What does the Tanakh consist of?

Tanakh is the Hebrew acronym for Torah, Nevi’im, and Ketuvim: the Torah, Prophets, and Writings. These are the twenty-four books of the Written Torah in the traditional Jewish count (Bava Batra 14b; Shulchan Aruch, YD 246:4). The count groups some works differently from many English Bibles; for example, the Twelve Minor Prophets form one book.

Bava Batra 14b discusses the books and their order. Learning the divisions helps you locate a synagogue reading or a quoted verse: Esther and Psalms belong to Ketuvim, not to the Five Books of Moses. A reference such as “Deuteronomy 6:4” identifies a book, chapter, and verse; it is not a reference to a Talmudic page or a legal code.

A Beit Din may ask how the Written Torah differs from the Oral Torah. Shulchan Aruch distinguishes study of Scripture, Mishnah, and Talmud, including understanding how laws are derived and applied (YD 246:4). Orthodox observance therefore does not treat isolated biblical verses as a self-sufficient practical code. A common mistake is assuming 'Torah' always means all twenty-four books. In the context of the weekly reading it means the Five Books of Moses.