How many times is olive mentioned in the Bible?
The word olive appears 38 times in the King James Version, in 34 verses. Counting every form (olive, Olives), it appears 53 times in 48 verses across 26 of the 66 books. The World English Bible uses olive 45 times (61 with every form).
Olive in the King James Version and the World English Bible
Each form of olive counted in each translation.
| Form | KJV | WEB |
|---|---|---|
| olive | 38 | 45 |
| Olives | 15 | 16 |
| Total | 53 | 61 |
Which books mention olive most
Olive appears in 26 books of the 66 in the King James Version. Deuteronomy, Zechariah and Romans share the most, 5 each.
Also in: Nehemiah (1), Job (1), Jeremiah (1), Hosea (1), Amos (1), Micah (1), Habakkuk (1), Haggai (1), John (1), James (1), Revelation (1).
First and last mention of olive
And the dove came in to him in the evening; and, lo, in her mouth was an olive leaf pluckt off: so Noah knew that the waters were abated from off the earth.
These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth.
The verse that uses it most is Romans 11:24, 3 times:
For if thou wert cut out of the olive tree which is wild by nature, and wert graffed contrary to nature into a good olive tree: how much more shall these, which be the natural branches, be graffed into their own olive tree?
Where the two translations differ
2 verses match in the KJV but not in the World English Bible, and 8 verses match only in the World English Bible, usually because the other translation chose a different word there.
Luke 19:29: counted in the KJV only
And it came to pass, when he was come nigh to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount called the mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples,
When he came near to Bethsphage and Bethany, at the mountain that is called Olivet, he sent two of his disciples,
Luke 21:37: counted in the KJV only
And in the day time he was teaching in the temple; and at night he went out, and abode in the mount that is called the mount of Olives.
Every day Jesus was teaching in the temple, and every night he would go out and spend the night on the mountain that is called Olivet.
Exodus 23:11: counted in the World English Bible only
But the seventh year thou shalt let it rest and lie still; that the poor of thy people may eat: and what they leave the beasts of the field shall eat. In like manner thou shalt deal with thy vineyard, and with thy oliveyard.
but the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow, that the poor of your people may eat; and what they leave the animal of the field shall eat. In the same way, you shall deal with your vineyard and with your olive grove.
Joshua 24:13: counted in the World English Bible only
And I have given you a land for which ye did not labour, and cities which ye built not, and ye dwell in them; of the vineyards and oliveyards which ye planted not do ye eat.
I gave you a land whereon you had not labored, and cities which you didn’t build, and you live in them. You eat of vineyards and olive groves which you didn’t plant.’
Verses with olive on our topic pages
3 verses that use olive in the World English Bible are in our topic collections.
Your wife will be as a fruitful vine, in the innermost parts of your house; your children like olive plants, around your table.
For though the fig tree doesn’t flourish, nor fruit be in the vines; the labor of the olive fails, the fields yield no food; the flocks are cut off from the fold, and there is no herd in the stalls:
On: Worship
and cinnamon, incense, perfume, frankincense, wine, olive oil, fine flour, wheat, sheep, horses, chariots, and people’s bodies and souls.
Common questions
How many times is olive in the Old Testament and the New Testament?
In the King James Version, counting every form, 35 of the 53 uses are in the Old Testament and 18 in the New Testament. Olive appears in 26 books of the 66 in the King James Version. Deuteronomy, Zechariah and Romans share the most, 5 each.
Where is olive first mentioned in the Bible?
The first use in the King James Version is Genesis 8:11: "And the dove came in to him in the evening; and, lo, in her mouth was an olive leaf pluckt off: so Noah knew that the waters were abated from off the earth." The last is Revelation 11:4.
More word counts: fig, donkey, cherubim, frankincense, myrrh, hyssop, cedar, scorpion, 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.