The middle chapter of the Bible

An interesting urban myth that has developed about the Bible, is that the 118th Psalm is the middle chapter of the Bible.[i] For example, “Psalms 118: The Middle Chapter of the Bible” presents this idea. I am uncertain how that folks arrive at this figure, but am guessing it is somehow based on someone counting verses, and that dividing the total verses in the Bible (31,102) might land in Psalm 118.[ii] I suspect many people repeat this “middle chapter fact” without checking, after hearing it from a source they trust. Additionally, it makes for nice effect to note that it is the chapter between the shortest and longest chapters of the Bible. However, the numbers do not add up, and we should not repeat errors, no matter how interesting they may sound. 

Here demonstrated is the way I figured the middle chapter, so you can review it for accuracy. This includes counting each individual Psalm as a chapter division. The King James Bible is divided in 1189 chapters, 929 in the Old Testament and 260 in the New Testament. The middle chapter of the Bible is Psalm 117, because it has 594 chapters before it and 594 chapters after it.

594 chapters before Psalm 117.

50           Genesis
40           Exodus
27           Leviticus
36           Numbers
34           Deuteronomy
24           Joshua
21           Judges
4              Ruth
31           1 Samuel
24           2 Samuel
22           1 Kings
25           2 Kings
29           1 Chronicles
36           2 Chronicles
10           Ezra
13           Nehemiah
10           Esther
42           Job
116         Psalms

594 chapters      - Genesis 1 through Psalm 116
1 chapter            - Psalm 117
594 chapters      - Psalm 118 through Revelation 22

33           Psalms 118-150

31           Proverbs

12           Ecclesiastes

8             Song of Songs

66           Isaiah

52           Jeremiah

5              Lamentations

48           Ezekiel

12           Daniel

14           Hosea

3             Joel

9             Amos

1             Obadiah

4             Jonah

7             Micah

3             Nahum

3             Habakkuk

3             Zephaniah

2             Haggai

14           Zechariah

4             Malachi

28           Matthew

16           Mark

24           Luke

21           John

28           Acts

16           Romans

16           1 Corinthians

13           2 Corinthians

6             Galatians

6             Ephesians

4             Philippians

4             Colossians

5             1 Thessalonians

3             2 Thessalonians

6             1 Timothy

4             2 Timothy

3             Titus

1             Philemon

13           Hebrews

5             James

5             1 Peter

3             2 Peter

5             1 John

1             2 John

1             3 John

1             Jude

22           Revelation

594 chapters after Psalm 117.

The middle chapter of the Bible is also the shortest chapter of the Bible. I do not consider it critical to identify the middle chapter of the Bible, but it is important not to repeat erroneous information.

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[i] Technically, Psalms 1-150 do not constitute chapters, but rather individual songs. However, for purposes of counting the numbers of chapters in the Bible, almost everyone includes them. It would be interesting, just out of curiosity, to check the middle chapter if the Psalms are excluded. 1189 - 150 = 1039, so the “middle chapter” counting only chapters and not Psalms will be the one that has 519 chapters before it and 519 chapters after it (519 + 1 + 519 = 1039).
[ii] I have not personally checked this count. This may be erroneous as well.