How many times is Bethel mentioned in the Bible?
The word Bethel appears 66 times in the King James Version, in 59 verses. It is found in 13 of the 66 books. The World English Bible uses Bethel 69 times.
Bethel in the King James Version and the World English Bible
Each form of Bethel counted in each translation.
| Form | KJV | WEB |
|---|---|---|
| Bethel | 66 | 69 |
| Total | 66 | 69 |
First and last mention of Bethel
And he removed from thence unto a mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, having Bethel on the west, and Hai on the east: and there he builded an altar unto the LORD, and called upon the name of the LORD.
But prophesy not again any more at Bethel: for it is the king’s chapel, and it is the king’s court.
The verse that uses it most is Genesis 12:8, 2 times (tied with Genesis 13:3, Judges 21:19, 1 Kings 12:32, 1 Kings 13:11, 2 Kings 2:2 and 1 more):
And he removed from thence unto a mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, having Bethel on the west, and Hai on the east: and there he builded an altar unto the LORD, and called upon the name of the LORD.
Where the two translations differ
2 verses match in the KJV but not in the World English Bible, and 5 verses match only in the World English Bible, usually because the other translation chose a different word there.
Joshua 8:17: counted in the KJV only
And there was not a man left in Ai or Bethel, that went not out after Israel: and they left the city open, and pursued after Israel.
There was not a man left in Ai or Beth El who didn’t go out after Israel. They left the city open, and pursued Israel.
1 Kings 13:1: counted in the KJV only
And, behold, there came a man of God out of Judah by the word of the LORD unto Bethel: and Jeroboam stood by the altar to burn incense.
Behold, a man of God came out of Judah by Yahweh’s word to Beth El; and Jeroboam was standing by the altar to burn incense.
Judges 20:18: counted in the World English Bible only
And the children of Israel arose, and went up to the house of God, and asked counsel of God, and said, Which of us shall go up first to the battle against the children of Benjamin? And the LORD said, Judah shall go up first.
The children of Israel arose, went up to Bethel, and asked counsel of God. They asked, “Who shall go up for us first to battle against the children of Benjamin?” Yahweh said, “Judah first.”
Judges 20:26: counted in the World English Bible only
Then all the children of Israel, and all the people, went up, and came unto the house of God, and wept, and sat there before the LORD, and fasted that day until even, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the LORD.
Then all the children of Israel, and all the people, went up, and came to Bethel, and wept, and sat there before Yahweh, and fasted that day until evening; then they offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before Yahweh.
Verses with Bethel on our topic pages
1 verse that uses Bethel in the World English Bible is in our topic collections.
Elijah said to Elisha, “Please wait here, for Yahweh has sent me as far as Bethel.” Elisha said, “As Yahweh lives, and as your soul lives, I will not leave you.” So they went down to Bethel.
On: Friendship
Common questions
How many times is Bethel in the Old Testament and the New Testament?
In the King James Version, counting every form, 66 of the 66 uses are in the Old Testament and 0 in the New Testament. Bethel appears in 13 books of the 66 in the King James Version. Genesis has the most (12), then Joshua (10) and 1 Kings (10).
Where is Bethel first mentioned in the Bible?
The first use in the King James Version is Genesis 12:8: "And he removed from thence unto a mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, having Bethel on the west, and Hai on the east: and there he builded an altar unto the LORD, and called upon the name of the LORD." The last is Amos 7:13.
More word counts: Shechem, Bashan, Syria, Gilgal, Persia, Macedonia, Ephesus, Corinth, or all 484 words.
Counted by Bible Says About from the full public-domain text of the King James Version (1769 edition) and the World English Bible. Verse text only: headings and psalm titles are left out. A word is a run of letters: a hyphenated name like Beer-sheba counts as two, and an apostrophe stays inside its word (LORD'S is one). Matching ignores capital letters. Data compiled 2026-10-22.