How to Cite Scripture in Christian Books

 

Are you going to include scriptures in your dazzling manuscript? Whether you’re writing fiction or nonfiction, here are some things you need to know. 

Copyright and Permission Statements

If you’re using direct quotes of any scriptures in your book, you need to include a copyright and permission statement on the imprints page at the front. (That’s the page that has fun stuff on it like publisher details, copyright info, ISBNs etc.) If you’ve quoted from several different versions of the Bible, you will need a separate copyright and permission notice for each one.

The good news is that if you go to the websites for the publishers of the most common Bible versions, they will usually have information about permissions and may even have sample statements you can include. Sometimes you have to fish around on the site, go to the parent site, or use a few key words in Google. HarperCollins publishes a number of the popular Bibles and if you click HERE, you will find their permissions information.

From there, you can find the specific version you want. For example, if you click on the link there for the New International Version (NIV), they give a number of different permission statements including the following:

Scripture quotations marked (NIV) are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.®

Please note that the above is a sample only. You would delete the years that don’t apply to the version you used.

Also, be sure to read all of the information regarding what is permitted and what is not. For example, they say you can use up to 500 verses of the NIV without asking for written permission, as long as those verses don’t constitute a whole book of the Bible (among other things). So even though the book of Philippians has fewer than 500 verses in total, you cannot quote the whole of Philippians without asking for written permission.

If the Bible version you are looking for is not listed at that link, you’ll have to go to the website for their publisher and find the information. If you just do a Google search for the name of the Bible and permissions, you shouldn’t have any trouble locating it.

(Please note that I am giving advice here to the best of my ability, but I am not a lawyer or copyright expert. If in doubt, please check.)

How Many Bible Versions Should You Use?

This is like the ‘how long is a piece of string’ question. The various Bible versions sometimes use different words to bring out different meanings or nuances in the text. Some versions use plainer language than others. You may simply like one version more than another because it’s the one you grew up with or the one with which you’re most familiar. All of those are valid. However, remember that you need a separate copyright and permission statement for each. So unless the aim of your book is to compare various versions of the Bible, you probably need to ask yourself whether you really need to quote from ten different versions.

If you have one version you mainly use, and you just have a few quotes from other versions, you can also include a statement in your copyright notice, such as ‘Unless otherwise specified, all scriptures are from the Such and Such Bible’ and then give the rest of the copyright and permission statement for that Bible. The copyright and permission statements for the other Bibles would appear after that.

 

How Do You Actually Cite Scriptures in your Text?

There are a number of different ways in which you can cite or quote scripture, but two guiding principles are consistency and accuracy.

Consistency

When citing scripture, it’s good to use a consistent format throughout your book. If you have a traditional publisher, they may have their own house style for citing scriptures, so check that.

Although different formats are available, it’s typical to use the full name of a book from the Bible if it’s part of a sentence in your text, but to use the abbreviation if it’s in parentheses after the quote. For example:

‘In Galatians 5, Paul talks about the fruit of the Spirit.’ 

According to Paul, the fruit of the Spirit includes ‘love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control’ (Gal. 5:22–23a NIV). 

You’ll see there that you also include the Bible version when giving a direct quote, except where you have already included the ‘unless otherwise specified’ phrase in the copyright and permission statement on the imprints page. (Please see above.) However, if you’re just referring to something that was in the Bible and you’re not using a direct quote, you don’t have to note the version.

Technically speaking, you’re also supposed to use an en-dash rather than a hyphen to indicate a number range, including a range of verses (e.g., 14–17 rather than 14-17).

There are also standard abbreviations for the books of the Bible and different Bible translations. Again, these might differ depending on which guidelines you consult. However, I find the recommendations in the Chicago Manual of Style helpful, as they give a list of all abbreviations. Click HERE for lists of abbreviations for books of the Bible and versions of the Bible.

One of my clients asked if she had to use abbreviations in parentheses because she preferred to use the full names. From memory, I think she was indie-publishing a devotional book or gift book. My advice was that she could use the full names if she preferred, but be consistent. Either use the full names or the abbreviations in parentheses, but don’t chop and change.

Another issue regards when to use a block quotation versus just citing the scripture as part of a sentence.

If you have a long quote, you typically put that in a block quotation format rather than having it running on as part of a sentence. There are different ideas of what constitutes a long quote. One guideline is that you use a block quotation if you have 100 words or more, or eight lines of text or more, but some also use it for shorter quotes if they want them to stand out.

Block quotations are usually indented without quote marks, like this.

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. (Matt. 11:28–29 NIV)

And then you continue on with your text. Please note that in this case, there are no quote marks and the full stop comes at the end of the quote. If it was part of a sentence, you would do it this way:

Jesus says, ‘Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls’ (Matt. 11:28–29 NIV).

Please note that I've indented it as an example, but it would just appear as part of the regular text of your paragraph. Here, there are quote marks and the final full stop comes after the parentheses. An exception would be if the quote finishes with a question mark or an exclamation mark. In those cases, the punctuation mark would come before the closing quote mark.

If you want to omit a few words or phrase from a longer scripture, use ellipses to indicate the missing part (...). However, be sure that the words you omit do not change the meaning or context of the quoted material.

Should you use single or double quotation marks? Single quotation marks are more typical in Australia and double quotation marks are more popular in countries such as the United States. If you're unsure where you're sending your manuscript, maybe use double quotation marks initially, as they're easier to change with a global substitution later if need be. (If you try to do a global substitution on single quote marks, it will also pick up your apostrophes.) The same goes for dialogue.

What about quotes within quotes, such as scriptures that include some speech or dialogue? If you're using block quotations, then you only need quote marks around the bit of speech or dialogue. If you're citing the scripture within the text of a sentence, and you're using double quote marks across the manuscript, then put the double quotes around the whole scripture and single quotes around the piece of dialogue within. If you're using single quote marks throughout, then it's the opposite (i.e., single quotes around the whole scripture and double quote marks around the bit of dialogue within.) Confused? Maybe that's a case for using block quotations or rewording so that you don't need to use the messy quotes within quotes. The challenge is yours!

Although the examples above show the format typically used, there are other styles. If you're being traditionally published, check with your publisher. If you're indie-publishing, you can use a different style, but just be consistent in whatever style you use. If you're not sure yet whether you're going to be traditionally published or indie-publishing, the examples above are a good guide.

Accuracy

When using direct quotes from the Bible, be very careful in transcribing the exact words and punctuation, including different spelling. For example, if you are using Australian spelling throughout your book, but the quote is from an American version that uses American spelling, then use that American spelling in your quote. However, there are a few things you do not need to copy in your quote.

• You should not embed the verse numbers within your quote.
• If the version you are using has red type for Jesus' words, just use black in your quote.
• If the version you are using has superscripts for footnotes or endnotes within the passage, don't copy those over. Otherwise, your readers will think they refer to your own footnotes or endnotes, and they won't be able to find them.

Speaking of footnotes and endnotes, you may prefer to use these as a citation method if you have a lot of scriptures and the constant inclusion of verse and version could break the flow of your points. For example, say you're writing about Jesus' miracles and you have a sentence that lists six of them from different parts of the Gospels. Rather than giving the scripture reference after each miracle, you could put them in a footnote or endnote instead.

Versions of the Bible in Historical Fiction

We’re so familiar with some versions of the Bible, that it’s easy to forget they haven’t always been around. For example, the New Testament in the New International Version (NIV) was first published in 1973 and the complete NIV Bible was published in 1978. (Click here for details.)

So be sure your 1960s heroine doesn’t quote the NIV. You also might want to check that your 1940s characters don’t quote the Amplified Bible (it was first published between 1958 and 1965) and that your 1980s characters don’t quote from the Message version (it came out between 1993 and 2002). My historical novel Scattered was set in 1882, so my heroine consults the King James Version of the Bible. A quick google search should provide the details you need for your version.

This seems like a lot of information to take in, but just remember the four things you need to be aware of—copyright, permissions, consistency and accuracy. What could be simpler than that?  Okay, a lot of things could be simpler, but hopefully these guidelines will point you in the right direction.

Author Note

Nola Lorraine (aka Nola Passmore) is an author and editor whose poetry, inspirational articles, and short fiction have appeared in magazines, journals and anthologies in Australia and overseas. Her debut historical novel Scattered was short-listed for the CALEB award. She has qualifications in creative writing, psychology, and Christian ministry. She and her husband Tim have a freelance writing and editing business called The Write Flourish, which they operate from their home base in Toowoomba. She would love to connect with you through her websites.

Nola Lorraine Author website - https://www.nolalorraine.com.au/

The Write Flourish - https://thewriteflourish.com.au/

Picture Sources

Author photo by Wayne Logan from WRLPhoto.

Featured photo by andremsantana on Pixabay.