Olin & Uris Libraries

How to Find and Cite Bible Entries

The Online Catalog ~ The Card Catalog ~ Citing the Bible

FINDING BIBLE ENTRIES IN THE ONLINE CATALOG

All books of the Bible, criticism, exegeses, texts of the New and Old Testaments and all other Bible-related materials in Uris Library and in Olin Library will be located by searching the online catalog. Such searches may be initiated under title, subject or uniform title entry (see example I below). Uniform titles serve to bring similar works together in one list.

Example I: Uniform title entry for a specific title search

Subject searches will result in a Subject Heading screen from which you will be required to choose specific items. Once you have made your choice, the next screen, a Title List of those titles held by Cornell, will again require that you opt for a specific number or numbers. The third screen will then provide you with a BIBLIOGRAPHIC RECORD. (See examples II, III, and IV below.)

Example II: The Subject Heading List Screen

Entering APOCRYPHA as a Subject search displays a screen listing 50 subject headings beginning with APOCRYPHA and the subheadings under each:

Example III: The Title List Screen

Click on the 14th entry of the Subject Heading List screen displays all the items under the subject heading APOCRYPHAL BOOKS --CRITICISM, INTERPRETATION, ETC.

Example IV: The BIBLIOGRAPHIC RECORD

Clicking on entry #3 on the Title List screen displays the record for the third item listed, a book titled Old and New Testaments... :

FOOTNOTES AND BIBLIOGRAPHIC REFERENCES TO THE BIBLE

The Bible is most commonly cited by including an abbreviation for the name of the specific book of the Bible, the chapter, and the verse. A list of abbreviations for the various books of the Bible may be found in many style manuals (e.g., MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers) and in the prefatory matter of most bibles. Use a colon to separate the chapter and verse(s). For example:

Gen. 20: 1-13

cites the Book of Genesis, Chapter 20, Verses 1 through 13.

In biblical references, the King James version of the Bible is assumed unless another version is specified. For example, if you are citing the New American Bible and not the King James verison, the above citation would read:

Gen. 20: 1-13 (NAB)

where NAB is the standard abbreviation for the New American Bible version.

Markup updated 03 April 2006
Michael Engle; Fred Muratori
URL: http://www.library.cornell.edu/olinuris/ref/skill04.html