If you’ve ever read through the books of the Catholic Bible you may have noticed some additional books vs. most Protestant Bibles.
Protestant Bibles consists of 66 books which are considered to be divinely inspired were as the Catholic Bible includes all 66 plus seven extra books. The additional books in the Catholic Bible are found in the Old Testament and include: Tobias, Judith, Wisdom, Ecclesiasticus/Sirach, Baruch, 1 Maccabees and 2 Maccabees bringing the total to 73 books.
So why the Difference?
The difference between the two has to do with how each defines what are divinely inspired books.
In the third and fourth century, church councils met to determine which books were to be considered divinely inspired based upon their own pre conceived prejudices.
At the time, there was also a Greek Old Testament in circulation (known as the Septuagint), which contained all of the books in the traditional Old Testament, plus additional books that had been written in between the time of the Old and New Testaments which included the seven additional books.
Protestants argued that the additional seven books were not contained in the Hebrew Bible (the 39 books of the traditional Old Testament) and thus should not be a part of the Christian Bible.
*The extra Catholic books are in red
| Pentateuch | Historical Books | Poetical / Wisdom | Major Prophets | Minor Prophets |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Genesis | Joshua | Job | Isaiah | Hosea |
| Exodus | Judges | Psalms | Jeremiah | Joel |
| Leviticus | Ruth | Proverbs | Lamentations | Amos |
| Numbers | 1 Samuel | Ecclesiastes | Ezekiel | Obadiah |
| Deuteronomy | 2 Samuel | Song of Solomon | Daniel | Jonah |
| 1 Kings | Wisdom of Solomon | Baruch | Micah | |
| 2 Kings | Sirach | Nahum | ||
| 1 Chronicles | Habbakuk | |||
| 2 Chronicles | Zephaniah | |||
| Ezra | Haggai | |||
| Nehemiah | Zechariah | |||
| Esther | Malachi | |||
| Tobit | ||||
| Judith | ||||
| 1 Maccabees | ||||
| 2 Maccabees |
Scriptures that point towards the Catholic Church
"Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;" (Exodus 20:4-5)
"Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God." (2 Thessalonians 2:3-4)
"For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;" (1 Timothy 2:5)
"Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron; Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth." (1 Timothy 4:1-3)
"And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy. And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority. And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast. And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him? And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months. And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven. And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world." (Revelation 13:1-8)
"And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters: With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication. So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns. And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication: And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH. And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration. And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns. The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is. And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth." (Revelation 17:1-9)
"And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory. And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird. For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies. And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities. Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works: in the cup which she hath filled fill to her double. How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow. Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her. And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning," (Revelation 18:1-9)
There are more than enough indicators in the above scriptures that point to Roman Catholic Church. She sits on seven hills, her clergy wear purple and scarlet; she is rich with jewels, gold, precious stones, and art works. She is known for killing many who wouldn't accept the papacy, and her reach is worldwide.