Fun Facts and Stats about the Bible


As a lecturer in biblical studies and Bible teacher in the church, I find that many of my students have questions surrounding facts and stats about the Bible, such as how many words are in the Bible? What is shortest and longest book of the Bible? What is the shortest and longest verse? Although many of the answers are inconsequential because the versification of the Bible is not inspired by God (click HERE to find out why), it is still fun to learn and know this type of information. 

There are two things to note with the following facts and stats. First, I have used the Bible software Accordance extensively throughout this article, which saved me an immense amount of time. Can you imagine counting every word in the Bible?

Second, in counting Hebrew words, I include all prefixes, suffixes, the definite article, and inseparable prepositions attached to a word as one word. It is too time consuming to separate each part when they are all joined together. Those who have studied Hebrew know what I’m talking about!

So, let’s get into it! I’ll start with the broadest questions and continue down to the narrower ones. 

How Many Words, Verses, and Chapters are in the Bible?

There are 757,514 words, 31,202 verses, and 1,189 chapters in the English Bible (ESV). The number of words and verses changes depending on which English Bible one uses and whether one consults the original languages (Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek).

The following table shows the number of words, verses, and chapters in the English Bible and the Original languages.

Bible VersionWordsVersesChapters
English Bible (ESV)757,51431,2021,189
Original Languages
(Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek)
563,87431,1541,189
Hebrew/Aramaic Old Testament425,86323,213928
Greek New Testament138,0117,941260
* Number of words, verses, and chapters in the English Bible and original language Bible

You may notice that there are less words and verses in the original languages than in the English translations of the Bible. This is because English translations frequently need more than one word to express an idea or concept contained in one Hebrew or Greek word.

The reason there are less verses in the original languages is because the Hebrew and Aramaic Old Testament has a slightly different versification than the English Old Testament. The Greek and English New Testament have the same number of verses, but there are some slight differences as to when a verse begins or ends. 

Finally, a fun fact about the chapter numbers. The Hebrew book of Joel has four chapters, whereas the English book of Joel only has three chapters. The difference in total chapter numbers is offset by the Hebrew book of Malachi only having three chapters, whereas the English book of Malachi has four chapters. In the end, the Hebrew and English Old Testament have the same number of total chapters.

What is the Middle Word, Verse, and Chapter in the Bible?

In the English Bible, the middle word is “out” from Psalm 66:12; the middle verse is Psalm 100:5, and the middle chapters are Psalm 116 and 117. In the original languages Bible (Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek), the middle word is אֶתְכֶ֖ם (the accusative “you” in the plural form), the middle verse is Psalm 31:22, and the middle chapters are Psalm 27 and 28.

Technically, there is no middle chapter to the Bible. Since the Bible has 1,189 chapters (see above), the middle chapter is technically chapter 594.5. Thus, I chose to list the 594th and the 595th chapters.

When determining the middle word, verse, and chapter from the Bible in its original languages, I used the Hebrew Bible order of the biblical books, which is different from our English Bibles.

The below table shows the middle word, verse, and chapter of the English and original language Bibles side-by-side.

Bible VersionMiddle WordMiddle VerseMiddle Chapter
English Bible (ESV)“out” from Psalm 66:12 (word number 378,757)Psalm 100:5 (verse 15,601)Psalm 116 (594th chapter).
Psalm 117 (595th chapter)
Original Languages
(Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek)
אֶתְכֶם (“you” pl) from Ezekiel 36:24 (word number 281,937)Psalm 31:22 (verse 15,577).
Note that Ps 31:22 in the Hebrew Bible is Ps 31:21 in the English Bible.
Psalm 27 (594th chapter).
Psalm 28 (595th chapter)
* The middle word, verse, and chapter of the English and original language Bibles

Which Biblical Author Wrote the Most?

The most prolific biblical author is Moses, writing a total of 112,301 words in Hebrew over five books and one Psalm (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, and Psalm 90). The second most prolific author is Luke the Physician who wrote a total of 48,087 words in Greek over two books (The Gospel of Luke and Acts).

The table below lists the eight most prolific biblical authors, including the books they wrote and the word count from the original language (either Hebrew or Greek) and the English translation. 

Author (Books)Original Language Word CountEnglish Word Count (ESV)
Moses (Gen-Deut; Ps 90)112,301149,494
Luke (Luke & Acts)37,93048,087
Paul (Rom-Phlm)32,40643,296
Jeremiah (Jer & Lam)31,72043,709
John (John; 1-3 John; Revelation)28,08733,448
Ezekiel (Ezek)26,06437,206
Matthew (Matt)18,34622,648
David (Ps 2-9; 11-32; 34-41; 51-65; 68-70; 86; 101; 103; 108-110; 122; 131; 133; 138-145)11,37519,655
* Eight most prolific biblical authors according to word count

I have not included books such as 1–2 Samuel, 1–2 Kings, and 1–2 Chronicles because the author(s) is unknown. According to 1 Chronicles 29:29–30, these portions of Scripture could be a compilation of multiple accounts written by the prophets: “Now the acts of King David, from first to last, are written in the Chronicles of Samuel the seer, and in the Chronicles of Nathan the prophet, and in the Chronicles of Gad the seer, with accounts of all his rule and his might and of the circumstances that came upon him and upon Israel and upon all the kingdoms of the countries” (2 Chron 29:29–30). 

What is the Longest and Shortest Book in the Bible?

The longest book in the Bible is Jeremiah at 29,731 Hebrew words. The shortest book in the Bible is 3 John at 219 Greek words. If one were to use the English Bible, then Psalms is the longest at 42,295 words and 2 John is the shortest at 300 words.

I believe the best way to determine the length of a book is by counting the words in the original language, not counting chapters or English words from a translation. I used Accordance software to help me with this task so that I didn’t have to physically count each word myself.

So that you can see all of these variants, I have supplied tables listing all 66 books of the Bible in order from longest to shortest when one counts original language words, English words, and chapters. I think you’ll find the results very interesting!

Bible BookOriginal Language Word
Count (Hebrew and Greek)
Jeremiah29,731
Genesis28,638
Ezekiel26,064
Psalms25,030
Exodus23,570
Numbers23,030
Isaiah22,789
Deuteronomy20,013
2 Chronicles19,665
Luke19,481
1 Samuel 18,939
1 Kings18,588
Acts18,449
Matthew18,346
2 Kings17,283
Leviticus16,865
2 Samuel15,711
1 Chronicles15,683
John15,631
Joshua14,547
Judges14,067
Mark11,303
Job10,816
Revelation  9,851
Proverbs  8,813
Daniel  8,777
Nehemiah  7,865
Romans  7,111
1 Corinthians  6,829
Ezra  5,592
Hebrews  4,953
Esther  4,583
2 Corinthians  4,477
Zechariah  4,438
Ecclesiastes  4,160
Hosea  3,123
Amos  2,777
Ephesians  2,422
Galatians  2,230
1 John  2,141
Lamentations  1,989
Micah  1,895
Ruth  1,805
James  1,742
1 Peter  1,684
Song of Songs  1,659
Philippians  1,629
1 Timothy  1,591
Colossians  1,581
1 Thessalonians  1,481
Joel  1,304
2 Timothy  1,238
Malachi  1,175
2 Peter  1,099
Zephaniah  1,022
Jonah     980
Habakkuk     891
Haggai     868
2 Thessalonians     823
Nahum     730
Titus     659
Jude     461
Obadiah     388
Philemon     335
2 John     245
3 John     219
* Bible books in order from longest to shortest according to original language word count

Bible BookEnglish Word Count (ESV)
Psalms42,295
Jeremiah40,455
Ezekiel37,206
Genesis36,346
Isaiah35,263
Numbers30,957
Exodus30,892
Deuteronomy27,545
2 Chronicles24,798
Luke24,616
1 Samuel 24,126
Acts23,471
Leviticus23,438
1 Kings23,421
2 Kings22,777
Matthew22,648
2 Samuel19,735
John18,892
1 Chronicles18,525
Judges18,287
Joshua17,980
Job17,610
Proverbs14,531
Mark14,351
Revelation11,455
Daniel11,242
Nehemiah  9,846
Romans  9,492
1 Corinthians  9,282
Hebrews  6,908
Ezra  6,893
2 Corinthians  6,072
Zechariah  6,053
Esther  5,478
Ecclesiastes  5,339
Hosea  4,966
Amos  4,048
Lamentations  3,254
Galatians  3,106
Ephesians  3,016
Micah  3,002
Song of Songs  2,533
1 John  2,499
Ruth  2,427
1 Peter  2,393
James  2,319
1 Timothy  2,317
Philippians  2,147
Colossians  1,936
Joel  1,895
1 Thessalonians  1,844
Malachi  1,738
2 Timothy  1,633
Zephaniah  1,556
2 Peter  1,549
Habakkuk  1,357
Jonah  1,299
Nahum  1,111
Haggai  1,083
2 Thessalonians  1,065
Titus     926
Obadiah     604
Jude     604
Philemon     460
3 John     302
2 John     300
* Bible books in order from longest to shortest according to English language word count

Bible BookBible Chapter Count
Psalms150
Isaiah66
Jeremiah52
Genesis50
Ezekiel48
Job42
Exodus40
Numbers36
2 Chronicles36
Deuteronomy34
1 Samuel 31
Proverbs31
1 Chronicles29
Matthew28
Acts28
Leviticus27
2 Kings25
Joshua24
2 Samuel24
Luke24
1 Kings22
Revelation22
Judges21
John21
Mark16
Romans16
1 Corinthians16
Hosea14
Zechariah14
Nehemiah13
2 Corinthians13
Hebrews13
Ecclesiastes12
Daniel12
Esther10
Ezra10
Amos9
Song of Songs8
Micah7
Galatians6
Ephesians6
1 Timothy6
Lamentations5
1 Thessalonians5
1 John5
James5
1 Peter5
Jonah4
Malachi4 (3 chapters in Hebrew Bible)
Ruth4
Philippians4
Colossians4
2 Timothy4
Joel3 (4 chapters in Hebrew Bible)
Nahum3
Habakkuk3
Zephaniah3
2 Thessalonians3
Titus3
2 Peter3
Haggai2
Obadiah1
Philemon1
2 John1
3 John1
Jude1
* Bible books in order from longest to shortest according to chapter count

Bible BookOriginal Language Word Count
(Hebrew and Greek)
English Word
Count (ESV)
Bible Chapter Count
Jeremiah29,73140,45552
Genesis28,63836,34650
Ezekiel26,06437,20648
Psalms25,03042,295150
Exodus23,57030,89240
Numbers23,03030,95736
Isaiah22,78935,26366
Deuteronomy20,01327,54534
2 Chronicles19,66524,79836
Luke19,48124,61624
1 Samuel 18,93924,12631
1 Kings18,58823,42122
Acts18,44923,47128
Matthew18,34622,64828
2 Kings17,28322,77725
Leviticus16,86523,43827
2 Samuel15,71119,73524
1 Chronicles15,68318,52529
John15,63118,89221
Joshua14,54717,98024
Judges14,06718,28721
Mark11,30314,35116
Job10,81617,61042
Revelation  9,85111,45522
Proverbs  8,81314,53131
Daniel  8,77711,24212
Nehemiah  7,865  9,84613
Romans  7,111  9,49216
1 Corinthians  6,829  9,28216
Ezra  5,592  6,89310
Hebrews  4,953  6,90813
Esther  4,583  5,47810
2 Corinthians  4,477  6,07213
Zechariah  4,438  6,05314
Ecclesiastes  4,160  5,33912
Hosea  3,123  4,96614
Amos  2,777  4,0489
Ephesians  2,422  3,0166
Galatians  2,230  3,1066
1 John  2,141  2,4995
Lamentations  1,989  3,2545
Micah  1,895  3,0027
Ruth  1,805  2,4274
James  1,742  2,3195
1 Peter  1,684  2,3935
Song of Songs  1,659  2,5338
Philippians  1,629  2,1474
1 Timothy  1,591  2,3176
Colossians  1,581  1,9364
1 Thessalonians  1,481  1,8445
Joel  1,304  1,8953 (4 chapters in Hebrew Bible)
2 Timothy  1,238  1,6334
Malachi  1,175  1,7384 (3 chapters in Hebrew Bible)
2 Peter  1,099  1,5493
Zephaniah  1,022  1,5563
Jonah     980  1,2994
Habakkuk     891  1,3573
Haggai     868  1,0832
2 Thessalonians     823  1,0653
Nahum     730  1,1113
Titus     659     9263
Jude     461     6041
Obadiah     388     6041
Philemon     335     4601
2 John     245     3001
3 John     219     3021
* Bible books in order from longest to shortest according to original language word count with English word count stats and chapter numbers. 

From the above analysis, we determine that the Hebrew and Greek Bibles express themselves using less words than our English Bibles. This is primarily because of translation theory. It often takes more words in English to accurately translate and convey the meaning used in less words in Hebrew and Greek. This is seen clearest in the book of Psalms, which is the longest book in our English Bibles. The book of Psalms is poetry. The Hebrew writers could express themselves using a limited word count, but this is impossible to keep in our English Bibles, regardless of translation. Finally, using chapters to determine book length is poor method since the chapter numbers are somewhat arbitrary and many books have the same number of chapters. 

What is the Longest and Shortest Chapter in the Bible?

The longest chapter in the Bible is 1 Kings 8 at 1,591 Hebrew words. The shortest chapter in the Bible is Psalm 117 at 20 Hebrew words. If one were to use the English Bible, then Psalm 119 would be the longest chapter at 2,362 words and Psalm 117 would still be the shortest chapter at 28 words. 

The longest and shortest chapter changes depending on the translation that one uses and whether one counts verses or words. The best way to determine the longest and shortest chapter is by counting words, primarily the words in the original languages: Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. Below are a few tables showing the top five longest chapters of the Bible and the top five shortest chapters of the Bible.

Bible ChapterOriginal Language Word Count
(Hebrew and Greek)
1 Kings 81,591 words
Deuteronomy 281,409 words
Numbers 71,349 words
Psalm 1191,326 words
Leviticus 131,297 words
* Top five longest chapters in the Bible according to the original languages.

Bible ChapterEnglish Word Count (ESV)
Psalm 1192,362 words
1 Kings 82,039 words
Deuteronomy 281,985 words
Numbers 71,871 words
Leviticus 131,766 words
* Top five longest chapters in the Bible according to the English Bible, using the English Standard Version (ESV).

Bible ChapterOriginal Language Word Count
(Hebrew and Greek)
Psalm 11720 words
Psalm 13432 words
Psalm 13145 words
Psalm 13352 words
Job 2558 words
* Top five shortest chapters in the Bible according to the original languages.

Bible ChapterEnglish Word Count (ESV)
Psalm 11728 words
Psalm 13449 words
Psalm 13369 words
Psalm 13171 words
Job 2587 words
* Top five shortest chapters in the Bible according to the English Bible, using the English Standard Version (ESV).

It is unsurprising that the majority of the longest chapters come from the narrative portions of the Bible, while all of the shortest chapters come from poetry. Stories (narrative) are frequently long and descriptive, while poetry is usually shorter, using less words.

What is the Longest and Shortest Verse in the Bible?

The longest verse in the Bible is Revelation 20:4 at 269 Greek letters. The shortest verse in the Bible is 1 Chronicles 1:25 at 9 Hebrew letters. If one were to use the English Bible, then Esther 8:9 would be the longest verse in the Bible at 359 letters, but John 11:35 would be the shortest verse at 9 letters.

Once again, the longest and shortest verse in the Bible changes depending on the translation that one uses and whether one counts words or letters. The best way to determine the longest and shortest verse is by counting individual letters, primarily the letters in the original languages: Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. The one caveat to counting letters in Hebrew is that some letters are doubled, represented by a dagesh in the Masoretic Text. I will not count the doubling, only the letters written. Below are a few tables showing the top five longest verses of the Bible and the top five shortest verses of the Bible.

Bible VerseOriginal Language Letter Count
(Hebrew and Greek)
Revelation 20:4269 letters (58 words)
Esther 8:9194 letters (74 words)
Jeremiah 21:7160 letters (63 words)
Joshua 8:33151 letters (56 words)
Ezekiel 48:21145 letters (57 words)
* Top five longest verses in the Bible according to the original languages
Bible VerseEnglish Letter Count (ESV)
Esther 8:9359 letters (80 words)
Jeremiah 21:7316 letters (73 words)
Joshua 8:33308 letters (74 words)
Revelation 20:4305 letters (75 words)
Ezekiel 48:21296 letters (69 words)
* Top five longest verses in the Bible according to the English Bible (ESV).
Bible VerseHebrew/Greek TextOriginal Language Letter Count
1 Chronicles 1:25עֵ֥בֶר פֶּ֖לֶג רְעֽוּ9 letters
Luke 20:30καὶ ὁ δεύτερος12 letters
Job 3:2וַיַּ֥עַן אִיּ֗וֹב וַיֹּאמַֽר13 letters
1 Thessalonians 5:16πάντοτε χαίρετε14 letters
John 11:35ἐδάκρυσεν ὁ Ἰησοῦς16 letters
* Top five shortest verses in the Bible according to the original languages.
Bible VerseEnglish Text (ESV)English Letter Count (ESV)
John 11:35“Jesus wept”9 letters
Job 3:2“And Job said”10 letters
1 Chronicles 1:25“Eber, Peleg, Reu”12 letters
Luke 20:30“And the second”12 letters
1 Thessalonians 5:16“Rejoice always”13 letters
* Top five shortest verses in the Bible according to the English Bible (ESV).

I have heard many preachers and teachers of the Bible claim that “Jesus wept” in John 11:35 is the shortest verse in the Bible. The claim is certainly true if one uses an English translation. However, when one looks at the original languages in which the Bible was written, it is quite clear that 1 Chronicles 1:25 is the shortest. What most surprised me was how far down the list John 11:35 is!

What is the Longest Word in the Bible?

The longest word in the Bible according to lexical form is Maher-shalal-hash-baz. In English, it is 18 letters long, while in Hebrew it is 10 letters long. The second longest word is Cushan-rishathaim. The third longest is Zaphenath-paneah. The fourth longest is Tiglath-pileser. The fifth longest is Nebuchadnezzar.

Only the lexical form of words were included in this search, which is why the top five longest words in the Bible are names. Also, there are many names and words of equal length, such as Abel-beth-maacah, which is also 14 letters. Thus, there may be other lists out on the web with other words. See the table below for the letter count in English and Hebrew. 

Bible WordEnglish Letter Count (ESV)Hebrew Letter Count
Maher-shalal-hash-baz
מַהֵ֥ר שָׁלָ֖ל חָ֥שׁ בַּֽז
(Isaiah 8:1)
18 letters10 letters
Cushan-rishathaim
כּוּשַׁ֣ן רִשְׁעָתַ֔יִם
(Judges 3:8)
16 letters10 letters
Zaphenath-paneah
צָֽפְנַ֣ת פַּעְנֵחַ
(Gen 41:45)
15 letters8 letters
Tiglath-pileser
תִּגְלַ֣ת פִּלְאֶסֶר
(2 Kings 15:29)
14 letters9 letters
Nebuchadnezzar
נְבֻכַדְנֶאצַּ֖ר
(2 Kings 24:1)
14 letters8 letters
* Table of the five longest words in the Bible.

For an explanation of the significance of Maher-shalal-hash-baz, see my article on Isaiah 7:14.

What are the Ten Most Frequently Used Words in the Bible?

The ten most frequently used words in the Bible are articles, pronouns, prepositions, and conjunctions. However, when one removes these words, a picture of the Bible’s main theme emerges.

WordOccurrences in the English Bible (ESV)
The58,978
And40,302
Of31,115
To 20,989
You13,110
In11,573
A8,741
I8,729
He8,455
That7,929
* The ten most frequently used words in the English Bible (ESV)
WordOccurrences in the English Bible (ESV)
Shall/Will12,439
Lord7,580
All5,193
Said4,710
God4,268
People2,857
Israel2,570
One2,356
Son2,055
King2,008
* The ten most frequently used words in the English Bible (ESV) other than articles, pronouns, prepositions, particles, conjunctions, the verb “to be,” and basic verbs, such as “have”
WordOccurrences in the Hebrew Old Testament
וְ (common conjunction)50111
הַ (definite article)23842
לְ (“to”)20304
בְּ (“in”)15508
אֵת (direct object marker)10929
מִן (“from”)7538
יהוה (“Yahweh”)6823
עַל (“on”)5742
אֶל (“to”)5498
אֲשֶׁר (relative pronoun)5482
* The ten most frequently used words in the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament)
WordOccurrences in the Hebrew Old Testament
יהוה (“Yahweh”)6823
כֹּל (“all”)5409
אמר (“to say”)5315
בֵּן (“son”)4924
עשׂה (“to do, make”)2621
אֱלֹהִים (“God” or “gods”)2601
בוא (“to come”)2570
מֶלֶךְ (“king”)2519
יִשְׂרָאֵל (“Israel”)2505
אֶרֶץ (“land”)2499
* The ten most frequently used words in the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament) other than articles, pronouns, prepositions, particles, conjunctions, and the verb “to be”
WordOccurrences in the Greek New Testament
ὁ (definite article)19863
καί (common conjunction)9018
αὐτός (personal pronoun)5597
σύ (“you” singular)2907
δέ (particle)2792
ἐν (“in”)2752
ἐγώ (“I”)2582
εἰμί (“to be”)2462
λἐγω (“to say”)2353
εἰς (“into”)1767
* The ten most frequently used words in the Greek New Testament
WordOccurrences in the Greek New Testament
λἐγω (“to say”)2353
θεός (“God”)1317
πᾶς (“all”)1243
Ἰησοῦς (“Jesus”)917
κύριος (“Lord”)717
ἔρχομαι (“to come”)632
ποιέω (“to do, make”)568
ἄνθρωπος (“person”)550
Χριστός (“Christ, Messiah”)529
ὁράω (“to see”)454
* The ten most frequently used words in the Greek New Testament other than articles, pronouns, prepositions, particles, conjunctions, and the verb “to be”

What we discover by looking at the ten most frequently used words in the Bible other than articles, pronouns, prepositions, particles, conjunctions, and the verb “to be,” is that the Bible is centred on God, his people, and his king. In the Old Testament, there is a strong focus on the king, Israel, and the promised land. In the New Testament, there is a strong focus on God’s messiah, Jesus. Now, if anyone asks you what the Bible is about, you can confidently say, “It’s about God, his people, and his Messiah-King, Jesus.” 

Adam Robinson

I am the pastor of a non-denominational church in rural Queensland, Australia. Prior to pastoring, I was a Lecturer in Biblical Studies at two Bible Colleges in Queensland, Australia. I received my PhD in New Testament from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.

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