied, shared, and used in worship and teaching. Over time, communities recognised certain books as authoritative and gathered them into a recognised set.

What does “canon” mean in the Bible?

In the Bible, “canon” means the official list of books a tradition accepts as Scripture. It helps explain why certain writings are included in the Bible while others are not.

Why are there different Bible versions and translations?

There are different Bible translations because languages change and translators aim to make the meaning clear and accurate for modern readers. Some versions are more word-for-word, while others focus on readability.

Try These Related Quizzes

The first five books in the Bible, from Genesis to Deuteronomy, are known in Hebrew as the Torah. What, in English, does Torah mean?

[ ]	Creation
[ ]	Instruction
[ ]	History
[ ]	Beginning

The second part of the Jewish Bible, or Tanakh, from which we get the Old Testament, is Nevi'im, or prophets. The corresponding part of the Christian Bible contains 21 books, but how many are in the Jewish original?

[ ]	8 books
[ ]	16 books
[ ]	24 books
[ ]	32 books

The third, and final, section of the Jewish Bible is the Ketuvim, or "writings." These were accepted as a part of the Jewish Bible in which century?

[ ]	The 2nd century BC
[ ]	The 1st century BC
[ ]	The 1st century AD
[ ]	The 2nd century AD

In the 3rd century BC, Jewish religious books were translated from the Hebrew into another language. The resultant book is known as the Septuagint. In which language is the Septuagint written?

[ ]	Latin
[ ]	Persian
[ ]	Greek
[ ]	Babylonian

In the early years of Christianity there was dispute over which books should be canon and which were heresy. The 4 versions of the Gospel were widely accepted as the only 4 true Gospels, by St Irenaeus of Lyons in what year?

[ ]	Circa 85 AD
[ ]	Circa 105 AD
[ ]	Circa 145 AD
[ ]	Circa 185 AD

The Acts of the Apostles was chosen for inclusion in the Bible. Its author also wrote one of the 4 Gospels. Which one?

[ ]	Matthew
[ ]	Mark
[ ]	Luke
[ ]	John

There are 14 Epistles, or letters, in the New Testament which have been thought to have been written by St Paul. How many of these are now thought by scholars to have actually been written by him?

[ ]	None
[ ]	Three
[ ]	Seven
[ ]	Fourteen

The last of the books in the New Testament to be accepted as canon is The Revelation, as late as 419 AD. Which famous theologian of the 16th century said of Revelation, "Christ is neither taught nor known in it"

[ ]	Martin Luther
[ ]	John Calvin
[ ]	Thomas Cranmer
[ ]	John Knox

Martin Luther was a Protestant reformer who translated the Bible into German. Luther's version of the Bible omits some books which are found in the Roman Catholic Old Testament. Luther also wanted to remove four books from the New Testament, which he considered to be non-canonical. Which four books were they?

[ ]	John, Philippians, Philemon and Revelation
[ ]	Hebrews, James, Jude and Revelation
[ ]	Romans, I Peter, II Peter and Revelation
[ ]	Matthew, Titus, II Timothy and Revelation

10.

The canon of books in the Catholic Bible was decided upon in the Council of Trent. In what year did the Council of Trent end?

[ ]	In 663 AD
[ ]	In 963 AD
[ ]	In 1263 AD
[ ]	In 1563 AD

Religions - Bible Quiz - How The Bible Came To Be (Answers)

The first five books in the Bible, from Genesis to Deuteronomy, are known in Hebrew as the Torah. What, in English, does Torah mean?

[ ]	Creation
[x]	Instruction
[ ]	History
[ ]	Beginning

Traditionally the Torah was written by Moses after being revealed by God. These teachings were handed down through the generations and it is believed that the versions we have today were written after the Babylonian exile, between 600-400 BC

[x]	8 books
[ ]	16 books
[ ]	24 books
[ ]	32 books

The books in the Nevi'im are Joshua, Judges, Samuel, Kings, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and the 12 Minor Prophets. Samuel and Kings are both divided into two books in the Christian Bible, and the 12 Minor Prophets are split into 12 separate books.
The Prophets were a later addition to the Jewish Bible, coming after the Torah. They were accepted as canon sometime before 180 BC, but the exact date is unknown

The third, and final, section of the Jewish Bible is the Ketuvim, or "writings." These were accepted as a part of the Jewish Bible in which century?

[ ]	The 2nd century BC
[ ]	The 1st century BC
[ ]	The 1st century AD
[x]	The 2nd century AD

Although not an accepted part of the Jewish Bible until the 2nd century, the "writings," which includes 11 books such as Psalms, Proverbs and Daniel, were well known and had some religious authority given to them. References are made to them in the Gospels

In the 3rd century BC, Jewish religious books were translated from the Hebrew into another language. The resultant book is known as the Septuagint. In which language is the Septuagint written?

[ ]	Latin
[ ]	Persian
[x]	Greek
[ ]	Babylonian

Greek was the dominant language of the time after the Middle East had been conquered by Alexander the Great. The title, which is Latin for "70," comes from the legend that 72 Jewish scholars, 6 from each of the 12 tribes of Israel, translated the work for Ptolemy, the King of Egypt for inclusion in the Great Library of Alexandria

[ ]	Circa 85 AD
[ ]	Circa 105 AD
[ ]	Circa 145 AD
[x]	Circa 185 AD

Before this time different churches used different Gospels. There are known to be many more than the 4 included in the New Testament, including the Gospel of Mary Magdalene and the Gospel of Judas Iscariot

The Acts of the Apostles was chosen for inclusion in the Bible. Its author also wrote one of the 4 Gospels. Which one?

[ ]	Matthew
[ ]	Mark
[x]	Luke
[ ]	John

There were many other books of Acts apart from the one written by Luke. Some include the Acts of Andrew, John, Paul, Peter and Thomas

There are 14 Epistles, or letters, in the New Testament which have been thought to have been written by St Paul. How many of these are now thought by scholars to have actually been written by him?

[ ]	None
[ ]	Three
[x]	Seven
[ ]	Fourteen

Romans, First Corinthians, Second Corinthians, Galatians, Philippians, First Thessalonians and Philemon are all widely accepted as works of Paul's. The other seven are now thought to have been written by imposters claiming to be Paul. In addition to the 14 which made it into the New Testament, there are a further 14 books which claim to have been written either by, or about, Paul

[x]	Martin Luther
[ ]	John Calvin
[ ]	Thomas Cranmer
[ ]	John Knox

Revelation's place in the Bible was always at risk with many doubting its authenticity, its imagery and its message, even as far back as the 2nd century

[ ]	John, Philippians, Philemon and Revelation
[x]	Hebrews, James, Jude and Revelation
[ ]	Romans, I Peter, II Peter and Revelation
[ ]	Matthew, Titus, II Timothy and Revelation

Luther felt that the books went against some Protestant doctrines, but his followers did not share his views and the books remained in the New Testament. They were, however, placed after all the other books and are the last four books in the Lutherian Bible

10.