The Books of the Bible they speak will be evident." This new order is introduced because "the order in which today's readers are used to encountering the books of the Bible is yet another factor that hinders their understanding." The book order in "The Books of the Bible," and the rationale for it, is as follows: The Covenant History "The first quarter of the Bible unfolds as one continuous narrative." Genesis<br> Exodus<br> Leviticus<br> Numbers<br> Deuteronomy<br> Joshua<br> Judges<br> Ruth<br> Samuel–Kings The Prophets The prophets are presented in "what… is plausibly their historical order." Jonah Amos<br> Hosea<br> Micah<br> Isaiah Zephaniah<br> Nahum<br> Habakkuk Jeremiah<br> Obadiah<br> Ezekiel Haggai<br> Zechariah<br>
The Books of the Bible "general history" genre that "focused on the history of a particular people… from mythical beginnings to a point in the recent past." The book was divided into two parts not because of its length, but so that its first half, Luke, could be grouped with the other stories of Jesus' life (the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and John). The second half, Acts, is traditionally placed after the gospels, so that the book of John creates a barrier between the halves. "The Books of the Bible" reunites Luke and Acts and treats them as "two volumes of a single work." Luke-Acts