How many times is priest mentioned in the Bible?
The word priest appears 498 times in the King James Version, in 443 verses. Counting every form (priest, priests, priest's), it appears 944 times in 833 verses across 35 of the 66 books. The World English Bible uses priest 501 times (943 with every form).
Priest in the King James Version and the World English Bible
Each form of priest counted in each translation.
| Form | KJV | WEB |
|---|---|---|
| priest | 498 | 501 |
| priests | 399 | 404 |
| priest's | 47 | 38 |
| Total | 944 | 943 |
Which books mention priest most
Priest appears in 35 books of the 66 in the King James Version. Leviticus has the most (195), then 2 Chronicles (90) and Numbers (74).
Also in: Mark (24), Luke (23), John (22), 1 Chronicles (21), Deuteronomy (15), Judges (15), Haggai (8), Genesis (7), 2 Samuel (7), Isaiah (6), Lamentations (6), Hosea (6), Zechariah (6), Psalms (5), Joel (3), Malachi (3), Revelation (3), Zephaniah (2), Amos (1), Micah (1).
First and last mention of priest
And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God.
Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.
The verse that uses it most is Leviticus 14:36, 3 times (tied with Leviticus 27:8, Judges 18:19, 2 Chronicles 13:9, 2 Chronicles 29:34, 2 Chronicles 35:14):
Then the priest shall command that they empty the house, before the priest go into it to see the plague, that all that is in the house be not made unclean: and afterward the priest shall go in to see the house:
Where the two translations differ
5 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.
Exodus 29:9: counted in the KJV only
And thou shalt gird them with girdles, Aaron and his sons, and put the bonnets on them: and the priest’s office shall be theirs for a perpetual statute: and thou shalt consecrate Aaron and his sons.
You shall clothe them with belts, Aaron and his sons, and bind headbands on them: and they shall have the priesthood by a perpetual statute: and you shall consecrate Aaron and his sons.
Leviticus 16:30: counted in the KJV only
For on that day shall the priest make an atonement for you, to cleanse you, that ye may be clean from all your sins before the LORD.
for on this day shall atonement be made for you, to cleanse you; from all your sins you shall be clean before Yahweh.
Leviticus 22:15: counted in the World English Bible only
And they shall not profane the holy things of the children of Israel, which they offer unto the LORD;
The priests shall not profane the holy things of the children of Israel, which they offer to Yahweh,
Job 12:19: counted in the World English Bible only
He leadeth princes away spoiled, and overthroweth the mighty.
He leads priests away stripped, and overthrows the mighty.
Verses with priest on our topic pages
10 verses that use priest in the World English Bible are in our topic collections.
For we don’t have a high priest who can’t be touched with the feeling of our infirmities, but one who has been in all points tempted like we are, yet without sin.
On: Temptation, Sin, What Does the Bible Say About Masturbation? 25 Verses, What Does the Bible Say About Pornography? 28 Verses
Moreover he commanded the people who lived in Jerusalem to give the portion of the priests and the Levites, that they might give themselves to Yahweh’s law.
On: Tithing
They also reel with wine, and stagger with strong drink. The priest and the prophet reel with strong drink. They are swallowed up by wine. They stagger with strong drink. They err in vision. They stumble in judgment.
On: Alcohol
“Speak to all the people of the land, and to the priests, saying, ‘When you fasted and mourned in the fifth and in the seventh month for these seventy years, did you at all fast to me, really to me?
On: Fasting
Then one of the twelve, who was called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests,
On: Betrayal
There were seven sons of one Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, who did this.
On: Demons
For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of God Most High, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him,
On: Tithing
They indeed of the sons of Levi who receive the priest’s office have a commandment to take tithes of the people according to the law, that is, of their brothers, though these have come out of the body of Abraham,
On: Tithing
and having a great priest over God’s house,
On: Communion
Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over these, the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and will reign with him one thousand years.
On: Resurrection
Common questions
How many times is priest in the Old Testament and the New Testament?
In the King James Version, counting every form, 785 of the 944 uses are in the Old Testament and 159 in the New Testament. Priest appears in 35 books of the 66 in the King James Version. Leviticus has the most (195), then 2 Chronicles (90) and Numbers (74).
Where is priest first mentioned in the Bible?
The first use in the King James Version is Genesis 14:18: "And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God." The last is Revelation 20:6.
More word counts: wife, wicked, mountain, tree, vine, eagle, horse, camel, or all 253 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 2026-10-05.