In Judaism, only the Old Testament is holy, and it is not known as the Old Testament; rather, it is called the Tanakh, or Hebrew Bible. Among the things covered in these thirty-nine books are the creation of the world and the formation of Israel. The Hebrew Bible is divided into three sections: Torah, Prophets, and Writings. Writings is subdivided further into three sections: Poetic Books, Festival of Scrolls, and Historical Books. In the Hebrew Bible, the books are in a different order than in the Christian Old Testament as follows:

In Christianity, both the Old and New Testaments are holy. Christians believe parts of the Old Testament point to the coming of Jesus. The New Testament is made up of twenty-seven books, and is holy in Christianity. The New Testament recounts the arrival of Jesus, his life on earth, and what happened in the years right after his death and resurrection. God is present throughout the whole Bible—sometimes as an observer, sometimes as an active participant.